Electronic Frontier Foundation

Fed up with Meta? Avoiding Instagram or Facebook isn’t enough to stop Meta from harvesting and profiting from your private information. Here’s how to limit Meta’s ability to monetize your personal data.

Mad at Meta? Don't Let Them Collect and Monetize Your Personal Data

If you’re fed up with Meta right now, you’re not alone. Meta tracks you across millions of websites and apps and its business model relies on your data. If you want to limit Meta’s ability to collect ...

After almost twenty years on the platform, EFF is logging off of X.

This isn’t a decision we made lightly, but it might be overdue. 🧵 (1/5)
www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...

EFF is Leaving X

After almost twenty years on the platform, EFF is logging off of X. This isn’t a decision we made lightly, but it might be overdue.

VICTORY! After over a decade, a federal court has declared that warrantless backdoor searches of US person’s communications collected under Section 702 of FISA is unconstitutional.

VICTORY! Federal Court (Finally) Rules Backdoor Searches of 702 Data Unconstitutional

Better late than never: last night a federal district court held that backdoor searches of databases full of Americans’ private communications collected under Section 702 ordinarily require a warrant....

BREAKING: We are suing DOGE and the Office of Personnel Management to stop the brazen and illegal data sharing of federal employee data with the “government efficiency” group.

EFF Sues DOGE and the Office of Personnel Management to Halt Ransacking of Federal Data

EFF and a coalition of privacy defenders have filed a lawsuit today asking a federal court to block Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing the private information of mil...

By leaving insecure tracking devices on the open internet, “police have not only breached public trust but created a bounty of location data for everyone who drives by which can be abused by stalkers & other criminals,” EFF’s @cooperq.com told @wired.com.

License Plate Readers Are Leaking Real-Time Video Feeds and Vehicle Data

Misconfigured license-plate-recognition systems reveal the livestreams of individual cameras and the wealth of data they collect about every vehicle that passes by them.

“People looking for alternative social media apps should be cautious about the privacy implications of sharing information with an app that has not yet seen substantial public scrutiny outside of China,” EFF’s @cooperq.com told @theverge.com.

As Americans flock to RedNote, privacy advocates warn about surveillance

Privacy advocates are also warning against using the app.

Reply to @eff.org

When you go online, your rights should go with you. X is no longer where the fight is happening. Our work protecting digital rights is needed more than ever before, and we’re here to help you take back control. eff.org/donate (5/5)

Defend Privacy and Free Speech

Donate to the Electronic Frontier Foundation and support the mission to defend civil liberties and human rights online.

ICE is buying a location tracking tool that harvests data from hundreds of millions of phones a day. Protect your location data by updating a few settings on your phone 🧵 (1/4): www.404media.co/ice-to-buy-...

ICE to Buy Tool that Tracks Locations of Hundreds of Millions of Phones Every Day

Documents show that ICE has gone back on its decision to not use location data remotely harvested from peoples' phones. The database is updated every day with billions of pieces of location data.

Reply to @eff.org

Twitter was never a utopia. We've criticized the platform for about as long as it's been around. Still, Twitter did deserve recognition from time to time for vociferously fighting for its users' rights. That changed. (2/5)

Reply to @eff.org

Our continued presence on other platforms like Facebook and TikTok is not an endorsement. We stay because the people there deserve access to info, too. We stay because the fewer steps between you and the resources you need to protect yourself, the better. (4/5)

Reply to @eff.org

EFF exists to protect people's digital rights. Not just the people who already value our work, have opted out of surveillance, or have already migrated to the fediverse. The people who need us most are often the ones most embedded in the walled gardens of the mainstream platforms. (3/5)

VICTORY! Ring has announced it will no longer facilitate warrantless police requests for footage to Ring’s users. This comes after years of sustained pressure from EFF and other civil liberties and privacy advocates.

Victory! Ring Announces It Will No Longer Facilitate Police Requests

Amazon’s Ring has announced that it will no longer facilitate police's warrantless requests for footage from Ring users. This is a victory in a long fight, not just against blanket police

Signal's a great app to keep your communications secure, but make sure you know the identities of the users in your group chats.

Our SSD guide on how to use Signal includes guidance on managing your group chat preferences.

If the US is serious about protecting people’s data from ending up in the hands of foreign adversaries, Congress should toss out the TikTok ban and instead pass comprehensive data privacy legislation to prevent the collection of data in the first place.

Congress Should Give Up on Unconstitutional TikTok Bans

Congress’ unfounded plan to ban TikTok under the guise of protecting our data is back, this time in the form of a new bill—the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications

It's Women's History Month! All March, we're highlighting women who've taken valuable steps for technology, privacy, security, and free expression for us all. We encourage you to learn more, get inspired by their accomplishments, and tell us about women in tech that you admire.

Locking down your phone, being mindful of what you're wearing, and coming up with plans to communicate with others are all key steps to take before attending a protest.

📢 BREAKING NEWS 📢
EFF and co-counsel have filed a lawsuit against the Departments of State and Homeland Security for their viewpoint-based surveillance and suppression of First Amendment-protected speech online. (1/5)

🚨THE KIDS ACT IS AN INTERNET SURVEILLANCE BILL🚨

Congress is rushing the KIDS Act toward a vote. This blend of KOSA, the SCREEN Act, SAFE Bots, and other bills is a single package that is a threat to privacy and free expression for ALL internet users. 🧵(1/10)

KOSA, just passed by the Senate 91-3, will allow politicians and federal commissioners to decide what Americans should read and watch online. It’s a blatant attack on our free speech.

The KOSA Internet Censorship Bill Just Passed The Senate—It's Our

The Senate just passed a bill that will let the federal and state governments investigate and sue websites that they claim cause kids mental distress. It’s a terrible idea to let politicians and

Our case is fairly simple: OPM’s data is extraordinarily sensitive, OPM gave it to DOGE, and this violates the Privacy Act.

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Law enforcement exercising their official duties in public do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy. This includes ICE agents. As long as you are not interfering with their duties, you generally have a right to record them on duty.

Yes, You Have the Right to Film ICE

Across the United States, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has already begun increasing enforcement operations, including highly publicized raids. As immigrant communities, families, allies, ...

The Department of Government Efficiency is ransacking multiple federal agencies, without oversight or safeguards, and EFF is glad to join the brigade of lawsuits to protect this critical information.

EFF Sues DOGE and the Office of Personnel Management to Halt Ransacking of Federal Data

EFF and a coalition of privacy defenders have filed a lawsuit today asking a federal court to block Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing the private information of mil...

We must recognize the danger that age verification laws have beyond pornography. They could clear the way for politicians to deem harmful any content they disagree with, such as LGBTQ+ content or content about abortion.

The Impact of Age Verification Measures Goes Beyond Porn Sites

As age verification bills pass across the world under the guise of “keeping children safe online,” governments are increasingly giving themselves the authority to decide what topics are deemed “safe” ...

Happy Amazon Prime Day! Amazon collects mountains of data about how you use the service, but there is a setting you can change to make it harder for the company to use that data to sell you more things. #OptOutOctober www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...