Digital Rights Weekly | December 12 - 24

Wed Dec 21 21:37:38 CET 2022

Hello Digital Rights Defenders!

Please note, Team CommUNITY will be closed from Thursday, December 22,
2022 to Sunday January 8th 2023. We will be back at work from Monday
January 9th, 2023.  We wish all our readers a peaceful and happy time
over the break!

Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the
weeks of December 19 - 24. As a reminder, you can submit your news for
the newsletter here:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

### Digital Justice Corner ###

Digital justice, digital rights, internet freedom, we love using these
grandiose terms and keep forgetting about what is happening in our
immediate surroundings. If my work requires me to be connected ten
hours a day to my smartphone, am I exercising digital freedom?

One of the policies of our recent Digital Justice Every Day pamphlet
is The Right to Disconnect, which entitles you to have clearly defined
work hours. It also entitles you to unplug and not to have to look at
email or to have any work contact when those work hours are over,.
Many companies have implemented this and it is even regulated in some
countries. The benefits of having significant amounts of off-screen
time are real and my invitation is for you to explore the
possibilities of a healthier digital lifestyle. As the Riseup
Collective friends like to say: “get off the internet, i’ll see you in
the streets”.

//The following corner is a recurring column written by Danae Tapia,
TCU Global Community Manager. More info here:
https://www.digitaljustice.house //

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### Digital Rights in the Community ###

1. Apply for a Grant with NLnet Foundation

Do you have a valuable idea in the area of internet-related technology
that could contribute towards achieving a more open information
society and bring us the next generation of the internet closer? Or do
you have an existing project that requires additional effort to enable
further development? Then submit your proposal to the NLnet foundation
and see if they can help you. Deadline: February 1st 12:00 pm CET

https://nlnet.nl/news/2022/20221201-call.html

2. Applications for the UC Berkeley TechPolicy Fellowship Are Now Open

The UC Berkeley Tech Policy Fellows program offers scholars and
practitioners the opportunity to spend six months to a year as a
non-residential fellow at UC Berkeley to conduct research and develop
technical or policy interventions that support responsible technology
development and use. Application deadline is January 18, 2023.

https://citrispolicylab.org/techpolicyfellows/

3. Registration for RightsCon is Now Open!

Registration is now open for the 12th edition of RightsCo taking place
in Costa Rica and online from June 5 to 8, 2023. Early bird tickets
available until March 13, 2023.  Whether you’re joining in-person or
online, the RightsCon ticket is an all-access pass to hundreds of
collaborative, strategic, and creative sessions designed to move
forward your work.

https://www.rightscon.org/attend/

4. CiviCert Develops Tech Care Guide

CiviCert developed Tech Care, a step-by-step guide to providing
digital support for civil society developed to enable smaller
organizations and grassroots groups to set up a team to respond to the
digital safety needs of the people they work and fight with. It
provides templates for developing your help desk's policies. Tech Care
is available in English and Spanish.

https://tech-care.civicert.org/

5. Paradigm Initiative Launches Short Film on Digital Rights Inclusion

Paradigm Initiative (PIN), a leading Pan African human rights and
advocacy organization, launched its short film online to commemorate
this year’s International Human Rights Day. The movie, Finding Diana,
which is inspired by the organization’s 2021 Londa report, was
showcased live on YouTube. The 2021 Londa report highlights the state
of digital rights and inclusion in 22 countries across the continent.
You can now watch it here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_qi_wlul3c

6. New Reports This Month:

Digital Rights Lab Sudan reinforces the call against internet
shutdowns which violate resident’s digital rights.
https://twitter.com/DRLab_Sudan

Human Rights Watch Tells the Greece Parliament: Withdraw Problematic
Surveillance Bill
https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/12/08/greece-problematic-surveillance-bill

New Report from Human Rights First Shows How QAnon Extremists Exploit
U.S. Military and Threaten Democracy
https://humanrightsfirst.org/library/digital-soldiers/

New Meta Report Says That Surveillance-For-Hire Industry Continues to Thrive
https://about.fb.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Threat-Report-on-the-Surveillance-for-Hire-Industry.pdf

7. New Statements this Month

Article19 to UNESCO: Proposed Digital Platforms Framework Could
Threaten Free Speech
https://www.article19.org/resources/unesco-digital-platforms-framework-threatens-free-speech-online/

Thailand: Content Takedown Rules Will Undermine Free Expression Online
https://www.article19.org/resources/thailand-content-takedown-regulation/

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### Digital Rights Resources ###

1. A Coy-Tale: Queer Cyber Intimacy and the Surveilled Subject

This piece by a feminist digital rights activist in Egypt unpacks how
the knowledge of surveillance in her Egyptian context of technology,
culture and economy, shape this experience of cyber intimacy and, in
particular, cybersex.

https://genderit.org/feminist-talk/coy-tale-queer-cyber-intimacy-and-surveilled-subject

2. Press Under Attack in 2023: Digital Strategies to Intimidate
Journalists in Latin America

Access Now has compiled a recap of some of the strategies of digital
attacks used against the media and journalists in Latin America to
undermine their privacy and freedom of expression.

https://www.accessnow.org/press-under-attack-latin-america/

3. The Effects of Internet Shutdowns on Public Mobilization

As the web becomes a witness to rights abuses on the ground, the rise
of the human rights–internet nexus has increased the scholarly
interest in how traditional human rights issues play out in the
digital realm. Many argue that new technologies empower civil society
by lowering mobilization costs, thus facilitating protest movements
and other forms of mobilized dissent.

https://advox.globalvoices.org/2022/12/13/the-effects-of-internet-shutdowns-on-public-mobilization/

4.   A Roomba Recorded a Woman On the Toilet. How Did Screenshots End
Up on Facebook?

Robot vacuum companies say your images are safe, but a sprawling
global supply chain for data from our devices creates risk.

https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/12/19/1065306/roomba-irobot-robot-vacuums-artificial-intelligence-training-data-privacy/

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### Digital Rights in the Wider World ###

1. Electricity and Telecoms Return to Only Parts of Tigray Following
Cease-Fire with Ethiopia

Basic services like electricity and telecoms have been restored to key
parts of Ethiopia’s Tigray region following the signing of a
cease-fire deal a month ago, but most areas are still cut off from the
world. The agreement signed on November 2 requires Ethiopia’s federal
government to restore basic services to Tigray, which has been mostly
without phone, internet and banking services since war erupted two
years ago. Power has also been disrupted to the region of more than 5
million people.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/electricity-telecoms-return-to-parts-of-tigray-following-cease-fire-with-ethiopia

The internet blackout, however, continues.

https://qz.com/power-is-back-in-tigray-after-22-months-1849868033

2. Data Privacy Rights Advance in Tanzania Under New Law, But Obstacles Remain

While Tanzania is on the right path as far as enacting a Data
Protection Act is concerned, the government needs to embrace public
participation in the making of this legislation. It will allow the
public’s views to be identified and incorporated into the bill. It
will make it possible to come up with a Data Protection Act that meets
the privacy threshold as envisioned by Tanzanians, one capable of
dealing with the key issues identified and raised by digital rights
activists, as was the case when the government implemented the Digital
ID program, and the biometric SIM card registration initiative.

https://advox.globalvoices.org/2022/12/16/data-privacy-rights-advance-in-tanzania-under-new-law-but-obstacles-remain/

3. Digital Legislation Updates in The EU, from Digital Workers to
Information Exchange with the U.S.

Last week, the European Union concluded its work on a declaration to
enshrine its commitment for a secure, safe and sustainable digital
future. The aim, they say, is to place people at the center of an
increasingly digital world. What will the declaration mean for EU
businesses and citizens?

https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2022/12/15/the-eu-just-signed-its-declaration-on-digital-rights-and-principles-but-what-is-it

The EU Employment Committee adopted a draft negotiating mandate on new
rules to improve the working conditions in platform work. They would
regulate how to correctly determine the employment status of platform
workers and how digital labor platforms should use algorithms and
artificial intelligence to monitor and evaluate workers.

https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/pt/press-room/20221212IPR64513/digital-workers-better-working-conditions-and-protection-of-rights

4. Elon Musk’s Twitter Continues to Threaten Digital Rights & Press Freedom

To start with, Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council no longer exists.
The advisory council of 100 independent civil, human rights, and other
organizations was due to meet with Twitter representatives on December
12. But before the meeting, an email informed the group that Twitter
was disbanding the committee, the AP reported citing multiple members
who shared images of the email and spoke on the condition of
anonymity.

https://qz.com/elon-musk-twitter-trust-safety-council-1849886442

The Center for Democracy and Technology issued a statement condemning
the disbanding of the council, stating that “The abrupt disbanding of
Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council is yet another arbitrary and
irresponsible decision about content moderation processes under
Twitter’s new ownership.”

https://cdt.org/press/cdt-condemns-disbanding-of-twitter-trust-and-safety-council/

Twitter also suspended the accounts of more than a dozen journalists
critical of the platform’s owner from CNN, the New York Times, The
Washington Post, among other outlets.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2022/12/twitters-decision-to-suspend-journalists-accounts-threatens-press-freedom/

5. Amazon Investors Demand Answers About Its Cloud’s Human Rights Record

Amazon’s Marketing Material boasts that more than 7,500 government
agencies worldwide use its cloud computing service AWS. Some of its
investors fear those contracts include projects that see the company’s
technology contribute to human rights violations. At the company’s
next annual meeting, shareholders will be asked to pressure the
company over contracts with US immigration and the Israeli government.

https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-investors-demand-answers-about-its-clouds-human-rights-record/

6. Facial Recognition Powers Domestic Operations for China’s Growing
Surveillance State

Protesters calling for change in the Chinese government are up against
China’s extensive facial recognition surveillance network. The Chinese
regime has spent years building up the world’s largest state security
apparatus, including a massive facial recognition surveillance
network, a corresponding biometric database, and a national ID card
system.

https://www.biometricupdate.com/202212/facial-recognition-powers-domestic-operations-for-chinas-growing-surveillance-state

However, protesters in China continue to bypass online censorship to
express dissent. Chinese social media platforms like Wechat, Sina
Weibo, and Douyin are heavily censored and monitored for rule-breaking
content. They also require new users to link their national ID
information to any accounts they create. As a result, Webster says
users have had to become creative in expressing any views critical of
the Chinese government.

https://www.npr.org/2022/12/08/1141335778/china-zero-covid-lockdown-protests-online-xi-jinping-censorship

7. Human Rights Watch Detects Child’s Rights Abuses by Russian
Government Endorsed Online Learning During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Human Rights Watch investigated seven of the education technology
(EdTech) products endorsed by Russia’s education ministry on March 20,
2020, for use in distance learning for students in primary and
secondary school. All of these products also invisibly tagged and
digitally fingerprinted children in ways that were impossible to avoid
or get rid of without throwing the device away. Human Rights Watch
detected all seven EdTech products transmitting children’s personal
data to advertising technology (AdTech) companies.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/12/12/russia-submission-un-committee-rights-child

8. Syria’s Newest Mobile Operator Has a Hidden Link to Iran’s
Revolutionary Guard

Syria’s licensing of a third mobile operator, Wafa Telecom, looked
like another effort by authorities to seize control of the lucrative
telecoms sector. But the Assad government may also be using the
license to compensate its ally Iran.

https://www.occrp.org/en/investigations/syrias-newest-mobile-operator-has-a-hidden-link-to-irans-revolutionary-guard

9. Iran’s Government Accesses the Social Media Accounts of Those It Detains

As protests continue in Iran, much of the attention has focused on the
Iranian government’s efforts to shut down the internet. But behind the
scenes, some worry the government is using technology in another way:
accessing mobile applications to surveil and suppress dissent.

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/12/19/business/iran-social-media-accounts-intl-cmd/index.html

Last month, the U.N. Human Rights Council (HRC) established the first
international fact-finding mission on Iran investigating human rights
violations committed during the protests. While the practical impact
of the U.N. mission remains to be seen, it is important to keep the
human rights situation in Iran in the spotlight and on the HRC agenda
going forward.

https://www.justsecurity.org/84467/the-u-n-fact-finding-mission-an-accountability-turn-for-iran/

_________________________________________________

### Grants, Fellowships, & Awards ###

The following opportunities are open to individual digital rights
defenders and to organizations. If you would like us to include a
grant, fellowship or award in this newsletter, please email details to
team at digitalrights.community
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/Fundraising_Opportunities

Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society
Harvard University
Deadline: January 9, 2023
https://cyber.harvard.edu/getinvolved/fellowships/2324Fellows

The Risktakers Fellowship
Deadline: January 15, 2023
https://risktakers.space/fellowship/

PhD Scholarships in Digital Governance
The Hertie School
January 31, 2023
https://www.hertie-school.org/en/digital-governance/about/opportunities/phd-scholarships-in-digital-governance

Digital Freedom Fund
Deadline: February 28, 2023
https://digitalfreedomfund.org/grants/

NLnet
Deadline: February 1, 2023
https://nlnet.nl/news/2022/20221201-call.html

Incident Emergency Fund
Digital Defenders Partnership
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.digitaldefenders.org/incident-emergency-fund/

Safety Net Fund
Deadline: Ongoing
https://wphfund.org/whrds-safety-net/

Internet Freedom Fund
Open Technology Fund
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.opentech.fund/funds/internet-freedom-fund/

Rapid Response Fund
Open Tech Fund
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.opentech.fund/funds/rapid-response-fund/

Rapid Response Fund
Derechos Digitales
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.derechosdigitales.org/sobre-el-fondo-de-respuesta-rapida/

Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://urgentactionfund.org/

Open Briefing’s Responsive Assistance
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://www.openbriefing.org/support/referral/

Secure Usability and Accessibility Lab
Open Tech Fund
Deadline: Rolling
https://www.opentech.fund/labs/sua-lab/
_________________________________________________

### Events Calendar ###

AMA Evidence Lab: feminist and ethical perspectives on OSINT
Glitter Meetup
9am EST / 2pm UTC
January 12, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_12_2023_GM

LATAM Monthly Meetup
6:30pm EST / 10:30pm UTC
January 18, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=18_de_Enero,_2023_LATAM

Africa Monthly Meetup
8am EST / 1pm UTC
January 26th, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_26_2023,_Africa_Meetup

How to use the world’s largest online library of secrets
Glitter Meetup
9am EST / 2pm uTC
January 26th, 2023
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_26_2023_GM

RightsCon
Access Now
June 5 - 8, 2023
Hybrid
https://www.rightscon.org/attend/

Check out a list of our virtual events here:
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/Calendar_of_Events
_________________________________________________

### NEW Job Opportunities  ###

Below is a short list of jobs sent to us in the last week.

Want to see more jobs? OR Have a job opening you want us to promote?
Check out the Team CommUNITY Job Board:
https://www.digitalrights.community/job-board

✎ iOS Developer | Horizontal
+ Remote
https://wearehorizontal.org/job-post-sr-ios.html

✎ Legal Fellow (Summer 2023) | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/77cac58d1us

✎ Deputy Director | Free Software Foundation
+ Boston, MA, USA
https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-job-opportunity-deputy-director

✎ Web developer (Chrome extension) | eQualitie
+ Remote
https://equalit.ie/job-post/chrome-extension-developer-for-the-dweb/

✎ CENO & Deflect regional ambassadors | eQualitie
+ Remote
https://equalit.ie/job-post/regional-ambassadors-for-ceno-deflect/

✎ Emerging Scholars | Center for Information Technology Policy,
Princeton University
+ Princeton, NJ, USA
https://citp.princeton.edu/programs/citp-emerging-scholars-in-information-policy/

✎ Fundraising and External Relations Coordinator | Asia Justice and Rights
+ Indonesia
https://asia-ajar.org/work-with-ajar/

✎ Advocacy Officer | Privacy International
+ London, UK
https://privacyinternational.org/opportunities/5006/advocacy-officer

✎ Regional Project Manager Francophone Africa | Digital Defenders Partnership
+ Francophone Africa
https://www.digitaldefenders.org/open-vacancy-regional-project-manager-francophone-africa/

✎ Short-Term Consultancy: Anti-Censorship Technologist | Internews
+ Remote
https://phf.tbe.taleo.net/phf04/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=INTERNEWS&cws=38&rid=1956

✎ Research Director for China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan | Freedom House
+ Washington, DC or New York, NY, USA
https://phe.tbe.taleo.net/phe01/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=FREEHOUS&cws=1&rid=1328

✎ Partnerships Manager | Center for Intimacy Justice
+ Remote, USA preferred
https://www.intimacyjustice.org/careers

✎ Manager, Algorithmic Equality Program (for Sexual & Reproductive
Health) | Center for Intimacy Justice
+ Remote, USA preferred
https://www.intimacyjustice.org/careers

✎ Specialist, Open Source Digital Safety Tools | Internews
+ Remote
https://phf.tbe.taleo.net/phf04/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=INTERNEWS&cws=38&rid=1950

✎ Service Desk Technician Tier 1 (Contract) | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/c263095e1us

✎ Senior Policy Counsel (broadband, open internet) | Open Technology Institute
+ Washington, DC, USA
https://newamerica.applytojob.com/apply/noFYOwB2L6/

✎ Policy Director | Open Technology Institute
+ Washington, DC, USA
https://newamerica.applytojob.com/apply/pl4f2yrenG/

✎ Legal Officer | Privacy International
+ London, UK
https://privacyinternational.org/opportunities/4999/legal-officer

✎ Systems Administrator | Riseup Networks
+ Remote
http://riseup.net/labor

✎ Program Officer, Internet Freedom & Resilience | Internews
+ Remote
https://phf.tbe.taleo.net/phf04/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=INTERNEWS&cws=38&rid=1944

If you feel like sending some digital glitter our way, or need further
assistance, feel free to reply to this message.
_________________________________________________

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### Want to partner with us?###

If you have any questions or want to learn more about partnerships,
get in touch at team at digitalrights.community. We are always looking
for like-minded organizations and people.

(((Hugs & light)))
--
Team CommUNITY at ARTICLE 19
www.digitalrights.community
Organizers of the Internet Freedom Festival
PGP: 2E1D CC33 A362 0BD6 236E  540A F60A 89AD 6FF9 7A2F

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