Digital Rights Weekly | May 9 - 13

Fri May 13 19:01:30 CEST 2022

Hello Digital Rights Defenders!

Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the
weeks of May 9 - 13. As a reminder,  you can submit your news for the
newsletter here: https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

###  Upcoming Virtual TCU Events ###

May 18 | MENA Meetup: #FreeAlaa
The meetup will focus on brainstorming collective action to support
Alaa Abdelfattah, who has been on hunger strike since April 2, 2022.
Time is of the essence.
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/May_18_2022,_MENA_Meetup

May 18 | Lingua Cafe
Improve your language skills and connect with other digital rights defenders!
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/linguacafe_7

May 24 | CKS: Tor on Mobile Devices, Pluggable Transports / Snowflake
Featured guests David Oliver and Fabiola Maurice will give an overview
of how Guardian Project tools connect you with Tor.
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/cks56

June 16 | Digital Rights Job Fair
See description below

## Team CommUNITY Update ##

1. Are you a Technologist Looking for a Job in Digital Rights? Join us
on June 16

If you know technologists wanting to work at the intersection of
information communication technology and civil liberties, let them
know about the Digital Rights Job Fair on June 16! While we are
looking for all types of profiles, help us this coming week do a push
in tech circles!

https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/jobfair

_________________________________________________

### Digital Rights in the Community ###

1. UK Citizens: Write to Your MP about #FreeAlaa

If you are a UK citizen or living in the UK, please write to your MP
to save the life of UK citizen and prominent activist Alaa Abdel
Fattah's life, who is on his 40th day of hunger strike in an Egyptian
prison.

Alaa, a pioneer in open source tech, and an Amnesty Prisoner of
Conscience, has been kept in an Egyptian prison for two and half years
without basic rights, access to books or sunlight. His visits are
limited to one family member per month, for twenty minutes, through a
glass barrier, without a moment of privacy or physical contact. He has
been targeted repeatedly by the Egyptian regime for speaking up
against their crimes.

Folks are incredibly concerned for his life, and time is of essence.
If you are a UK citizen or live in the UK, please write to your MP to
help Free Alaa and bring him home to his family.

https://freealaa.net/take-action

2. Call for Applications: Big Tech & Society Media Fellowships 2022

The Big Tech & Society Media Fellowship offers journalists and media
professionals the opportunity to pursue deeply researched,
investigative, long-form projects in print and audio on issues at the
intersection of technology, policy, and economy. They are looking to
support work that is focused on the Global South, which surfaces
strong regional and local narratives of technology, capitalism,
policy, and development. Deadline is May 31st 2022.

https://itforchange.net/call-for-applications-big-tech-society-media-fellowships-2022

3. Vision Change Win’s New Program: Community Safety Training Series!

The virtual Community Safety training series is a chance for
organizations to develop and deepen their safety and security
infrastructure. At each level, organizations learn concrete strategies
to identify and address risks, and to develop safety protocols.  These
measures are scaled to the organization’s unique capacity, adaptive to
changing conditions, and trauma-informed. Participants who plan to
attend the full series may do so over multiple months but must
complete within 4 months or re-register.

https://www.visionchangewin.com/training-series/

5. Petition to Remove Voter Information in Nepal

Nepal is gearing up for the second local level election on 13th May
2022 since the promulgation of the Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nepal in 2015. Body & Data is currently organizing a
signature campaign requesting the Nepalese Election Commission remove
its database containing the personal information of millions of Nepali
voters. Not only does this infringes individuals’ right to privacy,
but it puts voters' sensitive data at risk of being misused and
stolen. Most importantly, the information can be used for targeted
surveillance and stalking of marginalized and vulnerable communities.

https://www.change.org/p/sign-on-data-privacy-of-nepali-voters-at-stake?redirect=false

6. The Ola Bini Trial Coming to An End, A Danger to Digital Rights

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and a number of other civil
society organizations released a report citing the legal violations,
technical weaknesses, and political pressures in Ola Bini's trial,
which is coming to an end. The report cites the danger this case
presents to digital rights.  An online press conference is scheduled
for May 11th where organizations will speak on the violations. The
trial hearing is set for May 16-20 and will most likely conclude next
week. If convicted, Bini's defense can still appeal the decision.

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/05/eff-and-other-civil-society-organizations-issue-report-danger-digital-rights-what

7. Stipends Available to Attend PETS 2022!

The 22nd Privacy Enhancing Technologies Symposium (PETS) will be held
from July 11-15, 2022, with a physical gathering held in Sydney,
Australia, and a concurrent virtual event.  Stipends are currently
available to support both online and in-person attendance. The
following groups are encouraged to apply for the stipend:
privacy-interested students, professionals, scholars, researchers, and
activists, especially if they are new to the privacy-enhancing
technologies and related work. The annual event brings together
privacy experts from around the world to discuss recent advances and
new perspectives on research in privacy technologies.

https://petsymposium.org/2022/stipends.php

7. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the US to Impose Online Safeguards

RSF released a statement calling on the US to enable itself to impose
online safeguards similar to what the European Union is set to do with
its Digital Services Act (DSA). The statement comes out partly in
reaction to Elon Musk buying Twitter. RSF shares that the
unpredictability of Musk’s plans together with the potential threats
to free speech and access to information resulting from the lack of a
US legal framework requires the White House to do what is needed to
protect free expression for all.

The US is home to a large percentage of the tech giants that shape the
global news and information space around the world. The US government
has a responsibility to address the dysfunctions caused by these
digital platforms, and ensure they are regulated in a manner
consistent with democratic principles.

https://rsf.org/en/twitter-and-elon-musk-%E2%80%93-us-must-assume-responsibility-and-impose-online-safeguards

_________________________________________________

### Digital Rights Resources ###

1. Protecting Digital Privacy in Any Situations re: Roe v. Wade

The fears following the leaked internal Supreme Council voting
decisions on Roe v. Wade has some digital rights advocates preparing a
back-up plan to protect key privacy concepts. A critical component of
Roe v. Wade is its determination that the “right of privacy … is broad
enough to encompass a woman's decision whether to terminate her
pregnancy.” But comprehensive digital privacy is challenging to
achieve in an age of widespread user-tracking, location-tracking, and
corporate data retention.

The Digital Defense Fund was established in response to the increased
need for security and technology resources in the abortion rights
movement after the 2016 election. They recently released a guide for
women on how they can keep abortions private and secure, and protect
themselves.

https://digitaldefensefund.org/ddf-guides/abortion-privacy

Electronic Frontier Foundation outlines a list of ways to stay safe if
someone is concerned about unwanted data collection in relation to
reproductive healthcare while navigating online resources, providing
or seeking services, or organizing with others:

https://ssd.eff.org/en/playlist/reproductive-healthcare-service-provider-seeker-or-advocate

In addition, a recent Wired article also shares some security tips,
including turning off location services, locking digital devices,
knowing your rights when engaging with law enforcement, and practicing
caution when sharing information online.

https://www.wired.com/story/roe-v-wade-privacy-practices/

2. The Forgotten Margins of AI Ethics

How has recent AI Ethics literature addressed topics such as fairness
and justice in the context of continued social and structural power
imbalances? This new paper traces both the historical roots and
current landmark work that have been shaping the field. It categorizes
these works under three broad umbrellas: those grounded in Western
canonical philosophy, mathematical and statistical methods, and those
emerging from critical field data, algorithm and information studies.
The paper also surveys the field and explores emerging trends under
the broad umbrella of AI Ethics.

https://arxiv.org/abs/2205.04221

3. The Impact of Israel’s Digital Surveillance Regime

Deep Dive, Palestine’s newest live show takes an in-depth look at the
multifaceted regime of digital surveillance that Israel imposes on the
Palestinian people. It also examines how these same technologies are
being exported abroad, threatening the privacy and freedoms of people
around the world today. On this episode, they talk to Mona Shtaya,
Palestinian digital rights defender, 7amleh’s Advocacy Advisor and a
resident scholar with the Middle East Institute’s Cyber Program.

https://www.palestinechronicle.com/as-palestinians-we-cannot-escape-israels-surveillance-says-digital-rights-expert-mona-shtaya-video/

____________________________________________

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

1. #NoTech for Apartheid

Last May, Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud executives signed a
$1.22 billion contract to provide cloud technology to the Israeli
government and military, while the Israeli military bombed homes,
clinics, and schools in Gaza and threatened to push Palestinian
families from their Jerusalem homes. Many believe this billion dollar
contract will make it easier for the Israeli government to surveil
Palestinians and force them off their land.

The #NoTech for Apartheid campaign is heeding the call from over 1,000
Google and Amazon workers to rise up against the contract, known as
Project Nimbus. They campaing states that technology should be used to
bring people together, not enable apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and
settler-colonialism. They are asking Individuals that want to support
the campaign to add their name to the form below.

https://www.notechforapartheid.com/

2. India and Hollywood Attempt VPN Control, but VPN Companies Refuse to Comply

On April 28, the Indian government directed VPN companies to collect
and store users’ data for up to five years, including names,
addresses, contact numbers, email, and IP addresses. Under the new
directive, VPN companies are also required to hand over the data to
the government if asked. Companies that do not comply risk getting
fine or imprisoned.

https://restofworld.org/2022/indias-vpn-crackdown-surveillance/

VPN companies are resisting, making it clear that they would not
comply with this new directive. Many are looking into future options,
such as removing their servers from India. However, in some cases it
is impossible to comply due to the VPNs overwriting user-related data.

https://www.wired.com/story/india-vpn-data-law/ (paywall)

Meanwhile, major film companies are accusing VPNs of enabling a slew
of illegal activity, including companies like Millennium and Voltage.
In March, 26 a these companies brought allegations against ExpressVPN
and Private Internet Access (PIA). Court records show that studios’
legal teams have accused VPN providers of enabling illegal activity
far beyond copyright infringement and are challenging the notion that
VPNs should exist at all.

https://thedesk.net/2022/04/hollywood-vpn-piracy-murder-expressvpn/
Original Article:
https://www.wired.com/story/hollywood-piracy-vpn-lawsuits/ (paywall)

2. Attacks of Social Media Freedom Continue in Kazakhstan

An example of Kazakhstan’s ongoing repressive policies: A resident of
Kazakhstan with Ukrainian citizenship was arrested and faces
deportation for reposting an Instagram story supporting a May 1
pro-Ukrainian rally, which she deleted prior to any legal complaint.

Most recently, Kazakhstan's President recently signed amendments to
the laws on “protection of the rights of the child, education,
information, and informatization," that may further restrict media
freedom in the country The law obliges foreign “online platforms” to
register a local legal entity or representative office headed by a
citizen of Kazakhstan, and remove “undesired” information within 24
hours upon the appeal by an “authorized body.”

https://globalvoices.org/2022/05/06/new-kazakhstan-world-press-freedom-day-and-attacks-on-social-media-freedom/

3. Protest Surveillance in the US: Violating the First Amendment

In recent years, police departments in the USA have engaged in robust
video surveillance of protesters on a scale never seen before. For
example, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) in Oregon livestreamed the
protests on their official Twitter feed — sometimes zooming in and
lingering on individual protesters’ faces and shoes, apparently trying
to identify certain protesters to the public.

Tyler Valeska, a lecturer in law at Stanford Law School, argues that
these actions violate the First Amendment, which was created to
protect people in public discourse, in addition to allowing
individuals to engage, associate, and communicate with others for
purposes of political expression.

https://thecrimereport.org/2022/05/09/protest-surveillance-police-transparency-or-doxxing/

4. Social Media Liability in Passes California

The bipartisan bill Assembly Bill 2408, dubbed the "Social Media
Platform Duty to Children Act", would allow parents and the state
Attorney General in California to sue social media companies on behalf
of their children, for harms incurred as a result of social media
addiction.

This bill comes after increasing evidence of the highly  damaging
neurological and social impact that online platforms have contributed
to, partly by designing their platforms to consistently keep users
engaged. Companies deliberately devise such features because they
prioritize profit over people. The bill will next head directly to the
Assembly Floor later this month, where it will be debated l

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2022/05/06/social-media-liability-bill-passed-california-state-committeeare-teens-actually-addicted-to-social-media/?sh=62070ccd3b1f

5. UN: “Ending the Digital Divide is Critical to Women’s Rights”

On 3 May, the UN Special Rapporteur issued a Joint Declaration on
freedom of expression and gender justice in collaboration with freedom
of expression experts from the Organization for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Organization of American States
(OAS), and the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
(ACHPR).

The Joint Declaration stressed the responsibility of various actors to
address challenges that negatively impact women’s freedom of
expression, including States, the private sector, internet
intermediaries and media outlets, among others. Challenges named
includes social discrimination, gender stereotyping, entrenched bias,
misogyny and interpretations of religion, culture and custom, as well
as sexual and gender-based violence and discriminatory laws and
policies.

https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/05/ending-gender-digital-divide-critical-full-enjoyment-womens-rights-says-un

6. US May Cap Cost of Internet for Low-Income Americans

The Biden administration says it will partner with internet providers
to lower the cost of high-speed internet plans for low-income
Americans. This is due to connectivity being viewed as a necessity.
The Affordable Connectivity Program will provide plans of at least 100
Megabits per second of speed for no more than $30. An estimated 48
million Americans will qualify. Americans can visit
www.getinternet.gov to determine their eligibility and sign up for the
program.

https://www.npr.org/2022/05/09/1097535349/biden-administration-internet-wifi-low-income-med
____________________________

### 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

Digital Freedom Fund
23 May - 1 July 2022
https://digitalfreedomfund.org/grants/

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/

Global Change Makers
Deadline: Rolling basis until 29 May
http://global-changemakers.net/grants

_________________________________________________

### Global Events Calendar ###

Palestine Digital Activism Forum
May 17-19
https://pdaf.ps/pdaf2022

Lingua Cafe
May 18
10am EDT / 2pm UTC
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/linguacafe_7

MENA Meetup: #FreeAlaa
May 18
11am EDT / 3pm UTC
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/May_18_2022,_MENA_Meetup

Communities of Practice: What’s new in Digital Citizen Engagement?
Code for All
May 18
2pm UTC
https://bit.ly/3s0xgei

The Wikimedia Hackathon 2022
May 20-22
https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Hackathon_2022

CKS: Tor on Mobile Devices, Pluggable Transports / Snowflake
May 24
3pm UTC/11am EDT
https://digitalrights.formstack.com/forms/cks56

Glitter Meetup: Bread&Net Festival - The 5th Edition
May 26
9 EDT / 1pm UTC
https://internetfreedomfestival.org/wiki/index.php/May_26_2022_GM

Communities of Practice: Lessons and considerations for the civic tech community
Code for All
May 26
2pm UTC
https://bit.ly/3vUZA2N

Virtual School of Internet Governance - French Version
May 2022
Online
http://www.virtualsig.org/

PETS 2022
July 11 - 15
Sydney, Australia
https://petsymposium.org/2022/stipends.php

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 we have been sent 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

✎ Social Science Research Council | The Social Science Research Council
+ Brooklyn, NYC, USA
https://www.ssrc.org/about-us/employment/?gh_jid=6124762002

✎ Community Facilitator, Movement Strategy and Governance (MENA) -
Contract | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/7166ba4b1us

✎ Legal Fellow (Fall 2022) | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/4305c23c1us

✎ Sr. UI/UX Designer | Alluma
+ Remote, USA
https://jobs.gusto.com/postings/alluma-sr-ui-ux-designer-cd15f161-3108-4474-9eda-602ad4510977

✎ Software Developer | Alluma
+ Remote, USA
https://jobs.gusto.com/postings/alluma-software-developer-ed378e41-5dc7-442a-8f46-28597de03b2b

✎ Lead Software Developer | Alluma
+ Remote, USA
https://jobs.gusto.com/postings/alluma-lead-software-developer-0f1e0476-0a2c-4b8d-b2a4-b34cc918a149

✎ Technical Program Associate - Democracy and Technology | National
Democratic Institute
+ Washington, DC, USA
https://ndi.secure.force.com/careers/ts2__JobDetails?jobId=a0x2R00000Mq90NQAR&tSource=

✎ Program Officer: Democracy and Technology - Information Strategies |
National Democratic Institute
+ Washington, DC, USA
https://ndi.secure.force.com/careers/ts2__JobDetails?jobId=a0x2R00000LmhXZQAZ&tSource=

✎ Senior Software Engineer - Campaigns | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/574ee3211us

✎ Digital Support Helpdesk Specialist | Internews
+ London, UK
https://phf.tbe.taleo.net/phf04/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=INTERNEWS&cws=38&rid=1734

✎ Senior Software Engineer | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/5aab0dd81us

✎ Programs Manager | EDGE Funders Alliance
+ Remote
https://www.edgefunders.org/edge-job-posting-program-manager/

✎ Programs and Communications Coordinator | EDGE Funders Alliance
+ Remote
https://www.edgefunders.org/edge-job-posting-programs-communications-coordinator/

✎ Grants/Compliance Manager | NetFreedom Pioneers
+ Los Angeles, CA or USA Remote
http://www.netfreedompioneers.org/grants-compliance-manager/

✎ Program Manager - Technology & Human Rights | Human Rights Watch
+ Multiple Locations
https://boards.greenhouse.io/humanrightswatch/jobs/6118737002

✎ Program Officer - Kenya Voice Program | HIVOS
+ Unspecified
https://hivos.org/vacancy/program-officer-kenya-voice-program/

✎ Software Engineers (three positions) | Tor Project
+ Remote
https://www.torproject.org/about/jobs/software-engineer-applications-team-2/

✎ Program Coordinator | Social Science Research Council (SSRC)
+ Remote
https://www.ssrc.org/about-us/employment/?gh_jid=6124762002

✎ Android Developer | GreatFire
+ Remote
https://www.upwork.com/freelance-jobs/apply/Senior-Android-Developer-Android-Chromium_~0187f2d7e047d08d17/

✎ Web Developer | GreatFire
+ Remote
https://www.upwork.com/freelance-jobs/apply/Web-Develop-modern-anti-censorship-websites_~015e032e743c9c1f00/

✎ Communications Manager | GreatFire
+ Remote
https://www.upwork.com/freelance-jobs/apply/Part-Time-Communications-Manager-Chinese-English_~017ee8a2458f9b2f41/

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_________________________________________________

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(((Hugs & light)))

--
Team CommUNITY at ARTICLE 19
www.digitalrights.community
Organizers of the Internet Freedom Festival
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