Digital Rights Weekly | January 8 - 12

[Team CommUNITY]

Hello Digital Rights Defenders!

Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the week
of January 8 - 12. As a reminder, you can submit your news for the
newsletter here: https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

### Team CommUNITY (TCU) ###

1. Join The Regional Meetups Starting on January 16!

The Regional Meetups are virtual gatherings happening every two months to
support each other, and help us understand what is happening in our part of
the world. A new space was added to the traditional ones: the Digital
Rights in Francophone Africa and MENA Meetup, which will be in French!
Check out all the Regional Meetups dates below:

January 16 | Asia Regional Meetup:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_16_2024,_Asia_Meetup

January 18 | Digital rights in Francophone Africa and MENA Meetup
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_18_2024,_Digital_Rights_in_Francophone_Africa_and_MENA_Meetup

January 24 | LATAM Regional Meetup:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=24_de_Enero,_2024_LATAM

January 25 | MENA Regional Meetup:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_25_2024,_MENA_Meetup

January 25 | Africa Regional Meetup:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_25_2024,_Africa_Meetup


2. Next Week’s Glitter Meetup: Platform Cooperativism In India

Join us to talk about the history behind cooperative movements in India
with Sapni GK, a lawyer and policy researcher based in India.

January 18 at 9am EST / 2pm UTC on the TCU’s Mattermost:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_18_2024_GM


3. Recommend Someone to be Featured Guest - The Form Takes  5 Mins to Fill!

We are looking for your recommendations for featured guests for TCU’s
Glitter Meetups, the weekly virtual town hall of the digital rights
community which takes place on the TCU Mattermost every Thursday at 9AM
EST. Fill out the form below, it will only take you five minutes:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1nrrygXID3JopeDcUntkRSOUzxhg9iV8iazXYdSDPpo4/edit

____________________________________________

### Digital Rights in the Community ###

1. Apply For This Year’s Digital Protection Accompaniment Programme

Digital Protection Accompaniment Programme (DDP) will accompany four
organizations for 6 to 18 months to strengthen their physical, digital and
psychosocial security practices. This call is for organizations,
collectives or networks based in Latin America and the Caribbean that are
part of DDP's priority groups: those that publish information belonging to
communities or work with Afro-descendants, indigenous peoples or people
with disabilities, feminist or LGBTQIA+ activists. Deadline: February 15,
2024.

https://www.digitaldefenders.org/es/programa-de-acompanamiento-para-la-proteccion-digital-convocatoria-abierta-para-organizaciones-de-america-latina-y-el-caribe/


2. Grant On Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence

The U.S. State Department's Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues
announced an open competition for organizations to submit full proposal
applications to carry out a project that will provide rapid/flexible
response support to women politicians, political candidates, and civil
society leaders who have experienced extreme forms and/or threats of
technology-facilitated gender-based violence globally. Deadline: March 5,
2024.

https://grants.gov/search-results-detail/351666


3. Protecting Palestinian Digital Rights: Support 7amleh’s Work

For decades, the international community has been in the dark about what is
happening in Israel & Palestine. With the advent of social media,
Palestinians were able to share their everyday experiences openly with the
world. However, online censorship is threatening to once again conceal
realities on the ground, while the world calls for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Help Palestinians to protect their right to tell their story to the world:

https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/upholding-digital-rights-for-palestinians/


4. Learn About “Tech For Palestine” Coalition

Check out Tech for Palestine, the first group of its type in the field, to
work “towards ending tech's support for Israel's war on the Palestinian
people across Gaza and the West Bank, and working towards a free
Palestine." The group announced that its immediate goal is to provide the
necessary tools to talk about Palestine, while aspiring in the longer term
to change the narrative to facilitate the circulation of Palestinian
content and make it difficult to disseminate statements supporting genocide.

https://techforpalestine.org


5. Petition: Don’t Let Big Tech Write Our Digital Privacy Laws

Read and sign Public Citizen’s Petition to U.S. Congress to pass a strong
digital privacy law that protects our digital rights.

https://act.citizen.org/page/61746/petition/1?locale=en-US


6. #KeepItOn in Bangladesh: Ensure Open, Free Internet Before, During, &
After Elections

Authorities must guarantee unfettered access to the Internet and all other
digital communication channels through all phases of the election cycle in
Bangladesh. Read the open letter from Access now and the #KeepItOn
coalition to the Chief Election Commissioner:

https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/bangladesh-must-keepiton-during-2024-elections/


7. Vietnam: Advocating for Internet Freedom Before the UN Human Rights
Committee

Article19, Legal Initiatives for Vietnam, and Open Net have presented a
joint submission to the United Nations Human Rights Committee regarding its
forthcoming review during the Committee’s 140th session, which will be held
from 4 to 28 March 2024. The List of Issues highlights key internet freedom
issues arising from actions taken by the Vietnamese government.

https://www.article19.org/resources/vietnam-advocating-for-internet-freedom-before-the-un-human-rights-committee/


8. UK: Submission to the Competition and Markets Authority on
Microsoft-OpenAI Merger

Article19 joined the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, the Open Markets
Institute, Foxglove, Balanced Economy Project, and Rebalance Now in
responding to a call for comments from the Competition and Markets
Authority (CMA) as part of its current investigation of the
Microsoft-OpenAI partnership:

https://www.article19.org/resources/uk-submission-to-the-competition-and-markets-authority-on-microsoft-openai-merger/


9. Iran: Submission to Meta Regarding Case of Woman Confronted in The Street

Article19 addresses the complexity that arises in allowing and protecting
expressions of protest while preventing harm in a context where certain
forms of expression and protests are so heavily restricted. This case
revolves around an Instagram post shared featuring a video of an unveiled
Iranian woman being confronted by a man who identifies himself as a
judicial officer and accuses the woman of being a criminal for failing to
wear a hijab.

https://www.article19.org/resources/iran-submission-to-meta-regarding-case-of-woman-confronted-in-the-street/



10. Pakistan: 6-Point Agenda on Digital Rights Protections for Political
Parties’ Electoral Manifestos

With the upcoming general elections in Pakistan, the Digital Rights
Foundation urges political parties to include six key digital rights issues
in their manifestos. This is crucial for a robust democracy, enabling
citizens to scrutinize the new government effectively.

https://digitalrightsfoundation.pk/pakistan-6-point-agenda-on-digital-rights-protections-for-political-parties-electoral-manifestos/


11. Reports from Our Community

a) Government Internet Shutdowns Cost Over $9 Billion in 2023

Top10VPN’s annual report analyzes every major intentional internet shutdown
in 2023 and reveals that they cost the world economy $9.01 billion.

https://www.top10vpn.com/research/cost-of-internet-shutdowns/


b) A 2023 Calendar of the Main Events in Russia

Check out the advent calendar of Roskomsvoboda, a Russian digital rights
organization. Dive into the main events, laws and changes that took place
in Russia in 2023. You will find a new law on electronic summonses to the
army, persecution of LGBT people, data leaks, blocking access to media, VPN
and social networks and other topics. The calendar is available in English
and Russian:

https://roskomsvoboda.org/en/summary/2023/


c) VPN in Russia: From Blocking Services to Blocking Protocols

A study on how Russian citizens use circumvention tools and how they react
to the blocking of these services.

Read the full report here:
https://roskomsvoboda.org/uploads/en__vpn_in_russia__from_blocking_services_to_blocking_protocols.pdf

________________________________________________

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

1. Can an Alliance Get Access to Platform Data for African Researchers?

Nearly every list of recommendations on ‘what to do’ about problems
attributed to social media and other large internet platforms has included
some version of “provide access to data for independent researchers.” How
to make such access available to researchers in nations where there are
more severe power and knowledge asymmetries?

https://www.techpolicy.press/can-an-alliance-get-access-to-platform-data-for-african-researchers/


2. Meta Staffer Claims to be Under Investigation after Alleging
‘Censorship’ of Pro-Palestinian Views

Data scientist caught by social media giant’s rules banning political
discussions in the workplace.

https://www.ft.com/preferences/manage-cookies?redirect=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcontent%2Fa4381d91-2fec-4422-b04b-75a06b643a05


3. Opinion: Beyond Shadowbanning - Facebook Posts Can’t Liberate Palestine

Shadow-banning of pro-Palestine solidarity is a feature, not a bug in
Meta's platforms. It's time to rethink activism on platforms like Facebook.

https://www.newarab.com/opinion/beyond-shadowbanning-facebook-insta-posts-wont-save-gaza


4. Intel Moves Forward with $25 Billion Chip Expansion in Israel

The semiconductor giant Intel confirmed that it would invest $25 billion to
expand a chip factory in southern Israel after a $3.2 billion grant from
the government there, moving ahead with a major investment in a country
currently at war.

https://nyti.ms/3vhDqeH


5. Chinese Spy Agency Rising to Challenge the CIA

The ambitious Ministry of State Security is deploying AI and other advanced
technology to go toe-to-toe with the United States, even as the two nations
try to pilfer each other’s scientific secrets.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/27/us/politics/china-cia-spy-mss.html?smid=whatsapp-nytimes


6. The End of Anonymity Online in China

Chinese social platforms have already expanded the scope of a controversial
rule that requires influential users to disclose their legal names. Regular
users are right to be worried.


https://www.technologyreview.com/2024/01/10/1086366/china-social-media-anonymity-end/


7. Iran's Internet Price Rises, And So Does The fear of Greater Censorship

Iranians could pay up to 34% more for the Internet in 2024 as providers get
the green light from the government to increase their tariffs.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202401037934


8. How to Be More Anonymous Online

Being fully anonymous is next to impossible—but you can significantly limit
what the Internet knows about you by sticking to a few basic rules.

https://www.wired.co.uk/article/how-to-be-more-anonymous-online


9. The Importance of Defining LGBTQ+ Digital Rights Under International
Human Rights Law

Insufficient regulation can only contribute further to these issues in the
long run, and it severely jeopardizes the important role digital technology
plays for the LGBTQ+ community, with potentially deadly consequences.

https://www.techpolicy.press/the-importance-of-defining-lgbtq-digital-rights-under-international-human-rights-law/


10. Bangladesh: In the Shadows of Self-censorship

Anonymity is a common practice amid fear of the Cyber Security Act 2023.
This law forces the country’s LGBTQ+ movement and population into the
shadows of self-censorship.

https://advox.globalvoices.org/2024/01/04/in-the-shadows-of-self-censorship-the-impact-of-the-cyber-security-act-on-bangladeshs-lgbtq-movement/


11. The Times Sues OpenAI & Microsoft Over A.I. Use of Copyrighted Work

The New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, a
new front in the debate over the use of published work to train AI.
Millions of articles from The New York Times were used to train chatbots
that now compete with it, the lawsuit said.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/27/business/media/new-york-times-open-ai-microsoft-lawsuit.html?smid=whatsapp-nytimes


12. What’s Next for AI Regulation in 2024?

The coming year is going to see the first sweeping AI laws enter into
force, with global efforts to hold tech companies accountable.

https://www.technologyreview.com/2024/01/05/1086203/whats-next-ai-regulation-2024/


13. Examining the Use of the Words “Health” & “Toxicity” in Content
Moderation

Words like “toxic” and “healthy” are often used to describe social media
discourse and to justify content moderation policies. A new research paper
argues that researchers and policymakers should be “skeptical of the
comfort, translatability, and traction that terms like health and toxicity
provide.”

https://www.techpolicy.press/examining-the-use-of-the-words-health-and-toxicity-in-content-moderation/


14. How Online Misinformation Exploits ‘Information Voids’ — And What To Do
About It

In 2024’s super election year, providers of online search engines and their
users need to be especially aware of how online misinformation can seem all
too credible.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00030-x


15. The New Digital Dark Age

Online trust will reach an all-time low thanks to unchecked disinformation,
AI-generated content, and social platforms pulling up their data
drawbridges.

https://www.wired.com/story/the-new-digital-dark-age/

_________________________________________________

### 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://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Fundraising_Opportunities

Surge and Sustain Fund
Open Technology Fund
Deadline: January 17, 2024
https://www.opentech.fund/funds/surge-and-sustain-fund/

Call for Learners from Infuse
Internews, Conexo, DefendDefenders, the Jordan Open Source Association
Deadline: January 19, 2024
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeYBf7AaDwUHcQPSm1leqDAhHfnjFB6woYvRg5wDOr6hT5RXg/viewform

Digital Protection Accompaniment Programme
Digital Defenders Partnership
Deadline: February 15, 2024
https://www.digitaldefenders.org/es/programa-de-acompanamiento-para-la-proteccion-digital-convocatoria-abierta-para-organizaciones-de-america-latina-y-el-caribe/

Information Controls Fellowship Program
Open Technology Fund
Deadline: February 19, 2024 11:59 PM Pacific Time
https://www.opentech.fund/fellowships/icfp/

Datafication and Democracy Fund
Data Privacy Brasil, the Paradigm Initiative and the Aapti Institute
Deadline: February 29, 2024
https://conteudos.dataprivacy.com.br/datification-and-democracy-fund-ddf

Grant On Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence
The U.S. State Department's Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues
Deadline: March 5, 2024
https://grants.gov/search-results-detail/351666

FOSS United
Deadline: Rolling
https://fossunited.org/grants

Digital Rights Research Grant
PrivacyCo
Deadline: Rolling
https://www.top10vpn.com/research-grant/

Sovereign Tech Fund
Deadline: Rolling
https://sovereigntechfund.de/en/applications/

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/

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

Urgent Action Fund for Feminist Activism
Deadline: Rolling Basis
https://urgentactionfund.org /

Urgent Action Fund - Asia & Pacific
Deadline: Rolling
https://www.uafanp.org/our_grants

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

_________________________________________________

### Events Calendar ###

Asia Meetup
Team CommUNITY
January 16, 2024
7am EST / 12pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_16_2024,_Asia_Meetup

Digital Rights in Francophone Africa and MENA Meetup
Team CommUNITY
January 18, 2024
8am EST / 1pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_18_2024,_Digital_Rights_in_Francophone_Africa_and_MENA_Meetup

Glitter Meetup: Platform Cooperativism In India
Team CommUNITY
January 18, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_18_2024_GM

Virtual School on Internet Governance
Jan 22 - April 13, 2024
Online
https://forms.gle/5G8y3NTVMVHwr3MP8

LATAM Meetup
Team CommUNITY
January 24, 2024
5:30pm EST / 10:30pm UTC
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=24_de_Enero,_2024_LATAM


Artificial Intelligence: How AI Tools are Impacting the Arts
Copper Union
24 January 2024
6:30 to 8 PM EST
https://cooper.edu/events-and-exhibitions/events/artificial-intelligence-how-ai-tools-are-impacting-arts?utm_source=Cooper+Union+Newsletters&utm_campaign=749a170f1d-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_07_26_11_22_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-69d53efb28-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D&mc_cid=749a170f1d&mc_eid=19a850538d

Glitter Meetup: Digital Safety in Libya: A Helpdesk Overview
Team CommUNITY
January 25, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_25_2024_GM

Africa Meetup
Team CommUNITY
January 25, 2024
10am EST / 3pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_25_2024,_Africa_Meetup

MENA Meetup
Team CommUNITY
January 25, 2024
12pm EST / 5pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=January_25_2024,_MENA_Meetup

Check out a list of our virtual events here:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=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

✎ Lead Developer – Lumivera | Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting
Project
+ Remote in Europe (0 - +4 GMT)
https://www.occrp.org/en/occrp-jobs/lead-developer-lumivera

✎ Senior Software Engineer - Editing Team | Wikimedia Foundation
+ Remote
https://grnh.se/f6bb19b01us

✎ Mobile UX/UI Interaction Designer | OpenArchive
+ Remote
http://open-archive.org/jobs/mobile-designer

✎ Linux Systems Administrator | PEReN (Center of expertise for digital
platform regulation)
+ Paris, France
https://www.passerelles.economie.gouv.fr/offre-de-emploi/emploi-administratrice-teur-systeme-linux-peren-205-h-f_14578.aspx

✎ Senior monitoring evaluation and learning specialist | Association for
Progressive Communications
+ Remote
https://www.apc.org/en/news/come-work-us-apc-looking-senior-monitoring-evaluation-and-learning-mel-specialist

✎ Senior /Programme Officer (Censorship) | Article19
+ USA based (remote/flexible)
https://article.peoplehr.net/Pages/JobBoard/Opening.aspx?v=e0075723-e6ee-48e3-a2fc-930b68500403

✎ Privacy Rights Fellowship (Part-Time, Internship) | Oakland Privacy
+ California, USA
https://oaklandprivacy.org/were-hiring-2024-privacy-rights-fellowship/

✎ Director of digital and information security | Open Briefing
+ Remote
https://www.openbriefing.org/blog/director-of-digital-and-information-security/

✎ External Project Evaluator | Center for Digital Resilience
+ Remote
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Jd7xTOwRyaK756bke4_iY77PsXfGJiHNUYug7lqyMYY/edit?usp=sharing

✎ US Program Assistant | WITNESS Inc
+ Remote in USA
https://witness.bamboohr.com/careers/53?source=aWQ9MTA%3D

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

### Know someone that wants to subscribe to our newsletter? ###

They can sign up here:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

### 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 Global Gathering
PGP: 2E1D CC33 A362 0BD6 236E  540A F60A 89AD 6FF9 7A2F

You can now submit your news for the Digital Rights weekly directly.
To post your job opportunities, submit your opportunities to our Job Board.
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