Digital Rights Weekly | (no subject)

[Team CommUNITY]

Hello Digital Rights Defenders!


Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the
week of January 22 - 26. As a reminder, you can submit your news for
the newsletter here:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter

### Team CommUNITY (TCU) ###

1. Check Out Our New Digital Rights Primer

Interested in learning more about the Digital Rights field and
community? Take a look at our new primer which gives recommendations
of how to get more involved in the field. It gives a growing list of
challenges & issues, a sample of organizations and projects leading,
an overview of the profiles and different backgrounds in the
community, and a summary of the space's history.

https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Digital_Rights_Primer


2. Next GM: Feb 1:  What Is Happening in Digital Rights Around the World?

Join us to talk about emerging and existing digital rights
conversations happening around the world and in your region at this
Glitter Meetup! There is something new, specific or special that you
would like to bring to the technology and human rights table? Let's
talk about it! February 1 at 9am EST / 2pm UTC on the TCU’s
Mattermost:

https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=February_1_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
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### Digital Rights in the Community ###

1. SMEX Digital Rights Fund for WANA Region

SMEX is launching the Digital Rights Fund for WANA (DRF). This
initiative aims to empower individuals, informal groups, and entities
to effectively counter digital rights threats and violations online.
They seek to foster a more inclusive and equitable digital society,
united in protecting digital freedoms even amidst adversity.
Applicants must be based in the Southwest Asia and North Africa (WANA)
region, including countries in West Asia and North Africa.

https://smex.org/digital-rights-fund/


2. Call for Proposals With The Open Tech Fund

OTF has launched a Request for Proposals for the User Experience &
Discovery Lab, the next evolution of their Secure Usability and
Accessibility Lab. They’re on the lookout for new Lab partners who
could offer user experience support to internet freedom-enhancing
tools. Deadline: February 16, 2024. Apply via email to:
uxdlab-rfp at opentech.fund

https://www.opentech.fund/news/request-for-proposals-user-experience-discovery-lab/


3. UN: Cybercrime Convention Still Poses Human Rights Concerns

100+ human rights groups—including EFF, Human Rights Watch, Article
19, Access Now, Privacy International, and Global Partners
Digital—have just published a joint statement, warning of critical
risks posed to human rights by the proposed UN cybercrime treaty. Time
is running out to change the text of the draft treaty, as final
negotiations are set to begin on 29 January.

https://www.gp-digital.org/news/100-civil-society-groups-call-for-radical-changes-to-rights-threatening-un-cybercrime-convention/


4. Let’s #ProtectRohingya by Understanding the Rohingya Crisis in Indonesia

Read their stories and stand in solidarity #WithRohingya people by
sharing the realities of their journey and living conditions. The
#ProtectRohingya comics is a collaboration between Manushya
Foundation, the Rohingya Maiyafuinor Collaborative Network and
ALTSEAN-Burma:

https://www.manushyafoundation.org/post/let-s-protectrohingya-by-understanding-the-rohingya-crisis-in-indonesia


5. No liberty, No Safety: Sri Lanka Must Withdraw The Online Safety Bill

Despite calls by civil society and industry associations, the Online
Safety Bill was passed by the Parliament of Sri Lanka on 24 January
2024 without necessary amendments. Through an open letter, Access Now
and Hashtag Generation, along with more than 50 organizations, are
demanding the Sri Lankan government withdraw the rights-violating
Online Safety Bill.

https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/sri-lanka-must-withdraw-the-online-safety-bill/


6. "Digital Nagriks" for a Free, Equal, and Inclusive Internet: Our
demands from the incoming Union Government

The Internet Freedom Foundation presents a seven-point agenda for
political parties running in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, demanding
the incoming government to make the protection, preservation, and
advancement of digital rights a top governance priority.

https://internetfreedom.in/digital-nagriks-demands-elections/


7. Meta: Protect LGBT People from Digital Targeting and #SecureOurSocials

Meta should do more to protect the safety of lesbian, gay, bisexual,
and transgender (LGBT) people and all its users, in particular on
Facebook and Instagram, Human Rights Watch, Social Media Exchange
(SMEX), INSM Foundation for Digital Rights, Helem, and Damj
Association said in the #SecureOurSocials campaign. The campaign urges
Transparency from Facebook and Instagram, particularly in the Middle
East and North Africa region.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/01/23/meta-protect-lgbt-people-digital-targeting

Read more about the Secure Our Socials campaign here:
https://www.hrw.org/SecureOurSocials

And get some questions and answers related to Meta and digital
targeting of LGBT People:
https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/01/24/questions-and-answers-facebook-instagram-and-digital-targeting-lgbt-people-mena


8. Reports from Our Community

a) The Saral App at the Heart of Modi’s Election Campaign

Rest of the World shows the extent to which Narendra Modi’s ruling
party is using its Saral app to strategize ahead of the general
election. As Prime Minister Modi seeks a third term in India's 2024
elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party is collecting an unprecedented
level of voters’ personal data. India’s privacy experts are worried:

https://restofworld.org/2024/bjp-saral-app-data-gathering/


b) Who Shares Your Information With Facebook?

Consumer Reports’ new study sheds light on the state of the
surveillance economy in 2023 and elucidates the practices of companies
sharing consumers’ personal information with Facebook. On average,
each participant in the study was identified by 2,230 different
companies, mainly retailers, brands, service providers, data brokers,
and political services firms.

https://innovation.consumerreports.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/CR_Who-Shares-Your-Information-With-Facebook.pdf


c) From Nigeria to India, Big Tech Does Little or Nothing to Curb Fake News

Social media platforms often ignore misinformation in regional
languages, even though it has real-world consequences.

https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/01/23/from-nigeria-to-india-big-tech-does-little-or-nothing-to-curb-fake-news

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

1. Gaza Week-Long Internet Outage is Longest Yet

A near-total communications blackout in Gaza, the longest of the war,
has lasted one week with no signs of abating, preventing humanitarian
and emergency services from operating effectively in the territory.

https://techcrunch.com/2024/01/18/web-monitors-say-gaza-week-long-internet-outage-is-longest-yet/

These blackouts conceal Israel’s human rights violation, while it itself is one.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/blackout-in-gaza


2. Inside Biden’s Secret Surveillance Court

In a deal to let companies keep trading transatlantic data, the White
House built an opaque new forum that could affect national security
and privacy rights — without any public paper trail.

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/17/inside-bidens-secret-surveillance-court-00136175


3. France Fines Amazon $35 Million for ‘Excessively Intrusive’
Monitoring of Warehouse Staff

The French Data Protection Authority, also known by its acronym CNIL,
said the system allowed managers at Amazon France Logistique to track
employees so closely that it resulted in multiple breaches of the
European Union’s stringent privacy rules, called the General Data
Protection Regulation.

https://apnews.com/article/amazon-fine-monitoring-workers-privacy-france-d503314234ccacb366e2afaa49d097b1


4. Big Question: How Does Digital Privacy Matter for Democracy and Its
Advocates?

The International Forum for Democratic Studies asked five leading
experts to consider the following question: How does digital privacy
matter for democracy and its advocates? In what ways does the
collection of digital data create risks to your own work or that of
other democratic activists?

https://www.ned.org/big-question-how-does-digital-privacy-matter-for-democracy-and-its-advocates/


5. Misunderstood Mechanics: How AI, TikTok, and The Liar’s Dividend
Might Affect The 2024 Elections

Two camps have emerged. One warns of AI leading to a deluge of
misinformation, especially on social media, and especially in the many
elections coming in 2024. The other finds the fears understandable but
largely overblown, pointing to social science research indicating that
AI may lead to more misinformation during elections, but with little
effect. Which is correct?

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/misunderstood-mechanics-how-ai-tiktok-and-the-liars-dividend-might-affect-the-2024-elections/

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### 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

Digital Rights Fund for WANA Region
SMEX
https://smex.org/digital-rights-fund/

2024 New Futures Fellowship Application
Planet Reimagined
Deadline: January 31, 2024 at 11:59 PM EST
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhYpnv5aRrW67zUbitzpZKOy33nyCW7X0GvPOzVfRoZ-tehA/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/

User Experience & Discovery Lab
Open Tech Fund
Deadline: February 16, 2024
https://www.opentech.fund/news/request-for-proposals-user-experience-discovery-lab/

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

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/
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### Events Calendar ###

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

Glitter Meetup: What is Happening in Digital Rights Around the World?
Team CommUNITY
February 1, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=February_1_2024_GM

Glitter Meetup: The Social Networking Glitter Meetup
Team CommUNITY
February 8, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=February_8_2024_GM

Glitter Meetup: Digital Security Challenges of Journalists in Myanmar
Team CommUNITY
February 15, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=February_15_2024_GM

Glitter Meetup: Online Monitoring in Ghana
Team CommUNITY
February 22, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=February_22_2024_GM

Glitter Meetup: The Social Networking Glitter Meetup
Team CommUNITY
February 29, 2024
9am EST / 2pm UTC
Online
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=February_29_2024_GM

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

✎ Multiple Positions | Meedan
+ Remote
https://meedan.com/careers

✎ Multiple Positions | Ijeruka
+ Remote
https://ijerukamedia.notion.site/Join-our-team-8c241dd5509a448eaf4dbbbfd9735b6d

✎ Communications Manager | Fairwork
+ Berlin, Germany
https://wzb.hr4you.org/job/view/284/communication-manager-f-m-x-id-245?page_lang=en

✎ Graduate Intern Human Resources & Operations | Hivos
+ Remote
https://hivos.org/vacancy/human-resources-operations-graduate-intern

✎ Outreach and Communications Coordinator | Free Software Foundation
+ Boston, USA
https://www.fsf.org/

✎ Algorithmic Auditing Association and Certification Intern |
International Association of Algorithmic Auditors
+ Remote
https://eticastech.sharepoint.com/:b:/s/Intranet/EZNDTPgyxhlDjtdEshVszXIBLv2U-jt9A5yNmQmnUkcQ6g?e=ybq44X

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

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