Digital Rights Weekly | June 1 to 6
Team CommUNITY
team at digitalrights.community
Sat Jun 6 18:55:45 CEST 2026
Hello Digital Rights Defenders!
Here is your weekly update on digital rights around the world for the
week of June 1 to 6. As a reminder, you can submit your news for the
newsletter here:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter
___________________
What is in this issue:
TCU
Community News
NEW Job Opportunities
Digital Rights in the Wider World
Community Resources
Events Calendar
Grants, Fellowships, & Awards
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### TCU ###
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1. Having an Issue Submitting a GG Application?
If you are having any issue submitting your application to the Global
Gathering, reach out to us directly via email at
gather at digitalrights.community. Some folks are reporting technical
issues at the submission stage of the application. If you applied
successfully, you should have received an email confirmation.
The hard deadline to submit an application for the Global Gathering is
June 30. If you need to bring a partner or spouse to the GG to support
childcare, they must also submit an application before this date—do not
run the risk that their application is not approved because it was not
submitted on time.
https://gathering.digitalrights.community/
2. Pre-Event Security for GG Participants
We are offering three pre-event security workshops for GG participants.
Want to take advantage of this free resource? Then apply as soon as
possible to get all the details!
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=2026_Global_Gathering_Programming
__________________________________________
### Community News ###
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1. How the EU’s Tech Sovereignty Package Finally Puts Open Source to the
Test
With this week’s release of the European Commission's “European
Technological Sovereignty Package”, which includes a full Open Source
Strategy, open source sits at the center of EU digital policymaking for
the first time. This is a landmark moment for Europe and the global open
source ecosystem. The strategy also rightly identifies the opportunity
not just to mandate open source but to build a sustainable ecosystem
around it, with trusted assets, services, and guidance, empowered
communities, and strong governance and decision-making. That study's
core finding — that every euro of public investment in open source
generates a return of between four and five euros for the European
economy — appears to have informed the Commission's framing of open
source as a strategic investment rather than a line item.
https://www.techpolicy.press/how-the-eus-tech-sovereignty-package-finally-puts-open-source-to-the-test/
2. Georgia Student Opp: Advancing Gender Equality Through Law and Technology
The Council of Europe invites final-year Bachelor’s and Master’s
students in Law, International Law, and ICT-related fields in Georgia to
apply for the 2026 Summer School: Transforming Justice: Advancing Gender
Equality through Law and Technology. This five-day interdisciplinary
programme is designed to strengthen the capacity of future legal and
technology professionals to build a shared understanding of
technology-facilitated violence against women, explore how human rights
and legal standards apply in digital environments, and examine how
technology can be used to advance gender equality and strengthen
prevention efforts. The programme will also explore how ethical,
rights-based technological solutions can contribute to prevention,
victim protection, accountability, and access to justice. Deadline is 16
June 2026.
https://www.coe.int/en/web/tbilisi/-/transforming-justice-advancing-gender-equality-through-law-and-technology-summer-school-for-law-and-ict-students
3. UNESCO and ICANN Launch Joint Policy Brief on Universal Acceptance
The Policy Brief marks a tangible outcome of enhanced UNESCO-ICANN
partnership following the renewal of UNESCO-ICANN Cooperation Agreement.
The brief emphasizes that people engage with the world in their own
languages, therefore the Internet must support them in those languages.
When domain names and email addresses in local languages are not
universally accepted, communities risk exclusion from the digital world.
This is why ensuring full acceptance of multilingual domain names and
email addresses is essential for digital inclusion.
https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/unesco-and-icann-launch-joint-policy-brief-universal-acceptance
4. Italy's Booming Spyware Shadow Industry
An investigation by the NGO Osservatorio Nessuno and the umbrella
organization European Digital Rights (EDRi) sheds light on the shadow
world of low-cost spyware in Italy. Dozens of smaller surveillance firms
exist here, developing tailor-made Trojans for investigative
authorities. Research by the media network IrpiMedia shows that Italian
public prosecutors sometimes pay only a few dozen euros per day of
surveillance. In this low-price segment, expensive security
vulnerabilities are not necessary at all. Instead, providers rely on
psychological tricks and social engineering to hijack target devices.
https://www.heise.de/en/news/Mobile-spies-as-bargains-Italy-s-booming-spyware-shadow-industry-11312676.html
5. EDRI Statement: End Complicity with ISS World Europe
This week, civil society called on EU institutions, governments,
universities and other stakeholders to stop supporting ISS World Europe,
an annual surveillance industry trade fair where the most invasive
technologies for mass surveillance, data harvesting and tracking of
individuals are traded and promoted. The event took place on June 2-4 in
the Clarion Hotel in Prague. Such a marketplace for digital repression
tools, connected to companies directly involved in war crimes, human
rights violations, and the genocide in Gaza, should have no place in the
EU.
https://edri.org/our-work/statement-end-complicity-with-iss-world-europe/
6. Age Verification is a Privacy Nightmare
In the rush to block young people from certain parts of the internet,
lawmakers are creating a privacy and security nightmare for everyone.
Every online age verification scheme has the same result: users are
forced to reveal sensitive personal information to third parties simply
to access the web. Once that valuable data is centralized, it becomes an
immediate target for leaks, hacks, and misuse. This isn’t hypothetical:
it has already happened several times.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/05/age-verification-privacy-nightmare
Meanwhile, twenty-five Greek and international organizations have
expressed strong concerns over a proposed Greek government bill that
would ban children under 15 from accessing social media platforms,
according to a joint letter sent to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis
and relevant ministers.
https://www.tovima.com/society/25-groups-push-back-on-greeces-social-media-ban-for-minors/
7. From Cyber Threats to Real Danger: Sudanese Women Journalists in the
Crosshairs of Digital Violence"
The Arab Reform Initiative published this analysis of TFGBV against
Sudanese women journalists, showing how tech has exacerbated violence
against women journalists and how responses need to be multi-layered and
comprehensive in order to create a safer and more just media environment
in conflict settings.
https://www.arab-reform.net/publication/from-cyber-threats-to-real-danger-sudanese-women-journalists-in-the-crosshairs-of-digital-violence/
_________________________________________
### NEW Job Opportunities ###
__________________________________________
These are new jobs we have received in the past week. You can access
these and other jobs by visiting our job board:
https://www.digitalrights.community/job-board
+ Tech Policy Research Associate, Open MIC (Open Media and Information
Companies Initiative)
- Remote
+ Congressional Innovation Fellow, TechCongress
- Washington DC
+ Associate Director,, Investor Alliance for Human Rights, Interfaith
Center On Corporate Responsibility
- Remote USA
+ Android developer for the decentralized web, eQualitie
- Remote Global
+ Data Analyst – network measurement and platform security, eQualitie
- Remote Global
+ UX Designer, eQualitie
- Remote Global
+ Software developer for the federated web, eQualitie
- Remote Global
______________________________________
### Digital Rights in the Wider World ###
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1. Norway’s $2.3tn Fund Backs a Human-Rights Review at Palantir
Norges Bank Investment Management, which runs Norway’s $2.3 trillion oil
fund, will vote in favour of shareholder proposals calling for a
human-rights review at Palantir Technologies, the data-analytics company
co-founded by Peter Thiel. The fund disclosed it would support motions
on human-rights due diligence and impact assessment, and on reporting of
political contributions, ahead of Palantir’s annual general meeting on
June 3. The fund publishes its voting intentions in advance, and the
disclosure functions as a public signal as much as a ballot. The central
proposal, filed by the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of
Peace, asks Palantir to conduct and publish a human-rights impact
assessment, the standard due-diligence tool a company uses to identify
and account for harms connected to its products.
https://thenextweb.com/news/norway-fund-palantir-human-rights-vote
2. Ghana's Parliament Passes anti-LGBTQ+ bill
The parliament in Ghana has approved a new bill criminalising
homosexuality and the promotion of LGBTQ+ activities. It proposes that
identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer be punished
by up to three years' imprisonment. The bill also introduces a "duty to
report" prohibited acts to police.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yedendprko
The proposed law has also been criticised by international rights
organisations, including Human Rights Watch, which said it put people’s
lives at risk while also “encouraging citizens to surveil and denounce
one another”.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/jun/01/ghana-new-law-criminalising-lgbtq-activity
3. Spain Approves Draft Law Adapting the EU AI Act Into National Legislation
Spain’s Council of Ministers has approved a draft Organic Law aimed at
adapting the EU AI Act into the country’s national legal framework. The
draft law incorporates the EU AI Act’s risk-based classification
framework into Spanish legislation while establishing sanctions,
governance structures, and supervisory authorities. It includes
prohibitions covering subliminal techniques, exploitation of
vulnerabilities, biometric classification, social scoring, predictive
surveillance, emotion recognition, facial scraping, and real-time
identification.
https://dig.watch/updates/spain-ai-governance-law
4. Indonesia Moves to Modernize Human Rights and Copyright Laws in the
Evolving Digital Era
Indonesia is preparing major revisions to both its Human Rights Law and
Copyright Law to address challenges arising from emerging digital
technologies, privacy concerns, environmental rights and artificial
intelligence (AI). The proposed amendments also aim to strengthen
accountability among state institutions, as well as in the private and
corporate sectors. Public consultations are currently being conducted as
part of the National Legislation Program.
https://www.humanrightsresearch.org/post/indonesia-moves-to-modernize-human-rights-and-copyright-laws-in-the-evolving-digital-era
5. 404 Media Sued ICE to Get Its Spyware Contract. The Agency Is
Redacting Essentially Everything
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) contracted with a spyware
company that tells customers it ensures they can use the tool without
the agency being caught doing so, according to documents obtained by 404
Media through their ongoing lawsuit against ICE. In September, they sued
ICE for documents related to its $2 million contract with Paragon, a
company that makes powerful spyware for remotely hacking phones and
accessing encrypted messaging apps. In response to the lawsuit they have
been given the first batch of documents by ICE, but the vast majority
are heavily redacted. Additionally, ICE is still withholding information
in the public interest that would more fully explain why the agency
wanted to buy such a potent and controversial surveillance tool.
https://www.404media.co/we-sued-ice-to-get-its-spyware-contract-the-agency-is-redacting-essentially-everything/
6. Iran Turns Internet Back On, but Old Restrictions Remain
Internet access in Iran was partially restored earlier this week after
an 88-day blackout. Amir Rashidi, director of the Miaan Group, shared
"The goal now seems to be to ensure that the internet functions in
principle, but that data traffic is specifically manipulated…The
connection is supposed to remain intact, but normal and unrestricted use
is made difficult, so that hardly any data can leave the country and
information about the war and protests cannot be freely disseminated."
https://www.dw.com/en/iran-turns-internet-back-on-but-old-restrictions-remain/a-77331981
7. Musk's Company Starlink Has Once Again Shown Interest in Expanding
Internet Services in Nepal
Satellite-based internet service provider Starlink has expressed its
desire to expand its services in Nepal. The company's director Rebecca
Hunter said in a recent meeting with Information and Communications
Minister Vikram Timilsina that she wanted to obtain permission to
operate internet services in Nepal. Earlier, Elon Musk himself had told
the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli that he had a great desire to see
Starlink's 'high-speed' internet running on the world's highest peak,
Mount Everest.
https://ekantipur.com/technology/2026/06/01/en/starlinks-renewed-effort-to-expand-internet-in-nepal-50-44.html
8. Russia Tightens Online Curbs with Gaming Blocks, Seasonal Access Idea
Steam, Xbox, PlayStation and other services face silent disruptions in
Russia, with experts linking outages to targeted blocking rather than
technical faults. Kremlin ally Aleksandr Dugin suggests limiting
internet access to reward good behaviour and shutting it down in warmer
months to encourage offline interaction. VPN use remains common but
faces increased detection through AI tools, while interest grows in
protocols and mesh networks to bypass state filters.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/insight/russia-tightens-online-curbs-with-gaming-blocks-seasonal-access-idea/gm-GMAB25D2AF
9. US Law Enforcement Warns of ‘Anti-Tech Extremism’ as AI Hatred Grows
In the wake of attacks on CEOs, a nationwide protest movement targeting
data centers, and increasing concerns about AI job replacement, federal
intelligence agencies and domestic law enforcement are circulating
reports with a new domestic target in mind: anti-technology extremists.
More than 1,000 pages of unpublished reports from the Department of
Homeland Security, FBI, and fusion centers obtained by WIRED show a
national shift taking place to surveil this new and worryingly broad
category of people and activities deemed an emerging threat.
https://www.wired.com/story/us-law-enforcement-warns-of-anti-tech-extremism/
______________________________________
### Community Resources ###
______________________________________
1. Phoenix R&D: Getting to Know the Architects of Critical Secure Group
Communications Standards
Phoenix R&D is well known for their historic cryptographic
accomplishment that changed the secure communications ecosystem
worldwide – the creation of a standard and consequent development of an
open source library that made end-to-end encrypted group communication
possible for any application.
https://www.digitalrights.community/blog/community-series-phoenixrd
_____________________________________
### Events Calendar ###
______________________________________
Did you know you could submit your events for inclusion in our
newsletter? It takes a few minutes to submit:
https://www.digitalrights.community/weekly-newsletter
Additionally, we maintain a calendar of events in our wiki:
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Calendar_of_Events
Digital Rights Asia-Pacific Assembly (DRAPAC)
June 8 to 10
Manila, Philippines
https://engagemedia.org/2025/drapac26-manila/
Reproductive Access through Technology
June 10
Online
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rxt-reproductive-justice-in-the-digital-age-tickets-198888522324
Community-Organized Alternative RightsCon's Internet Shutdown Track
June 17-18
Register: https://connectionlabs.network.
For the password to enter, please contact hello at connectionlabs.network
Digital Rights Social / Focus: Security Clinic Best Practices and Q&A
June 18, 2026 @ 14 UTC
TCU's Mattermost
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Community_Updates
Global Media Forum
June 23 and 24, 2026
Bonn Germany
https://corporate.dw.com/en/gmf-2026-your-ideas-deserve-the-spotlight/a-75222151
Fight for Us, Not for Them Event
June 23
Brussels and Online
https://edri.org/our-work/announcing-the-summit-fight-for-us-not-for-them-a-public-interest-vision-for-eu-tech-policy/
All Things in Moderation 2026: Call for Contributions
June 25 to 26
Online and on demand
https://www.allthingsinmoderation.org/call-for-contributions
Digital Rights Social / Focus: Organizational Sustainability and Resilience
July 16, 2026 @ 14 UTC
TCU's Mattermost
https://wiki.digitalrights.community/index.php?title=Community_Updates
Free and Open Communications on the Internet (FOCI)
July 20, 2026
Hybrid, co-located with PETS in Calgary, Canada
https://foci.community/
Global Gathering
September 4 to 6, 2026
Portugal
https://www.digitalrights.community/blog/applications/global-gathering-2026-applications-open
Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa (FIFAfrica)
September 28 to October 1
Mauritius
https://internetfreedom.africa
Trust and Safety Research Conference 2026
October 1–2, 2026
Currently accepting proposals here:
https://cyber.fsi.stanford.edu/trust-and-safety-research-conference
Circuit Breaker 26
October 17-18
New York
https://techworkerscoalition.org/circuit-breakers/
Digital Commons:Infrastructures, Design, and the Ethics of Autonomy
October 8 to 10
Athens, Greece
www.digicommons.org
__________________________________________
### Grants, Fellowships, & Awards ###
__________________________________________
Lebanese Journalists At Risk or Pressure
No Deadline
https://www.skeyesmedia.org/en/News/News/07-04-2026/13133
Human Rights Projects in Sri Lanka
Deadline: May 6
https://www.netherlandsandyou.nl/web/sri-lanka/w/open-call-for-applications-embassy-funded-human-rights-projects-sri-lanka
ISOC Community-Centered Connectivity Grant Program
May 7
https://www.isocfoundation.org/grant-programme/community-centered-connectivity/
FemFirst Lab
Deadline: May 15
https://itforchange.net/call-for-applications-femfirst-lab
Human Rights Democracy and CSO Support to Sri Lanka and the Maldives
Deadline: May 15, 2026.
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/prospect-details/186264PROSPECTSEN
Sinar Project Civic Tech Fellowship 2026
May 17
https://sinarproject.org/projects/enabling-tech/sinar-project-civic-tech-fellowship-2026
Goethe Institute Grant
May 19
https://www.goethe.de/ins/ng/en/kul/sup/co9/dnw26/dnwoc.html
Digital Justice Fund
You must register on the platform by May 24, and submit an application
by June 21
https://apply.hypha.digitalfreedomfund.org/
.ORG Impact Awards
May 27.
https://enter.orgimpactawards.org/
DiploFoundation Knowledge Fellow
May 31
https://dig.watch/opportunity-become-a-knowledge-fellow
Community Access Fund for LGBTQI+ Asylum Seekers
May 31
https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/community-access-fund-application
Promoting Inclusive Digital Services in Kyrgyzstan
Deadline: June 2
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/prospect-details/185902PROSPECTSEN
Interledger Fellowship Program
Deadline: June 15
https://interledger.org/grant/fellowship
InDiCo-Global. Deadline
Deadline: June 30, 2026
https://indico-global-grants.eu/indico-global-third-open-call
Cross-Border Collaborative Investigations on the Impact of AI
July 22
https://www.freepressunlimited.org/en/current/grants-cross-border-collaborative-investigations-impact-ai
__________________________________________
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