THOUGH CONGRESS PASSED IMMUNITY FOR TELECOM LAWBREAKERS LAST WEEK, EFF recognizes that the year-long battle was made possible by record-breaking resistance from a fearless cadre of organizations and individuals. This resulted in far more opposition than immunity proponents were bargaining for when they initially sought to hide from accountability for cooperation with warrantless spying. In spite of the support of powerful corporations, and incessant political posturing by the Executive branch, wave after wave of public opposition delayed passage of immunity over and over and over again.
Though telecom immunity was eventually passed in the FISA Amendments Act, the fight is far from over. We have shown that there is a constituency -- a loud, organized, and active constituency -- that will passionately defend the Constitution, privacy rights, and the rule of law. Lawmakers risk their offices in ignoring this principled, tireless, permanent movement. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/07/little-victories-battle-against-telecom-immunity
Also, EFF Senior Staff Attorney Kevin Bankston guest blogged for The Hill, declaring that "our long war against warrantless wiretapping has only just begun." http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/07/repeal-immunity-movement-begins-today
VIACOM AND GOOGLE UPPED COMMITMENTS TO USERS' PRIVACY THIS WEEK in response to concerns aired by EFF after a court order that could have exposed the viewing habits of YouTube users. While the proposals are not perfect, they represent a sensitivity to users' privacy, even amidst controversial litigation. Viacom and Google have agreed that user IDs and IP addresses will be replaced with a "unique substituted value," and also that the parties will not try to reverse-engineer real identities from the unique identifiers. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/07/viacom-narrows-request-youtube-information
In addition, Viacom's General Counsel sent EFF a letter promising not to change the plan to protect users' privacy without informing EFF -- which leaves a chance for EFF to air privacy concerns in court if need be. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/07/viacom-letter-eff-re-google-youtube-data-privacy
IN A TRAGIC, SHAMEFUL AFFRONT TO THE US CONSTITUTION, THE SENATE APPROVED THE FISA AMENDMENTS ACT passed by the House last month. The bill radically expands the president's spying powers and grants immunity to phone companies that cooperated in the illegal warrantless wiretapping program. Many senators courageously opposed telecom immunity, and several amendments were offered in an attempt to remove or modify the immunity provision, but they failed.
Despite this serious setback, EFF vows that the fight for accountability over the president's illegal surveillance is far from over -- we will continue to fight in the courtroom and in Congress to defend the cause of liberty. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/07/09
ACTION ALERT: CELEBRATE THE 4TH BY TELLING YOUR SENATORS, "DON'T SHRED THE CONSTITUTION -- REJECT TELECOM IMMUNITY!" Now that the House has passed the FISA Amendments Act (FAA), the Senate is the last front remaining in the battle against granting immunity to telecom lawbreakers. When the Senate reconvenes early next week, every vote counts. This may be the last chance to urge your Senators to vote against the FISA Amendments Act and to support key amendments that would eliminate or weaken telecom immunity provisions. Contact your Senators today! http://action.eff.org/site/Advocacy?id=389
BREAKING NEWS: COURT HOLDS THAT FISA PREEMPTS THE STATE SECRETS PRIVILEGE. Yesterday, Chief Judge Vaughn Walker of the Northern District of California issued an opinion in Al Haramain v. Bush, one of the cases challenging the NSA warrantless wiretapping program. The Court held that FISA preempts the state secrets privilege and that the President's authorities under Article II of the Constitution do not give him the power to overrule FISA. This decision dramatically undermines key arguments for telecom immunity on the eve of the Senate vote on the FISA bill, set for next week. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/07/new-decision-immunity-myths
IN THE ONGOING EFFORT TO PROTECT TRAVELERS' PRIVACY, EFF filed suit on behalf of a member of the European Parliament demanding the release of personal records gathered during her international travels. The US government has repeatedly claimed that any person can obtain her records through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request -- but so far the agencies have failed to comply with the requests as required by federal law. The EFF lawsuit was filed mere days after the disclosure that the US and the European Union may soon finalize an agreement authorizing the exchange of large amounts of personal data. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/07/01
THE SENATE DELIVERED AN UNEXPECTED REPRIEVE ON TELECOM IMMUNITY THURSDAY NIGHT, deciding to delay the vote on the FISA Amendments Act until after the July 4th recess! Earlier in the week, the mainstream press was reporting that the immunity bill would see swift and uncontested approval. Senate leaders emphasized that passing an immunity bill this week was one of their highest priorities. And yet, in the end, the bill simply wasn't as uncontested and noncontroversial as the pundits and politicians thought it was. Overwhelming grassroots action and the efforts of Senators Dodd, Feingold, and Bingaman were critical in giving allies a broader window of opportunity to make an impact on telecom immunity legislation. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/06/senate-delays-vote-immunity
EFF ARGUED FOR A NEW TRIAL FOR JAMMIE THOMAS, responding to the judge's concern that he might have made a mistake when he followed the RIAA's "making available" reasoning in his jury instructions. EFF and a coalition of consumer and industry groups contend that the law simply does not allow lawsuits over "attempted copyright infringement." Thomas was hit with a massive $220,000 judgment in a very public file-sharing case in 2007. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/06/20-0
ALSO THIS WEEK, EFF PUBLISHED "BEST PRACTICES FOR ONLINE SERVICE PROVIDERS," an updated white paper featuring legal and technical suggestions for the best privacy practices for collecting, storing, and disclosing data that balance the needs of OSPs and their users' privacy and civil liberties. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/06/osp-best-practices
ACTION ALERT: THE SHAM TELECOM IMMUNITY "COMPROMISE" IS LURKING IN THE WINGS, awaiting the signal for showtime. Though some members of Congress are guilty of selling the bill's telecom immunity provision as a "compromise," there is still time to expose the telecom immunity proposal as a sham and to halt the bill before its too late. Already, some Congressional leaders have expressed concerns, and other influential members have expressed resistance to the scheme. Please join in and make your voice heard to all the members of Congress -- no false compromises for lawbreaking telecoms! http://www.eff.org/action/no-false-compromises
EFF VICTORY UPHOLDS "FIRST SALE" RIGHTS IN PROMO CD CASE! Last week, a federal judge affirmed an eBay seller's right to resell promo CDs bought from secondhand stores, striking down bogus copyright infringement allegations from Universal Music Group. Even though the promo CDs were stamped with licenses attempting to restrict resale, the eBay seller's behavior was protected by the "first sale" doctrine, which says that once the copyright owner sells or gives away a copy of a CD, DVD, or book, the recipient is entitled to resell that copy without seeking permission -- a principle that libraries, used bookstores, and rental businesses are built upon. This ruling is a resounding victory, not only for the first sale doctrine, but for the media-purchasing public at large. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/06/liberation-day-promo-cds-victory-umg-v-augusto
EFF ASKED A COURT TO CURTAIL SUSPICIONLESS BORDER SEARCHES LAST WEEK alongside the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE), filing a key amicus brief as part of an ongoing effort to protect digital privacy at the border. In the amicus brief, EFF and ACTE asked the full 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear and reverse a decision that upheld blanket search and seizure power for border officials. Classic privacy analogies -- critical to expectation of privacy assessments -- are often incompatible with new technology and the way individuals and businesses make use of them. The courts need to recognize a standard that protects the privacy of Americans in the Information Age. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/06/12
URGENT ACTION ALERT: TELL CONGRESS "NO DEAL ON TELECOM IMMUNITY"! Recent intelligence indicates that high-ranking Republicans and Democrats are hoping that a "compromise" foreign intelligence surveillance bill can be rushed through both the House and the Senate before the July 4th holiday -- maybe even next week. The drafting process has been secretive, but one thing is clear: the "compromise" is almost certain to contain blanket immunity for phone companies that assisted in the NSA's warrantless wiretapping program and prevent any court from ruling on whether they broke the law. We've stopped telecom immunity in its tracks before, but the empty "compromise" rhetoric surrounding this bill makes it extremely dangerous. Please contact your Senators and Congressperson to remind them that we're watching, and that we won't accept any false compromises on immunity for lawbreaking telecoms! http://www.eff.org/action/no-false-compromises
IN ANOTHER BATTLE AGAINST ABUSIVE DMCA TAKEDOWNS, EFF has asked a federal court to protect the free speech rights of an animal welfare group after its video critiques of animal treatment at rodeos were removed from YouTube due to sham copyright claims. The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) filed takedown demands for 13 videos from the group Showing Animals Respect and Kindness (SHARK), claiming that the videos infringed their copyrights -- even though the PRCA has no copyright claim in live rodeo events. The lawsuit is part of EFF's No Downtime for Free Speech Campaign, a response to increasing misuse of the DMCA to demand that material be removed from the Internet without providing any proof of infringement. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/06/09-0
EFF WELCOMES LEADING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ATTORNEY MICHAEL KWUN, who brings years of copyright, trademark, and patent litigation experience to EFF's legal team. A long-time geek, Kwun worked on early DMCA cases and, as Google's litigation managing counsel, defended Google in copyright cases about YouTube, Google Book Search, and Google Image Search; trademark cases about Google AdWords; and patent cases in connection with a wide variety of Google products. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/06/09
ACTION ALERT: ASK YOUR SENATOR ABOUT ACTA. Disturbingly little information has been made publicly available about a wide-ranging intellectual property enforcement treaty, known as ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement). The trickle of information available points to a select group of industrialized countries negotiating an elevated standard of intellectual property enforcement, which stands to impact innovation, commerce, and technology users' privacy and civil liberties. With so much potentially at stake, the lack of transparency is cause for concern. Contact your Senator -- urge him or her to shed some sunlight on the contents of ACTA and to give citizens an opportunity for meaningful consultation. http://action.eff.org/site/Advocacy?id=383
EFF IS SAFEGUARDING FREE SPEECH in Cook County, Illinois, where town officials are seeking the identity of the author of two "spoof" MySpace profiles criticizing the town president. EFF Senior Staff Attorney Matt Zimmerman explains: "The First Amendment requires courts to guard against attempts to unmask critics who have simply made statements litigants don't like, especially when such requests are made by elected officials." http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/06/05
IN FISA NEWS, House leaders have been discussing a terrible Republican proposal that would direct the secret FISA court to grant immunity to telecoms that participated in the NSA's illegal warrantless wiretapping program, so long as they received a piece of paper saying that the President authorized the surveillance. This proposal is even *worse* than the immunity scheme that the House has already rejected, so please act today to remind your Representative to stand firm and say no to retroactive immunity. http://www.stopthespying.org
EFF HAS FOUGHT FOR GREATER TRANSPARENCY for quite some time now, though the effort has been distributed throughout a number of disparate projects. To make our efforts more clear, we have created a "one-stop shop" for our work in promoting transparency and accountability for government and corporate entities. Check it out! http://www.eff.org/issues/transparency
"LINE NOISE," THE EFF PODCAST, is up and running again after a year in hibernation. Finally, a way to stay up-to- date about online civil liberties issues with your eyes closed! We've posted two episodes this week, one on Orphan Works and another on the Broadcast Flag. Check them out: http://www.eff.org/linenoise
USERS OF MICROSOFT WINDOWS VISTA discovered last week that their computers were refusing to record NBC's American Gladiator. When EFF and others raised the issue online, Microsoft responded, confirming that Vista's video recording and reuse abilities have been crippled according to NBC's demands. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/05/microsofts-masters-whose-rules-does-your-media-cen
You can hear more about it on the Line Noise podcast: http://www.eff.org/linenoise/conversation-about-broadcast-flag
GOP HOUSE LEADER JOHN BOEHNER has been fighting hard for his own right to protection from illegal wiretapping, even though he's simultaneously trying to deny ordinary Americans the same rights. Oh, and he's earned himself and his attorneys $1.1 million in the process. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/05/boehner-wiretapping
THE INTERNET ARCHIVE, along with its counsel EFF and the ACLU, successfully challenged a national security letter issued to the Archive's digital library. The NSL, which had unconstitutionally gagged the Archive for months, was withdrawn, and we are now able to bring this story to the public for the first time. This settlement -- and the extensive dialogue about the case -- are critical supplements to widespread reports of NSL abuse. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/05/06
ACTION ALERT: A NEW FISA BILL is being drafted behind closed doors. Although all may appear quiet in the House as it publicly focuses on other major legislation, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has been negotiating with Senator Rockefeller -- the architect of the terrible Senate bill that would fully immunize lawbreaking telecoms -- on a possible FISA "compromise".
Once a deal is struck, it could come to the House floor with little warning. So, please contact your Representatives now and remind them that we're watching -- and that they must not provide immunity for lawbreaking telecoms. http://stopthespying.org/
ACTION ALERT: AN OUTRAGEOUS JUSTICE DEPARTMENT PROPOSAL directs federal law enforcement agencies to collect DNA samples from anyone they arrest. This new proposal threatens to swell the government's DNA database with the sensitive genetic information of innocent people -- Americans involved in peaceful political protests, for example.
The public comment period will end on Monday, May 19, so now's time to speak out against this proposal that turns the principle of "innocent until proven guilty" on its head! http://www.eff.org/action/protectdna
DIGITAL PRIVACY is at risk after a court ruling that permits customs officials to search laptop computers at the border without any suspicion or cause. In response, we've written a citizen's guide to protecting privacy at the border: http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/05/protecting-yourself-suspicionless-searches-while-t
We're asking members of Congress to take action to protect travelers' rights: http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/05/01
Action Alert: Join in and tell legislators to protect digital privacy at the border and beyond: http://www.eff.org/action/bordersearch
IN YET ANOTHER egregious example of the risks of DRM, Microsoft is planning to betray its customers by locking listeners out of music bought from the MSN Music Store. We've written an open letter to Microsoft's CEO, Steve Ballmer, outlining five steps to make things right for MSN Music customers -- and regain the trust of customers of existing services that may yet suffer the same fate: http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/04/28
AND FINALLY, you may have noticed a change in the EFFector layout. EFFector was becoming somewhat overgrown, so we took time to compose a new layout that was still informative and action-packed -- but less cluttered and more useful to the reader.
