Thirty-five years ago, a small group of people caught a glimpse of the possibilities of the coming digital future and decided that the world needed a kick-ass defender to ensure that technology could empower people, rather than oppress them. EFF was born, and we’ve been fighting for you ever since.

We’ve won many of those fights for encryption, free speech, innovation, and privacy in too many battles to count. The rise of the internet meant that the dangers from corporate and state gatekeepers have grown as well: companies giddily lock down your software; online platforms throttle, censor, and wall off information; and state actors and advertisers scramble to capture your private thoughts and movements. Right now, it feels like the forces pushing for digital dystopia are surging.

But there's a not-so-secret weapon that keeps EFF in the fight, even when the odds are against us: we never lose sight of our vision for a better future.

The future we envision is possible. It’s a future where your device is truly yours. It’s a world where you can speak, move, and organize without the threat of pervasive surveillance. Your technology helps you connect with the people you care about, wherever they might be. With support from members around the world, EFF uses law, technology, and activism to create the conditions for human rights and civil liberties to flourish, and for repression to fail. After all, how can we achieve democracy and equity if you don’t first have privacy, security, and free expression?

EFF uses law, technology, and activism to create the conditions for human rights and civil liberties to flourish, and for repression to fail.

Throughout EFF’s year-long 35th Anniversary celebration, I’m joining our dedicated activists, investigators, technologists, and attorneys to use the lessons from EFF’s long and rich history to dynamically address and overcome the obstacles we face now. After all, EFF was founded at a time when governments were hostile and clueless about technology. Standing up to the powerful to defend the users is not a new posture, even as the context changes. Grounded in our principles and our vision of a better future, we will stand tall in the courts, before lawmakers, and in the streets. 

As we celebrate its 35th birthday, EFF is vibrant nestled within an even bigger community where we protect each other, including the most vulnerable and marginalized among us.  There are more ways than ever that you can pitch in.  You can join EFF, take part in activism, contribute code to our tech projects, learn about digital security, connect with local internet freedom supporters, or simply share the issues you care about with friends and loved ones, just to name a few.

Believe me when I say that contributing some good to the world can take the edge off even the darkest of days, and that the digital rights community is stronger and more diverse than ever before. I hope you’ll stand with us and remember that EFF is—and always has been—here for you, too.

For your rights online,

Cindy Cohn
EFF Executive Director

CELEBRATE EFF'S 35TH ANNIVERSARY AND HELP PROTECT FREEDOM ONLINE

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