EFFector Volume 37, Issue 6

👁️ Big Brother's Little Problem

Welcome to the all-new EFFector, your regular digest on everything digital rights from the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

In our 823rd issue: Victories for personal privacy and right-to-repair, a stark illustration of mass surveillance in action, and all the info on upcoming opportunities to connect with EFF.

When you lose your rights online, you lose them in real life. Become an EFF member today!

‌Featured Story: Watch Out, Watchers

Here at EFF, our role is to watch the watchers. And, uh, boy, is there a lot to watch. Whether it's thousands of license plate readers tracking your every move or a proposed government super database, snoops are dreaming up new tools every day to spy into our lives. But that doesn't mean we have to let them. Last week, we saw clear examples of how privacy can win when people stand up against surveillance.

In Austin, organizers successfully got their city to cancel a contract with car-tracking giant Flock Safety (more on that below). And in nearby San Marcos, Texas, the city council voted against expanding their Flock program after residents spoke out against it. Finally, in New York, a federal district court granted a preliminary injunction in our case challenging the illegal disclosure of government records to DOGE.

Our coalition's case centers on violations of the Privacy Act of 1974, which was passed in the wake of the Watergate scandal and tightly limits how the federal government can use our personal information. In last week's ruling, the court wrote, "The plaintiffs have an interest in avoiding the 'Big Brother' government monitoring that the Privacy Act is designed to prevent."

Of course, we all have an interest in protecting our lives from the government's prying eyes. The good news is that when work together we can put Big Brother on timeout.

READ MORE…

‌EFF Updates

🤠 YEEHAW PRIVACY: Austinites sent a clear "Flock you" to surveillance tech last week, getting their to city cancel a contract with automated license plate reader (ALPR) giant Flock Safety. More than 30 community groups came together to prevent the contract renewal, including Electronic Frontier Alliance member EFF Austin.

😷 MASKING TAKE: Politicians hate this one simple trick to protect your privacy. But whether you're trying to prevent the spread of germs or worried about reprisals for expressing your opinions, you should have the right to wear a mask at protests, EFF explains.

🇪🇺 KEEP EUROPE ENCRYPTED: There's no way to build a backdoor that just lets in "the good guys." That's why EFF joined a broad coalition urging the European Commission to abandon its plan to explore "technical solutions" to give authorities "access encrypted data in a lawful manner."

🛠️ RIGHT TO REPAIR: Right to repair is now the law in Washington state where newly signed bills guarantee the right to access the tools, parts, and information to fix a variety devices—including, crucially, wheelchairs. Remember, folks: If you can’t fix it, you don’t own it.

🎧 ON THE POD: On a recent episode of EFF's "How to Fix the Internet" podcast, Tor Project Executive Director Isa Fernandes explained how she thinks free, open-source software helped build the internet and why it will be the key to improving it for all.

‌One Big Number

Number of individual car-tracking cameras a Texas cop used to search for a woman suspected of having an abortion. The automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras were part of 6,809 different surveillance networks maintained by Flock Safety around the country, including in states where abortion access is protected by law, such as Washington and Illinois.

The incident starkly illustrates how mass surveillance can creep into our lives: That little gizmo that was sold to your police department (or homeowner's association) as a way to help find stolen cars can easily become part of a much larger and more nefarious project. In this case, a national surveillance dragnet being used to track and control us on a biological level.

READ MORE…

MiniLinks

🗣️ Free Speech

• "An LAPD Helicopter Claimed Cops Identified Protesters From Above and Would 'Come to Your House'" (Mother Jones)

• "The Egg Yolk Principle: Human Sexuality Will Always Outsmart Prudish Algorithms and Hateful Politicians" (404 Media)

• "How the FBI Sought a Warrant to Search Instagram of Columbia Student Protesters" (The Intercept)

🔒 Privacy

• "Trump Taps Palantir to Compile Data on Americans" (The New York Times)

• "Airlines Don't Want You to Know They Sold Your Flight Data to DHS" (404 Media)

🔎 Transparency

• “The NYC Algorithm Deciding Which Families Are Under Watch for Child Abuse" (The Markup)

🌎 International

• "England’s High Court Warns Lawyers to Stop Citing Fake A.I.-Generated Cases" (The New York Times)

"It's just been win after win after win in the right to repair space."

EFF's Hayley Tsukayama in this week's EFFector audio companion discussing how Washington's new right to repair laws fit into larger legislative trends. Hear our full interview with Hayley here.

Tech Tip: Dealing With AI Crawlers

AI crawlers generate so much traffic that some web sites are struggling to stay online. What can site operators do? Based, in part, on our own sometimes frustrating experiences, EFF suggests these three (imperfect) mitigations:

1. Use a caching layer
2. Convert to static content
3. Use targeted rate limiting

Still, there's only so much site operators can do on their own. For-profit AI companies must ensure they do not poison the well of the open web they rely on in a short-sighted rush for training data. Read our full blog post to learn more.

READ MORE…

Announcements

EFF Events

• EFF at Open Sauce 🤖 in San Mateo, CA | July 18-20
• EFF at Black Hat USA 🕵️ in Las Vegas, NV | Aug. 2-7
• EFF at HOPE_16 🌎 in New York, NY | Aug. 15-17

EFF Opportunities

• Policy and Research Staff Technologist
• Fall 2025 Legal Internships

Celebrating 35 Years

• EFF's 35th Anniversary celebration has begun with a Sustaining Donor Challenge! Become a monthly or annual recurring donor by July 10 and you'll get a custom EFF35 Challenge Coin. You can also check out brand new member t-shirts, hoodies, and stickers at https://eff.org/35rm.

Corporate Giving and Sponsorships

• Thank you to Morrison Foerster and Keker, Van Nest & Peters for their generous support of EFF’s Intern Fund. To learn more about how your team can make an impact, visit https://eff.org/thanks.

Supported by Donors

Our members make it possible for EFF to bring legal and technological expertise into crucial battles about online rights. Whether defending free speech online or challenging unconstitutional surveillance, your participation makes a difference. Every donation gives technology users who value freedom online a stronger voice and more formidable advocate. Check out our FAQ for information on memberships, donations, shop orders, corporate giving, matching gifts, and other ways to give. https://www.eff.org/pages/membership-faq

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