Hacker News with Generative AI: Digital Rights

The dark side of account bans (madelinemiller.dev)
In the modern world, online accounts are ubiquitous. You’ve likely got so many that you’d have trouble actually counting them. Almost everything you do requires an account at this point. This wasn’t something I put too much thought into, beyond the mild annoyance of having to sign up to yet another website, until I was recently locked out of all Meta services for nearly two months.

Online Privacy, Social Media, Digital Rights, User Experience

127 points by ponco 14 days ago | 113 comments

Congress passes Take It Down act despite major flaws (eff.org)

Legislation, Politics, Internet Censorship, Digital Rights

250 points by abtinf 24 days ago | 105 comments

ProtonVPN: Site Blocking Is an Attack on Users' Online Freedom (torrentfreak.com)
In France, rightsholders have taken legal action to get large VPN providers on board with their pirate site blocking program. The aim is to prevent circumvention of existing blocking measures in place to reduce widespread copyright infringement. From the VPN provider's perspective, site blocking threatens online freedom. Swiss provider ProtonVPN describes blocking as 'a dangerous attack on Internet freedom on the altar of corporate greed'.

VPNs, Internet Freedom, Copyright, France, Digital Rights

5 points by hn_acker 95 days ago | 0 comments

The Guerilla Open Access Manifesto [Aaron Swartz, 2008] (archive.org)

Open Access, Activism, Digital Rights

4 points by bbor 104 days ago | 1 comments

Don't Make Copyright Law in Smoke-Filled Rooms (eff.org)
We're taking part in Copyright Week, a series of actions and discussions supporting key principles that should guide copyright policy.

Copyright Law, Advocacy, Digital Rights

28 points by hn_acker 113 days ago | 1 comments

Apple interoperability efforts under EU law falls short, advocacy groups argue (theregister.com)
Digital rights advocacy organizations contend that Apple has failed to comply with its interoperability obligations under the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

Apple, EU Law, Interoperability, Digital Rights, Advocacy

107 points by beardyw 127 days ago | 156 comments

Free Our Feeds (freeourfeeds.com)
With Zuckerberg going full Musk last week, we can no longer let billionaires control our digital public square.

Social Media, Censorship, Free Speech, Digital Rights

31 points by cdme 130 days ago | 18 comments

EFF Sides with Cox to Protect Piracy-Accused Internet Users from Copyright Troll (torrentfreak.com)
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has got involved in a lawsuit between several movie companies and ISP Cox, who disagree over the use of DMCA subpoenas to identify alleged pirates. The EFF argues this could be abused by "copyright trolls" to target innocent users. They urge the court to require a full lawsuit with judicial oversight.

Copyright Law, Digital Rights, Internet Privacy, Legal Cases

8 points by gslin 131 days ago | 0 comments

Meta's new content policy will harm vulnerable users (eff.org)
Earlier this week, when Meta announced changes to their content moderation processes, we were hopeful that some of those changes—which we will address in more detail in this post—would enable greater freedom of expression on the company’s platforms, something for which we have advocated for many years.

Meta, Social Media, Content Moderation, Digital Rights

26 points by cratermoon 133 days ago | 34 comments

We Need a Cyber Bill of Rights (discoursemagazine.com)
A Bill of Rights for the digital age. The time has come for a set of principles to protect individual rights in cyberspace.

Cybersecurity, Digital Rights, Privacy

10 points by billybuckwheat 140 days ago | 1 comments

YouTuber won DMCA fight with fake Nintendo lawyer by detecting spoofed email (arstechnica.com)
A brave YouTuber has managed to defeat a fake Nintendo lawyer improperly targeting his channel with copyright takedowns that could have seen his entire channel removed if YouTube issued one more strike.

Copyright Law, YouTube, Lawsuits, Legal Battles, Digital Rights

264 points by isaacfrond 144 days ago | 97 comments

UK Police and Fact Continue IPTV Piracy Whack-a-Mole (torrentfreak.com)
A 42-year-old man was arrested in a recent UK crackdown on illegal IPTV suppliers, with a special mention for 'illicit Firesticks'. Local police, in collaboration with anti-piracy group FACT, also sent cease and desist letters to thirty other suspects. While FACT warns that pirate operators risk criminal penalties, there appears to be no end in sight for the streaming piracy whack-a-mole.

IPTV, Piracy, Law Enforcement, Technology, Digital Rights

9 points by hn_acker 171 days ago | 0 comments

Celebrating the Life of Aaron Swartz: Aaron Swartz Day 2024 (eff.org)
Aaron Swartz was a digital rights champion who believed deeply in keeping the internet open. His life was cut short in 2013, after federal prosecutors charged him under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) for systematically downloading academic journal articles from the online database JSTOR. Facing the prospect of a long and unjust sentence, Aaron died by suicide at the age of 26. EFF was proud to call Aaron a friend and ally.

Digital Rights, Activism, Law, Technology, Obituary

27 points by hn_acker 196 days ago | 1 comments

U.S. Election Is Over. EFF Is Ready for What's Next (eff.org)
The dust of the U.S. election is settling, and we want you to know that EFF is ready for whatever’s next. Our mission to ensure that technology serves you—rather than silencing, tracking, or oppressing you—does not change.

Politics, Technology, Digital Rights

37 points by mdp2021 198 days ago | 1 comments

Disability Rights Are Technology Rights (eff.org)
At EFF, our work always begins from the same place: technological self-determination. That’s the right to decide which technology you use, and how you use it. Technological self-determination is important for every technology user, and it’s especially important for users with disabilities.

Disability Rights, Technology, Digital Rights

30 points by hn_acker 210 days ago | 1 comments

India shuts down the internet far more than any other country (restofworld.org)
India has been a leader in internet shutdowns, by a huge margin, for nearly a decade, according to data shared by digital rights watchdog Access Now.

India, Internet Shutdowns, Censorship, Digital Rights, Government Surveillance

8 points by Brajeshwar 223 days ago | 0 comments

Steam now says the 'game' you're buying is just a license (theverge.com)
Valve is now explicitly disclosing that you don’t own the games you buy from its Steam online store.

Gaming, Digital Rights, Steam, Valve

37 points by mfiguiere 224 days ago | 13 comments

Steam adds the harsh truth that you're buying "a license," not the game itself (arstechnica.com)
Valve, seemingly working to comply with a new California law targeting "false advertising" of "digital goods," has added language to its checkout page to confirm that thinking.

Gaming, Law, Digital Rights

4 points by cx0der 224 days ago | 1 comments

Valve says Steam users don't own a thing, GOG says its games can't be taken away (gamesradar.com)

Gaming, Digital Rights, Steam, GOG

208 points by josephcsible 224 days ago | 137 comments

Mozilla: A free and open internet shouldn't come at the expense of privacy (mozilla.org)
Keeping the internet, and the content that makes it a vital and vibrant part of our global society, free and accessible has been a core focus for Mozilla from our founding.

Mozilla, Privacy, Open Source, Internet, Digital Rights

9 points by aragilar 231 days ago | 3 comments

We're building a statue of Aaron Swartz (aaronstatue.org)
This statue reminds us all that the internet, once a beacon of free expression and open access to information, is under siege. Freedom of speech, privacy, and the right to share knowledge are increasingly threatened by powerful forces seeking to control and censor the digital world.

Internet Freedom, Activism, Censorship, Digital Rights

96 points by pablopeniche 234 days ago | 25 comments

California new law forces digital stores to admit you're just licensing content (theverge.com)
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a law (AB 2426) to combat “disappearing” purchases of digital games, movies, music, and ebooks.

California Law, Digital Rights, Consumer Protection, Gaming

44 points by extesy 239 days ago | 11 comments

Hachette vs. Internet Archive: We're Still Fighting for Fair Use (libraryfutures.net)
The Second District Court of New York delivered a blow to fair use in the Hachette v. Internet Archive case, finding in favor of the plaintiffs on all four factors and upholding the lower court’s decision.

Fair Use, Copyright, Lawsuits, Libraries, Digital Rights

51 points by MrVandemar 245 days ago | 68 comments

Open letter: Dangers of age verification proposals to fundamental rights online (edri.org)
Children and young people are some of the most at-risk users of online services, and they deserve age-appropriate online environments that safeguard their well-being. However, as policymakers across the European Union push for EU-wide rules to mandate age verification tools on social media, civil society’s concerns are growing about the impact on fundamental rights.

Online Privacy, Children's Rights, Digital Rights, Europe, Policy

5 points by MaysonL 248 days ago | 0 comments

Why a ruling against the Internet Archive threatens the future of libraries (technologyreview.com)
The decision locks libraries into an ecosystem that is not in readers' interests. Congress must act.

Libraries, Law, Technology, Digital Rights

7 points by janandonly 254 days ago | 2 comments

You Do Have Some Expectation of Privacy in Public (eff.org)

Privacy, Law, Digital Rights

7 points by panarky 259 days ago | 0 comments

The race to save our online lives from a digital dark age (technologyreview.com)

Technology, Internet, Future, Digital Rights

10 points by Brajeshwar 277 days ago | 9 comments

Chat Control: Incompatible with Fundamental Rights (2022) (freiheitsrechte.org)