CLIPS: 21 April, 2022
Welcome to the Progressive Tech Policy Project! We curate and send weekly summaries of news on the left, along with occasional deep dives to reflect on timely issues. We always welcome your feedback and suggestions, and you can reach us anytime at techpolicy@geer.com. - Szelena Gray, Editor
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New Reporting Shows How Democratic And Authoritarian Governments Fuel The $12 Billion Spyware Industry
This week, The New Yorker published an in-depth account of the $12 billion spyware industry written by Ronan Farrow. The piece, which is the result of two years of investigation and interviews with security teams at NSO Group, Meta, and Apple, details the unregulated market for spyware, and its use by democratic and authoritarian regimes to target high profile individuals and activists. Farrow details how a Microsoft executive (who helped lead company efforts to fight spyware) told him: “The big, dirty secret is that governments are buying this stuff — not just authoritarian governments but all types of governments.”
A new report from Citizen Lab adds fuel to Farrow’s reporting, demonstrating how spyware providers NSO Group and Candiru targeted at least 65 individuals from democratic and authoritarian regimes — including members of European Parliament and activists in the autonomous region of Catalonia — in an effort to track and monitor the behavior of independence activists and government officials.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation and Fight for the Future have been campaigning against the spyware industry for years, and in February we covered NSO Group’s deployment of Pegasus spyware against activists in Israel.
COVERAGE
Reuters, Catalan independence leaders targeted by spyware, rights group says
NBC, Spyware use on separatists in Spain 'extensive,' cybersecurity group says
The Guardian, Catalan leaders targeted using NSO spyware, say cybersecurity experts
Politico, Pegasus spyware targets top Catalan politicians and activists
The Independent, Spyware use on separatists in Spain "extensive," group says
CNet, Pegasus Spyware and Citizen Surveillance: What You Need to Know
Cyber Wire, Pegasus spyware claims new targets in Catalonia and UK
Associated Press, Spain: Hacked Catalans to launch a legal bid on spyware use
ABC, Spain: Hacked Catalans to launch a legal bid on spyware use
RESPONSES
In Platformer, Casey Newton wrote on Farrow’s New Yorker piece, praising his analysis and advocating for Apple to deploy more white-hat hackers to identify exploits and report them to tech companies. From his piece: “The good news is big tech companies now have teams dedicated to identifying and disrupting these attacks... The bad news is that it is in the nature of tech companies to keep making new software, and every update brings with it the possibility that a new exploit has been introduced.”
Fanny Hidvegi, Europe policy manager for Access Now, tweeted, “The #Pegasus scandals are not just about surveillance technology, they are about abuse of power … Thanks to @citizenlab for their work.”
Access Now responded, tweeting: “.@infofannny is right. At the heart of the #Pegasus scandal is an abuse of power, which harms people's human rights — online and off.”
Policy manager Marwa Fatafta also tweeted, “More #Pegasus revelations from @citizenlab today. The targeting of the UK’s Number 10 is linked to a #Pegasus operator in the UAE. If this does not serve as a wake up call for governments to urgently ban this dangerous cyber weapon, not sure what will.”
Amnesty International tweeted, “Prominent Catalans spied on in Spain using surveillance #Pegasus. The security lab of @amnesty confirms investigations by @citizenlab. The EU must act immediately to prevent such surveillance cases in the future!”
Technology and human rights researcher Likhita Banerji said in a statement: “The Spanish government needs to come clean over whether or not it is a customer of NSO Group. It must also conduct a thorough, independent investigation into the use of Pegasus spyware against the Catalans identified in this investigation.”
Professor of law at the University of California, Irvine, David Kaye, tweeted, “this major @RonanFarrow piece captures the lawlessness of #spyware, a phenomenon we know about b/c of @citizenlab @AmnestyTech & #PegasusProject reporters. it does not capture the solutions: how to fight #Pegasus & the industry it's a part of?”
Eva Galperin, director of cybersecurity at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, tweeted, “This is your regular reminder that NSO Group is not the only Israeli company selling surveillance malware to shady governments and law enforcement. Cytrox (recently sold to Intellexa) has been busy.”
Privacy Experts Challenge Elon Musk’s Vision For Free Speech On Twitter
A week after Elon Musk made a $43 Billion hostile takeover bid for Twitter, Twitter responded by adopting a poison pill defense. The move prevents Musk from increasing his 9% share of Twitter past 15%, effectively averting a buyout.
Musk gave a TED Talk where he laid out his vision for Twitter. But privacy experts questioned Musk’s understanding of content moderation on the internet, noting that Musk contradicted himself repeatedly in his remarks. For instance, Musk claimed platforms should allow all speech that is not considered illegal by law, before asserting that his top priority would be to “remove spam and scam bots and the bot armies” from Twitter — all of which are generally considered legal under existing law. Additionally, allowing hate speech would contradict the notion of maintaining a “broadly inclusive” platform, something that Musk wants. And one ought to note, keeping hate speech legalized under the first amendment is very different from allowing it on Twitter, a private platform.
COVERAGE
Techdirt, Elon Musk Demonstrates How Little He Understands About Content Moderation
Washington Post, Elon Musk wants a free speech utopia. Technologists clap back.
CNN, Twitter adopts 'poison pill' measure that could thwart Elon Musk's takeover bid
Yahoo Finance, Elon Musk’s Twitter offer is ‘completely unserious,’ law professor says
The Verge, Twitter board announces poison pill measure to block Musk buyout
Reuters, Musk targets Twitter board as company adopts 'poison pill'
The Wall Street Journal, Twitter’s Jack Dorsey Jabs the Board as Elon Musk Proposes Takeover
RESPONSES
Accountable Tech tweeted, “As Elon Musk attempts to takeover Twitter, experts are warning against his idealized version of the platform that scales back content moderation and harms company growth.”
They also tweeted, “As our co-founder @JesseLehrich told @barronsonline" Having Elon Musk successfully turn Twitter into the free-speech absolutist site he wants it to be could be pretty catastrophic for the information ecosystem."”
Shoshana Zuboff, digital advocate, tweeted, “Friends, Musk/Twitter headlines are all variants of ‘what will Elon do?’ It’s a signal of how lost we are. We obsess over one man and his whims because we don’t yet have the democratic rule of law needed to govern our information spaces. Without law power is dangerous.”
She continued in a thread, tweeting, “The result: people, society, & democracy are at the mercy of the individuals who exercise ownership and/or executive control over information. We beg Mr. Zuckerberg to stop the social wreckage, honor our privacy, protect us from disinformation, but he refuses.”
Greg Sargent, Washington Post journalist, tweeted, “The same GOP hailing Elon Musk as a free speech hero is busy punishing private companies for expressing opposition to GOP laws. This Musk worship is a scam. Plus, experts tell us that even if he gets Twitter, he probably won't end up changing it much”
Eva Galperin tweeted, “Tech companies, advocates, and academics have learned a lot about how content moderation on large platforms works and what kinds of mitigations are effective over the last dozen years and Musk misses all of it..”
Wafa Ben-Hassine, principal at Omidyar Network, tweeted, “... Musk’s ignorance on these issues is magnified when you introduce the complexities that being a global platform brings / international human rights standards”
Evan Greer, director of Fight for the Future, tweeted, “Importantly: if we had meaningful choice when it comes to social media platforms, then it wouldn't matter at all if Elon Musk wants to play god with one particular platform. That's why we need to pass #antitrust laws #OAMA and #AICOA. Make Twitter and Musk both irrelevant.”
Public Citizen tweeted, “Free speech and democracy should not be left up to the whims of egotistical billionaires. Do not let Elon Musk buy Twitter”
Rashad Robinson, president of Color of Change, tweeted, “Let’s not forget that @Tesla is facing a lawsuit against over 4,000 Black workers who were discriminated against on the job. #BigTech leaders can't be left to their own devices — we need real accountability from Congress.”
Immigration Groups Sue ICE For Information On Surveillance Programs
A coalition of immigration advocacy groups filed a lawsuit against U.S Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the U.S Department of Homeland Security (DHS), requesting information about the usage of BI Incorporated’s SmartLink application within the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP). Migrants enrolled in ISAP, a flight mitigation program, are subjected to intensive monitoring and surveillance as they await deportation proceedings. BI Incorporated, a subsidiary of private prison corporation giant GEO Group, has provided surveillance technology through their contract with ICE since 2004. As ICE’s Alternative to Detention program continues to expand under the Biden Administration, immigration advocates are calling for transparency around how SmartLINK stores and uses migrants’ biometric data.
Privacy experts and lawmakers have long raised concerns about the way metadata is collected by federal agencies. The Government Surveillance Transparency Act and Warrant for Metadata Act were introduced in Congress to protect American citizens from federal agencies accessing their data. However, new legislation primarily targets unlawful surveillance of American citizens. Civil rights and immigration rights groups are pushing for a sweeping rejection of these monitoring tools, which are used disproportionately to surveil and control communities of color.
COVERAGE
The Guardian, Migrant advocates sue US government for data from surveillance program | Migration
The Hill, Immigrant groups sue ICE for information on alternative detention programs
Time, Feds' Use of Immigrant Tracking Technology Triggers Lawsuit
The Guardian, 'Constantly afraid': immigrants on life under the US government's eye
Brookings, Police surveillance and facial recognition: Why data privacy is imperative for communities of color
The Washington Post, Want our metadata? Get a warrant, Rep. Ted Lieu says.
RESPONSES
Mijente tweeted, “BREAKING: @ConMijente, @JustFuturesLaw & @CommJusticeExch file a lawsuit seeking info from ICE abt the agency’s Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, a so- called alternative to detention program tht has grown during the Biden admin @SamuelsonClinic”
Timnit Gebru, leader in AI ethics research, responded by quoting from the Hill article: “ISAP requires enrolled individuals to either wear ankle monitors, use a voice reporting system or download an app called SmartLINK. All three tools are operated by BI Incorporated, a subsidiary of the private prison trust the GEO Group that has been awarded every ISAP contract."
Just Futures Law tweeted, “BREAKING: We just sued ICE over their data on people placed in their e-carceration program. With now over 216,000 people in digital detention, it's crucial we know what data they're collecting and what they're doing with it.”
Community Justice Exchange tweeted, “SmartLINK and the ISAP program are the latest manifestations of ICE’s long history of using data and technology to surveil and attempt to control our communities and must be stopped. Today we joined @SamuelsonClinic @ConMijente @JustFuturesLaw to sue ICE over this data.”
The Center for Democracy & Technology tweeted a quote from the Hill article: “Very little is known about the application, including what data it can collect & how data is handled... especially since ankle monitor tracking has been used by agents in past to establish patterns of behavior & where people work [i.e. workplace raids]."
California’s New Children’s Privacy Bill Gets A Boost From Advocacy Groups
A new report by Fairplay alleges that Instagram has facilitated the creation of a pro-eating disorder media echo chamber on its platform, in the absence of “appropriate checks and balances” from parent company Meta. The report argues that Instagram generates $230 million in revenue (from an estimated 90,000 unique accounts and 20 million unique followers) from content that promotes disordered eating found on accounts using keywords like “Thinspo” or “Trigger Warning,” and promoting it to younger users.
Fairplay’s report coincides with new reporting from The Guardian this week about how Instagram and Twitter failed to remove accounts that posted sexualized pictures of minors, even after users had flagged the accounts with the in-app reporting tool. A coalition of progressive advocacy groups (including Accountable Tech, the Center for Digital Democracy, Electronic Privacy Information Center, and others) contend that California’s Age Appropriate Design Code Bill would mitigate harms caused by algorithmic amplification of content to children by limiting data collection from minors, restricting ad targeting, and mandating the implementation of ‘age-appropriate’ content policies.
COVERAGE
The Hill, Instagram amplifies pro-eating disorder content ‘bubble’: report
CNet, Instagram Promotes Pro-Eating Disorder Content to Kids, Report Says
Global News, Instagram pro-eating disorder accounts reaching millions of users, many underage: report
Observer, Instagram’s Owner Meta Is Accused of Profiting From its Eating Disorder Content
Axios, California moves toward tougher online privacy rules for kids
Bloomberg, Stronger Online Safeguards for Kids Advance With California Bill
RESPONSES
Ultraviolet tweeted, “These findings from our friends @fairplayforkids show yet again we can't rely on tech companies to regulate themselves. Every day of inaction from Congress means more and more young people are harmed by Big Tech's unregulated, predatory business model.”
CEO of CCDH, Imran Ahmed, tweeted, “Relying on automated detection, which we know cannot keep up with simple hate speech, let alone cunning, determined, child sex exploitation rings, is an abrogation of the fundamental duty to protect children.”
Policy advisor at the Real Facebook Oversight Group, Zamaan Qureshi, tweeted, “Despite Adam Mosseri’s ‘improvements and changes’ to the platform, Instagram continues to amplify pro-eating disorder content according to a new report from @fairplayforkids.”
President and CEO of the CHEO Research Institute, Alex Munter, tweeted, “A surge of seriously-ill eating disorder patients at pediatric hospitals worldwide while Facebook/Instagram makes [money] promoting #eatingdisorders. Governments sued tobacco companies for healthcare costs due to smoking. Is it time to do the same for harm caused by #socialmedia?”
The Center for Digital Democracy tweeted, “The bipartisan California Age Appropriate Design Code Bill is a chance for California to lead the nation in providing safety and privacy to children online by design and by default.”
Founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, Jim Steyer, tweeted, “The #CAKidsCode Act will help California lead the way in making the digital world safer for kids & require #BigTech to protect their #privacy. Thank you @AsmJesseGabriel @Cunning_Jordan @BuffyWicks & many others for voting Aye on this vital legislation.”
Psychologist Teodora Pavkovic tweeted, “It seems @instagram can’t review reports of photos of children in sexualised poses “due to high volume.” I’ve personally received the same response in the past. This is exactly why #CAKidsCode HAS to be voted into law.”
Social psychologist at NYU Stern, Jonathan Haidt, tweeted, “Californians: the bipartisan California Age Appropriate Design Code Bill (AB 2273) is being voted on, in the Privacy committee, on Tuesday. This bill is wonderful-it is the design principles that the UK is enacting. Please contact your state rep.”
Privacy Experts Urge Zoom To Drop Emotion AI
Zoom has announced plans to introduce emotion detecting software into its virtual meeting platform. Billed as technology that can override the communication difficulties of digital meetings, emotion AI has already made inroads in the sales industry. Yet, Zoom’s use for online learning has raised additional concerns about minors’ ability to consent, the efficacy of this technology, and the increasing surveillance of children in classrooms. This is the latest controversy surrounding the usage of AI technologies in schools. As we reported in February, Fight for the Future condemned controversial testing software Proctorio and its monitoring of students' digital activities.
COVERAGE
Protocol, Class tests Intel AI to monitor student emotions on Zoom
TechDirt, Intel Wants To Add Unproven 'Emotion Detection' AI To Distance Learning Tech
Gizmodo, Emotion-Tracking Software Could Ding Your Kid for Looking Bored in Math
RESPONSES
Timnit Gebru tweeted, “Now that I've read this article by @KateKayeReports (thanks for pointing that out @ruthstarkman) I too don't know where to start. Aside from the fact that this is not a thing that works, lets imagine that it does for a second, so that the goal is really to...
The Center for Democracy & Technology tweeted, “"The classroom is just one arena where controversial 'emotion AI' is finding its way into everyday tech products... Educators & advocacy groups raised alarms regarding excessive student #surveillance & privacy invasions associated w/ #facialrecognition:"
Fight for the Future tweeted, “There is no place for "emotion AI" in schools. This is a terrible plan that could harm students and teachers. And hard to see this coming from @intel since it's one of the few companies to acknowledge the harms of facial recognition. This tech is just as dangerous!”
Director Evan Greer tweeted, “Emotion recognition is racist pseudoscience and @Zoom has absolutely no business implementing it.”
Apple Workers in Atlanta Are the Latest to Join the Unionization Wave
The Communication Workers of America announced Apple store workers in Atlanta filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to hold a union election with support from 70% of the eligible employee population. The retail workers would need over 50% of workers to vote in favor of the union to become the first unionized Apple Store. Calling for equitable pay and better benefits, workers at the Atlanta location are the latest to press tech firms to improve labor conditions. In New York, employees at Apple’s store in Grand Central Terminal are collecting signatures for a petition to unionize. Union success at Amazon’s Staten Island JFK8 warehouse, which we covered at the beginning of April, shows how unionization appears to be gaining traction across multiple industries.
COVERAGE
CNN, Employees at a New York Apple store are trying to unionize
NPR, Employees at an Atlanta mall become the first Apple retail workers to unionize
New York Times, Atlanta Apple Store Workers Are the First to Formally Seek a Union
Washington Post, Apple's Atlanta store plans to file for union
CNET, Apple Retail Workers Seek to Form Union at New York Flagship Store
RESPONSES
Apple Together tweeted, “Congrats to and Solidarity with Apple Retail Workers at Cumberland Mall in Atlanta, who just filed to unionize! Please feel free to share messages of encouragement and support on the #AppleTogether tag so they can read them.”
CODE-CWA tweeted, “Today's“union effort in Atlanta is the latest example of workers flexing their power for better pay and working conditions.” We are so proud of the workers at Cumberland Mall’s @Apple for fighting for better working conditions & pay.”
Alphabet Workers Union tweeted, “First, it was the @googlefiber contract workers in Kansas City, next it was @VzwUnion We're so excited to now see this group of @Apple workers in ATL organize for their fair share. “
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) tweeted, “Shoutout to workers at @Apple's Grand Central store in New York who are moving to unionize along with workers at three other Apple stores! #UnionsForAll #YouLoveToSeeIt”
Accountable Tech tweeted, “The tech industry has long framed unions as a danger to productivity and development, but tech workers are realizing the power of collective bargaining and fighting for change.”
OPEN TABS
45 organizations and cybersecurity experts sign open letter expressing concerns with UK’s Online Safety Bill (Global Encryption Coalition)
Web scraping is legal, US appeals court reaffirms (TechCrunch)
URGENT: Congress is trying to sneak through copyright censorship filters (Fight for the Future)
Barack Obama Takes On a New Role: Fighting Disinformation (New York Times)
The crypto regulation problem nobody wants to touch (Protocol)