Old Organizations and Related Publications

	Latest DMCA Takedown Victim: The Election Process
	Just as a capsule summary in case you've missed it, over the last several months there has been a rising tide of concern regarding the verifiability of electronic voting machines in general and the security, reliability, and integrity of Diebold's technology in particular, Ed Foster's GripeLog (October 30, 2003)

	This Modern World: Something Truly Terrifying
	Cartoon about electronic voting machines, Tom Tomorrow via Working for Change (October 28, 2003)

	Swarthmore Crackdown on Protesting Students Reaches New Low
	According to the Why War? website, Swarthmore's crackdown on students engaging in Electronic Civil Disobedience has reached a new low, The Importance Of (October 23, 2003)

	(Electronic) Civil Disobedience at Swarthmore
	Wired reports on the clever and brave Swarthmore Students who have vowed to keep electronic voting machine maker Diebold's internal memos concerning security flaws in their systems online despite a rash of cease and desist orders, The Importance Of (October 22, 2003)

	Pennsylvania Web Blocking Law
	The Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) together with the ACLU of Pennsylvania and Plantagenet, Inc., a Pennsylvania ISP filed a constitutional challenge to a Pennsylvania statute that blocks access to Internet sites accused of carrying child pornography and that results in the blocking of wholly innocent websites, Center for Democracy and Technology (September 9, 2003)

OPG Co-Hosts Bridging the Digital Divides Event Join us the week of August 25-29 as we discuss "Bridging the Digital Divides, Equal Access to the Internet" on Techsoup's Digital Divide Forum, including topics such as class-based disparity in available technology, the role race, ethnicity, and religion play in the digital divide, women and technology, the impact of Internet blocking software on the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community, and access to technology for people with disabilities, Online Policy Group (August 25, 2003)

Children’s Internet Protection Act Study of Technology Protection Measures On August 15, 2003, NTIA released a report pursuant to section 1703 of the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), Pub.L.No. 106-554, 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A-336 (2000), evaluating the effectiveness of technology protection measures and safety policies used by educational institutions, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (August 15, 2003)

	"Pay as You Surf?" or "Bringing Home the Gold to Cable and Phone Monopolies"
	Amazon's Misener and his Coalition of Broadband Users and Innovators, which includes Microsoft, Yahoo, Apple, Disney, and others, are urging the FCC to adopt a safeguard that would prevent cable or phone giants from "impair [ing] consumer access to Internet content", Center for Digital Democracy (July 28, 2003)

	Security Researchers Discover Huge Flaws in E-Voting System
	In response to today's release of research about critical security flaws in e-voting systems, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) urged immediate passage of e-voting legislation to prevent election fraud, Electronic Frontier Foundation (July 24, 2003)

	Saudi Arabia Unblocked Entrance to GayMiddleEast.com
	It seems that Saudi Arabia was concerned from the bad publicity blocking the site would bring them at the very same time that they are involved with a multi-million dollar advertising campaign in the United States who's aim is to improve the image of Saudi Arabia, (July 2, 2003)

	DMCA Safe Harbor Provisions
	Section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) protects online service providers (OSPs) from liability for information posted or transmitted by subscribers if they quickly remove or disable access to material identified in a copyright holder's complaint, Chilling Effects (July 1, 2003)

	Hacking for Free Speech
	Wholesale Internet censorship now faces a serious challenge with hacker groups such as Hacktivismo are determined to poke holes in firewalls used for repression, FindLaw's Writ (June 24, 2003)

Study Released on Internet Blocking in Schools, Filtering Software Overblocks and Miscategorizes Websites The Online Policy Group (OPG) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) today released a study documenting the effects of Internet blocking, also known as filtering, in U.S. schools. The study found that blocking software overblocked state-mandated curriculum topics extensively -- for every web page correctly blocked as advertised, one or more was blocked incorrectly, Online Policy Group and Electronic Frontier Foundation (June 23, 2003)

	Human Rights and the World Summit on the Information Society
	Online Policy Group joins a group of 43 non-governmental organizations signing a letter to the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights urging his active participation in the preparatory committee and summit meeting of the World Summit on the Information Society, taking place in September and December 2003, (June 16, 2003)

	Government Mandated Blocking of Foreign Web Content
	This paper provides a technical view on problems imposed by government blocking orders in Germany, blocking content at the access or network provider level, and some empirical data on the effects of the blocking orders to help in the legal assessment of the orders, Lecture Notes in Informatics (June 5, 2003)

	Public Citizen to Defend SavageStupidity.com Against Savage Lawsuit
	SavageStupidity.com announced today that Public Citizen, a nationally prominent non-profit public interest law firm, has agreed to defend them from a lawsuit filed by Talk Radio Network, Inc., which syndicates "The Savage Nation", a nationally broadcast radio talk show hosted by the infamous Michael Savage (née Weiner), SavageStupidity.com (June 3, 2003)

	Declaration on Freedom of Communication on the Internet
	Among other points, the declaration states: "In order to ensure protection against online surveillance and to enhance the free expression of information and ideas, member states should respect the will of users of the Internet not to disclose their identity", Committee of Ministers, Council of Europe (May 28, 2003)

	N2H2 (Censorware Co) on "Edelman v. N2H2" Case
	The N2H2 (censorware company) recent financial filing makes this interesting statement about the Edelman v. N2H2 declaratory action to reverse-engineer censorware, Seth Finkelstein's Infothought blog (May 18, 2003)

	Setting Up a Simple Filtering Circumventor
	You can turn your home computer into a miniature Web server that you and your friends can connect to when your away-from-home Internet access gets censored, Peacefire (April 25, 2003)

Sex and the Internet OPG Executive Director Will Doherty presented a program entitled "Sex and the Internet" to the annual conference of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality in San Jose, CA, Online Policy Group (April 12, 2003)

The Great Firewall of China OPG Executive Director Will Doherty presented a program entitled "The Great Firewall of China: Filtering, Blocking, and Government Censorship" to the annual Computers, Freedom, and Privacy conference in New York City, Online Policy Group (April 3, 2003)

	OPG Climbs "Great Firewall" at Computers Freedom and Privacy Conference
	OPG Executive Director Will Doherty will lead a plenary entitled "The Great Firewall of China - Internet Filtering and Free Expression" at the Computers, Freedom, and Privacy conference taking place at the New Yorker Hotel from 10:30am - 12:00 noon, Online Policy Group (April 3, 2003)

	Federal Appeals Court Clears Way for ACLU Lawsuit Over FBI Censorship of Internet Website
	The American Civil Liberties Union will move forward in its First Amendment lawsuit over censorship of a New Jersey artist Mike Zieper and his web host Mark Wieger's controversial website by federal law enforcement officials, now that a federal appeals court has rejected the government’s attempt to dismiss the case, American Civil Liberties Union (April 3, 2003)

	The New E-Government Equation
	This report presents the findings of a five-part study on the issue of e-government as used by U.S. citizens, conducted by Hart-Teeter on behalf of the Council for Excellence in Government and Accenture, which reports concerns over privacy, Council for Excellence in Government (Adobe pdf format) (April 1, 2003)

	Amendments to Australian FOI Act
	The Federal Government has introduced proposed amendments to the Freedom of Information Act 1982 ("FOI Act") designed to further prevent public scrutiny (and potential criticism) of the operation and administration of the Internet censorship regime, Electronic Frontiers Australia (March 30, 2003)

	U.S. Supreme Court Arguments on Children's Internet Protection Act (Adobe PDF format)
	The oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in the American Library Association, ACLU, et al's case against the library portion of the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) are now online, U.S. Supreme Court (March 19, 2003)

	EFA Comments on Australia Institute's Mandatory Filtering Proposal
	Digital rights activists in Australia are responding to a campaign for mandatory filtering of all Internet access by Australian ISPs, Electronic Frontiers Australia (March 18, 2003)

	China Jails Another Internet Dissident
	In the Chinese government's latest act to suppress free expression, activist Zhang Yuxiang was arrested for posting subversive articles on the Internet, Human Rights in China (March 14, 2003)

	Appeals Court Decision on Children's Online Protection Act
	The full opinion issued by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in striking down the Children's Online Protection Act is now online, U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals (pdf file) (March 7, 2003)

	High Court Leans Toward Allowing Library Net Filtering
	During oral arguments yesterday, Supreme Court justices seemed largely supportive of the 2001 Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA), which requires federally-funded public libraries to install filtering software, First Amendment Center Online (March 6, 2003)

	Seth Finkelstein Demonstrates Problems with Filtering Software
	Software expert Seth Finkelstein has compiled a list of censorware bloopers, supporting his argument that "censorware is about control over what people are permitted to read", Seth Finkelstein's Infothought (March 5, 2003)

	Congressman Says Filtering Crucial to Future of Public Libraries
	The principal author of the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) argued before the Supreme Court that without filtering, America's libraries will become "glorified government-funded adult bookstores", Rep. Ernest Istook (R-OK) Online (March 5, 2003)

	Iranian Journalist Arrested for Criticizing Ayatollah
	In the tenth such arrest this year, journalist Mohamed Mohsen Sazegara was jailed for publishing an article on his website that criticized Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, Reporters Without Borders (February 19, 2003)

U.S. Supreme Court Considers Internet Blocking in Libraries The Online Policy Group (OPG) and software expert Seth Finkelstein today submitted a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court supporting a lower court decision that the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) places unconstitutional limitations on free speech of library patrons by requiring the use of technology protection measures in libraries receiving certain federal funding or discounts, Online Policy Group (February 10, 2003)

	MPs Gagged From Using Colourful Language in Emails
	The Parliamentary Communications Directorate has decided they will censor any email sent by MPs or their staff that contains 'profanities of a sexual or offensive nature', Scottish Liberal Democrats (January 16, 2003)

Supreme Court Sets Schedule for CIPA Appeal Arguments on the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) will be held Wednesday, March 5, 2003, according to a schedule released December 18, by the U.S. Supreme Court, American Library Association (December 19, 2002)

See No Evil: How Internet Filters Affect the Search for Online Health Information

With a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court challenging mandatory filters in libraries, the Foundation conducted a comprehensive study that indicates Internet filters most frequently used by schools and libraries can effectively block pornography without significantly impeding access to online health information - but only if they aren’t set at their most restrictive levels, Kaiser Family Foundation (December 10, 2002)

	The Wireless Commons
	We have formed the Wireless Commons because a global wireless network is within our grasp, Wireless Commons (December 2, 2002)

	Australian Internet Blocking Law a Failure, Group Urges Repeal
	Electronic Frontiers Australia submitted a review of the Australian Broadcasting Services Act of 1992 asking the government to repeal the provisions requiring Internet blocking, Electronic Frontiers Australia (November 8, 2002)

	Administrative Harassment
	In the past weeks, there has been a new wave of threats, shutdown attempts, and harassment towards the Ché Café by the UCSD administration, Ché Café Collective (October 7, 2002)

	Death Row Unplugged
	In mid July, Arizona began enforcing a two-year-old law banning prisoners from contributing information about their cases to web sites run by outside organizations, Working For Change (October 2, 2002)

	Public School Student Can Be Disciplined for Off-Campus Website Accessed From School
	A student-created Web site aimed at a specific school and/or its personnel, that is "brought" into the school environment or accessed at school by its originator," is "on-campus speech" for purposes of the First Amendment, Pennsylvania Supreme Court (September 25, 2002)

	Australia Federal Court Shuts Down Holocaust Denial Site Under Racial Discrimination Law
	In the first Australian court decision on race hate and the Internet, the Federal Court today found that a website that denied the Holocaust and vilified Jewish people was unlawful under Australia's Racial Discrimination Act 1975, Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (September 17, 2002)

	Google, Alta Vista: Resist Chinese Censorship
	Human Rights Watch Letter to CEO of Google and AltaVista Company, Human Rights Watch (September 7, 2002)

	Emergency Order Against Anti-Abortion Cybersquatter
	Clarified to Encompass Registration as Well as Use of Domain Names, United States District Court (September 5, 2002)

	China: CPJ Concerned About Access to Google
	The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is very concerned by the Chinese government's apparent blocking of domestic access to the Google Internet search engine, Committee to Protect Journalists (September 4, 2002)

	Yahoo! Risks Abusing Rights in China
	Human Rights Watch Letter to Terry Semel, Chairman and CEO of Yahoo!, Human Rights Watch (August 12, 2002)

Chinese Internet Clampdown Continues After Cybercafe Fire In the aftermath of a devastating fire in a Beijing Internet cafe last month, Chinese authorities took several steps last week to control Internet use, Digital Freedom Network (July 23, 2002)

	ACLU Challenges Arizona Law That Censors Anti-Death Penalty Websites
	Acting on behalf of anti-death penalty and other advocacy groups, the American Civil Liberties Union today filed a lawsuit in Arizona federal district court seeking to invalidate a state law that bans all information about Arizona prisoners from the global Internet, ACLU (July 18, 2002)

Open Letter to the Yahoo! Chairman

The "self-discipline pact" submitted to the operators on 16 March 2002 by the Chinese Internet Association, and signed by your local representative, is nothing more than a further escalation of the authorities' attempt to control the circulation of information on the Net, and to put a gag on any form of criticism or any exercising of the right to freedom of expression, Reporters Without Borders (July 16, 2002)

	Advisory -- The Following Program May Prove Destabilizing for Dictators
	Camera/Shy, a browser-based steganography application from HACKTIVISMO, will be released at the H2K2 Convention in New York City on July 13th, and was developed for democracy activists operating from behind national firewalls, Hacktivismo (July 4, 2002)

	Appeals Court Says Doctors Threatened in Wild Wild West
	A US federal appeals court has ruled that antiabortion activists who created Wild West-style posters and a website called the Nuremberg Files condemning abortion doctors can be held liable because their works amounted to illegal threats, not free speech, U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals via FindLaw (Adobe pdf file) (May 17, 2002)

	Posting of Abortion Doctor Data on Sites Constitutes Threat
	The operators of a website containing personal information about doctors and others involved in providing abortion services can be held liable for damages under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and anti-racketeering statutes, U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (Adobe pdf file) (May 16, 2002)

	Public School Student Can Be Disciplined for Accessing His Own Website, But Not for Site's Content
	A public school can discipline a student for accessing his personal web site using the school's computer, in violation of the school's acceptable use policy, U.S. District Court via Brown Raysman (April 29, 2002)

	Pledging Self-Discipline
	On March 26, over 100 Chinese Internet business players signed a public pledge to promote "self-discipline" in the country's Internet industry, Digital Freedom Network (April 1, 2002)

	House Report Concludes P2P Networks Endanger Children
	The Minority Staff of the Special Investigations Division of the House Committee on Government Reform released a report titled "Children's Access to Pornography Through Internet File-Sharing Programs" which examined peer to peer networks, including Music City Morpheus, BearShare, and Aimster, Committee on Government Reform U.S. House of Representatives (July 27, 2001)

	Court: OK to Encourage Abortion Threat
	A federal appeals court threw out a record $109 million verdict against anti-abortion rights activists today, ruling that a website and wanted posters branding abortion doctors "baby butchers" and criminals is protected by the First Amendment, U.S Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals via FindLaw.com (March 28, 2001)

	The Nuremberg Files
	The website at the center of the controversy over the wild-west style wanted posters branding abortion doctors as "baby butchers", Pathway Communications (March 28, 2001)

	ACLU and ALA File Challenges to Library Internet Censorship in Case Fast-Tracked for Supreme Court Review
	Acting on behalf of public libraries, library patrons and website authors nationwide, the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Library Association filed separate legal challenges to a federal law that forces libraries to censor constitutionally protected speech online, ACLU and ALA (March 20, 2001)

	ACLU Wins $10,000 in Damages for High School Student in Web Parody Case
	A former high school student who was suspended for creating a parody on the Internet is getting damages from the school district that wrongfully punished him, the American Civil Liberties Union announced today, ACLU (March 20, 2001)

	Livermore, CA Lawsuit
	A California Court of Appeal upheld this anti-Internet blocking decision: "In this case we hold that a city is not subject to suit for damages or an injunction for offering unrestricted access to the Internet through computers at a public library", Censorware.net (March 6, 2001)

	Livermore, CA Lawsuit
	A California Court of Appeal upheld this anti-Internet blocking decision: "In this case we hold that a city is not subject to suit for damages or an injunction for offering unrestricted access to the Internet through computers at a public library", California Courts (pdf file) (March 6, 2001)

	New School Online University
	Online university offering range of classes in media related subjects and online conferences, such as current: "Censorship and Public Policy" (available by clicking on popup window and free registration), NSOU (March 1, 2001)

ACLU Wins $10,000 in Damages For High School Student In Web Parody Case A former high school student who was suspended for creating a parody on the Internet is getting damages from the school district that wrongfully punished him, ACLU (February 20, 2001)

	Send IRS Comments on Proposal to Regulate Nonprofit Web Activities
	The U.S. Internal Revenue Service is initiating regulation on electronic communications by nonprofit organizations including making monitoring who nonprofit organizations link to from their web sites and constituting links as possible lobbying violations, so please send in your comments by the deadline of February 13, 2001, Online Policy Group (February 13, 2001)

China and the Net An excellent collection of resources on Internet censorship efforts of the Chinese government, Digital Freedom Network (August 24, 2000)

Free Expression Policy Project The Free Expression Policy Project began in 2000 to provide empirical research and policy development on tough censorship issues and seek free speech-friendly solutions to the concerns that drive censorship campaigns, fepproject.org (July 1, 2000)

	Motivating a Human Rights Perspective on Access to Cyberspace: The Human Right to Communicate
	William McIver offers an exploration of how human rights and access to cyberspace intersect, CPSR Newsletter (July 1, 2000)

Featured Publications

Recent Publications

top of page