Center for Democracy & Technology | Keeping the Internet Open, Innovative and Free

Supreme Court Cases That Should Be Getting More Attention

October 26, 2017

In the midst of an exciting Supreme Court session, there are two significant cases awaiting a cert decision that have thus far generated surprisingly little media buzz considering the important questions they raise: Antonio Rios v. United States and Mohamed Osman Mohamud v. United States. Both present the Supreme Court an opportunity to resolve fraught privacy and civil liberties issues.

ICANN Must Follow Its Own Rules

October 26, 2017

It is a fundamental underpinning of multistakeholderism that all parties are equal. Thus, government interests should not be elevated above individual or commercial interests when those interests are deemed legitimate after appropriate review and process.

Urgent Fix Needed: USA Liberty Act Needs To Better Focus Surveillance Under FISA 702

October 20, 2017

Last week, a bipartisan group of House Judiciary Committee members introduced the first bill to reform Section 702 of the FISA Amendments Act, H.R. 3989, also known as the USA Liberty Act. It contains many important provisions, including an end to the collection of communications to which the surveillance target is not even party. However, it fails to limit the scope of 702 surveillance and therefore permits the surveillance of people far removed from anti-terrorism goals its proponents cite. In fact, it authorizes surveillance of people engaged in harmless activity.