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CDT to Honor Silent Circle with Inaugural Digital Visionary Award

At its annual dinner, Tech Prom, the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) will present Silent Circle’s co-founder and Executive Chairman, Mr. Michael A. Janke, with its inaugural Digital Visionary Award. Silent Circle is a secure communications company offering mobile devices, software applications, and communication management services to enterprises. The award is in recognition of Silent Circle and their mission of providing privacy without compromise. Tech Prom takes place April 6, 2016 in the Marriott Marquis, Washington, DC.

“In the perennial fight for secure infrastructure and applications that support confidentiality, integrity, and usability, there are few organizations that have done more than Silent Circle. User privacy and the security of personal data have been priorities since Mike founded the company. And they are working on these issues in the mobile space, where we are at the greatest risk of surveillance and privacy intrusions. This is visionary work by awesome people,” said Joseph Lorenzo Hall, CDT’s Chief Technologist.

“I’m truly honored to be recognized in this way by CDT. Phil, Jon and I started Silent Circle because we wanted to bring privacy back from the brink of extinction – delivering simple and secure, encrypted communications to enterprises. Over the years we have seen the topic of privacy grow to become global news and rise to the forefront of debate. The Silent Circle team has truly led the charge in championing privacy with our enterprise platform, secure software applications and, of course, the Blackphone. This award is a testament to the fact that privacy is increasingly difficult to find on your own. We’re here to help,” said Mike Janke, Silent Circle co-founder and Executive Chairman.

CDT’s President & CEO Nuala O’Connor will present the award to Janke. The presentation will be followed by a discussion on how to build a more secure digital future for all.

As co-founder and Executive Chairman, Janke has helped build Silent Circle into a market leader in secure communications for enterprises, ranging from multinational corporations, to NGOs and governments, to individuals. He is a noted privacy advocate and a former Navy SEAL. Janke is the author of two best-selling books (Take Control and Power Living), and founded Data Tribe, a technology incubation firm. He also founded and previously served as CEO of SOC, a defense logistics and security firm with more than 11,000 employees.

The Center for Democracy & Technology is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that drives the tech policy agenda and protects our fundamental rights in the digital age. Tech Prom attracts the most influential minds of today’s tech policy world, and highlights the most pressing issues in the field. More information is available at cdt.org/annual-dinner.