Skip to main content
EFFecting Change Livestream August 28

EFFector - Volume 23, Issue 11 - EFF Hires New International Rights Director

EFFECTOR

EFFector - Volume 23, Issue 11 - EFF Hires New International Rights Director

EFFector Vol. 23, No. 11  April 19, 2010  editor@eff.org

A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation
ISSN 1062-9424

effector: n, Computer Sci. A device for producing a
desired change.

: . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . :

In our 534th issue:

* LITTLE MORE THAN TWO WEEKS AFTER EFF TESTIFIED to a
Senate subcommittee that federal electronic privacy
law needs to be updated to protect against secret
video surveillance, Senator Arlen Specter responded by
introducing a bill to do just that. The Surreptitious
Video Surveillance Act of 2010 creates serious criminal
and civil penalties for secret, nonconsensual video
surveillance inside any temporary or permanent residence,
be it your house, your apartment, or your hotel room.

EFF looks forward to working with Congress to ensure that
the bill properly balances privacy rights, public safety,
and the free speech rights of photographers, videographers
and journalists.

For more about the bill:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/senators-introduce-bill-response-effs-call-new

For EFF's original testimony at the Senate hearing:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/03/privacy-protections-against-hidden-video

* GO TO THE DEFCON HACKING CONFERENCE BY SUPPORTING
DIGITAL FREEDOM! EFF would like your help spreading the
word about our efforts to protect and defend coders'
rights by encouraging your friends and neighbors to join
you in supporting us. In return, EFF wants to help the
best EFFvangelists enjoy Defcon 18 in style!

Register for the Defcon Getaway Fundraising Contest, and
receive a personalized referral link to send your friends
and family. The contestant to raise the most money for
EFF between now and June 30th will win two Defcon 18 Human
badges, a room at the Riveria hotel, and access to great
parties. There are other prizes as well, and all winners
will receive EFF stickers, hats, posters, and more!

To register now:
http://www.eff.org/defcon

For more about the Defcon Getaway Fundraising Contest:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/eff-proudly-presents-first-annual-defcon-getaway

: . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . :

EFF Updates

* EFF Hires New International Rights Director
A leading expert on international privacy issues, Katitza
Rodriguez will be working to improve digital liberties
with respect to law enforcement, government surveillance,
and cross-border data flows worldwide.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/eff-hires-new-international-rights-director

* Government Withdraws Warrantless Email Request
The government backed down after an EFF-led coalition
argued that the seizure of email would violate privacy
rights.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/government-backs-down-yahoo-email-privacy-case

* UK Passes Internet Censorship and Disconnection Law
The UK Parliament passed the controversial Digital Economy
Bill over the loud objections of Internet users in the
UK and beyond.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/u-k-passes-internet-disconnection-law

* Viacom Attack on YouTube Threatens Speech and Innovation
Viacom and others in the Viacom v. YouTube case have,
in effect, urged the court to make content filtering
mandatory for all online service providers that host
content on behalf of users -- a terrible idea that
would controvert Congress' goal of reducing the legal
uncertainties facing companies trying to innovate on
the Internet.

http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2010/04/12

* The Entertainment Industry's Dystopia of the Future
Big Media's submission to the Intellectual Property
Enforcement Coordinator reveals a vision of a future in
which their lopsided priorities are woven deep into the
Internet, law enforcement, and educational institutions.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/entertainment-industrys-dystopia-future

* Tiffany v. eBay: What About Put-Back?
The ruling highlights a problem with bogus "trademark
infringement" complaints online -- unlike copyright,
there's no well-defined procedure for users to get their
speech back online.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/tiffany-v-ebay-what-about-put-back

* Tell Burning Man To Respect Your Digital Rights
The organizers of the annual art and music festival are
soliciting community feedback on their camera policy,
which came under scrutiny after they attempted to secure
ownership of all images taken at the event.

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/tell-burning-man-you-care-about-your-digital

: . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . :

miniLinks

~ Malware Targets BitTorrent Users
Scammers pretending to being backed by the MPAA are
offering bogus "settlements" to P2P users.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/04/ransomware

~ The Truth About ACTA
Michael Geist explains the secret copyright treaty,
and why it matters.

http://blip.tv/play/AYHVigQC

~ Dial-Up Law in a Broadband World
The New York Times editorial board calls on Congress to
update electronic privacy law.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/09/opinion/09fri1.html

~ Internet Provider Defies Internet Censorship
The UK parliament passed the Digital Economy Bill,
requiring ISPs to police their users. But TalkTalk is
refusing to play along.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/apr/08/internet-piracy-bill

: . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . :

Announcements

* EFF Seeking Staff Intellectual Property Attorney

Dream job alert:  EFF is seeking an intellectual property
staff attorney for its legal team. Responsibilities
include litigation, public speaking, media outreach,
plus legislative and regulatory advocacy, all in
connection with a variety of intellectual property and
high technology matters.

Qualified candidates should have at least four years of
legal experience, with knowledge in patent law and at
least one other IP specialty (copyright, trademark, trade
secret). Litigation experience is required, including
significant experience managing cases, both overall case
strategy and day-to-day projects and deadlines. Candidates
should have good communication skills and interest
in working with a team of highly motivated lawyers and
activists in a hard-working nonprofit environment. Strong
writing and analytical skills as well as the ability to be
self-motivated and focused are essential. Tech savvy
and familiarity with Internet civil liberties and high
tech public interest issues preferred. This position is
based in San Francisco.

Interested applicants should submit a resume, writing
sample, and references to ipjob@eff.org.

* Volunteer/Deferred Open Government Legal Fellow

Dream fellowship alert:  EFF has a opening for a deferred
associate or a full-time volunteer to contribute to our
open government work, the FOIA Litigation for Accountable
Government (FLAG) Project, in our San Francisco
office. This fellowship will involve handling Freedom of
Information Act requests and follow-on litigation. The
position includes motion practice, negotiation with the
government, strategic decision making and reviewing the
documents we receive to find out what's interesting and
useful to the public debate, then getting them posted to
the website in an organized manner. These are very good
skills for young lawyers.

The position is unpaid, but we'll work with the various
deferral programs available to young attorneys.

The ideal candidate will possess these qualifications:
 * Demonstrated interest in, and knowledge of, civil
 liberties issues involving emerging technologies.
 * Excellent writing and communications skills, preferably
 demonstrated in a track record of blogging, investigative
 reporting, or other similar activities.
 * Ability to manage and organize large quantities of
 documentary materials, and to present them to an audience
 in a compelling and informative manner.
 * Litigation background desirable, but not required.
 * Familiarity with basic information technology tools
 and, preferably, experience in designing and/or managing
 web-based resources.

Contact foiafellow@eff.org if you're interested.

* Work With EFF and Tor for Google's Summer of Code

Interested in working with EFF or Tor, and getting paid
for it by Google? If you are a student and a coder,
then we have good news for you: A few of our projects
have been accepted for Google's Summer Of Code 2010.

At EFF, there are three projects we're focused on:
First, TOSBack, which tracks changes to the terms of
service of the Internet's most popular websites. Second,
OurVoteLive, which tracks problems in elections with
polling places and voting machines across the US. Third,
you could help us implement improvements to Switzerland,
a passive IP-layer network neutrality testing system. You
can read more about our possible summer projects here.

In addition, our friends and colleagues at the Tor
project have dozens of ideas for improving their software,
which allows users to route around Internet censorship
and surveillance.

For more about the Google Summer of Code with EFF:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/03/gsoc

* Help EFF Go to SouthEast LinuxFest!

EFF is looking for donations of airline miles, flight
vouchers, and hotel points for travel to SouthEast
LinuxFest in Spartanburg, SC, as well as other conferences
and speaking engagements. If you have enough airline miles
for a free ticket and would like to send an EFF staffer
to a conference, let us know, and we will help you with
the process of making the reservation. Please note that
at this time we are unable to combine miles from multiple
individuals. We are also looking for hotel rewards points
to help reduce our overall travel costs.

As a thanks for your donation, we can offer a free
membership and a mention in EFFector (if you'd
like). Please contact aaron@eff.org if you can help!

* "Life 2.0" at the San Francisco International Film Fest

EFF is proud to be a presenter of Life 2.0, directed
by Jason Spingarn-Koff, at the 53rd San Francisco
International Film Festival (April 22-May 6). EFF
consulted with the filmmakers during the making of
this film.

Documented both online and in the real world, Life 2.0
examines the effects both humorous and unnerving of the
virtual world Second Life by focusing on the lives of
its users and chronicling their successes, failures,
lives and loves.

Showings at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas:
Friday, April 30 at 3:00 PM
Sunday, May 2 at 1:00 PM
Wednesday, May 5 at 9:15 PM

For more information on Life 2.0, visit
http://fest10.sffs.org/films/film_details.php?id=45

For tickets and more information on SFIFF53:
http://fest10.sffs.org

: . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . :

* Administrivia

EFFector is published by:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation
454 Shotwell Street
San Francisco CA 94110-1914 USA
+1 415 436 9333 (voice)
+1 415 436 9993 (fax)
http://www.eff.org/

Editor:
Richard Esguerra, EFF Activist
 richard@eff.org

Membership & donation queries:
 membership@eff.org

General EFF, legal, policy, or online resources queries:
 information@eff.org

Reproduction of this publication in electronic media is
encouraged. Signed articles do not necessarily represent
the views of EFF. To reproduce signed articles
individually, please contact the authors for their express
permission.

Press releases and EFF announcements & articles may be
reproduced individually at will.

Current and back issues of EFFector are available via the
Web at:
 http://www.eff.org/effector/

Back to top

JavaScript license information