CDT’s U.S. Newsletter - September Edition


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SEPTEMBER NEWSLETTER  

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Learning to Share: Lessons on Data-Sharing

To answer important public policy questions and understand the effects of social media on the world, academics, journalists, and civil society groups need access to data from social media companies. But CDT has found that data is not generally available to outside researchers, and when it is available, it is often insufficient.

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Graphic reading "A report from CDT Research: Learning to Share: Lessons on Data-Sharing from Beyond Social Media. Gabriel Nicholas and Dhanaraj Thakur, September 2022."

There are solutions to this problem. In a new report, Learning to Share: Lessons on Data-Sharing from Beyond Social Media ([link removed]), we examine how three other sectors — clinical trials, electricity smart meters, and environmental impact data — approach researcher access to data, and offer ten high-level lessons ([link removed]) from their successes and failures. The publication comes on the heels of an August report where we explored questions around researchers’ access to data held by social media companies ([link removed]) and other hosts of user-generated content.

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Graphic with white background, blue to purple gradient at the bottom, and yellow to blue to white gradient at right above a CDT logo. Graphic reads: "Making Government Data Publicly Available: Guidance for Agencies on Releasing Data Responsibly, August 2022."

We also recently explored how to go about releasing data held by government agencies. In new CDT guidance for public agencies ([link removed]), we offer an introduction to making data publicly available while addressing privacy and ethical data use issues, particularly those that arise from releasing aggregated data derived from sensitive information. Most importantly, we recommend four key steps that governments should take in order to publish data responsibly.

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Graphic with a dark blue background reading, "CDT's 2022 Annual Benefit, Tech Prom," in gold, white, and blue text.

Tech Prom

Mark your calendars — Tech Prom ([link removed]) is back! Join CDT on Thursday, October 6 at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. for an evening of mixing and mingling with tech policy leaders. Tickets are going fast — you won’t want to miss it!

In Case You Missed It

We filed an amicus brief in Woodhull v. United States ([link removed]), a case challenging the constitutionality of the Allowing States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA). FOSTA made significant changes to federal criminal law and amended Section 230, the law that shields online intermediaries from liability for user-generated content. We argued that FOSTA is unconstitutionally vague and overbroad, and will continue to cause online intermediaries to remove constitutionally protected speech. CDT also joined 75 other organizations in calling on Congress to pass the SAFE SEX Workers Study Act ([link removed]), a bill to study the impact of FOSTA and the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA) on sex workers and human trafficking survivors

This month, the California legislature passed a bill designed to prevent companies in the state from disclosing communications content and metadata in response to out-of-state legal demands for information in abortion-related investigations. The bill is a welcome step forward in the effort to protect reproductive health data in the wake of Dobbs: in a blog post, we discuss what it does ([link removed]), why it is significant, and what legal questions it raises.

In a series of blog posts, CDT examines how the federal government and the White House — which has pledged to fight against the criminalization of abortion — can prevent federal surveillance assistance to state and local law enforcement from being used to investigate and prosecute reproductive health care choices. In the first post, we address how the Administration could ensure that the FBI’s Regional Computer Forensic Laboratories do not assist ([link removed]) with abortion-related state investigations. In the second post, we examine how the Administration can limit support from the National Domestic Communications Assistance Center ([link removed]) to state and local law enforcement in monitoring Americans’ communications.

Graphic with a white background and blue text. Reads "Elections and Democracy" and contains a ballot box in the graphic's center. CDT logo at bottom right.

We called for Alaska to implement ranked choice voting best practices ([link removed]) before its upcoming November 2022 elections, to avoid the spread of mis- and disinformation. FairVote and the Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center recommend that election officials release a round-by-round tally on election night, and that they continue to update those tallies as votes come in. Alaska’s Division of Elections did not immediately conduct the ranked choice tabulation process in its August election, however, leading to an unnecessary delay in announcing the results.

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Photo of Elizabeth Laird: shows a portrait of a smiling woman with light brown hair wearing a bright pink top. Image has a gray background with the CDT logo.

CDT in the Press

Elizabeth Laird, Director of CDT’s Equity in Civic Technology Project, joined The Markup for a conversation ([link removed]) on how activity monitoring software and surveillance in schools affects students.

Andy Crawford, Senior Policy Counsel with CDT’s Privacy & Data Project, spoke with CBS News about privacy concerns with newborn heel blood tests ([link removed]): "It's nearly impossible for us to monitor the potential uses of our data. That's why [we] need to put limitations on the use."

Aliya Bhatia, Policy Analyst with CDT’s Free Expression Project, discussed the potential impacts of the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act with Fast Company ([link removed]): “Because ‘child’ is defined as under 18, that’s nearly all services. Older teens are using news sites, they’re searching for colleges, they are questioning their identity.”

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Graphic reading, "The Big Lie's Long Tail: Election Denialism in the Midterms and Beyond. The "Big Lie," the denial that the 2020 election outcome was legitimate, continues to have ongoing, harmful effects on American democracy. What should online platforms be doing about election misinformation in the run-up to the midterms and beyond? How can we limit the risk of bad-faith actors accessing voter equipment? And ow can elections be protected from the prospect of hyperpartisan, biased election officials? Event hosted by the Center for Democracy & Technology, Wednesday, September 28, 2022, at 3-4 pm EST. Register at cdt.org/events."

CDT "in Person"

On September 28, CDT will host a panel of nonpartisan election experts ([link removed]) to discuss their concerns about the 2020 election’s downstream effects on election administration and security. We hope you’ll join us: RSVP here ([link removed])! 

Earlier this month, Caitlin Vogus, CDT’s Deputy Director of the Free Expression Project, joined CSIS for a conversation on the future of online communications and the role of social media platforms in a democratic society ([link removed]). You can learn more about the panel, and find a recording, on the event webpage.

Have you listened to the latest episode of CDT’s podcast, Tech Talk ([link removed])? Host Jamal Magby dives into the ripple effects of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Here to talk about this decision and what can be done to protect the right to privacy of people seeking reproductive care are Alexandra Givens, President and CEO for CDT and Jake Laperruque, Deputy Director of the CDT Security and Surveillance Project.

On September 8, three CDT team members gave statements on various privacy and data issues as part of the public remarks section of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Commercial Surveillance and Data Security Public Forum ([link removed]). The remarks were livestreamed and are available online.

Staff SpotlightNick Warmington ([link removed]), Systems Administrator & Web Technician

How long have you been working in digital rights? CDT was my first foray into digital rights, so that's two and a half years.

What is your proudest moment while here at CDT? My proudest moment at CDT has been our commitment to digital civil rights and uplifting marginalized voices, pledges made after the murder of George Floyd in 2020. With work internal and external, I can say proudly that my organization's made promises followed by action.

What is the best book you’ve read recently? Cuba: An American History, by Ada Ferrer. I will sell the book this way: If you didn't know, an American Vice President (William Rufus DeVane King) was sworn into office in Cuba.

Cats or dogs? Dogs, but I have huge respect for cats.

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