
On Wednesday, 60 organizations involved in cryptocurrency, free and open source software, human rights, and privacy projects launched a new campaign calling on the 118th US Congress to protect privacy. Groups including Fight for the Future and Electric Coin Co. insist and the Tor Project, that Congress needs to introduce policies dedicated to defending privacy.
The campaign urges lawmakers to take a bold stand on pro-privacy policies
A new campaign launched by 60 organizations has the slogan “Tell Congress to Protect Privacy.” The groups are calling on the legislature of the United States federal government to stand up for privacy both online and offline. Supporting entities include Fight for the Future, Blockchain Association, Proton, Tor Project, Mobilecoin, Protocol Labs, Filecoin Foundation, and Electric Coin Co. and Defi Education Fund and Tutanota. The campaign comes on the heels of Fight for the Future’s open letter to Congress, in which they stated that privacy is a basic human right.
The letter states that “protecting the privacy of ordinary people is essential to ensuring the safety, self-determination, freedom of the press, and other rights that are at the core of democracy.” “We applaud the recent interest in strong federal data privacy legislation to advance these rights. The technologies and software tools we build to preserve user privacy by design are just as essential. These tools help users protect against a variety of harms including discrimination, intimidation, and abuse from authoritarian regimes.
The campaign’s website allows individuals to reach out to Congress and express their support for privacy and the technologies that enhance it. “Call Congress now to ask them to stand up for our right to privacy,” the site says. The website also displays a full list of organizations participating in the campaign. “The mission of the Tor Project is to advance human rights through the creation and deployment of free, open source anonymity and privacy technologies,” said Isabella Fernandez, Executive Director of the Tor Project, in a statement. “We are co-signing this effort because we believe that everyone, especially elected representatives, should stand up for privacy.”
“Electrocurrency Inc. has fully joined this global call for US lawmakers coming to stand up for privacy,” said Paul Briggner, Head of US Policy and Strategic Advocacy at Electric Coin. Electrocurrency is the company and developers behind privacy-focused crypto project Zcash. “We urge lawmakers to take a strong stand in favor of pro-privacy policies, including end-to-end encryption, and to reject any attempts to impede the use or development of privacy-preserving tools. Only by standing up for the privacy of all individuals can we hope to build a truly democratic and free society “.
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