Privacy
Groundhog Day for the Crypto Wars: The DOJ on Bitcoin Prowl
The government always has seemingly good reasons to sidestep people’s rights.
Does the Constitution Protect the Right To Get High?
Columbia law professor David Pozen recalls the controversy provoked by early anti-drug laws and the hope inspired by subsequent legal assaults on prohibition.
Appeals Court Rules That Cops Can Physically Make You Unlock Your Phone
The 9th Circuit determined that forcibly mashing a suspect's thumb into his phone to unlock it was akin to fingerprinting him at the police station.
Biden Opposes Bill That Would Keep Cops and Feds From Buying Your Data
The Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act would prevent law enforcement and intelligence agencies from purchasing data that they would otherwise need a warrant to obtain.
New Privacy Rights Act Exempts Government and Gives More Power to the FTC
An interview with Consumer Choice Center Deputy Director Yaël Ossowski.
Democrats Tank FISA Warrant Requirement
The measure would have required federal agents to get a warrant before searching American communications collected as part of foreign intelligence.
States Keep Passing Unconstitutional Age-Verification Laws for Porn Sites
Kentucky's governor signed a law last week that could require porn sites to ask for users' government IDs before allowing access to adult material.
Indiana Court Rejects Claim That Driver's Licenses Must Include Third Gender Option
The court reverses a contrary trial court decision.
Republicans Split on Whether FBI Should Be Able To Snoop Without a Warrant
A Section 702 reauthorization moving through Congress could actually weaken privacy protections.
No Right to Be Forgotten for Defendant in Civil Case
"To the extent that Kavadia asks the Court to order that public reporting about this case be removed from the Internet, such an order would blatantly violate the First Amendment."
Ron DeSantis Signs Social Media Age-Verification Bill
The law would require platforms to use invasive measures to prevent most teenagers under 16 from making social media accounts and bar all minors from sexually explicit sites.
Stop Your Car From Spying on You
Modern cars are smartphones on wheels, but with less protection for your data.
European Union's AI Law Will Heavily Regulate a Technology Lawmakers Don't Understand
And in the process, it will stifle innovation and competition.
Pornhub Pulls Out of Seventh State
The company leaves Texas over an “ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous” age-verification law.
Feds Enforcing Unconstitutional Reporting Law Against Most Businesses
Are you in compliance with the Corporate Transparency Act? Have you even heard of it?
Texas Sues Pornhub for Failing to Check IDs
A federal judge in an ongoing case called the porn age-check scheme unconstitutional. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton doesn't seem to care.
The Spy in Your Pocket
Byron Tau's Means of Control documents how the private sector helps government agencies keep tabs on American citizens.
Government Is Snooping on Your Phone
Many apps collect data that is then accessed by outside entities. Should you care?
New Report Measures Attempts to Impose, and Evade, Internet Repression
Interest in virtual private networks provides insights into a global battle over digital freedom.
NSA Purchases Internet Metadata To Spy on You Without a Warrant
A new letter from Sen. Ron Wyden (D–Ore.) reveals that the agency admitted the practice nearly three years ago but would not allow him to reveal it.
Controversial Surveillance Law Up for Renewal (Again) in April
Congress gave FISA’s Section 702 a brief lease on life, but civil liberties concerns haven’t gone away.
Utah Would Rather Repeal Social Media Age Check Law Than Defend It In Court
Laws like Utah's would require anyone using social media to prove their age through methods such as submitting biometric data or a government-issued ID.
Amazon's Ring Will Stop Giving Police Your Doorbell Footage Without a Warrant
While not perfect, the move is a step in the right direction for civil liberties.
Is Facial Recognition a Useful Public Safety Tool or Something Sinister?
Your Face Belongs to Us documents how facial recognition might threaten our freedom.
Miami Police Used Clearview AI Facial Recognition in Arrest of Homeless Man
Facial recognition technology is increasingly being deployed by police officers across the country, but the scope of its use has been hard to pin down.
The Cops Are Watching You
New online database details the shocking extent of intrusive surveillance tech used by American police.
ICE Leaked These Asylum Seekers' Personal Information. A Court Just Dismissed Their Lawsuit.
“The victims may not have been persecuted or tortured due to the data breach yet, but the likelihood of those outcomes has increased due to ICE’s conduct.”
Congress Renews Warrantless Digital Spying Program as Part of $886 Billion Spending Bill
Section 702 will continue until April, when Congress will have another shot at seriously reforming a program that desperately needs it.
Major Pharmacies Give Cops Patient Records Without a Warrant, Lawmakers' Investigation Finds
Three major pharmacy chains admitted to encouraging staff to hand prescription records over to law enforcement without a warrant, and without a legal review.
Will the Climate Deal Do Anything?
Plus: White supremacists and plagiarism, Milei and shock therapy, checking in on California, and more...
House Proposal Would Expand Federal Warrantless Spying Authority
One bill set to be considered would grow the scope of federal digital surveillance and would authorize the federal government to use those powers against more individuals.
Gas Tax Revenues Decline as Cars Get More Efficient. How Will Government Pay for Roads?
Lawmakers should consider a user-fee system designed to charge drivers by the mile.
Lawmakers Try To Insert Privacy Protections Into the Feds' Snooping Powers
The bipartisan Government Surveillance Reform Act would stop a lot of warrantless surveillance as a condition for renewal of Section 702 authorities.
How Vexatious Government Demands Can Lead Your Bank To Refuse To Do Business with You
The government treats its endless appetite for information about citizens as more important than people's ability to conduct business in a normal fashion.
Government Misuse of Data Rightly Worries Americans
Federal agencies frequently buy their way around the Fourth Amendment.
Odd Colorado Ruling Upholds Internet Keyword Search Warrant
Court says the warrant was “constitutionally defective” but grants police a “good faith” exception.
No Preliminary Injunction Against Idaho Law Mandating Public School Students Use Bathrooms "That Correspond[] with Their Biological Sex"
The court had earlier issued a temporary restraining order against the law, to maintain the status quo; but now that it has gotten more full briefing, it declined to block the law (but also declined to dismiss the challenge to the law).
Aella: Is Porn Too Pervasive?
The former OnlyFans star and outspoken libertarian defender of sex workers considers the acceleration of government crackdowns on online porn, the sexual revolution, and sex work.
Minnesota's Top Court Rebukes Cops Who Searched a Car After Claiming To Smell Pot That Wasn't There
In light of the state's marijuana reforms, the court says, the odor of weed is not enough to establish probable cause.
Records of Library Removal Requests, Like Other Library User Records, Are Exempt from State Public Records Law
The case stemmed from user challenges asking that a public library remove Gender Queer: A Memoir, or at least keep children from getting it.
Schools Are Normalizing Intrusive Surveillance
Kids will grow up to value freedom only if they’re raised in an environment where it’s treated as good.
Is There Too Much Porn?
Join Reason on YouTube and Facebook at 1 p.m. Eastern this Thursday for a discussion with Aella about the escalating government crackdown on online porn, the sexual revolution, and sex work.
