@deblbrown.bsky.social
deputy director for tech & human rights @HRW formerly @apc_news @accessnow
This weekend, governments will head to Hanoi to sign the deeply flawed UN Convention on Cybercrime. @hrw.org and partners issue new recommendations on how governments can prevent and mitigate the human rights risks posed the treaty
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Joint Statement on the Signing of the UN Convention on Cybercrime
We, the undersigned organizations, remain deeply concerned that the UN Convention Against Cybercrime (UNCC) will facilitate human rights abuses across borders.
www.hrw.org
October 24, 2025 at 6:19 PM
This weekend, governments will head to Hanoi to sign the deeply flawed UN Convention on Cybercrime. @hrw.org and partners issue new recommendations on how governments can prevent and mitigate the human rights risks posed the treaty
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
Reposted
Vietnam’s long record of cracking down on online dissent sadly makes it a fitting host for the signing ceremony of the deeply flawed UN Convention against Cybercrime this weekend. Read more in this @thediplomat.com oped by @hrw's @deblbrown.bsky.social & me thediplomat.com/2025/10/un-t...
UN Treaty Signing Highlights Vietnam’s Curb on Online Dissent
The Cybercrime Convention will further entrench control and surveillance over peaceful expression of dissent online beyond the borders of repressive states.
thediplomat.com
October 24, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Vietnam’s long record of cracking down on online dissent sadly makes it a fitting host for the signing ceremony of the deeply flawed UN Convention against Cybercrime this weekend. Read more in this @thediplomat.com oped by @hrw's @deblbrown.bsky.social & me thediplomat.com/2025/10/un-t...
Reposted
Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies.
There is no time to delay.
There is no time to delay.
Israel/Palestine: Microsoft Should Avoid Contributing to Rights Abuses
Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies, Human Rights Watch...
www.hrw.org
October 10, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies.
There is no time to delay.
There is no time to delay.
New calls on Microsoft to suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses & international crimes by the Israeli military & other government bodies
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
@hrw.org @accessnow.org @amnesty.org @7amleh.bsky.social @eff.org @fightforthefuture.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
@hrw.org @accessnow.org @amnesty.org @7amleh.bsky.social @eff.org @fightforthefuture.org
Israel/Palestine: Microsoft Should Avoid Contributing to Rights Abuses
Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies, Human Rights Watch...
www.hrw.org
October 10, 2025 at 5:53 PM
New calls on Microsoft to suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses & international crimes by the Israeli military & other government bodies
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
@hrw.org @accessnow.org @amnesty.org @7amleh.bsky.social @eff.org @fightforthefuture.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/10...
@hrw.org @accessnow.org @amnesty.org @7amleh.bsky.social @eff.org @fightforthefuture.org
If you read one thing today, let it be this by @eminacerimovic.bsky.social
Survivors of genocide and starvation should not have to retell their stories and relive their trauma. But when they do, we should listen. And act.
archive.ph/NCbTj
Survivors of genocide and starvation should not have to retell their stories and relive their trauma. But when they do, we should listen. And act.
archive.ph/NCbTj
What Palestinians in Gaza are going through brings back all the trauma of my childhood in Bosnia | Opinion
In the early 1990s as Serb armed forces besieged towns, the local people and displaced people like me and my family experienced severe and persistent food shortages, writes Emina Ćerimović.
www.inquirer.com
August 4, 2025 at 2:03 PM
If you read one thing today, let it be this by @eminacerimovic.bsky.social
Survivors of genocide and starvation should not have to retell their stories and relive their trauma. But when they do, we should listen. And act.
archive.ph/NCbTj
Survivors of genocide and starvation should not have to retell their stories and relive their trauma. But when they do, we should listen. And act.
archive.ph/NCbTj
The deportation of dissent. Important read of one journalist’s account
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
How My Reporting on the Columbia Protests Led to My Deportation
As an Australian who wrote about the demonstrations while on campus, I gave my phone a superficial clean before flying to the U.S. I underestimated what I was up against.
www.newyorker.com
June 19, 2025 at 5:24 PM
The deportation of dissent. Important read of one journalist’s account
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...
Reposted
Why are governments talking about killer robots? 🔊 ⤵️
Governments should seize the opportunity to adopt a new international treaty to address killer robots' threats to human rights.
#StopKillerRobots
Governments should seize the opportunity to adopt a new international treaty to address killer robots' threats to human rights.
#StopKillerRobots
May 13, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Why are governments talking about killer robots? 🔊 ⤵️
Governments should seize the opportunity to adopt a new international treaty to address killer robots' threats to human rights.
#StopKillerRobots
Governments should seize the opportunity to adopt a new international treaty to address killer robots' threats to human rights.
#StopKillerRobots
Reposted
New @hrw.org report: a deep dive on the gig economy in the US, by @lenasimet.bsky.social, @amostoh.bsky.social + me. It looks at 7 major platform companies, the extractive business model, and a growing workforce reliant on precarious work that denies them hard-won rights. www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
US: Major Companies Violate Gig Workers’ Rights
Major digital labor platforms, also known as gig companies, operating in the United States misclassify gig workers as independent contractors, denying them labor rights.
www.hrw.org
May 12, 2025 at 5:15 PM
New @hrw.org report: a deep dive on the gig economy in the US, by @lenasimet.bsky.social, @amostoh.bsky.social + me. It looks at 7 major platform companies, the extractive business model, and a growing workforce reliant on precarious work that denies them hard-won rights. www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
Reposted
We hosted an event on “digital authoritarianism and democratic freedom” last night at Columbia. Meanwhile there were NYPD helicopters overhead, strange surveillance vehicles like this outside, and eventually a battalion of NYPD special ops called in to end a student occupation of the library.
May 8, 2025 at 1:58 PM
We hosted an event on “digital authoritarianism and democratic freedom” last night at Columbia. Meanwhile there were NYPD helicopters overhead, strange surveillance vehicles like this outside, and eventually a battalion of NYPD special ops called in to end a student occupation of the library.
Turkish authorities have escalated their crackdown on free expression & social media companies are complying with arbitrary requests. On May 8 X blocked access to the account of jailed Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu
Social media companies should resist Turkish state censorship
www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
Social media companies should resist Turkish state censorship
www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
May 8, 2025 at 11:35 PM
Turkish authorities have escalated their crackdown on free expression & social media companies are complying with arbitrary requests. On May 8 X blocked access to the account of jailed Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu
Social media companies should resist Turkish state censorship
www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
Social media companies should resist Turkish state censorship
www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
Excited to join this fantastic line up of speakers for the launch of the 2025 Ranking Digital Rights index. No better time to reflect on lessons learned from a decade of pushing for accountability for tech companies. Not in DC? tune in online today at 10am ET 👇
forms.office.com/pages/respon...
forms.office.com/pages/respon...
May 1, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Excited to join this fantastic line up of speakers for the launch of the 2025 Ranking Digital Rights index. No better time to reflect on lessons learned from a decade of pushing for accountability for tech companies. Not in DC? tune in online today at 10am ET 👇
forms.office.com/pages/respon...
forms.office.com/pages/respon...
Reposted
One argument that I make repeatedly in my work is that many of the things that technologists call “inefficiencies” are moments where people are able to take back power from the state. You don’t want the state to have a monopoly on data because the state is not always a positive or even neutral actor
CNN reports that the oligarch is building a "master database to speed-up immigration enforcement and deportations by combining sensitive data from across the federal government" with the help of Palantir, to create "targeting lists".
That all sounds very very bad.
edition.cnn.com/2025/04/25/p...
That all sounds very very bad.
edition.cnn.com/2025/04/25/p...
Elon Musk’s DOGE team is building a master database for immigration enforcement, sources say | CNN Politics
Staffers from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency are building a master database to speed-up immigration enforcement and deportations, by combining sensitive data from across the federal g...
edition.cnn.com
April 29, 2025 at 9:24 PM
One argument that I make repeatedly in my work is that many of the things that technologists call “inefficiencies” are moments where people are able to take back power from the state. You don’t want the state to have a monopoly on data because the state is not always a positive or even neutral actor
Reposted
Those of us who live or have lived in authoritarian regimes will tell you that data collection is an obsession of authoritarianism. Not that data collection is inherently bad - but that authoritarian regimes rely on procedurality to mask the cruel reality of what they do - self absolution.
April 29, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Those of us who live or have lived in authoritarian regimes will tell you that data collection is an obsession of authoritarianism. Not that data collection is inherently bad - but that authoritarian regimes rely on procedurality to mask the cruel reality of what they do - self absolution.
A sobering and dark, but essential read. This was a herculean effort by @hrw.org colleagues 👇
100 Human Rights Harms in 100 Days: The Trump Administration’s Assault on Rights in the US and Abroad www.hrw.org/feature/2025...
100 Human Rights Harms in 100 Days: The Trump Administration’s Assault on Rights in the US and Abroad www.hrw.org/feature/2025...
100 Human Rights Harms in 100 Days
To mark the first 100 days of President Trump's second term, Human Rights Watch has cataloged 100 of the administration’s executive policies, orders, and actions that pose significant risks to the hum...
www.hrw.org
April 24, 2025 at 5:44 PM
A sobering and dark, but essential read. This was a herculean effort by @hrw.org colleagues 👇
100 Human Rights Harms in 100 Days: The Trump Administration’s Assault on Rights in the US and Abroad www.hrw.org/feature/2025...
100 Human Rights Harms in 100 Days: The Trump Administration’s Assault on Rights in the US and Abroad www.hrw.org/feature/2025...
My latest for @justsecurity.org on what Trump's call to eliminate “information silos” within government means for human rights. This dangerous and dystopian move underscores the desperate need for comprehensive privacy and data protection laws in the US @hrw.org
www.justsecurity.org/110133/what-...
www.justsecurity.org/110133/what-...
DOGE's Growing Reach into Personal Data: What it Means for Human Rights
Congress should update the Privacy Act to prevent DOGE from violating U.S. international rights obligations by creating a massive database.
www.justsecurity.org
April 16, 2025 at 7:12 PM
My latest for @justsecurity.org on what Trump's call to eliminate “information silos” within government means for human rights. This dangerous and dystopian move underscores the desperate need for comprehensive privacy and data protection laws in the US @hrw.org
www.justsecurity.org/110133/what-...
www.justsecurity.org/110133/what-...
Terrifying read. Sensitive personal data left exposed. Labor rights undermined. Intimidation of a whistleblower. Basic cybersecurity principles violated.
NEW from me: A whistleblower says DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data...and then someone posted a threatening letter to his door.
www.npr.org/2025/04/15/n...
www.npr.org/2025/04/15/n...
A whistleblower's disclosure details how DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data
A whistleblower tells Congress and NPR that DOGE may have taken sensitive labor data and hid its tracks. "None of that ... information should ever leave the agency," said a former NLRB official.
www.npr.org
April 16, 2025 at 2:23 AM
Terrifying read. Sensitive personal data left exposed. Labor rights undermined. Intimidation of a whistleblower. Basic cybersecurity principles violated.
Now a social security database being weaponized to cut people off from essential financial services so that they “self deport”. Putting aside the inhumanity of the approach, the list included a 13 yo & 7 other minors and may rely on faulty data
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/10/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/10/u...
Pressuring Migrants to ‘Self-Deport,’ White House Moves to Cancel Social Security Numbers
By placing migrants in Social Security’s “death master file,” the Trump administration is seeking to cut off their access to credit cards, bank accounts and other financial services.
www.nytimes.com
April 11, 2025 at 4:21 AM
Now a social security database being weaponized to cut people off from essential financial services so that they “self deport”. Putting aside the inhumanity of the approach, the list included a 13 yo & 7 other minors and may rely on faulty data
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/10/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/10/u...
Reposted
Information Silos exist for very good reasons.
Do you want your medical data, tax data, social media days, etc combined in one place and made available to anyone in the federal government?
Do you want your medical data, tax data, social media days, etc combined in one place and made available to anyone in the federal government?
March 22, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Information Silos exist for very good reasons.
Do you want your medical data, tax data, social media days, etc combined in one place and made available to anyone in the federal government?
Do you want your medical data, tax data, social media days, etc combined in one place and made available to anyone in the federal government?
Reposted
In yet another crackdown on LGBT rights, Hungary’s parliament has passed a law that will outlaw LGBT Pride and similar events.
The law, which penalizes organizers and attendees, also authorizes the use of facial recognition technology to identify attendees.
The law, which penalizes organizers and attendees, also authorizes the use of facial recognition technology to identify attendees.
March 19, 2025 at 12:20 PM
In yet another crackdown on LGBT rights, Hungary’s parliament has passed a law that will outlaw LGBT Pride and similar events.
The law, which penalizes organizers and attendees, also authorizes the use of facial recognition technology to identify attendees.
The law, which penalizes organizers and attendees, also authorizes the use of facial recognition technology to identify attendees.
Reposted
#Egypt: UN Experts call for release of Alaa Abd El-Fattah, as his mother's life is in danger after 148 days of hunger strike
@eudiplomacy.bsky.social: stop ignoring flagrant crackdown on free speech, make human rights core in future relationship
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel... @euinegypt.bsky.social
@eudiplomacy.bsky.social: stop ignoring flagrant crackdown on free speech, make human rights core in future relationship
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel... @euinegypt.bsky.social
February 27, 2025 at 11:11 AM
#Egypt: UN Experts call for release of Alaa Abd El-Fattah, as his mother's life is in danger after 148 days of hunger strike
@eudiplomacy.bsky.social: stop ignoring flagrant crackdown on free speech, make human rights core in future relationship
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel... @euinegypt.bsky.social
@eudiplomacy.bsky.social: stop ignoring flagrant crackdown on free speech, make human rights core in future relationship
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel... @euinegypt.bsky.social
Reposted
A new McCarthy era is upon us. Stupid, depressing, and dangerous as ever. I wonder whose name will carry the dunce cap in the history books. Too many are complicit. I’ll need to find upset and action, but for now I’m feeling grief at the dehumanization inherent to all this.
February 26, 2025 at 10:42 AM
A new McCarthy era is upon us. Stupid, depressing, and dangerous as ever. I wonder whose name will carry the dunce cap in the history books. Too many are complicit. I’ll need to find upset and action, but for now I’m feeling grief at the dehumanization inherent to all this.
Reposted
“This continuing, unauthorized disclosure of the plaintiffs' sensitive personal information to DOGE affiliates is irreparable harm that money damages cannot rectify," the judge wrote.
Judge: US gov’t violated privacy law by disclosing personal data to DOGE
Disclosure of personal information to DOGE “is irreparable harm,” judge rules.
arstechnica.com
February 24, 2025 at 10:32 PM
“This continuing, unauthorized disclosure of the plaintiffs' sensitive personal information to DOGE affiliates is irreparable harm that money damages cannot rectify," the judge wrote.
Reposted
The UK should drop its order to Apple demanding access to encrypted user data. Strong encryption should be the norm, and this order threatens the rights of users worldwide
www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...
UK Encryption Order Threatens Global Privacy Rights
The United Kingdom government’s order to Apple to allow access to encrypted cloud data harms the privacy rights of users in the UK and worldwide.
www.hrw.org
February 14, 2025 at 10:52 AM
The UK should drop its order to Apple demanding access to encrypted user data. Strong encryption should be the norm, and this order threatens the rights of users worldwide
www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...
US federal employees learning what activists, journalists , and people living under repressive governments have known for years www.theverge.com/news/610951/...
Federal workers say they increasingly distrust platforms like Facebook
Chaos in Washington, DC, is forcing some to move to new platforms.
www.theverge.com
February 14, 2025 at 3:01 AM
US federal employees learning what activists, journalists , and people living under repressive governments have known for years www.theverge.com/news/610951/...
Reposted
Google has revised its AI Principles, scrapping a previous veto on developing AI weapons. A global industry leader suddenly abandoning its self-proclaimed prohibited uses of AI underscores why voluntary principles are not a substitute for regulation and enforceable law. www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...
Google Announces Willingness to Develop AI for Weapons
Google, a company that once went by the motto “don’t be evil,” appears to be changing tack. The tech giant on Tuesday announced significant changes to its artificial intelligence (AI) policy that had ...
www.hrw.org
February 6, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Google has revised its AI Principles, scrapping a previous veto on developing AI weapons. A global industry leader suddenly abandoning its self-proclaimed prohibited uses of AI underscores why voluntary principles are not a substitute for regulation and enforceable law. www.hrw.org/news/2025/02...