EPIC
@epic.org
The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) was established in 1994 to secure the fundamental right to privacy in the digital age.
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EPIC Alert
epic.org
Join one of the longest-running newsletters on the internet by subscribing to EPIC Alert! We share the highlights of our work on key issues of privacy & surveillance. No paywall, ads or corporate sponsors. Just privacy news made possible by the support of readers like you.
epic.org/alert/
epic.org/alert/
EPIC alum and @consumerfed.bsky.social Director of AI and Privacy @benwinters.bsky.social discusses our recent collaboration on a model People-First Chatbot Bill:
Watch CFA’s @benwinters.bsky.social join @charleyjohnson.bsky.social’s the Untangled podcast to discuss The People First #Chatbot Bill
Full episode here: untangled.substack.com/p/what-if-we...
Full episode here: untangled.substack.com/p/what-if-we...
February 9, 2026 at 6:36 PM
EPIC alum and @consumerfed.bsky.social Director of AI and Privacy @benwinters.bsky.social discusses our recent collaboration on a model People-First Chatbot Bill:
EPIC commends South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster for signing an Age-Appropriate Design Code into law last Thursday, the same day we released our model AADC to state legislatures nationwide. Read more about the model bill and S.C.’s new regulations:
South Carolina Becomes Fifth State to Enact an Age-Appropriate Design Code
<p>This week South Carolina enacted the Age-Appropriate Design Code (AADC), which went into effect immediately. </p>
epic.org
February 9, 2026 at 6:21 PM
EPIC commends South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster for signing an Age-Appropriate Design Code into law last Thursday, the same day we released our model AADC to state legislatures nationwide. Read more about the model bill and S.C.’s new regulations:
We’re thrilled to introduce you to our latest model legislation: EPIC’s Age-Appropriate Design Code. This model protects kids online by prohibiting addictive design features for minors and giving them more control over their digital lives.
February 5, 2026 at 6:08 PM
We’re thrilled to introduce you to our latest model legislation: EPIC’s Age-Appropriate Design Code. This model protects kids online by prohibiting addictive design features for minors and giving them more control over their digital lives.
EPIC applauds the Virginia Senate’s unanimous passage of a vital bill, S.B. 338, banning the sale of precise geolocation data. We urge the state's House of Delegates to follow suit this session.
Read EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald’s testimony in support of the bill here:
Read EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald’s testimony in support of the bill here:
Virginia Senate Passes Bill Banning Sale of Precise Location Data
Updates
epic.org
February 4, 2026 at 8:04 PM
EPIC applauds the Virginia Senate’s unanimous passage of a vital bill, S.B. 338, banning the sale of precise geolocation data. We urge the state's House of Delegates to follow suit this session.
Read EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald’s testimony in support of the bill here:
Read EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald’s testimony in support of the bill here:
📫 EPIC rang in the new year by welcoming three new board members, publishing a major health data privacy report, and so much more. Find out what we’ve been up to in the latest edition of our monthly newsletter, The EPIC Alert, and don’t forget to subscribe!
EPIC Alert
Read the full January 2026 EPIC Alert here.
epic.org
February 3, 2026 at 3:23 PM
📫 EPIC rang in the new year by welcoming three new board members, publishing a major health data privacy report, and so much more. Find out what we’ve been up to in the latest edition of our monthly newsletter, The EPIC Alert, and don’t forget to subscribe!
EPIC around town: On Friday, Jeramie Scott, Senior Counsel and Director of EPIC’s Surveillance Oversight Program, spoke on a panel about AI and the surveillance state as part of the Georgetown Law Technology Review’s Symposium on Data, Power, and Authoritarianism.
February 2, 2026 at 10:00 PM
EPIC around town: On Friday, Jeramie Scott, Senior Counsel and Director of EPIC’s Surveillance Oversight Program, spoke on a panel about AI and the surveillance state as part of the Georgetown Law Technology Review’s Symposium on Data, Power, and Authoritarianism.
EPIC is proud to support New Hampshire’s proposed Age-Appropriate Design Code, HB 1650. NH’s AADC mirrors Vermont’s version, which is the strongest kids’ online safety law enacted to date. Read more here:
EPIC Encourages New Hampshire Lawmakers to Enact Age-Appropriate Design Code
<p>Yesterday EPIC submitted written testimony to the New Hampshire House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee supporting the passage of HB 1650, the New Hampshire Age-Appropriate Design Code (NH…
epic.org
February 2, 2026 at 8:36 PM
EPIC is proud to support New Hampshire’s proposed Age-Appropriate Design Code, HB 1650. NH’s AADC mirrors Vermont’s version, which is the strongest kids’ online safety law enacted to date. Read more here:
📣 Yesterday, EPIC Deputy Director John Davisson urged Vermont legislators to restore a crucial mechanism in the state's Delete Act.
The mechanism was designed to create a one-stop way to tell data brokers to delete your personal data, but the bill's latest draft relies on a much weaker system.
The mechanism was designed to create a one-stop way to tell data brokers to delete your personal data, but the bill's latest draft relies on a much weaker system.
EPIC Testifies in Support of Vermont Data Broker Bill, But Urges Changes
Updates
epic.org
January 30, 2026 at 8:55 PM
📣 Yesterday, EPIC Deputy Director John Davisson urged Vermont legislators to restore a crucial mechanism in the state's Delete Act.
The mechanism was designed to create a one-stop way to tell data brokers to delete your personal data, but the bill's latest draft relies on a much weaker system.
The mechanism was designed to create a one-stop way to tell data brokers to delete your personal data, but the bill's latest draft relies on a much weaker system.
FISA 702 needs to be reformed. Here's how.
Read the letter EPIC and other civil liberties organizations submitted for the record ahead of Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act:
Read the letter EPIC and other civil liberties organizations submitted for the record ahead of Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act:
EPIC, Coalition Urge Congress to Include Critical Reforms in Any Extension of FISA Section 702
Wednesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on “Review and Reform: The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and Executive Accountability.”
epic.org
January 29, 2026 at 3:30 PM
FISA 702 needs to be reformed. Here's how.
Read the letter EPIC and other civil liberties organizations submitted for the record ahead of Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act:
Read the letter EPIC and other civil liberties organizations submitted for the record ahead of Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act:
Today is a holiday close to our hearts here at EPIC: Data Privacy Day 🔒
We believe that we all share a fundamental right to privacy, and protecting that right has never been more urgent. Evidence of the stakes is everywhere — this is what a week of news looks like in 2026:
We believe that we all share a fundamental right to privacy, and protecting that right has never been more urgent. Evidence of the stakes is everywhere — this is what a week of news looks like in 2026:
January 28, 2026 at 6:47 PM
Today is a holiday close to our hearts here at EPIC: Data Privacy Day 🔒
We believe that we all share a fundamental right to privacy, and protecting that right has never been more urgent. Evidence of the stakes is everywhere — this is what a week of news looks like in 2026:
We believe that we all share a fundamental right to privacy, and protecting that right has never been more urgent. Evidence of the stakes is everywhere — this is what a week of news looks like in 2026:
EPIC hosted a virtual panel last week where experts discussed the current health privacy crisis, how it pushes people away from care, and what we can do about it. A recording of the conversation—and a new report EPIC authored on the topic—is available here:
Beyond HIPAA: Reimagining How Privacy Laws Apply to Health Data to Maximize Equity in the Digital Age
PAST EVENT
epic.org
January 27, 2026 at 9:00 PM
EPIC hosted a virtual panel last week where experts discussed the current health privacy crisis, how it pushes people away from care, and what we can do about it. A recording of the conversation—and a new report EPIC authored on the topic—is available here:
Last week, EPIC joined a coalition of civil society groups led by @publicknowledge.bsky.social urging the FCC to safeguard the privacy of NextGen TV users. This new version of over-the-air antenna TV, also called ATSC 3.0, allows broadcasters to collect user data like streaming media services do.
EPIC Urges FCC to Safeguard Viewer Privacy in NextGen TV Tech
<p>The coalition comment also addressed issues including content locking via Digital Rights Management (DRM), emergency alerts, equipment to ensure continued service to rural and tribal consumers,…
epic.org
January 27, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Last week, EPIC joined a coalition of civil society groups led by @publicknowledge.bsky.social urging the FCC to safeguard the privacy of NextGen TV users. This new version of over-the-air antenna TV, also called ATSC 3.0, allows broadcasters to collect user data like streaming media services do.
EPIC is proud to support Wisconsin’s Age-Appropriate Design Code, which state legislators introduced last week. The bill adds momentum to the growing nationwide push to protect kids online. Read more here:
Strong Age-Appropriate Design Code Bill Introduced in Wisconsin
<p>Wisconsin legislators introduced an Age-Appropriate Design Code today, adding to the momentum in state legislatures across the country to address the privacy and safety harms kids face online.</p>
epic.org
January 26, 2026 at 10:26 PM
EPIC is proud to support Wisconsin’s Age-Appropriate Design Code, which state legislators introduced last week. The bill adds momentum to the growing nationwide push to protect kids online. Read more here:
Data brokers have long fueled doxxing, and chatbots are making it even easier. EPIC Scholar-in-Residence @jshermcyber.bsky.social says it’s time for companies to bar their products from abetting doxxing and stop lobbying in support of public-records scraping.
Dear Chatbots: Don’t Fuel Data Broker-Driven Doxxing
<p>January is always the month of resolutions, and in that vein, perhaps it’s time for chatbot companies to make a new resolution of their own. In December, the technology blog Futurism published an…
epic.org
January 25, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Data brokers have long fueled doxxing, and chatbots are making it even easier. EPIC Scholar-in-Residence @jshermcyber.bsky.social says it’s time for companies to bar their products from abetting doxxing and stop lobbying in support of public-records scraping.
On Wednesday, a coalition of plaintiffs including EPIC filed an amended complaint challenging the Trump admin’s unlawful overhaul of DHS’s SAVE system. The changes transformed the service into an unreliable national databank states are using to conduct citizenship checks and purge voter rolls.
Coalition Files Updated Complaint Challenging Illegal Overhaul of SAVE System, Misuse of Data to Boot Citizens from Voter Rolls
<p>A coalition of plaintiffs including EPIC filed an amended complaint Wednesday in their case challenging the illegal consolidation and misuse of citizenship data by the Department of Homeland…
epic.org
January 23, 2026 at 7:52 PM
On Wednesday, a coalition of plaintiffs including EPIC filed an amended complaint challenging the Trump admin’s unlawful overhaul of DHS’s SAVE system. The changes transformed the service into an unreliable national databank states are using to conduct citizenship checks and purge voter rolls.
More than 70 organizations have joined EPIC, @consumerfed.bsky.social, and @fairplayforkids.bsky.social to endorse our People-First Chatbot Bill, a crucial step forward in providing meaningful protections for all chatbot users.
January 22, 2026 at 6:30 PM
More than 70 organizations have joined EPIC, @consumerfed.bsky.social, and @fairplayforkids.bsky.social to endorse our People-First Chatbot Bill, a crucial step forward in providing meaningful protections for all chatbot users.
NEW: Today, EPIC published a report detailing the health privacy crisis in which our data is collected and used to profile us, manipulate our behavior, and charge us more for care.
Read “Beyond HIPAA: Reimagining How Privacy Laws Apply to Health Data to Maximize Equity in the Digital Age” here:
Read “Beyond HIPAA: Reimagining How Privacy Laws Apply to Health Data to Maximize Equity in the Digital Age” here:
Beyond HIPAA: Reimagining How Privacy Laws Apply to Health Data to Maximize Equity in the Digital Age
We face a health data privacy crisis. Unregulated digital technologies, mass surveillance, and weak privacy laws have created a health privacy crisis in which our health data is collected and used to…
epic.org
January 21, 2026 at 9:51 PM
NEW: Today, EPIC published a report detailing the health privacy crisis in which our data is collected and used to profile us, manipulate our behavior, and charge us more for care.
Read “Beyond HIPAA: Reimagining How Privacy Laws Apply to Health Data to Maximize Equity in the Digital Age” here:
Read “Beyond HIPAA: Reimagining How Privacy Laws Apply to Health Data to Maximize Equity in the Digital Age” here:
Reposted by EPIC
Huge, sweeping report from my colleague @sarageoghegan.bsky.social and the @epic.org team on how unregulated tech, mass surveillance, and yawning gaps in privacy law have created a health privacy crisis, as covered by WIRED’s @dell.bsky.social: www.wired.com/story/survei...
Surveillance and ICE Are Driving Patients Away From Medical Care, Report Warns
A new EPIC report says data brokers, ad-tech surveillance, and ICE enforcement are among the factors leading to a “health privacy crisis” that is eroding trust and deterring people from seeking care.
www.wired.com
January 21, 2026 at 6:46 PM
Huge, sweeping report from my colleague @sarageoghegan.bsky.social and the @epic.org team on how unregulated tech, mass surveillance, and yawning gaps in privacy law have created a health privacy crisis, as covered by WIRED’s @dell.bsky.social: www.wired.com/story/survei...
Last chance to register for EPIC's health privacy panel taking place tomorrow, January 21 at 2 p.m. EST! Register now: lnkd.in/etvyHtik
January 20, 2026 at 6:02 PM
Last chance to register for EPIC's health privacy panel taking place tomorrow, January 21 at 2 p.m. EST! Register now: lnkd.in/etvyHtik
📣Yesterday, EPIC Counsel Kara Williams testified in support of the New York AI Act (S1169A), which would prohibit algorithmic discrimination in housing, employment, and healthcare by requiring companies to disclose when they’re using AI to make sensitive decisions about consumers’ lives. Read more:
EPIC Testifies in Support of New York AI Act
Updates
epic.org
January 16, 2026 at 9:18 PM
📣Yesterday, EPIC Counsel Kara Williams testified in support of the New York AI Act (S1169A), which would prohibit algorithmic discrimination in housing, employment, and healthcare by requiring companies to disclose when they’re using AI to make sensitive decisions about consumers’ lives. Read more:
REMINDER: EPIC's Health Privacy Panel is one week away—make sure to register now! epic.org/beyond-hipaa-event
Join EPIC on Wednesday, January 21 at 2 pm ET for a discussion on how surveillance and weak privacy laws threaten health equity and what we can do to build a more privacy-protective future.
Register now: epic.org/beyond-hipaa-event
Register now: epic.org/beyond-hipaa-event
January 14, 2026 at 4:19 PM
REMINDER: EPIC's Health Privacy Panel is one week away—make sure to register now! epic.org/beyond-hipaa-event
EPIC recently joined two comments as part of an ongoing call on the FTC to renew its click-to-cancel rulemaking. The click-to-cancel rule—vacated in 2025 for so-called procedural defects—was a popular initiative that stopped companies from trapping people in subscriptions. epic.org/epic-joins-c...
EPIC Joins Coalition Urging FTC to Renew Click-to-Cancel Rulemaking to Protect Consumers from Subscription Traps
<p>Last week, EPIC joined two comments to the FTC calling on the Commission to renew its click-to-cancel rulemaking, which was dubiously vacated last year on procedural grounds.</p>
epic.org
January 13, 2026 at 9:02 PM
EPIC recently joined two comments as part of an ongoing call on the FTC to renew its click-to-cancel rulemaking. The click-to-cancel rule—vacated in 2025 for so-called procedural defects—was a popular initiative that stopped companies from trapping people in subscriptions. epic.org/epic-joins-c...
How we talk about AI matters, and describing AI as if it has human-like abilities is dangerous. EPIC’s new blog post explains why anthropomorphizing AI is inaccurate, obscures the real-life harms, and plays into the Big Tech narrative. epic.org/a-new-years-...
A New Year’s Resolution for Everyone: Stop Talking about Generative AI Like It Is Human
<p>Anthropomorphizing genAI is not only technically inaccurate, but it also exacerbates the harms generative AI causes and allows Big Tech to control the narrative around regulating generative AI…
epic.org
January 12, 2026 at 3:50 PM
How we talk about AI matters, and describing AI as if it has human-like abilities is dangerous. EPIC’s new blog post explains why anthropomorphizing AI is inaccurate, obscures the real-life harms, and plays into the Big Tech narrative. epic.org/a-new-years-...
EPIC recently submitted comments to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services pushing back on a proposed rule that would dangerously expand the government’s collection and use of biometric data. EPIC has long highlighted concerns over increasing use of biometric data. epic.org/epic-opposes...
EPIC Opposes Dangerous Expansion of Biometric Data Collection and Urges USCIS to Rescind Proposed Rule
<p>On Jan. 2, EPIC submitted comments to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in response to the Proposed Rule published on November 3, 2025. </p>
epic.org
January 9, 2026 at 5:45 PM
EPIC recently submitted comments to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services pushing back on a proposed rule that would dangerously expand the government’s collection and use of biometric data. EPIC has long highlighted concerns over increasing use of biometric data. epic.org/epic-opposes...
EPIC added another action to our long history of fighting against robocalls this week by joining a comment to the FCC. EPIC joined @nclc4consumers.bsky.social and @consumeradvocates.bsky.social in urging the FCC to adopt measures to better protect people from unwanted calls. epic.org/epic-joins-c...
EPIC Joins Comment Urging FCC to More Effectively Combat Unwanted Calls, Including Delaying Any Caller Name Display Requirements
<p>In the comments, EPIC, NACA, and NCLC argued in support of several measures to better protect consumers.</p>
epic.org
January 8, 2026 at 7:50 PM
EPIC added another action to our long history of fighting against robocalls this week by joining a comment to the FCC. EPIC joined @nclc4consumers.bsky.social and @consumeradvocates.bsky.social in urging the FCC to adopt measures to better protect people from unwanted calls. epic.org/epic-joins-c...