The small town of Hanover, Massachusetts, population ~13,000, has become the first in the state to obtain a license from the FAA to fly a drone. According to media reports, the police and fire department plan to use it. I’m curious to...
Tonight, the Cambridge City Council will meet at 5:30 pm at City Hall. On the agenda is a discussion of a crucial surveillance accountability and transparency ordinance. The future of privacy and good government in Cambridge hangs in the balance, making it critical...
Yesterday I was interviewed for an NBC Boston story about DHS funded research to build a machine that would enable the electronic searching of hundreds of people at a time. The system would work sort of like the all electronic tolling gantries...
Yesterday, Senators Wyden (D-OR) and Paul (R-KY) and Representatives Polis (D-CO), Farenthold (R-TX), Smith (D-WA), and Beyer (D-VA) introduced legislation to protect digital privacy from the prying eyes of DHS employees at US borders. The legislation would require warrants for searches of US citizens’ and...
A bill before the Connecticut state legislature would require law enforcement to obtain a warrant to use a drone, but would also allow law enforcement to weaponize the unmanned aerial vehicles. The bill has been approved by the Judiciary Committee and now...
The GOP Congress just took an ax to your internet privacy. Here’s how to get some of it back. Use Tor browser. Tor is a free browser that lets you explore the internet anonymously. The only downside with Tor is that it...
Yesterday, the Senate passed a measure to overturn Obama-era FCC rules that prevent internet service providers like Comcast and Time Warner from using or selling your internet history records without your permission. Even worse, the measure approved by the Senate in a...
In a major win for free speech and police accountability, a Massachusetts federal court has ruled in favor of two ACLU clients who seek to exercise their constitutional right to record the police in secret. The lawsuit, Martin v. Evans, was brought...
Last week, President Trump tweeted that President Obama wiretapped him during the 2016 presidential campaign. That’s probably not true. Since the intelligence reforms of the 1970s, it’s been unlawful for presidents to order targeted wiretapping of Americans. Only prosecutors can do that, and...
Last night, Boston Police Department officials were photographed filming people protesting a controversial Boston Planning & Development Agency meeting. Despite the advocates’ campaign—which included a sleepover protest inside City Hall this week—the Agency quickly voted to approve a new development along Washington Street...