In October 2021, the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) completed Phase Three of the consultation process for Australia’s proposed Trusted Digital Identity Bill and the accompanying Trusted Digital Identity Framework (TDIF) …
Rights groups call for strong privacy protections in home quarantine apps
The Human Rights Law Centre and Digital Rights Watch have written to federal, state and territory health ministers calling for stronger privacy protections in the technology being used to support …
How to write your own policy submission
On 7 October 2021 Digital Rights Watch teamed up with Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA) to host a live online workshop on how to write your own policy submission. There are …
September 2021 Roundup
Identity and Disrupt petition hits 125+k Last month we shared with you the petition to repeal the Identify and Disrupt Act, and we’re happy to say it’s now hit 125k …
Submission: Restricted Access Systems Discussion Paper
The Online Safety Act 2021 was passed in June 2021. Contained within it is an Online Content Scheme which includes the ability for the eSafety Commissioner to issue ‘remedial notices’. …
August 2021 Roundup
Strap in, August has been a huge month for digital rights! From the passage of the Identify and Disrupt Bill, to Apple’s announcement of its surveillance software update, to the …
Rebalance the Internet Economy: IMAGINE
IMAGINE …a world without the written word. Are digital platforms taking the creative arts for granted? With declining income across the board for creative industries, it seems more like social …
Australia’s new mass surveillance mandate
The Australian government has new laws on the books to hack your computer, your online accounts, and just about any piece of technology and networks you come into contact with. …
90+ digital rights organisations ask Apple to drop image surveillance plans
Digital Rights Watch joins a coalition of more than 90 U.S. and international organizations dedicated to civil rights, digital rights, and human rights, in an open letter to Apple CEO …
Submission: Right to Repair
The Productivity Commission is conducting an inquiry into the ‘Right to Repair’. In June 2021 the draft report was released for public consultation. Digital Rights Watch teamed up with Electronic …
July 2021 Roundup
We’re well past the halfway mark of 2021 now and just when we think we’re going to have a quiet month, the world keeps turning… Government spyware named Pegasus You …
Submission: Digital Identity – Position Paper
In July, the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) wrapped up a public consultation on the Digital Identity Legislation Position Paper. Needless to say, we are concerned about the way that an …
June 2021 Roundup
Ironside and the International Productions Orders (IPO) Bill Operation Ironside, where an encrypted communications application was used to trick and track criminals, gave us a media storm of discussions around …
Rebalance the Internet Economy: EXHIBIT
What is art? What is pornography? A contested distinction that was once made by adult stores, galleries, and the classification board, now falls to digital platforms and their automated content …
May 2021 Roundup
Greetings from… inside our homes. With the majority of our team back in lockdown in Victoria, we have been keeping an eye on coronavirus updates. If you registered to attend …
Policy grounded in surveillance won’t protect women
All this talk of protecting women online reminds me of a quote from renowned feminist and author Mona Eltahawy: “I don’t want to be protected. I want patriarchy to stop …
Our top picks for RightsCon 2021
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, not the holidays, it’s RightsCon season! RightsCon is the world’s leading summit on human rights in the digital age, hosted by …
Submission to the UN: the right to privacy in the digital age
As the digital ecosystem grows all around us, consuming cities, workplaces, and our places of leisure and even governance, the protection of privacy has been an active frontier between human …
April 2021 Roundup
As the year crawls forward, we’re busy working across a number of different fronts to advance digital rights in Australia. This month we’re looking back at government inquiries, new legislation, …
Anonymity online is important
Imagine if we walked around the real world with a small screen floating above our heads. That screen would update with a different set of information depending on who looked …