Human Rights Groups Want In on White House/Silicon Valley Confab on Terrorism, Privacy

A coalition of privacy, civil liberties and human rights groups is demanding the U.S. government include the organizations in discussions of free expression and privacy online as federal efforts to combat violent extremism widen. In a letter sent Tuesday to three top White House officials, nearly a dozen groups -- including Access Now, Center for Democracy and Technology and New America's Open Technology Institute -- cited a couple of private meetings since January between the government and technology company executives on how to counter terrorists' use of the Internet to radicalize and recruit people. "When the government sits down with those companies that have practical control over a broad swath of public speech and private communication, and especially if and when those conversations lead to voluntary surveillance or censorship measures that would be illegal or unconstitutional for the government to undertake itself, the consequences are truly global," the letter said. The coalition said the potential human rights threat is "especially acute" since many federal programs "overwhelmingly target Muslim and other marginalized communities and individuals." To ensure human rights are protected, the groups said the government must engage with civil society groups "to the same extent" as technology companies. The administration and companies also need to be transparent about steps being taken, such as changes to security features in services and products -- amid the FBI's legal fight to force Apple to help the agency gain access to an iPhone (see 1603040023) -- "or any changes to policies and practices that determine what speech is censored or reported to the government," the letter said. The U.S. has promoted the Internet internationally through a multistakeholder approach, and it should do the same domestically, the coalition said. The letter was addressed to Office of Science and Technology Policy Director John Holdren, National Security Adviser Susan Rice and National Economic Council Director Jeffrey Zients. The White House did not comment.