There’s a lot going on in the “online safety” space at the moment. Governments in the US, UK, EU, Aussie, and elsewhere, are proposing or passing laws obliging ISPs to do age verification, or break E2EE (End-to-End Encryption) so private communications can be scanned for CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Materials). There are moves afoot in the US to repeal Section 230, which allows people to moderate online forum without being liable for everything the people using them post.
Meanwhile, the discourse around the events in Gaza has really moved the dial in the ongoing debate around the reasonable limits of freedom of expression, online and beyond (proposal of “hate speech” laws etc). With the Israel lobby doing everything they can to restrict speech defending Palestinian human rights, and the left rapidly waking up to what it’s like to be on the blunt end of politically-motivated calls to swing the banhammer.
So it’s an important time for people who are well informed about digital technology to advocate for policy that champions freedom of expression online (and offline), while still trying to address anti-social online behaviour (targeted harrassment, dogpiling, non-consensual sharing of intimate images etc).
Groups to engage with locally and in Australia:
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InternetNZ: https://internetnz.nz/
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Christchurch Call: https://www.christchurchcall.com/
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Inclusive Aotearoa Collective Tāhono: https://inclusiveaotearoa.nz/
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Electronic Frontiers Australia: https://efa.org.au/
Groups to engage with internationally:
Federated Trust And Safety: https://about.iftas.org/
