Public attention on emerging privacy and freedom issues is increasing on a yearly basis.
Every day, more and more people are realizing they need to control their data, even if they don’t live in the European Union, which has consumer-friendly data privacy laws. For some, it’s a matter of human rights.
Here are the best consumer privacy advocacy organizations you can rely on and support:
Top Digital Privacy Rights Groups
Electronic Privacy Information Center
The Electronic Privacy Information Center (or EPIC) is the premier research center in Washington, D.C. The nonprofit organization was established in 1994 to focus public attention on various privacy issues and to protect privacy.
In addition to that, privacy organizations like EPIC work to support democratic values on various privacy reforms and fight against government surveillance technology programs that infringe on data privacy protections and privacy freedom in the online world as a whole.
More specifically, EPIC has lent its support to various national and international coalition organizations for protecting consumers and their right to privacy. It has also organized conferences and pursued open government cases to ensure the proper security of users’ data.
This NGO has also made news for its reports on policy, public education and litigation, all in the context of proper personal privacy rights and anonymous communications.
The American Civil Liberties Union (or ACLU) was founded in 1920 to litigate free speech and privacy rights issues. Today, it is involved in heavily lobbying the U.S. Congress for civil liberties and rights.
Read more about ACLU’s privacy-focused advocacy here.
Privacy International
This international human rights group came into existence in 1990. Its primary goal is to keep an eye on government- and corporation-run surveillance programs. The NGO is based in London but also has an office in Washington, D.C. It provides tools to conduct campaigns related to issues such as wiretapping and video surveillance.
This non-profit also focuses on freedom of expression and information, in addition to medical privacy and police search information systems.
Here is another non-profit organization that focuses on privacy scholarship and leadership problems facing society today. The Future of Privacy Forum’s site says it provides access to training programs to help individuals better understand technology, their data and the laws related to them.
The organization tries to bring together industry experts, consumer advocates, academics and other leaders to work out solutions to the problems arising from widespread technological innovation. It also aims to develop good business practices, ethical standards and personal protections, which would help preserve an individual’s identity in the online world.
Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (or EFF) is a consumer-focused organization with a broad scope of resources and programs centered around protecting society’s fundamental rights.
But it doesn’t just deal with privacy issues that arise through technology and our interactions with it. The nonprofit also focuses on informing the press, policymakers and the general public about all the pressing civil liberties issues. One of its core goals is to act as a defender of privacy and civil liberties.
Junkbusters is one of the more innovative privacy freedom organizations as it helps online users get rid of unwanted communications items such as junk faxes, junk mail, telemarketing messages and spam.
The official website also acts as an education hub for the larger online society. The organization provides resources on how users should go about protecting their online privacy and controlling junk communications.
Conclusion: Tackling Privacy and Civil Liberties Issues Through Public Interest Research Center Organizations
Apart from following a non-profit public interest research center like EPIC or the World Privacy Forum, there are many other organizations that you can follow to stay abreast of emerging civil liberties issues and internet privacy rights.
This internet privacy rights group list only covers some of the top groups fighting for privacy protections and internet privacy freedom, but there are many others you can join as well.
FAQ: Digital Consumer Privacy Rights Groups
What Is a Privacy Advocate?
From the perspective of a journalist or press/news-oriented person, a privacy advocate is a person that challenges the recent developments in the technology industry that have led to intrusive ways by which governments and corporations mishandle personal information.
Such problematic methods pertain to how any party captures, stores and processes user data. Examples include the use of biometric identifiers, surveillance footage, identity cards, traffic data and cookie usage.
What Are Privacy Issues?
In the context of the activities that happen on the web, the most prominent privacy issues are related to how services store, use and process your data. Some privacy issues arise because of the way platforms use your social media accounts. Sometimes, you end up inadvertently sharing information with people you didn’t intend to communicate with directly.
Companies face privacy issues when they compromise user data by selling it to third parties. The targeted ads you see are a result of such compromises. Other lesser-discussed privacy problems occur due to data breaches or public embarrassment that can take a heavy toll on the financial condition of the victims and cause professional problems in the future as well.
How Do You Define Privacy?
The simplest way to define privacy is that it’s a consumer’s right to be free from any unwanted intrusion or interference as they go about their day. It also means that people should have control over their information, and third-party entities should leave them alone.
What Is Privacy In an Organization?
Privacy in an organizational setting means that organizations should exercise better policies that regulate employee monitoring. Ideally, organizations should achieve the right balance between employee rights and company interests.
How Do I Become a Privacy Advocate?
You can become a data protection officer (DPO) if you want to make privacy advocacy your career. It will help if you have a degree in information security or computer science.
The DPO career path might also be best if you’ve worked in other disciplines such as privacy law, information governance, information security and training.
Who Is an Internet Privacy Activist?
Three people that you may want to follow to stay up-to-date on all the essential news and developments regarding internet privacy are:
As we rely more and more on digital technology to communicate, do business and store records, this gives rise to the concept of online privacy. With each passing year, consumer privacy and freedom on the internet are becoming increasingly important issues. Read more on this topic here.
Who Is Responsible for Data Privacy?
In an enterprise setting, it’s the data protection officer’s job to ensure a reasonable data security strategy is in place and implemented to comply with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements.
How Do You Achieve Data Privacy?
As a consumer, you can achieve digital information privacy by encrypting your information, backing up your data, using cloud services, installing anti-malware products, and keeping your software, apps and operating system up-to-date. It also helps to secure your wireless network both in your office and at home.
Without privacy, it becomes tough to ensure the autonomy and preservation of human dignity. Many concepts arising from human rights and democratic values are built on the foundation of privacy.
Privacy helps society agree on boundaries for everyone regarding things, places, communications, information and physical bodies.
What Is the Law on Internet Privacy?
As far as the U.S. is concerned, there is no single federal law that regulates internet privacy. Although, states and the federal government have their own views on how to protect the information in the online world. Click here for more on U.S.-specific privacy laws.
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act is perhaps the most important piece of legislation in this regard. It protects digital, oral and wire communication from harms such as unauthorized use, access, disclosure and interception.