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Blog

We can be pretty sure that each new day will bring two things: new threats to our civil liberties, and new stories of people standing up for their rights and winning. Behind every court ruling is a person. Behind every landmark law is a movement. Read the stories and hear the voices that ground our work.

Blog

Use of Automated License Plate Readers Expanding in Northern California, and Data is Shared with Feds

Jul 22, 2013
The feeling of freedom that comes from driving down California's sunny open roads is at risk—and rising gas prices are not to blame. Our investigations show that at least twenty Northern California law enforcement entities as well as the California Highway Patrol track the whereabouts of millions of Californians using automated license plate readers (ALPR), and some apparently even share rec... Read More
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AT&T Wants Us to Pay Them With Our Money And Our Privacy - How to Opt Out

Jul 11, 2013
I received an email from AT&T today. Did you? It turns out that AT&T is revising its privacy policy to make it "easier to understand" and by the way, also to let us know that they want us to pay them with our money and our privacy, too. Unless we opt out, the company is going to start selling information about where we go, what we search for, what apps we use, and what we watch, to other businesse... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

ACLU Sues Government for Information About "Stingray" Cell Phone Tracking

Jul 08, 2013
Today, the ACLU of Northern California filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the Department of Justice to find out more about the federal government's use of a sophisticated surveillance tool used to track people's cell phones and commonly known as a "stingray."Stingrays are highly intrusive and indiscriminate. To locate a suspect's cell phone, Stingrays mimic a cell tower and obtain ... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

"Reclaim Your Name": FTC Commissioner Joins Call for Data Broker Transparency

Jul 03, 2013
You may not be familiar with companies like Datalogix or Acxiom, but you can bet they're familiar with you. These companies and other "data brokers" operate behind the scenes, collecting and selling information about almost every American household including employment history, recent purchases, and more. But while these companies are happy to sell and share your personal information with other co... Read More
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State AGs Tell Google: More Transparency, More Control

Jul 03, 2013
Earlier today, state law enforcement officials sent a letter to Google re-emphasizing the importance of transparency and user control. We're glad to see more voices joining the call. The letter expresses concern about Google's 2012 decision to merge data from all of its services into a single collection. Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

Kilowatts, not Kilowarrants: Government Can Obtain Smart Meter Data with Subpoenas Alone

Jul 03, 2013
Late last month, the ACLU of Northern California broke the news that California utilities were turning over the smart meter data of large numbers of customers to third parties—with San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) alone handing over the records of 4,062 customers in a single year. Based on SDG&E's responses to follow-up questions from the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC), we have ... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

PRISM: Bringing The Need for Better Transparency and Privacy Into Focus

Jul 02, 2013
A small silver lining to the PRISM scandal is that it has created the impetus for several large technology companies to finally start giving the public a glimpse into how the government is regularly dipping into their treasure trove of personal information. You may want to check out our handy new chart for a quick rundown of what's been said and done by which companies- from statements, to transpa... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

Call Logs? Try Kilowatts: Reports Reveal Demands for California Energy Data

Jun 18, 2013
Amid recent revelations that the NSA has been secretly spying on phone records and the Internet activity of people in the United States, transparency reports filed by the California utilities companies and obtained by the ACLU of California show that a significant amount of data about the energy use of Californians is also ending up in the hands of third parties. In 2012, a single California utili... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

Is Alameda County's Sheriff Still Planning on Pursuing a Drone?

Jun 13, 2013
Today, we sent a letter to the Alameda County Sheriff asking him whether he plans to pursue his earlier-announced plans to acquire a drone. Budget documents we obtained through a Public Records Act request suggest that he is not planning to acquire a drone in Fiscal Year 2013-14. But a conclusive answer from his office would provide the public with the clarity and transparency it deserves.Last Dec... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

ACLU of California Speaking Up Against Secret Spying

Jun 11, 2013
The ACLU of California has joined 85 other leading privacy groups, academic institutions, and businesses to call on Congress to take immediate action to halt the secret spying by the National Security Agency (NSA) on phone records and Internet activity of people in the United States and provide a full public accounting of the NSA's and the FBI's data collection programs. See letter below and take ... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

Are Online Phone Records Vulnerable Too?

May 15, 2013
In light of recent revelations that the Department of Justice secretly requested the telephone records of Associated Press (AP) journalists, we started thinking about newer calling services, like Google Voice. We know that some journalists also use these services. Are these records vulnerable too?Google Voice can be handy, allowing people on the move like journalists to send and receive calls or t... Read More
ACLU of Northern CA
Blog

Court Ruling Gives FBI Too Much Leeway on Surveillance Technology

May 08, 2013
Today, a federal district judge in Arizona issued a very disappointing decision concerning the government's obligations to be candid with courts about new technologies they are seeking a warrant to use. The ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed an amicus brief arguing that when the government wants to use invasive surveillance technology, it has an obligation to explain to the court ba... Read More