Parker Higgins
Freedom of the Press
New York, United States
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Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
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Past articles by Parker:
Biden administration defends Trump’s indefensible surveillance of reporters
Department of Justice subpoenas for the phone records of three Washington Post reporters represent an outrageous invasion of the First Amendment rights of journalists to communicate with sources, and the defense of their use by the Biden administration raises alarming questions about its commitment to press freedom. → Read More
Meet the open-source Twitter bot to help you surface stories on anything
We're releasing Track The News, a new tool to monitor stories from news outlets for words or phrases that matter to you. It's the framework behind @FOIAFeed, our public records reporting bot. → Read More
Research and Remixes the Law Won’t Allow
Some day, your life may depend on the work of a security researcher. Whether it’s a simple malfunction in a piece of computerized medical equipment or a malicious compromise of your networked car, it’s critically important that people working in security can find and fix the problem before the worst happens. → Read More
With Canada’s Entry, Treaty for the Blind Will Come Into Force
A groundbreaking international agreement to address the “book famine” for blind and print-disabled people is now set to go into force after passing another key milestone today. The agreement requires countries to allow the reproduction and distribution of accessible ebooks by limiting the scope of copyright restrictions. → Read More
EFF Applauds Jury Verdict In Favor of Fair Use in Oracle v. Google
A jury unanimously and correctly found today that Google's use of 37 Java package names and some 11,000 lines of "declaring code" in its Android operating system was lawful fair use, showing once again that our robust fair use doctrine is doing the crucial work of ensuring copyright law doesn’t undermine innovation. → Read More
Stakes Are High in Oracle v. Google, But the Public Has Already Lost Big
No matter who wins in the high-profile copyright showdown between software giants Oracle and Google, the public is already worse off than before this case started. → Read More
Yes, All DRM
Everybody knows that the digital locks of DRM on the digital media you own is a big problem. If you’ve bought a digital book, album, or movie, you should be able to do what you want with it—whether that’s enjoying it wherever you want to, or making it more accessible by changing the font size or adding subtitles, or loaning or giving it to a friend when you’re done. → Read More
App Store Censorship and FBI Hacking Proposed at Congressional Crypto Hearing
Tech experts and industry representatives squared off against law enforcement officials in two sessions of lively testimony today in front of the House Energy and Commerce committee. Today's hearing is the latest in the ongoing battle in the courts and legislature commonly called the second “Crypto Wars,” after a similar national debate in the 1990s. → Read More
Apple Fight Could Lead To "Virtually Limitless" Surveillance Powers, Judge Warns
At stake in Apple's fight against government orders to break open locked iPhones could be the legal authorization for “virtually limitless” surveillance under the Internet of Things, according to a federal judge's order rejecting a government request in a New York drug case yesterday. → Read More
Government Can't Force Apple to Bypass iPhone Lock Screen, New York Judge Rules
Apple cannot be compelled to bypass the lock screen on an iPhone seized by the government in a New York drug case, according an order issued today by magistrate Judge James Orenstein. → Read More
The Web's First Blackout Protest: The CDA, 20 Years Later
Twenty years ago, large chunks of the Web went dark. These sites were changing their layout, or in some cases even going offline, to protest the Communications Decency Act, signed on February 8 by President Bill Clinton as Title V of the landmark Telecommunication Act. By some estimates, more than 5% of sites online on the early Web took part. → Read More
Call For Stories: User Uploads and Takedown Abuse
EFF is filing public comments on a series of studies initiated by the U.S. Copyright Office, and we need your help. One of the studies focuses on the notice-and takedown procedures outlined in section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). We'd like to hear from you about your experience with those procedures, and the policies and practices that platforms have implemented to comply… → Read More
A Tale of Two Treaties: Marrakesh and Beijing Both Make Their Way to the Senate
The White House has submitted two copyright treaties to the Senate for ratification: the Marrakesh Treaty, which would improve access to copyrighted works for people with visual and print disabilities; and the Beijing Treaty, which could create a new layer of monopoly rights for the creators of audiovisual works. International copyright treaties move slowly, so neither of these is a surprise. → Read More
Medium's Sitewide Encryption Confronts Censorship in Malaysia
Blogging platform Medium is now blocked in Malaysia, apparently in an effort to censor an investigative news outlet critical of the government. → Read More
Copyright Week 2016: Making Copyright Work For The Public
We're taking part in Copyright Week, a series of actions and discussions supporting key principles that should guide copyright policy. Every day this week, various groups are taking on different elements of the law, and addressing what's at stake, and what we need to do to make sure that copyright promotes creativity and innovation. → Read More
Who's Driving This Thing? Anti-DRM Victories and Milestones: 2015 in Review
Sometimes news events make your point better than you ever could. That was the case this year as we completed the triennial rulemaking cycle of requesting exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's (DMCA)'s restrictions on circumventing DRM. → Read More
What Is EFF Reading? Books, Movies, and TV Shows of 2015
What books, TV shows, and movies helped shaped the way EFF staff were thinking about cutting edge issues this year? Each December we like to look back at some of the new and noteworthy media we took in. We don't endorse all the arguments you'll find in them, but we think they at least add something valuable to the discussion. Also, this isn't meant to be an exhaustive list—more of a conversation… → Read More
In 3-D Printing Case, "Code Is Speech" Faces New Challenges
EFF has filed a brief in Defense Distributed v. Department of State, a case that could push forward recognition for the hard fought principle that publishing computer files that communicate information, even in an esoteric format, is speech protected by the First Amendment. → Read More
Free Router Software Not In The Crosshairs, FCC Clarifies
FCC will not seek to ban free software from wireless routers, according to a clarification it made earlier this month on a rulemaking related to radio devices. An earlier draft of the official proposal included a specific reference to device manufacturers restricting installation of the open-source project DD-WRT. → Read More
4 Key Takeaways From Copyright Reform Committee's Silicon Valley Listening Tour
The House Judiciary Committee, tasked with copyright reform in the Next Great Copyright Act process, has taken its long-running hearing show on the road. This week, members of the committee attended sessions in northern and southern California. → Read More