Defend encryption: SAY NO to STOP CSAM
New legislation introduced in Congress would undermine secure encryption and threaten our free speech online. While lawmakers claim the STOP CSAM Act will protect children, it would actually put kids and teens in danger by weakening encryption that protects their privacy and sabotaging Section 230 protections, opening the door for the censorship of vital internet resources.
Sign the petition and tell your lawmakers: “Oppose STOP CSAM and any other attempts to weaken end-to-end encryption, like the EARN IT Act! Child safety on the internet is extremely important, but weakening free speech and encryption does not keep children safe. Strong data privacy legislation does.”
Wait-wouldn’t STOP CSAM protect children online?
STOP CSAM is a misguided attempt at making the internet safe for children. In actuality, STOP CSAM has many similarities with the EARN IT Act—a dangerous bill advanced by Sen. Lindsey Graham that would weaken end-to-end encryption. E2EE protects confidentiality on the internet by encrypting messages from the sender to the receiver. For LGBTQ+ youth, E2EE can be paramount for safety in a time of widespread suppression of online and physical LGBTQ+ resources. E2EE is integral to the safety of survivors of interpersonal violence and stalking, abortion seekers and providers, and activists. Weakening E2EE as a means to funnel more information to law enforcement also sets an alarming precedent for government surveillance. All of us, including children, need to be able to communicate in the digital age without our conversations being spied on.
If Congress wants to keep children safe on the internet, they should work to pass comprehensive data privacy laws to protect ALL users from the exploitative practices of Big Tech.