Join EFF at DragonCon! We're excited to be back with a membership booth in the Hilton and bunch of talks on the Electronic Frontiers Forum track @ DragonCon.
Join the Cause
Come find us in the Hilton—next to the escalators—to talk about the latest in online rights, get on our action alerts list, or become an EFF member! We'll have special ribbons for your DragonCon badge, and a dice game to play at the table. You can also grab a t-shirt, stickers, and more when you donate!
Attend our Speakeasy
Current EFF supporters can attend our Speakeasy at DragonCon! Be on the lookout for an email invitation by August 25 or feel free to reach out to christian@eff.org to get the full event details.
Learn More About EFF's Work
EFF will be at a variety of panels and events on the Electronic Frontiers Forum track, so be sure to check them out and say hi when you see us!
RESTRICT ACT: So Much More than a TikTok Ban
EFF Legal Director - Corynne McSherry
Friday, September 1 @ 10:00 AM | Hilton Room 313-314
Originally billed as a TikTok ban, the RESTRICT Act creates severe penalties for using apps nebulously deemed to be from foreign adversaries that could pose a national security risk. What are the risks to freedom of speech, privacy, and common, everyday technologies such as VPN's and encryption?
Examining the Role of Police Foundations
EFF Community Manager - José M
Friday, September 1 @ 11:30 AM | Hilton Room 313-314
Police foundations provide a mechanism for private funding of public safety resources. While this reduces costs for the taxpayer, critics cite problems such as lack of accountability, preferential treatment for donating organizations, and conflicts of interest. What are the main concerns?
Chat GPT: This Changes Everything?
EFF Senior Staff Technologist - Bill Budington
Friday, September 1 @ 1:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
The advance of Artificial Intelligence and Large Language Models suddenly seems like both a great opportunity for and a great threat to the way that we work today. Are concerns overblown, or is preemptive regulation warranted?
Copyright Bills: JCPA, SHOP SAFE, SMART Copyright Act
EFF Legal Director - Corynne McSherry
Friday, September 1 @ 4:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
The Journalism Competition and Privacy Act, the SHOP SAFE Act, and the SMART Copyright Act all promise (and threaten) to change the way that copyright works online. What are the benefits and risks of such proposals, and are any near passage?
VIRTUAL: All About the Electronic Frontier Alliance (EFA)
EFF Associate Director of Community Organizing - Rory Mir
Saturday, September 2 @ 10:00 AM | DragonCon TV Stream 2
Managed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Electronic Frontier Alliance connects community and campus oriented groups in the world of digital education and rights activism to allow geographically disparate groups to share news, compare notes, work together, and build coalitions.
Understanding Atlanta's "Cop City" Training Center Controversy
EFF Community Manager - José M
Saturday, September 2 @ 10:00 AM | Hilton Room 313-314
Atlanta's new Public Safety Training Center has been dubbed "Cop City" by opponents who see the Center as a threat to the environment and a road to increased police militarization. What are the benefits and risks of such a center, and are the police truly accountable to the community?
Age Limits for Social Media
EFF Associate Director, Activism - Hayley Tsukayama
Saturday, September 2 @ 1:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Psychological harms and other harms of social media are now more well understood. Politicians are now proposing age limits for social media, but is this the best way to address the harms? What about freedom of speech, both for young people and the platforms they use? Do youth have rights?
San Francisco Votes to Approve Killer Robots, Then Reverses Course
EFF Senior Staff Technologist - Bill Budington
Saturday, September 2 @ 2:30 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Robot dogs for the police can yield deadly force and also have unintended consequences. After pushback from the community, San Francisco rescinded a vote to purchase robot police dogs. Why are police interested in this kind of technology, and what are the concerns of opponents?
EARN-IT and the STOP CSAM Act
EFF Legal Director - Corynne McSherry
Saturday, September 2 @ 4:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Originally designed to protect children, these bills may go too far by undermining our free speech and privacy rights, along with weakening Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, whose protections made social media possible.
Copyright and AI
EFF Legal Director - Corynne McSherry
Saturday, September 2 @ 5:30 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
AI has created copyright conundrums: Are works, words, and images created by Artificial Intelligence copyrightable? If so, who owns the copyrights? Do human creators have a remedy if their works are used as one of the millions or billions of data points in a generative model?
Ransomware Attacks on Small Businesses
EFF Senior Staff Technologist - Bill Budington
Saturday, September 2 @ 7:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
While larger organizations have tightened their security, small businesses continue to be a target for ransomware, which holds computer data hostage and demands payment for its release. Given their limited resources, what steps can small businesses take to protect themselves?
Mastodon, The Fediverse, and ActivityPub
EFF Senior Staff Technologist - Bill Budington
Saturday, September 2 @ 10:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
The future of social media is federated! Or is it? Decentralized administration of social media allows like-minded groups to set their own rules and policies for their group, thus increasing freedom and flexibility for diverse groups with differing needs. How well is this vision working out?
ATSC 3.0: DRM For Free Over-the-Air TV?
EFF Legal Director - Corynne McSherry
Sunday, September 3 @ 10:00 AM | Hilton Room 313-314
A new standard that provides for 4K TV "over the air" may also be a trojan horse for an unwelcome addition, digital rights management. Why do we really need DRM for content that is openly broadcast anyway, and what are we losing with this new protection regime?
The Honeymoon is Over for Social Media
EFF Associate Director, Activism - Hayley Tsukayama
Sunday, September 3 @ 1:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
With inflation, higher interest rates, tax law changes, social media fatigue, and politicized takeovers, platforms that once seemed like indomitable forces of nature now look vulnerable. Is this the beginning of the end of social media, or just a changing of the guard as new platforms emerge?
The Legality and Constitutionality of Banning TikTok
EFF Legal Director - Corynne McSherry
Sunday, September 3 @ 4:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Due to perceived threats from Chinese ownership, politicians are banning TikTok on state-owned networks and devices. Now outright bans for all devices and networks are being proposed. What freedom of speech rights does TikTok have, and is there really a "smoking gun" showing a legitimate threat?
Shifting Cybersecurity Liability to Vendors and Suppliers
EFF Senior Staff Technologist - Bill Budington
Sunday, September 3 @ 5:30 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Security breaches via the "supply chain" have become frequent. What obligations do supply chain vendors have to protect their upstream customers, and what liabilities should be imposed? Can a vendor truly anticipate all potential attacks? Does certification such as "SOC 2 Compliance" truly help?
Right to Repair Update
EFF Associate Director, Activism - Hayley Tsukayama
Sunday, September 3 @ 7:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Political momentum for a "right to repair" is growing, with bills in over 20 states, a few of which have passed into law. We will provide an update on the goals of this movement and the status of recently passed and newly pending legislation.
Hacking 201
EFF Senior Staff Technologist - Bill Budington
Sunday, September 3 @ 10:00 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Q&A from our panel of experts; play “Stump the Hacker”!
The Rise of Labor Unions in Technology Shops
EFF Associate Director, Activism - Hayley Tsukayama & EFF Community Manager - José M
Monday, September 4 @ 11:30 AM | Hilton Room 313-314
As the financial focus of technology firms shifts from growth to revenue, employees of large technology firms once embraced "free market" ideals, but are now increasingly turning to labor unions for protection. What are the goals of the movement, and how are tech companies resisting the shift?
Rise of the Digital Landlord
EFF Associate Director, Activism - Hayley Tsukayama
Monday, September 4 @ 2:30 PM | Hilton Room 313-314
Digital door locks, pervasive security cameras, facial recognition, and individual utility metering have presented new privacy threats for apartment tenants who now may be subjected to both higher costs and technical violations of lease terms that would not have been enforceable in the past.
