EFF Executive Director Cindy Cohn's Journey Inside the Privacy Battles That Shaped Today's Internet
EFF Executive Director Cindy Cohn has devoted her life to the fight for digital rights. She’s tangled with federal officials to keep our online conversations secure from the government's prying eyes, fought to ensure that you are told when your information has been turned over to the government, and argued before judges to protect our right to speak and to share science and knowledge on the internet.
In Privacy’s Defender: My Thirty-Year Fight Against Digital Surveillance (MIT Press), Cindy weaves her own personal story with her role as a leading legal voice representing the rights and interests of technology users, innovators, whistleblowers, and researchers during the Crypto Wars of the 1990s, battles over NSA’s dragnet internet spying revealed in the 2000s, and the fight against FBI gag orders.
A national book tour kicks off in San Francisco on March 10. Check this page for dates and locations. All proceeds from the sale of hard copies of Privacy’s Defender are being donated to EFF, so your book order will help EFF continue fighting for the principles Cindy holds dear. The book goes on sale March 10—you can preorder at:
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Privacy's Defender Is a Rallying Cry for Hope in These Challenging Times
"Cindy Cohn gives readers a first-person window into some of the pivotal legal disputes of the digital era and reminds us that action and activism are crucial to preserving Americans' freedom."
~U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-OR, author of It Takes Chutzpah: How to Fight Fearlessly for Progressive Change
"Cohn delivers a riveting, up-close look at some of the pivotal fights of the early internet—and in doing so, demonstrates the vital importance of EFF, Cindy herself, and all privacy defenders."
~Alexandra Reeve Givens, CEO, Center for Democracy & Technology
"These beautifully written stories show why the fight for privacy is worth having and reveal all that Cindy Cohn and EFF have done to establish the modern privacy doctrine as the essential core of a free society."
~Lawrence Lessig, Harvard University; author of How to Steal a Presidential Election
"Privacy’s Defender is an important read for people who care about privacy and security. A wild ride and a hopeful example for anyone who has wondered what it’s like to spend your life working toward a better world."
~Bruce Schneier, coauthor of Rewiring Democracy: How AI Will Transform Our Politics, Government, and Citizenship
"Cindy Cohn has been at the forefront of the digital revolution from the beginning, and her book, Privacy's Defender, is a gripping, urgent chronicle of her leadership and deep understanding of this fraught, complex time."
~Alex Winter, actor and filmmaker
"Privacy’s Defender is a compelling account of a life well lived and an inspiring call to action for the next generation of civil liberties champions."
~Edward Snowden, whistleblower; author of Permanent Record
