EPIC - Electronic Privacy Information Center

12/16/2025

In a notable win for consumer privacy, the FTC has upheld a 2021 consent decree against Scott Zuckerman, CEO of the stalkerware app SpyFone. Zuckerman had petitioned to reduce or void his obligations, which included a permanent ban on selling surveillance products and a requirement to implement stronger cybersecurity practices.

The FTC’s decision ensures that Zuckerman will remain blocked from marketing tools that enable covert surveillance and deceitful data security practices. EPIC and other civil rights organizations argued in comments to the agency that weakening the decree would send the wrong message and encourage more stalkerware development, which poses serious threats to privacy and safety.

This ruling is a major step forward in holding tech companies accountable and protecting consumers from surreptitious surveillance.

On December 8, the Federal Trade Commission denied the petition of Scott Zuckerman, CEO of the stalkerware app SpyFone, who sought to vacate or reduce his obligations under a 2021 FTC Consent Decree.

12/15/2025

The federal government is pooling data across agencies to create a national citizenship database and encouraging states to use it to revoke voting rights. Last Friday, EPIC and a coalition of 13 organizations submitted comments to the Social Security Administration (SSA) condemning its unlawful transfer of personal information to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for citizenship and immigration verification.

Over the past eight months, DHS and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) radically changed the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) System to pool individuals’ sensitive data across agencies—including SSA data known to be unreliable. Originally used to facilitate the provision of public benefits, DHS overhauled the SAVE system to serve as a national citizenship database and encouraged state and local SAVE users to use the system to purge their voter rolls.

Since May, SSA has been illegally sharing data with DHS without fulfilling its legal obligation to have a notice and comment period prior to this new government activity. Only now—after a lawsuit brought on behalf of EPIC, League of Women Voters, and several individuals by CREW, Federal Elections Center, and Democracy Forward—has SSA come before the public to seek retroactive authority.

EPIC demands that SSA withdraw its notice, suspend the disclosure of sensitive SSA data to DHS for citizenship and immigration purposes, and ensure that users of the SAVE system delete all personal records and derived data wrongfully disclosed to them.

Federal agencies like SSA cannot keep skirting accountability and transparency obligations by acting illegally first and asking forgiveness later.

EPIC, joined by a coalition of 13 organizations, submitted comments today to the Social Security Administration (SSA) condemning its unlawful transfer of personal information to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for citizenship and immigration verification. SSA released an after-the-fact Sys...

12/15/2025

Join Ari Waldman, the Chair of EPIC's board, in supporting EPIC this holiday season! epic.org/donate.

12/12/2025

President Trump's Executive Order attempting to stop states from regulating AI is "exactly the opposite of what our country needs right now," said EPIC Executive Director Alan Butler.

The EO does not contain any specific AI policy positions or identify any legal authority that would allow the Executive to preempt state laws.

EPIC believes that states will continue to play a key role in setting tech policy and charting a responsible path forward.

Last night, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing agencies and officials in his administration to develop a policy framework for artificial intelligence.

12/12/2025

EPIC joined a coalition letter calling on the House Financial Services Committee to oppose a bill that would establish “AI Innovation Labs,” permitting financial firms to experiment with artificial intelligence without the threat of liability for causing harm.

The Unleashing AI Innovation in Financial Services Act (H.R. 4801) would allow financial services companies to use AI systems without regulatory oversight or enforcement, putting consumers at risk of amplified discrimination, fraud, misinformation about financial services and products, financial loss, and more. The letter warns that, “H.R. 4801 would allow financial firms to profit by capturing most of the benefits of AI but force their customers and the economy to bear the burdens from the risks and the harms of AI deployment in the financial sector.”

The letter was led by Americans for Financial Reform and signed by 64 other consumer protection, civil rights, labor, and technology advocacy organizations.

EPIC joined a coalition letter led by Americans for Financial Reform calling on the House Financial Services Committee to oppose the Unleashing AI Innovation in Financial Services Act (H.R. 4801).

12/11/2025

This week, EPIC Senior Counsel Calli Schroeder joined a roundtable on "Securing the Path Forward: Safeguarding Veterans' Information in the Digital Age” with the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs - Democrats. Despite unrelenting demand for data from the AI industry, Schroeder emphasized the need to push back on misleading narratives of AI use and modernization when they compromise the security of veterans’ information.

“From a privacy-protective standpoint, I cannot think of any justification for using veterans’ data and selling it in datasets to AI companies. Yet we have seen proposals—such as those involving DOGE data practices—framing government-held information as having so much value that it should be sold to companies for model development. That absolutely cannot happen here,” said Schroeder.

EPIC is proud to inform conversations on stronger protections for veterans and regularly advocates for robust regulation of how private companies and governments store and use data. https://epic.org/issues/data-protection/

12/11/2025

Meta’s attempt to use a self-serving interpretation of Section 230 was called into question by Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court justices in part based on arguments from EPIC’s amicus brief in the case. Last Friday, the Court heard oral arguments on whether Meta should be able to escape a lawsuit alleging it designed its platforms to be addictive to minors. Two justices asked Meta’s attorney how Meta’s reading of Section 230 can be reconciled with the one presented in EPIC’s amicus brief.

EPIC’s brief, joined by partner organizations, presented arguments consistent with precedent, explaining how the Ninth Circuit, which hears the bulk of Section 230 cases, has limited Section 230 to liability that forces companies to either abandon content moderation, censor users, or stop hosting user-generated content—the so-called “grim choice” or “moderator’s dilemma.”

Meta’s attorney claimed that EPIC misunderstood Ninth Circuit precedent. The truth is the opposite. The Ninth Circuit has repeatedly rejected Meta’s sweeping theory that any action labeled a “publishing activity” is automatically immune.

From Roommates.com to HomeAway, Barnes, Lemmon, Calise, and other cases, the Ninth Circuit has articulated the same test: A claim “treats” a company as a publisher only if complying would require monitoring, editing, or removing user content because the company hosts or moderates that content.

Claims that do not impose that dilemma are not barred. That’s why imposing liability on Meta for addictive design would not force Meta to alter its content moderation at all. Meta could simply design safer products.

The Ninth Circuit and other courts have rightfully recognized that Meta’s desired Section 230 test would “create a lawless no-man’s-land on the Internet,” hurting users and society to boost the tech giants’ bottom line. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court should also reject Meta’s argument and let the Commonwealth’s case proceed.

https://epic.org/metas-attorney-said-we-were-wrong/

During the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s hearing last Friday on whether Meta should be able to escape a lawsuit alleging it designed its platforms to be addictive to minors, two justices asked Meta’s attorney how Meta’s reading of Section 230 can be reconciled with the one EPIC descri...

12/11/2025

EPIC does our work without corporate sponsors or government funding. In an era where tech power and government power are merging, our independence is more critical than ever. This also makes your donation of $100, $500, or $1,000 even more impactful. You can help EPIC’s dedicated team bring its expertise to lawmakers, regulators, judges, and the public, and continue the fight to hold individuals and institutions accountable. Donate now:

EPIC’s mission is to secure the fundamental right to privacy in the digital age for all people through advocacy, research, and litigation. We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit research and advocacy center. We have no clients, no customers, and no shareholders. We need your support.Please donate below, o...

12/10/2025

Technology may change, but your fundamental rights don't. This National Human Rights Day, we reaffirm that principles of privacy, dignity, and nondiscrimination remain in the face of new technology like AI. Without proper guardrails, emerging technologies pose a threat, and EPIC remains committed to securing these rights for all people in the digital age. To support EPIC in this goal, donate here: epic.org/donate

Image from Yutong Liu & Digit / https://betterimagesofai.org / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

12/09/2025

We asked our Surveillance Oversight team to share some of the things they’d like to see more of and some they’d like to leave behind in the upcoming year; that is, their “2026 Ins & Outs”!

EPIC’s Surveillance Oversight team advocates for increased oversight of surveillance systems and works to identify, disclose, and, when appropriate, curtail advanced surveillance technologies and the companies that produce them. Your support will help them carry on this work in 2026! Donate now: epic.org/donate.

12/08/2025

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Monday in Slaughter v. Trump, a case challenging the President’s attempted firing of Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter. https://epic.org/supreme-court-to-hear-arguments-in-case-that-could-decide-fate-of-independent-agencies/

The case has far-reaching implications for the ability of federal agencies to protect consumers from predatory data practices and other harmful conduct by large corporations. Follow live here: https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/live.aspx

Last month, EPIC and 39 other consumer protection, data privacy, and competition groups submitted a brief supporting Commissioner Slaughter’s reinstatement to the FTC and urging the Supreme Court to uphold nearly a century of precedent protecting independent agencies. https://epic.org/press-release-epic-joins-39-consumer-protection-and-privacy-groups-in-amicus-brief-challenging-trumps-attempted-firing-of-ftc-commissioner-rebecca-kelly-slaughter/

12/05/2025

We asked our AI & Human Rights team to share some of the things they’d like to see more of and some of the things they’d like to leave behind in the upcoming year; i.e. their “2026 Ins & Outs”!

EPIC’s AI & Human Rights team works to promote strong regulatory frameworks for artificial intelligence and automated decision making systems, focusing on the real-world human impacts and harms of those systems and prioritizing individual rights and protections. Your support will help them continue this work in 2026! Donate now: epic.org/donate.