By Enrique Piraces, Vice President, Human Rights Program I write to let you know that after much thought and consideration, I’m leaving my position as the vice president of the Benetech Human Rights Program. I’m excited for the next chapter in my career and eager to see the work that the Human Rights team will […]
As we start to grasp the scope and scale of unchecked surveillance, it is clear that having the know-how to protect personal information and privacy is no longer something that only human rights activists need. That’s why our Human Rights Program is working to increase use of end-to-end, open source encryption among journalists, citizen reporters, and activists, as well as broad awareness of the self-empowerment that open technology can generate. Team members of the Benetech Human Rights Program have just hosted a two-day workshop in New York City, where they introduced Martus, Benetech’s open technology for secure information management.
The Knight News Challenge is looking for ways to make the Internet open, equitable, and free, so Benetech’s Human Rights Program has submitted an idea for a secureApp Generator to benefit journalists, citizen reporters, activists, and other organizations or individuals who need reliable channels for secure mobile data collection and information exchange over the Internet. Check out and support the full concept on The Knight News Challenge website.
Because you care about what we do, we’ve been able to create good in the world. We do that through technology innovation that has exponential and global impact—and with your help we can do so much more. As we explore the next big ideas, we hope you will make a donation to drive social change through technology. Your philanthropic gift of any amount is an investment with high returns for social good and will directly impact real people around the world.
Earlier this month, on November 6th, jointly with Human Rights Watch and WITNESS, we celebrated Martus’ 10th Anniversary—ten years of secure human rights documentation by the Martus user community. The Martus story that has unfolded during that time is a tale of hard-won success and focused efforts to bridge human rights and technological innovation. As our panelists pointed out, technology offers great opportunities for the human rights movement but also creates enormous challenges. With more and more people participating in human rights documentation, it’s critical to get the tools and skills in their hands to do it safely, ethically and effectively.
