Freedom Not Fear takes centre stage at 39C3

Privacy advocates and digital rights campaigners are invited to participate in Freedom Not Fear, a grassroots initiative making its debut at the 39th Chaos Communication Congress. The event will feature community-led sessions exploring the intersection of privacy protection, digital freedoms and European Union policy. Attendees can visit the initiative's stand, propose workshops or deliver talks on these themes.

New framework guides rights-respecting AI development

The European Centre for Not-for-Profit Law, an EDRi member organisation, has partnered with SocietyInside to release Framework for meaningful engagement 2.0. Drawing on socio-technical principles and informed by practical pilots, the tool enables civil society and impacted communities to participate meaningfully throughout the entire AI development cycle, from initial conception through real-world deployment. Organisations can apply it to human rights impact assessments, risk evaluations and governance frameworks, helping prevent and address potential harms to fundamental rights.

How authoritarian regimes weaponise history for political gain

A recent session examined the manipulation of historical narratives as a mechanism for consolidating political power and rewriting shared memory. Historical researcher Chiara Torrisi traced how distortion techniques—from Nazi propaganda to contemporary Russian state messaging—have been adapted for today's digital information ecosystem. The presentation demonstrated how historical facts and archaeological evidence can be repurposed as instruments of political control in modern contexts.

Regulators weigh breaking up Google amid dominance concerns

European Union authorities are intensifying scrutiny of Google's market position, with discussions underway about potential structural remedies including company dissolution. A Follow The Money investigation documented how the search giant's business practices have reinforced its control over internet infrastructure. In a recent podcast episode, journalist Alexander Fanta and competition policy specialist Simon Van Dorpe analyse Google's strategies for maintaining dominance, the regulatory battles spanning more than a decade, and the broader implications for digital markets and consumer choice.

Source: EDRi (European Digital Rights)