Online privacy

“We are on a mission to help residents overcome the digital divide,” says Rachel Williams, the first digital navigator for Washington County (ME) who brings essential digital skills to the community’s older population. The National Digital Equity Center (NDEC) is utilizing a Google.org grant through the National Digital Inclusion Alliance's (NDIA) National Digital Navigator Corps program for Rachel and the team of Digital Navigators to help residents in this remote part of the state become more connected to the digital world.

House Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie (R-KY-2) and Rep. John Joyce, M.D. (R-PA-13) announced the establishment of a comprehensive data privacy working group. The partisan working group welcomes input from a broad range of stakeholders. Stakeholders interested in engaging with the working group can reach out to PrivacyWorkingGroup@mail.house.gov for more information. The working group will also include:

Federal workers are on edge after the Trump administration spent its first days dismantling long-held protections for career staffers. There’s another safeguard that government employees worry the Trump administration will kneecap before it even gets off the ground: protecting them from online harassment.

Maine Connectivity Authority (MCA), the public agency leading the statewide expansion of broadband and digital equity in Maine, has opened a competitive grant program for Maine-based organizations. The program will enable greater opportunities for individuals and communities through access to digital skills, devices, internet safety education, and technical support. In the first phase of the Digital Opportunity Networks grant program application, MCA is accepting letters of intent from nonprofits, state agencies, local and Tribal governments and similar public entities.

I have the unique constitutional responsibility for the national security of the United States, the conduct of foreign policy, and other vital executive functions.  To fulfill those responsibilities, I intend to consult with my advisors, including the heads of relevant departments and agencies on the national security concerns posed by TikTok, and to pursue a resolution that protects national security while saving a platform used by 170 million Americans.

As Donald Trump became the 47th president of the United States, there was a jarring contrast hovering over the proceedings—between his populist style, embodied by his flurry of action to save TikTok, and the massive government apparatus of which he took control. The TikTok drama represents the crash of two powerful strains in American public life, a conflict that President Trump has a flair for capitalizing on and even encouraging.

On December 31, 2024, Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel released a note reflecting on the agency's work over the course of 2024. "The end of the year is always a time for reflection," Chairwoman Rosenworcel said. "That’s especially true for me in 2024 as my service at the Federal Communications Commission is coming to a close. It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve in this role and a special privilege to be the first woman confirmed to do so." The Chairwoman categorized her time at the FCC into five core values:

Apple agreed to pay $95 million in cash to resolve a class-action lawsuit that alleged the company obtained private communications and shared them with third parties without consent through Siri. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit alleged that Siri was activated unintentionally and went on to share confidential or private discussions overheard by the voice-driven virtual assistant with Apple.

Reps. Randy Weber (R-TX) and August Pfluger (R-TX) introduced the Securing Every Vector, Enhancing Networks (SEVEN) Act, a bill designed to strengthen America’s defenses against cyber threats targeting the Signaling System 7 (SS7) telecommunications protocol. The legislation aims to address these vulnerabilities by coordinating efforts across the government and creating a task force of cybersecurity experts to develop solutions.