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Peter Micek, Esq.

General Counsel

Peter Micek is General Counsel and UN Policy Manager at Access Now, based in New York City. Peter Micek leads the Legal arm, managing risk to global programming and operations, closely with the organization's Digital Security Helpline, Grants, and RightsCon teams. The Legal arm engages in strategic litigation and bolsters legal support for civic space online and civil society actors globally. As UN Policy Manager, Peter advances international norms and law on digital rights, including on privacy and spyware, censorship and internet shutdowns, and digital identity programs. Peter is also Lecturer at the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) on internet governance and public policy in the digital age, and sits on the Advisory Board of the Univ. of Oklahoma College of Law’s Center for International Business and Human Rights, and formerly the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Future of Cybersecurity. A lawyer by training, Peter completed a JD cum laude at the University of San Francisco School of Law, and in 2010 published "A Genealogy of Home Visits," critiquing surveillance of at-risk communities. As a law student, Peter defended independent journalists and engaged in Freedom of Information litigation at First Amendment Project. Peter studied political science and journalism at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. He is licensed by the state bars of California and New York, and has no cats.
United Nations Human Rights Concil

United Nations: protect rights in welfare systems’ tech overhaul

17 Oct 2019

Governments should pay attention to the call of the United Nations’ leading expert on poverty to fully integrate human rights protections into their efforts to digitize and automate welfare benefits and services.

Press Release
United Nations: protect rights in welfare systems’ tech overhaul
17 Oct 2019
United Nations: protect rights in welfare systems’ tech overhaul
Transparency reporting index main visual image

Going dark: companies today release fewer transparency reports, less data

9 Oct 2019

Our latest update to the Transparency Reporting Index shows that corporate transparency and accountability need a reboot.

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Going dark: companies today release fewer transparency reports, less data
9 Oct 2019
Going dark: companies today release fewer transparency reports, less data
encryption

Facebook must go ahead with its plans to encrypt all services, despite government demands

3 Oct 2019

Weakening encryption undermines our security. We urge Facebook to stand firm against government demands to backdoor products to the detriment of public safety and human rights.

Press Release
Facebook must go ahead with its plans to encrypt all services, despite government demands
3 Oct 2019
Facebook must go ahead with its plans to encrypt all services, despite government demands

You have one job: Access Now asks for (at least) one improvement from 24 companies on digital rights

3 Oct 2019

Access Now sent letters to each of the companies in the RDR Corporate Accountability Index, urging them to review their performance and provide a public response to the findings.

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You have one job: Access Now asks for (at least) one improvement from 24 companies on digital rights
3 Oct 2019
You have one job: Access Now asks for (at least) one improvement from 24 companies on digital rights
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Judges raise the gavel to #KeepItOn around the world

23 Sep 2019

From Zimbabwe to Kashmir to Pakistan and beyond, legal challenges to internet shutdowns are becoming more common — and so are the victories. 

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Judges raise the gavel to #KeepItOn around the world
23 Sep 2019
Judges raise the gavel to #KeepItOn around the world
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2019 Corporate Accountability Index shows how companies must improve to respect our rights

30 May 2019

Of the 24 companies Ranking Digital Rights evaluated this year for its Corporate Accountability Index, only seven scored above 50%, with Microsoft topping the list at 62%. Companies must do better to respect users’ rights.

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2019 Corporate Accountability Index shows how companies must improve to respect our rights
30 May 2019
2019 Corporate Accountability Index shows how companies must improve to respect our rights
UNHRC_Eric Bridiers|

Shutdowns, surveillance, and censorship: UPR reviews highlight threats to digital rights

20 May 2019

We joined our partners to document the human rights records of Egypt, Gambia, Iraq, and Italy.

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Shutdowns, surveillance, and censorship: UPR reviews highlight threats to digital rights
20 May 2019
Shutdowns, surveillance, and censorship: UPR reviews highlight threats to digital rights
NSO Group human rights

Time to update your WhatsApp (and your surveillance laws)

14 May 2019

Discovery of a vulnerability in WhatsApp that can be exploited via government-grade spyware underscores the need for more action to prevent use of these tools against human rights defenders and other innocent users.

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Time to update your WhatsApp (and your surveillance laws)
14 May 2019
Time to update your WhatsApp (and your surveillance laws)
UNHRC_Eric Bridiers

Informe del EPU: La brecha de género y las limitaciones a la libertad de expresión en Bolivia

8 May 2019

Bolivia es uno de los países que se está pasando por este proceso de revisión este año, y Access Now se unió a Fundación Internet Bolivia.org y Derechos Digitales, para informar sobre el estado de los derechos digitales en el país.

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Informe del EPU: La brecha de género y las limitaciones a la libertad de expresión en Bolivia
8 May 2019
Informe del EPU: La brecha de género y las limitaciones a la libertad de expresión en Bolivia
UNHRC_Eric Bridiers

UPR review: Gender divide and the limitations to freedom of expression in Bolivia

8 May 2019

Access Now joined Fundación Internet Bolivia and Derechos Digitales to report on the state of digital rights in the country.

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UPR review: Gender divide and the limitations to freedom of expression in Bolivia
8 May 2019
UPR review: Gender divide and the limitations to freedom of expression in Bolivia