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Bits of Freedom

We believe in an open and just society. One in which people can hold power accountable and effectively question the status quo. For two decades it has been our mission to shape internet policy in support of this vision. We do this through advocacy, campaigning and litigation, in the Netherlands and Brussels.

 

Our focus

The datafication of our societies comes with great risks. New technologies are far too often used to limit people's freedoms and their ability to shape their lives. We're surveilled by our governments. Big corporations abuse our vulnerabilities and manipulate our view of the world. The careless use of data leads to a codification, concealment and recurrence of discrimination.

Two rights play a key role in protecting us from these threats: privacy and the freedom of communication. They can also enable us to make full use of the internet's emancipatory potential. That's why Bits of Freedom fights to advance these rights.

Check out our latest annual report to learn more (2021.bitsoffreedom.nl)

Our organization

Over the past twenty years we've been effective because of our unique legal and technical expertise, and by creatively deploying a mix of research, advocacy, campaigning and legal action. We work in the Netherlands and Europe and collaborate where possible. As one of the founding members of European Digital Rights (EDRi), we support EDRi’s work in Brussels and contribute to the long-term strategy and resilience of our digital rights network.

We are a Dutch foundation ("stichting") with currently 11 employees, 700+ volunteers, a board and an advisory council.

Our team and board (in Dutch)

Programs

We work within the following four overlapping programs.

Dossier

Freedom of communication

Our current online communication ecosystem, characterized by a few overly-dominant platforms and closely interwoven with the tracking-based advertising industry, frustrates civil society’s ability to hold power accountable and put forward new ideas and bold alternatives.

Dossier

Data justice

The careless use of data and algorithms can reinforce inequality and compromise legal certainty. Strong regulation and oversight can protect people against these harms.

Dossier

Government surveillance

Government surveillance needs to be targeted, predictable and come with strong oversight and safeguards.

Dossier

Awareness and action

We work to strengthen people’s understanding of technology and civil society’s ability to respond to technological developments.

English blogposts

We irregularly translate our articles into English.The RSS feed for our English blogposts

DOSSIER: Freedom of communication

European Commission wants to eliminate online confidentiality

The Commission wants platforms and internet providers to do the impossible. With its proposal, it threatens to eliminate confidentiality online.

DOSSIER: Freedom of communicationDOSSIER: Government surveillance

Belgium wants to ban Signal – a harbinger of European policy to come

Last week, the Belgian government launched a proposal that would ban Signal. What’s going on?

Annual Report 2021: The main challenges to society are by definition (also) informational issues.

We are proud of what we achieved last year. But we are also worried. The mechanisms protecting our public interests against an overly powerful government and an overly powerful industry are rattling.

DOSSIER: Government surveillance

The secret services try again

Crises are easily used to legitimise sweeping powers.

DOSSIER: Government surveillance

Academics call for binding supervision of secret services

This scientific opinion also recommends binding powers for the supervisor of the secret services.

DOSSIER: Freedom of communication

Propaganda cannot be silenced with censorship, freedom of expression can

By order of all governments in the European Union, internet providers and platforms are blocking access to Russian state media. However, European governments would do better to stimulate the independent media in both Russia and Ukraine.

DOSSIER: Freedom of communication

The European Commission might put a stop to end-to-end encryption

The European Commission is working on a bill that requires platforms to monitor all your chats. This would undermine the essence of end-to-end encryption. What’s up with that?

DOSSIER: Freedom of communicationDOSSIER: Data justice

Belgian authority finds IAB Europe’s consent pop-ups incompatible with the GDPR

We dive into the Belgian Data Protection Authority’s decision regarding IAB’s “consent framework” and explain what it means for you.

DOSSIER: Data justice

The European Commission does not sufficiently understand the need for a better AI Act

The Dutch Senate shares the same concerns we’ve expressed about the AI Act and wrote to the European Commission about it. The response of the Commission is not exactly reassuring.

DOSSIER: Government surveillance

Unfriendly reminder: The secret services are still stealing our data

The secret services are unlawfully holding our data. This is not allowed by law and not by the oversight committee. The system fails to protect us.

DOSSIER: Big Brother AwardsDOSSIER: Awareness and action

Nani Jansen Reventlow receives the Felipe Rodriguez Award 2021

Nani Jansen Reventlow specializes in strategic litigation in which she engages intersectionally with human rights and social justice. As a seasoned human rights lawyer, she has won a number of landmark court cases in the area of freedom of expression.

DOSSIER: Freedom of communication

Big-tech’s lobby sets the rules about big-tech in Europe

The enormous lobbying power of these companies means that these companies are also particularly dominant in the creation of rules. Even if those rules are precisely intended to limit the power of those companies

DOSSIER: Freedom of communication

Tinkering with keys weakens encryption

Key management is an integral part of the whole of encryption.

DOSSIER: Data justice

Algorithms need managers, too

During my internship at Bits of Freedom, I researched the use of algorithms for detecting fake news. These are my most important findings.

DOSSIER: Government surveillance

Update on the Dutch “Dragnet-Act”: One step forward, two steps back?

The Amendment Act to the Dragnet-Act passed the Senate. The improvements therein do not go far enough, but they are in the right direction. The newly acquired safeguards must not be overturned.

Our finances

We strive for a diverse and sustainable mix of income sources in order to operate as independently as possible. In 2021 41% of our core income came from individual donors, 11% from corporate donors, and 46% from foundations. 2% was miscellaneous. Our total budget in 2021 was € 1,018,509.

In order to safeguard our independence, we do not accept money from governments and no single corporate donor may donate more than 10% of our continuity reserve. If you wish to contribute to our work, consider becoming a donor or leaving a gift in your will. Contact Nico VoskampSend Nico an e-mail. for more information.

We currently receive core funding from the following foundations:

  • Adessium Foundation - strives for a society where people live in harmony with each other and their environment.
  • Ford Foundation - commits itself to a just society.
  • Limelight Foundation - works for a strong and free information ecosystem.
  • Open Society Foundations (OSF) - work to build vibrant and inclusive democracies.
  • Stichting Internet Domeinregistratie Nederland (SIDN) - advocates a viable and carefree digital existence for all.
  • Democracy and Media Foundation - invests in independent critical media and a strong, ethical democratic state under the rule of law.

We receive project funding from Gieskes-Strijbis Foundation, Goeie Grutten and Reset. Funds that are interested in supporting our work can contact our director Evelyn AustinSend Evelyn an email.

A list of our current corporate donors can be found on our websiteThe list of companies that support us.. If you are considering becoming a corporate donor, please read our propositionOur proposition and get in touch with our Development & Partnerships coordinator Nico VoskampSend Nico an email.

Press

Want to get updates whenever Bits of Freedom has internationally relevant news?

Subscribe to our English press list.

 

Or contact our press officer

Call us at +31 20 261 8350 and choose option 2 to be connected to our press officer.

 

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Our privacy policy

Bits of Freedom defends freedom and privacy on the internet and, accordingly, operates a clear privacy policy, which applies to all its activities, websites and mailing lists, and no additional terms and conditions.

Privacy Statement

Bits of Freedom has created this privacy statement to explain which (personal) data it collects and processes, and for which purposes.
(Version: 13-12-2019 / previous versions)

Website usage statistics (cookies)

We use the open-source analytics platform MatomoWhat is Matomo? (formerly Piwik) to keep track of website usage. We do this by placing two analytical (first-party) cookies:

  • _pk_id: generates a unique number to distinguish one visitor from another. This cookie is stored on your computer for 14 days after your last visit to the website.
  • _pk_ref: registers what site a visitor visits our website from. This cookie is stored on your computer for 30 minutes after your last visit to the website.

We have taken the following privacy enhancing measures:

  1. We mask the last five hextets of the IPv6 addresses and the last two octets of the IPv4 addresses we collect from visitors (for example:: 2001:db8:7bb:: or 198.51.0.0).
  2. We store the collected data on our own servers that we host ourselves and are located in the Netherlands.
  3. Visitor logs (containing the data listed below) are stored for 32 days.
  4. Our websites will never feature third-party cookies or other trackers.
  5. We not only respect but encourage the use of Do Not Track headers and cookie-blockers.

Through Matomo and the abovementioned analytical cookies, we collect the following data:

  • The unique number linked to the pk_id cookie (see above).
  • Your IP address (masked).
  • Pages you visit (titles and URLs) on our website and the date and time the page was visited.
  • The URL where you clicked a link that sent you to our site (Referrer URL).
  • Links you click on our website that refer to external websites (Outlink).
  • Downloads from our website.
  • An estimation of your location: country, region, city (we don’t collect your exact geolocation).
  • Other data: screen resolution, your local time, website speed, browser language.
  • Browser user agent: which browser you use, your operating system, your device (desktop computer, smartphone, etc.).

We process this data insofar this is necessary for our legitimate interest to analyse the use and functioning of our website(s). Due to the privacy enhancing measures we take, the impact on your privacy is limited and we not ask for your consent.

Donations

When we receive donations, we process the personal data that you as a sponsor provide for the purpose of handling the one-time or regular donations to Bits of Freedom, and (optionally) assigning your @freedom.nl address. In case you have signed up for regular donations, we process your bank account number, name and email address, the donation amount, the starting date and the frequency. If you have indicated you would like us to send Bits of Freedom merchandise to you, we will process your address data for this purpose. We do not store your data any longer than is necessary to process the donation, (optionally) assign the @freedom.nl address, (optionally) send out the merchandise and meet the administrative requirements under Dutch law.

Regular donations / sponsorships

Regular donations / sponsorships are processed through (SEPA) direct debits. We allow our bank, Triodos Bank, to collect the amount of the donation. To this aim, we supply Triodos Bank with exactly the data it needs to collect the sums due.

One-time donations

Single donations are processed using Mollie’s payment module. Mollie needs to process personal data when handling the donations in this payment module. In this context, Mollie’s privacy policyMollie's Privacy Policy applies and Mollie acts as the controller. We recommend reading Mollie’s privacy policy before using their payment module.

Donations made in bitcoin
Any donations made in bitcoin are processed by Bitonic. Bitonic needs to process data when handling the donations in this payment module. In this context, Bitonic’s privacy policyBitonic's Privacy Policy applies and Bitonic acts as the controller. Bitonic, and most likely other third parties as well, will be able to link your donation with Bits of Freedom relatively easily. Due to the design and workings of bitcoin, your donation probably won’t be entirely anonymous.

Transferring the money yourself

You can also make a bank transfer directly to our account. If you choose to donate this way, the personal data necessary to transfer the money will be processed by your bank and ours (Triodos BankTriodos Bank).

The webshop

When you buy our merchandise through the webshop, we will set some cookies to keep track of your shopping cart. These can be the following:

  • woocommerce_cart_hash and woocommerce_items_in_cart: used to remember what is in your cart and whether something is added to it or removed. These cookies are stored on your computer for the duration of the session (so they will be removed when you restart the browser).
  • wp_woocommerce_session_: this has a code that allow us to connect your visit to stored cart in the database. This cookie is stored on your computer for two days after your last visit to the website.

You don't need an account to order with us (you have to fill in your details for each and every order). For each order we store the following information for a period of six weeks:

  • Your first and last name en your company name if you added one
  • The full shipping address
  • Your email address
  • Any notes that you have typed with your order
  • The products in your order, what you paid for them, and whether you used a discount code

We store the details of pending and failed orders for one week, and if you cancel you order, we will delete the information within a day.

Payment for order in the webshop are processed using Mollie’s payment module. Mollie needs to process personal data to do this. In this context, Mollie’s privacy policyMollie's Privacy Policy applies and Mollie acts as the controller. We recommend reading Mollie’s privacy policy before using their payment module.

Free email address (without tracking or advertising)

Sponsors donating €10 per month or more, if they are interested, are entitled to their own email address which if free of tracking or advertising. This service is provided by Soverin and comes with its own set of terms and conditions as well as a privacy statementSoverin's terms and privacy statement.

My Data Done Right

The following paragraphs apply only when you visit and use the tool My Data Done Right:

Your contact details

The contact details you provide when using My Data Done Right are temporarily stored in your browser on your device for the duration of generating your request(s). We don't store your contact details on our servers. If you choose to be reminded about your request by email and you provide your email address, then we store the following information on our servers in the Netherlands:

  • your email address;
  • the type of request you generated (e.g. access request);
  • the organisation you sent the request to; and
  • the date your request was generated.

We use this information to send you a reminder about your request by email. This information will be deleted after the last reminder mail has been sent.

Feedback form
When you fill in our feedback form we will not ask for any personal data (e.g. your contact details or name). The only data we collect is:

  • your answers to the questions (e.g. ‘Did you receive a response?’ Yes/No);
  • the type of request you generated (e.g. access request); and
  • the organisation you sent the request to.

We will aggregate this data and use the aggregated data to assess whether organisations respond properly to people’s requests and meet their legal obligations.

Mailing lists

No-one will be added to any of our mailing lists without us first obtaining their confirmation to finalize their subscription. Each email we send out to our subscribers contains a link through which it is possible to unsubscribe without further intervention. Bits of Freedom itself manages and updates its mailing lists and ensures the security of related software is kept up to date.

Responses to blogposts

Whenever readers post a response underneath one of the blogs on our website, it is stored along with the poster’s IP address and, if supplied, their email address and name. IP addresses are only stored to prevent spam. Only the WordPress users at Bits of Freedom (the permanent staff and a carefully selected set of volunteers) can view these IP addresses. This data is only stored as long as the response in question stays up on the website.

Forms, website visits, emails and customer relations management

If you fill out a (contact) form on our website or send us an email (@bof.nl), the related personal data will be stored and processed for as long as is necessary, depending on the purpose of the form or the contents of your email, for it to be answered or processed properly. In addition, we may store emails we receive if this is necessary for us to properly carry out our regular activities.

If you join a poll posted on our website, your IP address is only logged to prevent multiple votes from being cast from a single IP address. The IP addresses stored in this way are always deleted permanently as soon as the poll is closed.

When you visit our website(s), our servers have to process your IP address to show you the requested page. We do not store your IP address in a log file.

If, in the context of our work, you voluntarily give us your contact details with the aim of enabling us to reach you this way for instance by giving us your business card or by volunteering for Bits of Freedom we may store this data if this is necessary for us to properly carry out our regular activities, which include customer relations management.

For the purpose of managing the contact information of our contacts and partners, we use the open source system CiviCRMWhat is CiviCRM?. We only operate the software ourselves and run it on our own servers. Our contacts’ mail addresses and PGP keyrings may also be stored locally in the personal address books of Bits of Freedom employees. Of course, if requested, we can remove your contact information from our systems entirely.

Other activities

For all other activities organized by Bits of Freedom, such as the Big Brother Awards or other actions requiring the engagement of interested parties, Bits of Freedom collects as little personal data as possible. If Bits or Freedom collaborates with other organizations in campaigns, for example in a European context, it will insist on a clear privacy policy.

Disclosure to third parties

We will never pass on your personal data to third parties, with the exception of the cases explicitly mentioned in the contents of our privacy statement. The only two exceptions to the rule are:

  • If we have explicitly asked for your permission in advance, prior to passing on your personal data to third parties;
  • If we are legally required to do so, and only after we have tried our very best to prevent having to pass on your data on the basis of a legal obligation.

Your rights

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) you have, among other things, the right to access the personal data we collect about you and in some cases the right to amend it or have it deleted. In certain cases you can ask us to stop processing your data or request us to provide your data to you in a machine-readable format.

You can exercise your rights by sending an email or letter to us with your request; use the contact details listed below. To comply with your request, we might ask you to provide information to verify your identity.

You can find more information about your rights on https://gdprexplained.eu and (probably) on the website of your local data protection authority. You can file a complaint with your data protection authority if you feel we have abused your personal data.

Changes to this privacy policy

We might make changes to this privacy policy. If we change something important, we’ll announce that on our website. The previous versionsPrevious privacy policies of our privacy policy are archived and viewable online.

Our contact details

When processing personal data as described in this privacy statement, Stichting Bits of Freedom (Bof) acts as the controller, unless expressly stated otherwise. Have you just finished reading our entire privacy policy? Then you’re entitled to a free Bits of Freedom webcam cover! Send us an email at info@bitsoffreedom.nll with “Privacy statement, can I have a webcam cover” in the subject line. You will then receive a discount code to order the cover (for free) in our webshop.

Do you have any questions about this privacy policy or do you want to exercise one of your rights under the GDPR? Get in touch! By mail: Bits of Freedom, Prinseneiland 97hs, 1013LN Amsterdam. By e-mail: info[at]bof.nl. By phone: +31 20 261 8350.

No terms and conditions

Yes, that's right: no general conditions. We could write a long piece about the legal terms that you agree with when visiting our website. And that Dutch law applies to your visit to our website. But we do not believe you can agree to our terms, just by visiting our website. This requires more, for example, clicking on an 'I accept' button before visiting our site. But we do not want to ask this of you.

Nevertheless, some organisations we work with appreciate it if we summarize all information about Bits of Freedom in one place. Therefore, we have listed the most important information about Bits of Freedom here. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@bitsoffreedom.nllMail info@bitsoffreedom.nll.

The Bits of Freedom Foundation (Bof) is located at Prinseneiland 97hs, 1013 LN Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Bits of Freedom is registered in the trade register of the Dutch Chamber of Commerce under number 34121286. The VAT number is: NL808804169B01.

You can donate to Bits of Freedom by transferring money to Bits of Freedom's bank account: IBAN NL73TRIO0391107380. Donations online, via iDeal, PayPal and credit card, are processed by Mollie. You can also authorize Bits of Freedom to periodically withdraw a certain amount from your bank account and you can revoke that authorization at any time. You only need to send an email to info@bitsoffreedom.nllMail info@bitsoffreedom.nll. You only need to provide us with your name, address and account number, and we appreciate it if you would like to indicate why you want to terminate the authorization (but this is not required). Bits of Freedom has been designated a Public Benefit Organisation More about tax advantages aavailable to a Public Benefit Organisation by the Dutch Tax and Customs Administration.

We are great advocates of sharing knowledge and freedom of expression. We therefore offer the opportunity to respond to blogposts on our site. Please, read the internal rules for our blogThe internal rules for our blog.

Bits of Freedom strives for the information on its website to be correct. If you find an error, please let us know. You can reach us at info@bitsoffreedom.nllMail info@bitsoffreedom.nll.

The texts and the design of this website are published under an Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) Creative Commons LicenseAll you want to know about this Creative Commons license. If you want to use our brand or our corporate identity, or if you want to use the texts on our website under conditions other than those of the applicable Creative Commons license, please contact us at info@bitsoffreedom.nllMail info@bitsoffreedom.nll.