Over the past two decades, the use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) has grown from its original niche corporate environment to widespread adoption in the mass consumer market. During this time, VPNs have also become crucial tools for human rights defenders, journalists, whistleblowers, and communities
Football fans and revellers from across the globe have congregated in Canada, Mexico, and the United States to experience the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup. The event is marked by several firsts: three host nations, more participating teams, demand-based ticket pricing, and a sprawling ecosystem
Introduction The 2026 Men’s World Cup is marked by several firsts: a new format with 48 matches instead of 32; three host countries and sixteen cities; and a sprawling tech infrastructure that has been referred to as the “iPhone moment” for the most popular sport
The latest Ranking Digital Rights Index highlights ongoing gaps and vulnerabilities in how telecom giants around the world safeguard key human rights, despite mounting risks posed by AI, digital advertising, and government pressure. Ranking Digital Rights (RDR) today launched the 2026 RDR Index: Telco Giants
Ranking Digital Rights stands in solidarity with digital rights defenders affected by the cancellation of RightsCon 2026, which was scheduled to be hosted in Lusaka, Zambia. We unequivocally condemn the Zambian government’s unilateral decision to “postpone” the event at the eleventh hour. This move, which
Today, Ranking Digital Rights is renewing its mission as an independent initiative. Thirteen years into our efforts to hold the world’s technology giants accountable, we are doubling down on solidarity and standing up to confront a new wave of tech power, We’re proud to team
Imagine a social media service removing a journalist’s reporting on social protests at the behest of an authoritarian government. Or a platform allowing the rampant spread of disinformation from public authorities to suit their political narrative. Perhaps a telecommunication operator regularly providing user data from
**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE** April 28, 2025 Amsterdam, 28 April 2025 — Despite growing threats to users’ rights online and the explosion of generative AI, the world’s largest tech giants are still failing to create the guardrails needed to protect the rights of billions of
Photo by ev on Unsplash. In 2022, as part of our effort to expand corporate accountability in the Majority World under the auspices of the Greater Internet Freedom Consortium, we partnered with the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) to collaborate on a research project using
