Tech Giants and Giant Slayers: The Case for Digital Sovereignty and the Digital Commons
The Open Rights Group report warns that the United Kingdom’s heavy reliance on a handful of foreign tech giants threatens its economic stability, national security, and democratic discourse. It defines digital sovereignty as the ability to control domestic digital infrastructure, data, and technology, and argues that the current dependency inflates costs, creates vendor lock‑in, and exposes the UK to extraterritorial surveillance laws. The paper proposes a strategic shift toward the Digital Commons—open‑source software, open standards, and open hardware—to rebuild domestic capability, lower expenses, and strengthen security. A roadmap of policy reforms, competition enforcement, and public‑code procurement underpins the recommendation.
After the LA Court Verdict, the UK Must Disrupt Surveillance Capitalism Business Models
A Los Angeles jury ruled that Meta and YouTube are liable for deliberately engineering addictive products and failing to protect users. The verdict marks the first U.S. judgment holding major social‑media platforms accountable for engagement‑driven design that fuels the attention...
CHILDREN’S WELLBEING AND SCHOOLS BILL: ORG ANALYSIS OF AMENDMENT 38 B
Amendment 38 b would create a new Article 8ZA giving the Secretary of State power to set age‑verification requirements for information society services and to amend any provision of UK data‑protection law for that purpose. The proposal would let the government mandate...
ICO Must Investigate Reform ‘Competition’ for Data Protection Breaches
Reform UK launched a competition offering a year’s energy bills to participants who disclose their past and intended voting preferences. The Open Rights Group argues the scheme breaches UK data protection law by collecting special category data without a clear...
Legal Opinion: The Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools in Asylum Cases
Open Rights Group released a legal opinion examining the UK Home Office’s use of generative AI tools—ACS and APS—in refugee status determinations. The opinion highlights that the tools produced inaccurate summaries in up to 9% of cases, lack transparent oversight,...
Palestine Action Ruling: Human Rights Organisations Call for Ofcom to Issue Guidance on Content Takedowns
A UK High Court has declared the government’s proscription of Palestine Action unlawful, prompting human‑rights groups to demand immediate guidance from Ofcom on how platforms should handle related content. The government’s appeal leaves uncertainty over whether online material supporting the...
Demand UK Digital Sovereignty
The Open Rights Group is urging the UK government to adopt a digital sovereignty strategy that reduces reliance on foreign tech giants such as Amazon, Microsoft, Google and Palantir. It argues that over‑dependence creates strategic fragility, citing the Trump‑ordered shutdown...
Online Harms: Millions Could Be Forced to Use Unregulated Age Verification
The UK government plans to embed Henry VIII powers in the Children Wellbeing and Schools Bill, enabling a rapid ban on social media for under‑16s via statutory instrument. Simultaneously, it will broaden mandatory age‑verification for social media, VPNs and AI chatbots,...