Low
Court ruling
Decided
New York · Oct 15, 2026
Southern District of New York denies government motion to dismiss lawsuit over Trump admin social media surveillance of noncitizens
A federal district court rejected the government’s arguments that immigration law bars the case and that the unions lack standing, allowing the lawsuit to proceed. The court found that the surveillance program causes concrete injuries…
Immigration and Nationality Act
Low
Lawsuit filed
Filed
Wisconsin · Oct 14, 2026
EFF and ACLU file petition to Wisconsin Supreme Court seeking warrant for ALPR database searches
The Electronic Frontier Foundation and the ACLU of Wisconsin have filed a petition with the Wisconsin Supreme Court asking the court to require a warrant for retrospective searches of Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) databases. The…
Low
Court ruling
Decided
United States (federal) · Oct 14, 2026
Court allows lawsuit against government surveillance program "Catch and Revoke" to proceed
A court issued a ruling permitting the EFF‑led lawsuit challenging the "Catch and Revoke" mass surveillance program to move forward. The program is alleged to use AI to suppress protected speech online. The decision is viewed as a win for…
Low
Court ruling
Dismissed
California · Oct 13, 2026
California trial court dismisses SIREN v. San Jose challenge to warrantless ALPR searches
A California trial court dismissed SIREN v. San Jose, a case brought by EFF and the ACLU challenging the city’s warrantless searches of automated license plate reader data. The court held that drivers have no reasonable expectation of…
California Constitution
Moderate
Court ruling
Decided
United States (federal) · Oct 13, 2026
Bernstein v. DOJ ruling holds encryption code is protected speech
The podcast notes that the 1995 case Bernstein v. Department of Justice held that code is speech protected by the First Amendment. This precedent underpins modern internet privacy and encryption. The case was brought by Dan Bernstein with…
CPPA · California Delete Act
Low
Lawsuit filed
Filed
United States (federal) · Oct 2, 2026
EPIC files amicus brief challenging Spirit Airlines' bankruptcy sale of employee data to Google
EPIC and Professor Seema Patel submitted an amicus brief in a bankruptcy case to contest Spirit Airlines' proposed $10 million sale of employee data to Google for AI training. The brief argues the sale lacks adequate privacy protections…
Low
Court ruling
Decided
New York · Oct 2, 2026
Federal judge rejects motion to dismiss social media surveillance lawsuit against Trump administration
A U.S. District Court in New York denied the government’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by three labor unions alleging viewpoint‑based social media surveillance of noncitizens. The case, filed in October 2025, targets the Departments…
Administrative Procedure Act
Low
Court ruling
In effect
United States (federal) · Oct 1, 2026
Court order forces Google to allow third‑party app stores on Play Store
A court order stemming from Epic Games v. Google requires Google to permit rival Android app stores to be listed in the Play Store and to let developers direct users to alternative payment and distribution options. The change expands user…
Low
Court ruling
In effect
Utah · Oct 1, 2026
Federal judge blocks Utah's anti-VPN age‑verification law (SB 73) with preliminary injunction
A U.S. federal judge issued a preliminary injunction halting enforcement of Utah's SB 73, which required adult websites to block VPN users or determine their physical location for age verification. The court found the statute imposes a…
Utah SB 73
Low
Court ruling
Decided
California · Sep 30, 2026
California Court of Appeals affirms dismissal of CEO's anti‑SLAPP suit against journalist
The California Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit filed by former Premise Data CEO Maury Blackman against journalist Jack Poulson, Substack, and AWS. The court ruled the suit was meritless under California’s…
California anti‑SLAPP statute
Low
Lawsuit filed
Filed
United States (federal) · Sep 23, 2026
Paramount urges SCOTUS to reject video privacy claim
Paramount filed a brief urging the Supreme Court to reject a video privacy claim under the video privacy law. The Electronic Privacy Information Center and other privacy advocates filed an amicus brief supporting the plaintiff, arguing the…
Video Privacy Act
Low
Lawsuit filed
Pending
United States (federal) · Sep 23, 2026
Paramount asks SCOTUS to reject video privacy lawsuit
Paramount has filed a brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reject a video privacy claim. The Electronic Privacy Information Center and other privacy advocates filed a friend‑of‑the‑court brief supporting Salazar, arguing the video…
video privacy law
Low
Lawsuit filed
Filed
United States (federal) · Sep 23, 2026
EPIC asks U.S. District Judge to declare DHS actions unlawful
EPIC has filed a request with U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis seeking a declaration that actions taken by the Department of Homeland Security are unlawful. The hearing is scheduled for Friday following the filing.
Department of Homeland Security
Moderate
Court ruling
Pending
United States (federal) · Sep 23, 2026
Supreme Court hears digital‑privacy case involving Paramount and targeted advertising
The Electronic Privacy Information Center argued before the Supreme Court that Paramount and other online‑video companies are not obligated to use targeted advertising systems and can adopt privacy‑protective techniques. The case could set…
Low
Appeal
Appealed
Pennsylvania · Sep 23, 2026
EPIC files amicus brief urging Third Circuit to uphold Pennsylvania’s Internet Sharing Ban on voter data
EPIC submitted an amicus brief in the Third Circuit case Voter Reference Foundation v. Schmidt, asking the court to maintain Pennsylvania’s rule that bars posting voter registration lists online. The brief describes the rule, called the…
Internet Sharing Ban
Low
Court ruling
Pending
United States (federal) · Sep 21, 2026
D.C. Circuit urged to vacate FAA drone restriction that criminalized recording immigration agents
EFF and co‑plaintiffs filed an amicus brief in Levine v. FAA asking the D.C. Circuit to void an FAA rule that barred drones from recording DHS immigration agents. The FAA rescinded the rule in April, but pilots could still be punished for…
Federal Aviation Administration
Moderate
Court ruling
Pending
United States (federal) · Sep 21, 2026
Supreme Court to decide VPPA consumer definition in Salazar v. Paramount Global
The Supreme Court will hear Salazar v. Paramount Global in the October 2026 term to resolve a circuit split on the definition of “consumer” under the Video Privacy Protection Act. The case arises from a class action alleging Paramount…
Video Privacy Protection Act
Low
Lawsuit filed
Filed
United States (federal) · Sep 18, 2026
EPIC sues Trump administration over State Citizenship Lists program
EPIC, together with Protect Democracy and CREW, filed a lawsuit on Sept. 1, 2026 challenging DHS, SSA, and the State Department’s plan to create and distribute State Citizenship Lists for voter eligibility. The suit argues the program is…
Low
Court ruling
Decided
United States (federal) · Sep 16, 2026
Ninth Circuit rejects expansive DMCA copyright claim over AI‑generated code
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the removal of copyright management information (CMI) from a newly created work does not itself violate DMCA Section 1202. The case involved OpenAI and Microsoft using GitHub code…
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Low
Court ruling
Decided
Arizona · Sep 16, 2026
Supreme Court ruling allows Arizona mail ballots to proceed as usual
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision permitting the continued use of mail ballots in Arizona, which are used by 75% of voters. The ruling was challenged by the League of Women Voters and EPIC, who argued it would give DHS broad…
