All sessions are 11 AM - 12 PM (EST), daily.

Name Description
The Past, Present, and Future of Crypto: Technical and Policy Challenges

Access to secure communications technologies is vital for people to enjoy their fundamental rights to access information, assemble, and speak their minds online. But the meaning of terms like “encryption” and “end-to-end” can get muddled as they are used across different policy debates, and a clear understanding of the technology is essential to assessing the consequences of different policy proposals for people’s human rights.

This session will provide participants with a baseline understanding of core technical concepts in the crypto policy debates, as well as an overview of the key free expression, privacy, and security issues on the table.

Name Description
Social Movements, Technology, and Encryption

Protests and social movements have swept the U.S. in 2020, with activists relying on both public and private communications tools to help them in organizing, coordinating, and getting their messages out.

This session will focus on how encrypted communications have helped to facilitate protests and amplify social change within the United States and around the world. It will also discuss some of the security tools that journalists and activists depend on to do their important work.

Name Description
Content Moderation in E2EE Systems: What Is Actually Possible?

Concerns about the ability of intermediaries to identify, report, and moderate problematic content in end-to-end encrypted systems are driving many of today’s crypto policy debates. Experts will explain some of the main proposed techniques for addressing issues such as disinformation and child sexual abuse material, such as traceability and client-side scanning, and will discuss the implications of these alternative technology architectures for privacy, security, and free expression.

Experts will also discuss technical alternatives to encryption backdoors that enable different approaches to content moderation, including message franking to enable user reporting.

Name Description
Crypto Worldwide: Perspectives on the Fight for Strong Encryption To Protect Free Expression and Privacy

Encryption has been at the center of policy debates across the globe, with many countries moving to inhibit or prohibit the use of end-to-end encryption through various legislative vehicles, including requirements that communications be traceable to their source.

This session will feature speakers working on encryption “hot spots” around the world, including members of the newly formed Global Encryption Coalition.  Participants will learn about the global trends in anti-encryption initiatives and the implications of restrictive national laws for the open, global Internet. 

Name Description
Lightning Talks: The Unexpected Beneficiaries of Secure Communications Technology

In a series of rapid-fire lightning talks, speakers from all walks of life - including art, ministry, agriculture, teaching, and more - will share their experiences and explain the importance of secure communications to their work and their lives.

Through the talks and a lively Q&A, participants will encounter vivid examples of how encryption supports freedom of expression and association.

Session descriptions and and speakers may be updated.