Nonprofit EFF Calls on Tech Companies to Brace For Increased Surveillance Under Trump

The international nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation is calling on tech companies to brace for increased internet surveillance and censorship under president-elect Donald Trump’s administration.

The EFF pointed out comments by Trump and his advisors on internet restriction, net neutrality, and freedom of speech and the press. The nonprofit also noted Trump’s call for increased surveillance on specific communities, including Muslims. The president-elect has previously said he supports surveillance of mosques and that he “would certainly implement” a database for Muslims in the country.

In a full-page ad on Wired magazine, the EFF asked tech companies to take action to protect Americans from increased surveillance under Trump’s administration.

“Incoming President Donald Trump and many of his advisors have promised to ratchet up surveillance and censorship, while threatening the future of net neutrality, privacy and encryption,” the EFF said. “The Electronic Frontier Foundation is calling on technology companies to unite with us in defending Internet users. By working together, we can ensure that technology created to connect and uplift people worldwide is not conscripted into a tool of oppression.”

The nonprofit called on tech companies to delete unnecessary logs and user data, and to encrypt transactions, communication and activity. The EFF is also telling tech companies to reveal any government requests to monitor users or censor speech, and to fight for users’ rights in court and on Capitol Hill.

In another post, the EFF listed actions by Trump that suggest he will increase surveillance, for example, Trump’s feud with Apple over the company’s FBI battle. Earlier this year, the tech giant refused to unlock the iPhone’s of the one of the San Bernardino shooters. Trump the went after Apple calling people to boycott the company.

The EFF also criticized Trump’s pick for CIA director, Kansas congressman Mike Pompeo, who “has defended the country’s sweeping surveillance program and protested any narrow restraints placed on government surveillance,” said the nonprofit. Pompeo has also said NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden deserves a death sentence.

The organization also criticized Trump’s pick for U.S. Attorney General, Republican Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, who wrote an op-ed against the USA Freedom act.