We all use encryption every day when we go online It's also used by many journalists to protect the identity of their sources When lawmakers try to villainize encryption it really does a disservice to the public debate I think a lot of people think about encryption in terms of privacy but it's often the most useful when we talking about free speech The ability to speak freely to somebody without another party interfering Encrypted communications were key to the 2013 reporting of NSA surveillance The First Amendment or other rights like it guaranteed in other countries are really a safety valve for democracy when everything else breaks down this is how the public can still hold their governments accountable Increasingly, encryption is playing a huge role in upholding those free expression rights Using tools like secure drop, anyone can submit a story to a journalist and have their message encrypted. One of the major projects we work on is trying to teach and help journalists learn how to use encryption tools to better protect their sources There are many people inside the US Congress and other governments around the world who have no understanding about how important encryption is not just to our privacy, but to our security and our economy By banning encryption, we're forcing tech companies to insert back doors We're putting all of ourselves at risk We need to make sure that our governments understand that this is the case Encryption helps make the internet work. Everyone needs to help keep it strong. Learn more at mal.la/encrypt