Subject: Oppose H.R. 791 - Foreign Anti-Digital Piracy Act - Protect Internet Freedom
I am writing to urge you to oppose H.R. 791, the Foreign Anti-Digital Piracy Act (FADPA). While I understand the intention to combat foreign piracy, this legislation creates dangerous precedents that threaten internet freedom and due process rights for all Americans.
Many Americans rely on privacy tools like VPNs for legitimate purposes: secure remote work, safe banking while traveling, protection on public WiFi, and basic cybersecurity. Under FADPA, these legitimate privacy tools could be disrupted if VPN servers are caught in blocking orders, if providers are targeted for "helping circumvention," or through over-broad enforcement. Americans would face an impossible choice between digital security and legal uncertainty.
Key Concerns:
One-sided legal proceedings: The bill allows blocking orders based on hearings where foreign operators cannot realistically defend themselves, creating a system prone to default judgments and potential abuse.
Censorship infrastructure: FADPA transforms internet service providers into "copyright police," giving private actors dangerous control over internet access that could be expanded beyond its original scope.
Technical over-blocking: Website blocking is imprecise and can silence legitimate content, fragment internet access, and push users toward risky workarounds.
Ineffective solution: Since blocking is easily circumvented, failure to stop piracy may lead to calls for even broader censorship powers.
Repeating past mistakes: This legislation creates the same censorship infrastructure that was rejected in SOPA/PIPA, threatening innovation and free expression online.
I urge you to oppose FADPA and instead support targeted solutions that address piracy without compromising the fundamental openness and due process protections that make the internet a driver of innovation and free expression. The internet should remain free and open for all Americans.
Thank you for your consideration.
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