ICYMI

Arizona – the Arizona Pirate Party hosted their first in-person rally yesterday at the Marana Aquatic and Recreation Center. Blase and new AZPP Young Pirates Rep Jane both gave speeches. You can look back at last night’s rally here.

Committees – IT committee met last Wednesday and discussed a move from or a bridge connecting to Discord, with the end goal to ultimately move away from Discord entirely. Work projects for new designs, merchandise and other Pirate related visual elements have been sent down to both Outreach and Press Committee as action items.

Massachusetts – the Massachusetts Pirate Party has been at work electing a new Pirate Council. Ballots were sent out on February 13th and were due back on the 27th.

Nevada – As of today (3/2), Hunter Rand has formally filed for his candidacy. Just out the Facebook post announcing it here.

#ProjectNoCap – Per Captain’s request, the next meeting the Pirate National Committee holds (on 3/8) will feature a discussion on formally endorsing Mr. Beat’s #ProjectNoCap. While not formally adopting to our platform (at least, not currently being considered at present moment), #ProjectNoCap would fall under the “Opening Up the Government” aspect of our platform. Come 3/9, the Pirate Party should have an idea of how committed we will be towards the project moving forward.

Volunteers – As if our search for volunteers is ever over. We’re seeking Pirates from all 50 states and six territories, but especially those from Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and West Virginia. If you don’t see your state, don’t think we don’t want or need you, too. In fact, not seeing your state might be even more reason to get involved. After all, Michigan and Colorado are newer additions, meaning folks come aboard all the time. See what sticks, see if this is right for you (it is).

uspirates.org/icymi-updates-fr…

In the age of rapid digital evolution, the world has increasingly come to resemble a global village, at our doorstep and just a click away. Digital technologies have reduced physical barriers, allowing people to work, study, and access services across borders with unprecedented ease.

But as digital systems become deeply embedded in everyday life, a fundamental question arises: Does digital convenience come at the cost of digital autonomy? As identity, authentication, and access move online, concerns about privacy, power, and institutional control are becoming central to the European digital debate.

In a progressively digital world, proving one’s identity online and across multiple geographic locations can be just as important as showing identification in person. From the European Union’s perspective, this is where eIDAS comes into play. The eIDAS Regulation, a set of European Union rules, has been updated to introduce a new concept: the EU Digital Identity Wallet.

It refers to the EU legal framework that regulates:

• Electronic identification (digital IDs)
• Electronic authentication (verifying identity online)
• Trust services (like digital signatures, seals, and certificates)

The framework was established under the eIDAS Regulation to ensure that digital identities and electronic transactions are secure and legally recognised across all European Union Member States.

In simple terms, eIDAS is the law that enables people and businesses in the EU to use digital identities and trust digital documents across borders.

A Brief Background: Timeline

• 2014: eIDAS 1.0 regulation – First time establishment of legal frameworks for the cross-border recognition of national eID schemes. The implementation was unsuccessful due to low adoption and limited private-sector integration.
• 2021: A proposal floated by the European Commission, amending the 2014 regulation, to introduce a “European Digital Identity” framework, based on personal digital wallets.
• 2022-2023: Pilot projects introduced in April 2023. The objective was to test the wallets’ ability to process eHealth payments, driving licenses, and educational credentials.
• 2023-2024: A political consensus was reached in November 2023, and the EU regulation 2024/1183 came into force on 20 May 2024.
• The exercise over all the above-mentioned years culminated in a decision that all Member States must provide their citizens with digital wallets by the end of 2026.

Why Digital Wallets Are Important: Policymakers’ Perspective

The EU’s Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030 aims to ensure that, by 2030, people across the Union can use a trusted, voluntary digital identity recognised everywhere in the EU and that gives users control over their personal data in online interactions.

If the timeline of eIDAS evolution is followed, the framework has experienced substantial change. eIDAS 1.0, introduced in 2014, focused primarily on the cross-border recognition of existing government-issued IDs. On the other hand, eIDAS 2.0 mandates that member states issue interoperable wallets that require verified attributes such as age, address, etc.

As proclaimed by the European Parliament, “The European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles” also emphasises that everyone has the right to safe, secure, and privacy-protective digital technologies and services. This includes access to a reliable digital identity that protects individuals from risks such as data breaches, identity fraud, and unlawful exploitation of personal details. It further stresses that people should have control over how their data is used and shared.

Overall, a harmonised digital identity framework is intended to reduce digital barriers across Member States, strengthen transparency, and empower citizens and residents to benefit from digital services while protecting their rights.

But the roadmap to the European digital future is not without hurdles and blind spots. Under eIDAS regulations, every member state must provide its citizens with at least one digital wallet that can be used seamlessly across Europe. To facilitate a hassle-free exchange of information among wallet issuers and service providers, the European Commission adopted a Common Union Toolbox in June 2021, comprising common standards, technical specifications, guidelines, and best practices. Despite such steps, certain technical, administrative, and infrastructural gaps have been identified.

Implementation and Structural Challenges

• Uneven digital readiness: Member States differ significantly in digital infrastructure. While some operate advanced electronic ID systems, others still rely heavily on traditional identification processes. This disparity may result in uneven rollout and effectiveness across the Union.
• Governance and power dynamics: Digital identity systems don’t just make services easier. They also change who holds power online. Depending on how they are managed, these systems can either give people more control or put more power in the hands of governments and big tech companies.
• Interoperability and technical complexity: For cross-border functionality, national systems must communicate securely and consistently. This requires common standards, certification mechanisms, rigorous testing, and long-term coordination.
• Public trust and adoption: Privacy safeguards alone are not enough. Citizens must be able to trust that the system will not enable surveillance, misuse, or cybersecurity vulnerabilities. Transparency and accountability will be central to adoption.
• Administrative alignment: Even though the EU sets the rules, each country is responsible for implementing them. Aligning laws, procedures, and technical systems across all countries is complicated and time-consuming.

Core Civil Society Concerns

While policymakers frame eIDAS 2.0 and the European Digital Identity Wallet as tools for integration and empowerment, civil rights parties and digital rights organisations have identified core civil society concerns that the eIDAS framework has failed to address. The European Pirates are among those digital rights advocates who argue that the risks to citizens require far greater scrutiny.

The European Pirates, along with Pirate members across the EU, have highlighted concerns that focus less on the idea of digital identity itself and more on how the system could operate in practice. Below is a list of the shortcomings of the eIDAS framework from the civil society’s perspective:

• Surveillance and loss of anonymity: The wallet could enable cross-sector linking of activities such as finance, health, and transport. Critics argue that insufficient safeguards for anonymous or pseudonymous use may normalise routine identification in everyday interactions.
• Over-identification and weak data minimisation: Users may be required to disclose more personal information than necessary, undermining the GDPR principle of data minimisation.
• Centralisation and power concentration: Even though the system is described as user-controlled, it could end up being run mostly by government-approved providers and big platforms, leading to power imbalances.
• Web security risks linked to Qualified Website Authentication Certificates (QWACs): Mandatory recognition of government-designated certificates may weaken existing browser trust models. Critics warn this could introduce vulnerabilities and potentially compromise encrypted communications.
• De facto mandatory use and exclusion: Even if legally voluntary, widespread institutional implementation by banks, employers, and public services could make the wallet practically unavoidable. Those without smartphones, digital literacy, or reliable access to technology may face exclusion.
• Function creep and systemic risk: There are concerns that the wallet’s scope could gradually expand beyond identification. At the same time, a widely adopted identity infrastructure could become a high-value target for cyberattacks, increasing systemic security risks.
• Oversight and accountability gaps: Civil society organisations call for stronger independent oversight, open technical standards, and systematic audits to ensure the system complies with fundamental rights.

Alternative Approach

Addressing the risks posed by the eIDAS regulation to civil rights and internet freedom is of paramount importance to convert a well-intended plan into an impactful policy. If the European Digital Identity Wallet is to align with and uphold the European values of freedom and democracy, several safeguards must be put in place.

In this context, the European Pirates, in close consultation with the member Pirate Parties, have put forth a few recommendations as a formal submission to the European Citizens’ Initiative, as measures to counter the normalisation of compulsory identification – a price to be a part of a digital society.

Here are the recommendations:

• Strictly voluntary participation: The use of any EU digital identity solution must remain optional and should never become a compulsory requirement for accessing services.
• Decentralised and privacy-respecting design: The system should avoid a centralised structure or a permanent universal identifier and instead be built on a privacy-friendly, distributed architecture.
• Mandatory use of Zero-Knowledge Proofs: Privacy-enhancing technologies such as Zero-Knowledge Proofs should be embedded as a required technical standard to enable verification of specific attributes without revealing unnecessary personal data.
• Transparent regulation of relying parties: Entities that depend on the wallet for verification should be subject to clear registration, accountability, and transparency rules to minimise misuse or overreach.
• No compulsory QWAC requirements: Browsers must retain the autonomy to evaluate and reject insecure certificates, without being forced to accept government-designated website authentication certificates.
• Technological neutrality and digital sovereignty: The framework should prevent dependency on a narrow set of dominant, particularly non-European, technology providers and support a diverse technological ecosystem.
• Safeguarding non-digital access: Traditional, offline alternatives must remain available to ensure that no individual is excluded from essential services due to digital barriers.

Closing Reflections

The EU Digital Identity Wallet represents a structural shift in how identity, access, and trust are managed in digital society. It reflects the European Union’s ambition to build an interoperable and secure digital ecosystem.

Yet the core question remains unresolved: will this infrastructure strengthen digital rights, or test their limits?

Digital convenience must not come at the cost of digital autonomy. A European Digital Identity framework worthy of its name must reinforce decentralisation, privacy-by-design, transparency, and democratic accountability.

The future of Europe’s digital space should not only be efficient and interoperable. It must remain fundamentally rights-based.

europeanpirates.eu/digital-con…

It weighs on our hearts that our government has decided to take action against the crews shipping oil. Just as we are against civil asset forfeiture, this too is an action that just steals from those sailors who are simply trying to make a living. With zero due process in international waters, Trump has directed our military to steal from those who do not align with his political stance.

This is not a dissent against our military brothers and sisters, who carried out the raids. They did so without harming the ships or the people, preforming at a level of excellence we have come to expect from them. Instead, this is a top down action that put both our military personnel and the merchant marine in harms way. They were not transporting illegal goods. They were transporting oil.

Those in the administration claim this is to stop tyranny while they are acting tyrannical. They claim this is for justice while holding no due process nor giving those arrested the right to representation. They claim the crews are breaking international law and are part of a shadow fleet, so does that mean the US is the end-all be-all of policing international trade?

We must not let this distract us from the real issues. We must push back again those who think they are above the law. No one is above the law and we all deserve justice with due process.

Image Source: Public Domain, Link.

masspirates.org/blog/2026/03/0…

March 1

Are you an Arizona resident? In the Tucson area? Interested in the Pirate Party?

If you answered “Yes” to any of those questions, then you will not want to miss tonight’s event.

The Arizona Pirate Party, headed by Captain Blase Henry, will be hosting their first in-person rally tonight at the Marana Aquatics Center from 2-4p. The event will be livestreamed for anyone interested in viewing but unable to attend in-person.

The schedule for the rally, according to a previous AZPP announcement, is as follows:

2:00 – Welcomes
2:15 – Rally/livestream begins, mingling, food/drink and activities
2:45 – Speech by AZ Captain Blase Henry
3:15 – Mingling
3:30 – Wrap Up
4:00 – Facilities close, rally ends

The link to the livestream can be found here.

If you’re interested in learning more about Blase Henry and the Arizona Pirate Party, check out his campaign or the Arizona website. We are looking forward to what we hope is the first of many state party rallies, and perhaps this inspires future and fellow state parties.

“Let’s hoist the colours and be there! For if Buying isn’t Ownership, then Piracy isn’t Theft!” – Blase Henry

uspirates.org/arizona-pirate-p…

Every Thursday of the week, Bastian’s Night is broadcast from 21:30 CET.

Bastian’s Night is a live talk show in German with lots of music, a weekly round-up of news from around the world, and a glimpse into the host’s crazy week in the pirate movement.

If you want to read more about @BastianBB: –> This way

piratesonair.net/bastians-nigh…

The following was shared by James O’Keefe, Captain of the Massachusetts Pirate Party. This was released in response to the “military operations” carried out by the United States. Instead of rereleasing our own, unique statement, we choose to endorse and republish the statement made by the Massachusetts Pirate Party, as we believe it covers everything we would have spoken about anyways. You can read the original article here.

Today, Trump and Israel initiated an illegal war on Iran. He claims it is the only way to ensure Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon. He hopes that it will result in the overthrow of the Iranian government and Israel, at least, has targeted the leaders of Iran. Trump is lying to us.

In 2003, in contravention of the UN charter, we illegally invaded Iraq. The Bush administration used similar claims of Iraq building weapons of mass destruction to justify the invasion. As today, overthrow of the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein was also an objective of the Bush administration. That invasion was opposed by billions world-wide and millions protested against it in the United States. The invasion and occupation resulted in the deaths of between 200,000 and a million Iraqis, at least 4,431 Americans and 318 more coalition deaths. The cost to the United States of just the war in Iraq was trillions of dollars in direct and future costs. We are still dealing with the consequences of the Iraq invasion and will for decades to come.

In the recent talks the US had with Iran, Iran agreed to limit its enrichment of uranium only to the levels needed for powering civilian nuclear power plants and allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to monitor their nuclear program. The talks could have gotten us back to the Obama-negotiated Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which Trump withdrew us from in 2018 and which the Biden administration did not restore. Trump now insists that Iran end their efforts to enrich uranium completely and illegally initiated this war.

As Pirates, we believe in individual autonomy and that principle applies to nations. Attacking another country or people that poses no direct threat cannot be allowed, whether it is Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, blowing up fishing boats in the Caribbean or Pacific ocean, seizing the leader of Venezuela or bombing Iran. We are not the world’s self-appointed police man nor do we have a right to overthrow governments, regardless of how undemocratic and authoritarian they are.

This war was the choice of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. Diplomacy was possible and they chose to throw it away. Long after they are gone from office, we will have to deal with the consequences of their choice.

It is up to us to stop this war through protest, civil disobedience and even pressuring Congress to defund this war. Here are some resources to start our journey on this struggle as well as the many other struggles for justice and human rights we face:

• Civil Disobedience Toolkit: A guide to civil disobedience by Amnesty International;
• ActUp Civil Disobedience Training;
• Greenpeace Introduction to Civil Disobedience On-line Trainings;
• A Guide to Effective Nonviolent Struggle(also here);
• Nonviolent Struggle: 50 Crucial Points (also here);
• Campaign Strategy Workbook (Other Training for Change tools).

Please add a comment below with suggestions for other resources or email us at info@masspirates.orgso we can update our list.

War hawks are not welcomed in this party.

uspirates.org/no-war-with-iran…

Today, Trump and Israel initiated an illegal war on Iran. He claims it is the only way to ensure Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon. He hopes that it will result in the overthrow of the Iranian government and Israel, at least, has targeted the leaders of Iran. Trump is lying to us.

In 2003, in contravention of the UN charter, we illegally invaded Iraq. The Bush administration used similar claims of Iraq building weapons of mass destruction to justify the invasion. As today, overthrow of the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein was also an objective of the Bush administration. That invasion was opposed by billions world-wide and millions protested against it in the United States. The invasion and occupation resulted in the deaths of between 200,000 and a million Iraqis, at least 4,431 Americans and 318 more coalition deaths. The cost to the United States of just the war in Iraq was trillions of dollars in direct and future costs. We are still dealing with the consequences of the Iraq invasion and will for decades to come.

In the recent talks the US had with Iran, Iran agreed to limit its enrichment of uranium only to the levels needed for powering civilian nuclear power plants and allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to monitor their nuclear program. The talks could have gotten us back to the Obama-negotiated Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which Trump withdrew us from in 2018 and which the Biden administration did not restore. Trump now insists that Iran end their efforts to enrich uranium completely and illegally initiated this war.

As Pirates, we believe in individual autonomy and that principle applies to nations. Attacking another country or people that poses no direct threat cannot be allowed, whether it is Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, blowing up fishing boats in the Caribbean or Pacific ocean, seizing the leader of Venezuela or bombing Iran. We are not the world’s self-appointed police man nor do we have a right to overthrow governments, regardless of how undemocratic and authoritarian they are.

This war was the choice of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. Diplomacy was possible and they chose to throw it away. Long after they are gone from office, we will have to deal with the consequences of their choice.

It is up to us to stop this war through protest, civil disobedience and even pressuring Congress to defund this war. Here are some resources to start our journey on this struggle as well as the many other struggles for justice and human rights we face:

• Civil Disobedience Toolkit: A guide to civil disobedience by Amnesty International;
• ActUp Civil Disobedience Training;
• Greenpeace Introduction to Civil Disobedience On-line Trainings;
• A Guide to Effective Nonviolent Struggle (also here);
• Nonviolent Struggle: 50 Crucial Points (also here);
• Campaign Strategy Workbook (Other Training for Change tools).

Please add a comment below with suggestions for other resources or email us at info@masspirates.org so we can update our list.

masspirates.org/blog/2026/02/2…

Dear Friend of Press Freedom,

Government lawyers are lying to courts to justify attacks on reporters covering immigration. Meanwhile, immigrant journalists like Ya’akub Vijandre remain locked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for exercising their rights. And corporate capitulators are looking to take over more news outlets to help the administration cover all of it up. Read on for more.

More news holdings for Paramount harms press freedom — and the bottom line

Netflix has reportedly declined to increase its bid for Warner Bros. Discovery after Warner deemed Paramount’s latest competing bid superior. That paves the way for Paramount, led by Donald Trump ally David Ellison, to take over Warner and its media holdings, including CNN and HBO.

We said in a statement that Paramount boss Ellison “will readily throw the First Amendment, CNN’s reporters, and HBO’s filmmakers under the bus if they stand in the way of expanding his corporate empire and fattening his pockets. But censorship is bad for business. ... Selling companies that depend on the First Amendment to a censorial White House puppet is not only morally wrong but harmful to their bottom line.”

• Read more

Order restricting Natanson search didn’t go far enough

Judge William Porter imposed significant restrictions on the government’s ability to search materials seized from Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson during the raid of her home last month. He also made clear his displeasure with prosecutors’ omission of any mention of the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 — which prohibits searches of reporters’ materials in most circumstances — from their warrant application.

Porter was right to treat the seizure as a prior restraint and to limit the government from fishing through the irrelevant data it seized to snoop on reporters. He is also right to reprimand prosecutor Gordon Kromberg and his team for failing to disclose the Privacy Protection Act.

But the order didn’t go far enough. Porter should have required all of Natanson’s materials seized pursuant to the deceptive warrant application to be returned to her. And he should not have credited the administration’s claims that any of the seized materials posed a national security threat without strict proof, because the administration has earned zero deference from the judiciary on claims of national security threats.

We also updated and resubmitted our attorney disciplinary complaint against Kromberg — which the Virginia Bar previously punted to the courts — in light of Porter’s ruling.

• Read our statement

Government lawyers: Don’t make up terrorist attacks

Speaking of attorney disciplinary complaints, our latest one is against Sean Skedzielewski, who defended the government in lawsuits to stop ICE abuses of protesters and journalists in Los Angeles and Chicago. In the Chicago case, he told the judge that “violent terrorist organizations” were attacking federal agents in “riots” and exposing their families to danger through “doxing.”

All of that is complete nonsense. It shouldn’t be a heavy lift to convince an attorney disciplinary office that it’s unethical for government lawyers to make up a terrorist attack on America’s third-largest city to justify the violent suppression of First Amendment rights. But considering the spinelessness of those offices these days, the complaint may prove to be a long shot.

• Read the complaint

Learn how to FOIA from the pros

FPF hosted a webinar this week to spotlight how journalists and transparency advocates use both local and federal public records requests to pry loose what the government would rather keep secret.

We spoke with Mukta Joshi, an investigative journalist for Mississippi Today and a fellow at The New York Times, whose reporting has uncovered abuse within the Mississippi jail system; Matt Scott, the executive director at the Atlanta Community Press Collective, who has used public records to report on the Atlanta Police Department’s “Cop City”; and Lauren Harper, our Daniel Ellsberg chair on government secrecy, who regularly advocates for improved transparency laws. FPF Senior Adviser Caitlin Vogus moderated the panel.

• Watch it here

Find us on YouTube and Instagram

In addition to the webinars we regularly host, we’ve also significantly increased our short-form video output in 2026, including weekly wrap-ups of press freedom news from our Executive Director Trevor Timm, and other topical clips. Follow us on Instagram for the latest videos.

• Watch more on YouTube

Are you subscribed to our other newsletters? Sign up for news on excessive government secrecy, and for digital security tips and advice at the link below.
Subscribe here

What we're reading

Nonprofit coalition asks courts to prevent coercive federal investigation tactics

The Intercept
FPF, The Intercept’s Press Freedom Defense Fund, and a coalition of nonprofit organizations filed an amicus brief urging a federal appellate court to reject retaliatory investigations like the Federal Trade Commission’s probe of Media Matters for America.

Privacy under pressure

404 Media
FPF’s Chief Security Programs Officer Harlo Holmes joined 404 Media’s podcast to talk about digital safety, privacy rights, and how they’re constantly evolving.

NY nonprofit news deserves fair funding in state budget

Reinvent Albany
Nonprofit news outlets in New York deserve the same support as their commercial counterparts. FPF and our partner organizations are calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to find equal funding for nonprofit news in the state budget.

Record 129 press members killed in 2025; Israel responsible for 2/3 of deaths

Committee to Protect Journalists
CPJ’s report also shows that drone killings of journalists spiked from two in 2023 to 39 in 2025 — with Israel responsible for 28 of the 39.

Journalists jailed by ICE are revealing the horrors of incarceration

Truthout
“Professional journalists and writers, who normally are severely restricted from entering into the U.S.’s carceral facilities, are now themselves experiencing the harsh realities that nearly 2.1 million incarcerated people are subjected to daily,” writes FPF contributor Jeremy Busby.

Trump administration moves to allow intelligence agencies easier access to law enforcement files

ProPublica
The same president who frequently accuses the CIA of conducting witch hunts is making it easier for the agency to spy on Americans.

youtube.com/embed/ZRfNaQsT8nM?…

freedom.press/issues/censorshi…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

New York, Feb. 26, 2026 — Netflix has reportedly declined to increase its bid for Warner Bros. Discovery after Warner deemed Paramount’s latest competing bid superior. That paves the way for Paramount, led by Donald Trump ally David Ellison, to take over Warner and its media holdings, including CNN and HBO.

The following can be attributed to Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) Chief of Advocacy Seth Stern:

“Ellison has already shown his cards. When the Trump administration unconstitutionally demanded editorial concessions from Ellison’s Skydance in exchange for government approval of its takeover of Paramount and CBS News, he obliged, even appointing a Trump loyalist as a so-called ’bias ombudsman.’ CBS has since repeatedly censored journalists or altered its coverage to please Trump and his allies. There is no reason to believe that this proven capitulator will behave any differently this time around — in fact, he’s already reportedly promised Trump ’sweeping changes’ at CNN, including firing people Trump dislikes.

“Ellison will readily throw the First Amendment, CNN’s reporters, and HBO’s filmmakers under the bus if they stand in the way of expanding his corporate empire and fattening his pockets. But censorship is bad for business. Warner executives and shareholders should recognize that selling companies that depend on the First Amendment to a censorial White House puppet is not only morally wrong but harmful to their bottom line. And lawmakers, state attorneys general, and anyone else in a position to intervene should make clear that they will not stand by as the Trump administration abuses its power to unconstitutionally extract content-based concessions from news companies.”

Please contact us if you’d like further comment.

freedom.press/issues/more-news…