Wikipedia
Access Now (also known as AccessNow.org) is an international non-profit, human rights, public policy, and advocacy group dedicated to an open and free Internet.
Access Now has championed a number of digital rights issues since it was founded in 2009, with an emphasis on five major policy areas: Digital Security, Freedom of Expression, Privacy, Net Discrimination, and Business and Human Rights. The organization has campaigned against internet shutdowns, online censorship, international trade agreements, and government surveillance. Access Now has also supported Net Neutrality, mobile phone tracking, the use of encryption, and thoughtful cybersecurity laws and regulations. Access Now's campaigns target various stakeholders in support of its mission, including governments or technology companies. It also engages with telecommunications companies on a variety of issues, such as transparency reporting.
Access Now's Digital Security Helpline offers real-time, direct assistance and advice to activists, independent media and civil society organizations. The organization also runs the annual conference RightsCon, a multistakeholder event that features participants from civil society, tech companies, and users at risk. The conference was first held in Silicon Valley in 2011, followed by events in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2012), Silicon Valley (2014), Manila, Philippines (2015), and Silicon Valley (2016). The conference has alternated between Silicon Valley and a key city in the Global South. RightsCon 2017 will be held in Brussels, Belgium in 2017.
Access Now's former Advocacy Director, Katherine Maher, was named the Executive Director of Wikimedia in June 2016. The organization was a finalist for the European Union's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 2010.