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Natalia Krapiva, Esq.

Tech-Legal Counsel

Natalia works to prevent and mitigate legal risks to the Digital Security Helpline and its beneficiaries. She also leads Access Now’s efforts to strategically engage courts and legal processes to uphold digital rights.

Natalia is licensed by the state bar of New York (USA).

Prior to Access Now, Natalia worked as a prosecutor at Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office. While in law school, Natalia worked at the UC Berkeley Human Rights Center’s Investigations Lab, where she learned to use digital evidence for human rights documentation and accountability. As a law student, Natalia interned at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, Queens County District Attorney’s Office, and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Prior to law school, Natalia was a Legislative Analyst at Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and a Legal Assistant at Mobilization for Justice. She also interned at the New York State Attorney General’s Office and the New York State Department of Labor. Natalia holds two AA degrees in Communication and Education from Middlesex College, a BA in Political Science from Columbia University, and a JD from the UC Berkeley School of Law.

Natalia is a member of the American Bar Association and the New York State Academy of Trial Lawyers. She also leads the Digital Rights Litigators Network.

Natalia speaks English and Russian.

Kazakhstan internet

As conflict escalates, Azerbaijan’s internet shutdown puts lives further at risk

15 Oct 2020

The Azerbaijani government, along with internet and telecom service providers and other essential services, must immediately restore unrestricted access to the internet across all networks, including lifting any restrictions on the use of VPNs.

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As conflict escalates, Azerbaijan’s internet shutdown puts lives further at risk
15 Oct 2020
As conflict escalates, Azerbaijan’s internet shutdown puts lives further at risk
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Sandvine, Francisco Partners facing mounting pressure for accountability around censorship tools

23 Sep 2020

Access Now, CPJ, EFF, and digital security experts Ron Deibert and Christopher Parsons are calling on California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to look into the activities of Sandvine and its owners Francisco Partners for potential legal violations arising out of their contracts with Belarus.

Press Release
Sandvine, Francisco Partners facing mounting pressure for accountability around censorship tools
23 Sep 2020
Sandvine, Francisco Partners facing mounting pressure for accountability around censorship tools
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Censorship tech company Sandvine’s human rights “commitments” are too little too late

16 Sep 2020

Sandvine withdrawing its product support in Belarus after abuses have already occurred is a necessary but deeply insufficient gesture from a company whose investors have a long track record of failing to protect human rights.

Press Release
Censorship tech company Sandvine’s human rights “commitments” are too little too late
16 Sep 2020
Censorship tech company Sandvine’s human rights “commitments” are too little too late
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Francisco Partners-owned Sandvine profits from shutdowns and oppression in Belarus

3 Sep 2020

Sandvine, a Canadian company owned by U.S. private equity firm Francisco Partners, supplied DPI technology that was likely used to implement internet shutdowns in Belarus.

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Francisco Partners-owned Sandvine profits from shutdowns and oppression in Belarus
3 Sep 2020
Francisco Partners-owned Sandvine profits from shutdowns and oppression in Belarus

ECOWAS Togo court decision: Internet access is a right that requires protection of the law

14 Jul 2020

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court has issued a pivotal decision for the right of freedom of expression in Togo and other West African States.

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ECOWAS Togo court decision: Internet access is a right that requires protection of the law
14 Jul 2020
ECOWAS Togo court decision: Internet access is a right that requires protection of the law
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ECOWAS Court upholds digital rights, rules 2017 internet shutdowns in Togo illegal

25 Jun 2020

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice ruled that the September 2017 internet shutdown ordered by the Togolese government during protests is illegal and an affront to the applicants’ right to freedom of expression.

Press Release
ECOWAS Court upholds digital rights, rules 2017 internet shutdowns in Togo illegal
25 Jun 2020
ECOWAS Court upholds digital rights, rules 2017 internet shutdowns in Togo illegal

Court rules the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua were illegal

3 Jun 2020

A coalition of civil society groups working on freedom of expression issues in Southeast Asia has successfully sued the government for purposely shutting down the internet in Papua and West Papua during protests in 2019.

Press Release
Court rules the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua were illegal
3 Jun 2020
Court rules the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua were illegal
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Indonesians seek justice after internet shutdown

13 May 2020

Access Now filed a “friend of the court” brief in support of a legal case challenging the 2019 internet shutdowns in the Papua and West Papua provinces of Indonesia.

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Indonesians seek justice after internet shutdown
13 May 2020
Indonesians seek justice after internet shutdown
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Digital Security Helpline: our approach to content-related cases

12 May 2020

Critical voices from civil society are being censored. Here’s how the Digital Security Helpline addresses cases related to content governance.

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Digital Security Helpline: our approach to content-related cases
12 May 2020
Digital Security Helpline: our approach to content-related cases
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Ukraine: stronger digital rights protections mean a stronger democracy

13 Mar 2020

Our report examines four core challenges to human rights in Ukraine’s emerging democracy: connectivity, censorship, digital security, and privacy and data protection.

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Ukraine: stronger digital rights protections mean a stronger democracy
13 Mar 2020
Ukraine: stronger digital rights protections mean a stronger democracy