March 13 2025 GM

The Digital Security School

Glitter Meetups What are Glitter Meetups Notes from Past Glitter Meetups Virtual Events Calendar Join the TCU Mattermost

• Date: Thursday, March 13
• Time: 9am EDT / 1pm UTC
• Facilitator: Mardiya
• Featured Guest: Sebastien
• Where: On TCU Mattermost "IF Square" Channel.
  • Don't have an account to the TCU Mattermost? you can request one following the directions here.

Join us on March 13 to hear from Sebastian, who will talk about the Digital Security School in Colombia. He will cover:

• Connectivity in hard-to-reach places
• Using technological tools to defend human rights
• The importance of teaching digital security

What is Glitter Meetup?

Glitter Meetup is the weekly town hall of the digital rights and Internet Freedom community at the IF Square on the TCU Mattermost, at 9am EDT / 2pm UTC. It is a text-based chat where digital rights defenders can share regional and project updates, expertise, ask questions, and connect with others from all over the world! Do you need an invite? Learn how to get one here.

Notes

What is the digital security school? what do you do, in what location do you implement this? How long has it run for?

• The Digital Security School is an initiative by Colnodo that aims to strengthen the digital security capabilities of social organizations, human rights defenders, journalists, and communities in Colombia. Its main objective is to empower these actors to protect their information, communications, and activities in the digital environment, in the face of growing cyber threats. Our activities cover a broad spectrum of actions, including training through workshops and courses on various aspects of digital security, personalized support for organizations and individuals facing security incidents, research and documentation of best practices, creation of educational resources, and advocacy on public policies related to digital security and human rights.
• The Digital Security School carries out its activities mainly in Colombia, with a special focus on regions where social organizations and human rights defenders face greater risks. We conduct workshops and training in various cities and rural areas of the country, and we also work virtually to reach individuals and organizations throughout the national territory.
• The Colnodo Digital Security School has been active for several years, more exactly since 2017, adapting and evolving with the digital landscape and the needs of the communities we serve. Colnodo, as an organization, has a long history of working with communities and the use of ICTs, and the digital security school is a fundamental part of that work.

How does an Organization, Human Right Defender or Journalist enroll? Do you reach out to them specifically, especially for when you work with people outside of the city?

• We are a civil society organization that offers virtual and on-site training. All workshops emphasize digital security. Direct communication with organizations, rural communities, and human rights defenders depends on project resources. Many organizations seek these workshops to strengthen their digital security. We don't currently have a specific project, but if you need one, please contact us at info@escueladeseguridaddigital.co.

Amazing! In some conversations, you mentioned that the team has to work in low connectivity areas, How do you navigate teaching security those areas? What does this look like? And what tools / resources do you use?

• Normally, in areas with low connectivity, communities lack the infrastructure to connect. However, from the Digital Security School, we believe that preparation and precaution are key. Learning spaces should be created for the use of digital security applications and tools. In addition, we have content that we produce directly at the School. You can find it at the following link: https://escueladeseguridaddigital.co/recursos/
• All the tools we provide in our workshops are with specific allies that develop open source software, such as Veracrypt, Tella, Kepass, etc.

Are these tools low bandwidth/ use lesser internet? Is this a plus to why you use them?

• The tools themselves only require installation, as they all work offline. There are very few applications that manage internet connection and from the school we continue evaluating each of these tools to reach people who have connectivity difficulties in their region.

Have any changes happened since you started the digital security school? If so what are they and how do you identify them? And if not what are some of the challenges you have faced?

• Over the years, the School has changed in various ways, from the applicability of the workshops, to the pedagogical methods, to the tools we use. Through the ESD program, we have trained more than 900 women and 1,359 human rights leaders.
• At times, the greatest challenge has been being able to be in places where violence and public order prevail, as the Colombian context is extremely difficult in some rural areas.

What type of violence happens that needs Human Rights Defenders to protect themselves? Especially using digital security techniques? What are the gaps that exists in the current support mechanisms if you know?

• So, to understand whether we've changed, of course we have. The work we've undertaken with everyone, the use of new tools, and the ability to reach hard-to-reach places has provided us with a gratifying experience in defending human and digital rights.
• In Colombia, we've been facing conflict for many years, whether due to illegal groups prevalent in rural areas. We apply various digital security techniques to protect the integrity of individuals and their information through encryption, the use of strong passwords, and the understanding that digital security encompasses everything.
• Some activists and journalists are also threatened in the field of free expression advocacy. Therefore, we also focus on providing tools to protect them.

Since we are the top of the hour Is there anything you would like the community to support you on? And How can they reach you?

• At the Digital Security School, we're always eager to learn about new perspectives and tools to implement in our territories. We're always attentive to emerging projects. If anyone would like to contact us, you can find us at https://colnodo.apc.org/ / https://escueladeseguridaddigital.co/ or write to us directly at info@escueladeseguridaddigital.co