Here are the candidates for Open Rights Group’s board elections 2025. You can only vote in ORG’s board elections if you are a member. If you are a member, you should have received election papers in the post.

There are four candidates for three positions. Voting is by Single Transferable Vote.

Board nominees 2025

Ed Bridges

I am a civil liberties campaigner and peace activist based in South Wales, and would like to appeal for your support to join the ORG Board on the basis of three things:

Firstly, I have a track record of campaigning on issues around intrusive surveillance tech, having successfully taken South Wales Police to the Court of Appeal back in 2020 with Liberty, to challenge the use of facial recognition technology. I remain extremely concerned not just about policing over-reach using this particular technology, but also more generally, and would like to be more active in supporting ORG’s vital work on these issues in the future.

Secondly, I have recently completed five years as an elected council member of the Peace Pledge Union, the UK’s oldest secular pacifist organisation. My time as a trustee of the organisation was a really valuable one, in which I focussed my efforts on improving the PPU’s governance by leading things like a review of specific HR policies and helping to craft their new five-year strategy. I took pride in being a “do-er” in the role, getting involved in key activities to support their staff team where necessary.

Finally, in my day job I lead on policy and political engagement for an academic organisation, and have over 15 years’ experience lobbying elected politicians and engaging with broader civil society, which are skills I would be keen to offer to the ORG. Much of this work has been in the devolved nations (especially in Wales and Northern Ireland), as well as more recently with the UK Parliament.

I hope that this blend of civil liberties campaigning experience, contributions as a trustee in a similar organisation, and professional experience in the policy sphere mean I have something useful to offer ORG’s Board.

Melanie Dymond-Harper

I’m a current member of the ORG board, serving on the Finance, Risk and Compliance subcommittee, and I would very much welcome a second term in office.

My background is in cryptography and security, working in the field for over a quarter of a century. I’ve been a member of ORG from its earliest days. I’ve spent a lot of time explaining to people how cryptography works — or, in some cases, doesn’t work. I’ve read and written policy papers for a variety of audiences. I’d like to continue helping to support the talented ORG team in engaging with politicians, policy makers and the public, in raising awareness of the ongoing pressures on our digital rights, and in working to combat the overreaches of governments and technology firms alike.

I have a PhD in discrete mathematics and, in addition to my work with ORG, I was a member of the Advisory Board of the Oxford Centre for Doctoral Training in Cyber Security until its dissolution in 2023.

Stefan Magdalinski

I’m a serial entrepreneur – I’ve been building internet companies and non-profits, as a CEO, CTO and COO, across multiple sectors, in the UK, USA, Africa and Asia since the 90s. MyLinkedIn has more details.

My earliest digital rights campaigning was as part of the stand.org.uk (Internet Archive) campaign against the Blair government’s mandatory key escrow legislation in the late 90s.

I was one of the original founders of Open Rights Group back in 2005. I was heavily involved in the original booting up of the organization, but stepped back a few years later due to other commitments and some years spent working abroad. I’m now very excited at the opportunity to be involved again, supporting the great work that the Executive Director and the team continue to do.

My digital rights focus has always been the impact of technology and legislation on everyday users. I believe everyone has a right to freedom of expression, and freedom from surveillance and abuse, whether from the state, corporate interests, or bad actors.

My interests cover:

• Cybersecurity
• Tech-facilitated economic abuse
• Adtech and surveillance
• Election integrity
• Activists’ rights
• Online fraud
• Crypto and blockchain (specifically as a vector for fraud)
• AI-facilitated harms.

In recent years, I’ve been involved in securityalliance.org – a group of cybersecurity experts working to increase the safety of crypto for users, developers, and protocols

As a board member, I would like to:

• Use my years of leadership and industry experience to support the effective running of the organization.
• Help increase ORG activity at tech community and security industry events, with a goal of growing the grassroots membership.

That’s it! Vote for me!

Steven Murdoch

I have been a member of the Open Rights Group since its foundation in 2005 and am seeking reelection to its board to continue supporting the excellent work ORG has been doing and to ensure ORG is run responsibly and held accountable to its members.

I have been active in Internet privacy since 2004, particularly through my research on how to help people protect their privacy and bypass Internet censorship by using the Tor anonymous communications network. I set up one of the first Tor nodes in the UK and created the first version of Tor Browser in 2008. This software is now the predominant way that people access the Tor network. I also served as Chief Technology Officer for the OpenNet Initiative, conducting surveys of worldwide Internet censorship. I am now Professor of Security Engineering at University College London, where I am head of the Information Security Research Group and lead the Foundational Computer Science section.

I work with policymakers to inform and influence policy that supports privacy and online rights. I represented the Tor Project before the Joint House of Lords and Commons Committee on the Communications Data Bill, and served as a technical adviser to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee’s investigation into the Investigatory Powers Bill. I also work with the technology industry, and am a fellow of the British Computer Society (BCS) and the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET).

I have served on the board of Open Rights Group since 2022, and during this period, I have supported the organisation in navigating the changing funding environment while maintaining its focus on its members’ priorities. I also have experience in non-profit governance through serving as a trustee and member of the Council for Christ’s College, Cambridge. I am a member of the Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR).

Through this experience, I can bring to the board my expertise in technologies that protect privacy and freedom of speech online, as well as in how research can inform the development of effective technology law and policy.