EFF executive director Cindy Cohn to step down by mid-2026

In short: Cindy Cohn, the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s executive director, says she will step down by mid-2026, and EFF has started a search for a new leader.

What happened

Cindy Cohn announced she plans to leave her role as Executive Director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, often called EFF, by mid-2026. EFF is a nonprofit that fights for digital rights, like online privacy and free speech.

Cohn has been with EFF for about 25 years, including roughly a decade as executive director. EFF and outside supporters highlighted her work on digital privacy and surveillance issues, along with past legal efforts, including the Bernstein v. Department of Justice case.

EFF has not named a successor. Its Board of Directors, chaired by Gigi Sohn, has hired the search firm Russell Reynolds Associates to run a formal process. People who want to ask about the job are directed to EFF@russellreynolds.com.

Cohn said she made the decision more than a year ago, which gives the organization time to plan a transition. She also plans to return to civil liberties work and to promote her upcoming memoir, Privacy’s Defender: My Thirty-Year Fight Against Digital Surveillance, which is scheduled for release in spring 2026 by MIT Press.

Why it matters

EFF is one of the best known groups pushing back on digital surveillance, which is when governments or companies track what people do online (like someone looking over your shoulder while you read and talk). A leadership change can affect what issues EFF prioritizes, how it argues in court, and how loudly it speaks out as public concern about government tech misuse grows.

Source: Arstechnica