Ranking Digital Rights
Direct evaluation of major digital platforms and telecom companies on human rights performance — specifically freedom of expression, privacy, and transparency practices. Corporate accountability indices for platforms themselves.
- Type
- Independent Nonprofit Research Initiative / NGO
- Based in
- International (US origins; independent as of 2026)
- Focus region
- Global (evaluates worldwide platforms)
Notable projects
Corporate Accountability Index (ranks ~26 platforms/telecoms on 30+ indicators across disclosure of commitments, policies, and practices affecting expression and privacy); methodology development; global standards setting for ICT sector human rights.
The most systematic, comparable ranking of platforms on rights-respecting practices. Provides open methodology and data for advocates, investors, and policymakers. Recently became fully independent to enhance autonomy and community power.
- Investigation
- 1
- Platforms tracked
- 5
- Active since
- 2025
- Latest report
- Jan 2025
Topics covered
- Content Moderation1
- Platform Compliance & Governance1
Watchdog vs. platform
Publicly documented legal proceedings, access disputes, or other platform pushback. Allegations, findings, and outcomes are labelled separately and linked to their sources.
No sourced legal or practical dispute has been documented for RDR yet. Know of one?
Add a sourced caseResearchers
Current
- Afef AbrouguiResearch Fellow1
- Augusto Mathurin1
- Farah RasmiResearch Fellow1
- Jan RydzakDigital Transformation Lead1
- Jiwon SonContributing Researcher1
- Kyoungmi OhContributing Researcher1
- Leandro Ucciferri1
- Michael KowenContributing Researcher1
- Mila BajicResearch Fellow1
- Peter RadosavljevContributing Researcher1
- Samantha NdiwalanaRDR Research Lead1
- Sophia Crabbe-Field1
- Veszna WessenauerResearch Fellow1
Reports
Full database2025
1 report- Jan 2025TikTokX/TwitterMetaYouTubeLinkedInCross-platformOther
The 2025 RDR Index: Big Tech Edition
Seventh edition (first full evaluation since 2022): no company scored over 50%; TikTok debuted strongly while X showed RDR's largest-ever single-company decline after cutting its human rights team and transparency reporting.
Platform Compliance & GovernanceContent ModerationBy Samantha Ndiwalana, Jan Rydzak, Jie Zhang, Afef Abrougui, Farah Rasmi, Mila Bajic, Veszna Wessenauer, Jiwon Son, Kyoungmi Oh, Michael Kowen, Peter Radosavljev, Augusto Mathurin, Leandro Ucciferri, Sophia Crabbe-Field, Michael Connor, Jessica Dheere and Audrey Mocle