Ashkan Soltani

Ashkan Soltani is an independent researcher and consultant specializing in privacy, security, and behavioral economics. His work focuses on the prevalence of online tracking and the exposure of practices designed to circumvent consumer privacy choices. He served as the Chief Technologist of the Federal Trade Commission in 2010 and 2011, where he was part of the FTC Division of Privacy and Identity Protection and played a key role in investigations involving major tech companies such as Google, Facebook, and Twitter. During his tenure, he contributed to the establishment of the FTC's Office of Technology Research and Investigation.

Soltani is highly recognized for his expertise in privacy and security issues. In 2014, he co-authored the Washington Post's Pulitzer Prize-winning NSA series, which also received a Loeb Award and Polk Award for National Security Reporting. He continues to collaborate with the Washington Post on their ongoing coverage of the NSA. Soltani's work extends to multiple media platforms; he was the primary technical consultant for the Wall Street Journal's "What They Know" series and has appeared as an expert on "60 Minutes" (CBS News) and National Public Radio. His insights are frequently sought after, and he has testified on privacy and security topics before the Senate Commerce and Judiciary Committees.

Based in Washington, DC, United States, Soltani is committed to helping stakeholders understand the technical aspects and capabilities of various commercial and government surveillance tools. His ongoing research and consultancy work make significant contributions to the discourse on privacy and security in the digital age.