The Blog Experiment | Technology Nonsense and Internet Tripe

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Sign Up To Keep Reading This post is for Reclaim The Net supporters. Gain access to the entire archive of features and supporters-only content. Help protect free speech, freedom from surveillance, and digital civil liberties. Join Already a supporter? Login here The post How the UK Government Surveilled Its Critics and Funded Plans for International Censorship of NATO Criticism appeared first on Reclaim The Net.How the UK Government Surveilled Its Critics and Funded Plans for International Censorship of NATO Criticism

Anika Collier Navaroli is a Senior Fellow at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University. Former President Donald Trump addressed media before a second day of testimony in a civil fraud trial at New York State Court on October 25, 2023. Lev Radin/Shutterstock Former President Donald Trump has been warned that his posts on Truth Social, the social media company run by Trump Media & Technology Group, could potentially incite violence or intimidate witnesses. After Trump did not heed judges’ warnings, they imposed gag orders, one of which was temporarily lifted this month, on First Amendment grounds. Trump is once again towing the line with his speech, much like the last election. This time, however, it’s not happening on Twitter, where I worked as a senior policy official. Rather, it’s playing out in the courtrooms where Trump faces nearly 100 criminal counts, in addition to a civil fraud trial. Given that nearly one in four Americans believe political violence may be justified to save democracy, this sentiment, along with Trump’s inciting speech, is a dangerous and potentially deadly combination. But there are lessons to be learned from the saga of Trump’s speech on Twitter that can help point us toward a better future.  First, Trump should not be given special treatment by courts. For years, Twitter was accused of giving Trump preferential treatment on its platform. When I came forward as a Twitter whistleblower, I confirmed these allegations for the first time. According to my testimony to Congress,…The Former President’s Free Speech Should No Longer Trump Democracy

Anupam Chander is Visiting Scholar at the Institute for Rebooting Social Media at Harvard University and Scott K. Ginsburg Professor of Law and Technology at Georgetown University. Donara Aghajani is a second-year law student at Georgetown Law. Alyanna Apacible (Georgetown Law, LLM ’23) is a privacy and technology lawyer currently working at an international non-profit. Shutterstock If the mantra of campaign managers is to go where the people are, one might expect politicians to go to TikTok, which reports more than 150 million active users per month in the United States. But our study of Congress found that less than one out of every ten members of Congress has a TikTok account from which they post content. Only 34 Representatives and 7 Senators have an official TikTok account. The data we collected can be viewed here. Why are most members of Congress avoiding TikTok? Congressional reticence to use TikTok likely arises out of its ownership by a company headquartered in Beijing, China. Many American politicians have accused TikTok of being a pawn of the Chinese Communist Party, though they have not backed up these accusations with recent evidence. (In 2019, TikTok did acknowledge the suspension of an account that criticized the Chinese government’s treatment of the Uyghur population, but TikTok claimed that the suspension was a mistake.) TikTok has admitted that certain data of TikTok users has been accessed by company employees from China (who were trying to track down how company information was released to reporters).  Given concerns that the app…Members of Congress Don’t Dance on TikTok

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, a proponent of centralized control, has finalized a controversial collaborative digital partnership with the European Union. This agreement exhibits full commitment to the introduction of a digital identity system in Canada and the government is pursuing it, in part, under the guise of fighting online “disinformation.” The Trudeau government’s announcement delineates the terms of the Canada-EU Digital Partnership, which aims not only to institute digital credentials for Canadians but also to bolster cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). The contentious partnership insists on a joint effort from Canada and the EU to bolster their respective bilateral and multilateral cooperation in forums like the G7 and the G20. “The Digital Partnership will allow Canada and the EU to have a stronger common voice in multilateral fora, where appropriate, and bring jointly developed solutions to international partners and advance our joint strategic priorities,” the announcement states. The G20, an influential conglomerate of the globe’s 19 major countries and the EU, has previously encouraged exploring the creation of “digital public infrastructure,” including potential digital identification systems and perhaps even a centralized digital currency. This “digital public infrastructure” phrase is the same buzzword being used by the likes of The Gates Foundation and the UN, when it comes to pushing digital ID and payment systems. Alarmingly for many Canadians that support the protection of civil liberties, Trudeau has demonstrated a seemingly…Trudeau Supports Partnership With EU For Digital ID Push, Suggests it Will Help Curb Online “Disinformation”

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Bill Gates, the World Economic Forum, and various “enlisted” UN agencies (and the EU not far behind) all in one place – what could go right? This time, the “joint undertaking” is the promotion of digital public infrastructure (DPI). Save the UN, which is supposed to be “the world organization,” all these other actors blatantly represent rich elites; but a lot of their focus with the DPI push is now on underdeveloped or developing countries of “the third world.” Related: Digital ID, Bill Gates vaccine record, and payments system combo to be trialed in Africa There are two schools of thought about why this is so: that these entities and individuals are genuine, selfless benefactors who want to share their good fortune by, say, “making the world a better place”; or, that they purposefully target countries where legislation and regulation makes it easier to carry out many types of social, economic, etc. experiments than would be the case “at home.” That’s for observers to analyze, as DPI promoters emphatically claim only the best intentions. Like, for example, the Gates Foundation working to “expand Nigeria’s economic growth opportunities” via DPI. The ongoing experiment in this case is development and implementation of digital IDs and digital payments by the end of the decade, in as many places as possible, and that is the core intent behind the term “DPI,” which many see as simply a UN, EU,…Gates Foundation Doubles Down on Push For Digital ID and Payments in Nigeria

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. It has come to light that Moderna, a leading pharmaceutical company, just like it was revealed of Pfizer earlier this year, has been actively involved in monitoring and influencing vaccine-related narratives on social media and other platforms. This is being carried out through a collaboration with Public Good Projects (PGP), a non-profit organization funded by the drug industry, as well as former law enforcement and public health officials. PGP is intricately linked with social media platforms, government bodies, and news sites to identify and counteract the primary sources of vaccine hesitancy by rapidly targeting and neutralizing misinformation. As reported by Jack Paulson for Lee Fang’s Substack, an email from Moderna reveals the engagement of around 45,000 healthcare professionals who receive guidance on addressing misinformation when it becomes widespread. Moderna’s initiative, aimed at controlling public discourse, especially targets narratives that could weaken COVID-19 policies, including lockdowns and mass vaccination drives. This effort provides insight into the ongoing debates over free speech that have been a point of contention for the past three years. Moderna’s surveillance spans a broad spectrum of media outlets, including unconventional ones like Steam and Medium. The company also employs Talkwalker, which leverages its “Blue Silk” AI technology to oversee vaccine discussions on over 150 million websites globally. This surveillance extends to scrutinizing conversations about competitor vaccines and hesitancy towards vaccination. The team overseeing this operation is led by Nikki Rutman, head…Moderna Is Caught Monitoring Online Speech

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Old sins, as they say, cast long shadows – and even though the pandemic was abandoned a year or so ago, the way it was handled, and the impact it has had and still has on people’s lives continues to haunt the authorities in those countries that are considered to be democratic. One of those who refuses to let the often shocking behavior against critics go, is a former UK headmaster, Mike Fairclough, who has decided to pursue legal action. Announcing the proceedings that are to unfold before the Employment Tribunal, Fairclough explains that his opposition to lockdowns, vaccinating children and forcing them to wear masks – and at the time, he stood alone among his 20,000+ headmaster peers in the UK – caused him countless problems. Because of his social media posts, Fairclough was even investigated by counter-terrorism agencies. And his employer launched numerous probes. In 2015, Fairclough’s innovative educational methods helped his school win the Times Educational Supplement Primary School of the Year award. But only a few years later, as the pandemic hit, he became to all effects a persecuted man – simply for using his legal right to express opinion, skeptical or otherwise, about the unprecedented restrictions, particularly those affecting young children. Today, some of Fairclough’s points are considered to be accurate, but in 2020 they caused him a world of trouble. And that was despite his moderate tone, and…Former UK Principal, Investigated Over COVID Social Media Posts, Takes His Employer to Tribunal

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Swiss startup Proton, known for its dedication to user privacy, has recently expanded its encrypted cloud storage service, Proton Drive, by releasing a macOS app. This launch signifies the app’s readiness for Mac users to enjoy privacy in all their cloud storage needs and ditch Big Tech. Contrasting sharply with Google Drive, OneDrive and iCloud, Proton Drive embeds end-to-end encryption in all aspects of data – including metadata – stored in its cloud service. This staunch privacy-centric feature ensures that not a single entity, Proton included, has access to the saved files. Besides, Proton Drive’s capability to bring files into sync between the Mac and the cloud, offer offline file access, and create additional room in local drives provides a robust and flexible solution for cloud storage needs. Another integral feature of Proton Drive lies in its on-demand syncing principle. According to this, files stored don’t occupy local computer space until summoned. Equally notable is the automatic syncing of files or folders dumped into the Proton Drive folder with the cloud-based Proton Drive. Any modifications undertaken on the local files or folders also reflect across all the gadgets linked to the same Proton account. Making it a seamless process, Proton Drive downloads files and folders for offline perusal and automatically syncs any changes once an internet connection reestablishes. Furthermore, the user-friendly web interface enables users to access and retrieve past versions of files effortlessly….Proton Drive Arrives on Mac

When Drake released For All The Dogs in October, it was clear that the multi-time Grammy winner was choosing “homies over hoes.” The album — a critical dud — was viewed by critics and fans alike as Drake’s mediocre attempt at courting the Andrew Tate alpha male crowd.Yet what came out of an album meant for “all the dogs” was a series of memes in which Drake was treated as the guy with the least amount of bark in him. For context, after the release of For All The Dogs, TikToks emerged making fun of Drake’s delivery on the song “IDGAF” featuring rapper Yeat. The jokes highlight the “overly excited” and “zesty” delivery of Drake’s line, “Money for fun.” Tweet may have been deleted Tweet may have been deleted The Yeat/Drake memes are not unusual. Drake’s entire internet persona is built around his perceived corniness — he’s emotional, he speaks about his feelings, and he morphs into a new ethnic identity every time he drops a new album. It’s kind of cringe, but it’s kind of the point. Drake’s ‘cornball charm’As a biracial, Jewish man from Toronto, Drake is a far cry from the stereotype of what rappers are supposed to be. In popular culture, rappers are supposed to be hard and tough, like your DMXs, Pusha T’s, and Biggie Smalls — they’re perceived as gang-affiliated dope boys. But Drake is just a soft and corny dude. He’s always been like that from the start (it’s no surprise he was…Is Drake really the master of his own memes?

Julie Inman Grant is Australia’s eSafety Commissioner. Shutterstock For decades, the tech industry argued that regulation of any sort would risk strangling innovation, and the best thing governments and regulators can do is stay out of the way.  While this might have sounded like a good idea at one point, the idea the online industry would and could regulate itself has proved – with hindsight – to be deeply flawed. It’s an ethos that has led to growing safety failures on multiple online fronts – most critically in the global battle to defeat the proliferation of online child sexual abuse material. Policymakers and regulators around the world are increasingly seeking to address this critical issue.   Two years ago, the Australian Parliament put in place tough new legislation that would task the online industry in Australia with drafting mandatory and enforceable codes. In keeping with Australia’s established co-regulatory approach to industry compliance, the codes would remove any doubt or perceived “grey areas“ around what the community expects of all online platforms when it comes to dealing with the worst-of-the-worst content on the internet. The codes would operate under Australia’s new Online Safety Act, cover eight major sectors of the online industry and have global implications for how some of the largest and wealthiest companies in human history tackle this issue. Most importantly, the new laws empowered eSafety to step in with compulsory standards if draft codes were not found to provide appropriate community safeguards.  Earlier this year, eSafety found that six…It’s Time We Set New Standards for How Tech Companies Tackle Online Child Abuse