Excellent points by John Pane of @EFA in conversation with Raf Epstein this morning on ABC Melbourne concerning the #biometric #data that is captured during age assurance - and the #privacy dangers it presents.

Are you comfortable with social media companies or third parties they outsource to retaining biometric data such as images of your face?

John also covers the concept of #SurveillanceCapitalism (per Shoshana Zuboff) that underpins social media business models, and calls for greater duty of care to be placed upon those platforms.

We need privacy reform now.

https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/melbourne-mornings/is-social-media-stealing-your-face/105728920

Schlechte Nachrichten zu #Google Nr. 1: Die #EU zieht wegen #Trump den Schwanz ein und suspendiert das laufende Kartellverfahren gegen Google:
https://digitalrechte.de/news/trump-schutzschirm-wirkt-eu-kommission-suspendiert-kartellverfahren-gegen-google-und-schadet-damit-dem-fairen-wettbewerb-in-europa

Schlechte Nachrichten zu Google Nr. 2: Google wird nicht gezwungen werden, #Chrome oder #Android zu verkaufen: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/09/02/tech/google-antitrust-ruling-chrome-android

Ich geh dann mal demnächst wieder #BladeRunner schauen... 🤖☠️

#USA#BigTech#SurveillanceCapitalism

My thoughts on EU Chat Control

I just don't think we are ready for what's coming, most people will be caught off guard when the real consequences of losing our privacy come: democracy and other rights will be affected in the near future, and when people realize this it will be too late (the "I've got nothing to hide" crowd is what I am referring to).

Insane timeline that we live in, I don't see a future where we get to maintain end-to-end encrypted communications unless we develop some sort of peer to peer mesh network that no single entity has control over (that is very complicated to make).

Centralized messaging apps (Signal included) while they can be privacy respecting, they are not immune to censorship or government bans.

And privacy is important, it is a fundamental right that we all should have, and guess what, you know who's not allowing their messages to be read and unencrypted? The people making this law!, politicians and other government officials are excluded from the message scanning... They get privacy!!

To add insult to injury, because the network effect is too strong (as in people don't like changing apps) we will be stuck with unsafe unencrypted messaging, even if an alternative emerges that is decentralized and encrypted somehow.

For now I see no solution for the general population, of course actual end-to-end encrypted chats will not go away, but they will be probably be made illegal somehow, criminals will definitely not care about any of this, so the law is pointless, it just is an excuse for the increasing government overreach on the EU.

#surveillancecapitalism #surveillance #privacy#EU #chatcontrol

~ Cosipa

My thoughts on EU Chat Control

I just don't think we are ready for what's coming, most people will be caught off guard when the real consequences of losing our privacy come: democracy and other rights will be affected in the near future, and when people realize this it will be too late (the "I've got nothing to hide" crowd is what I am referring to).

Insane timeline that we live in, I don't see a future where we get to maintain end-to-end encrypted communications unless we develop some sort of peer to peer mesh network that no single entity has control over (that is very complicated to make).

Centralized messaging apps (Signal included) while they can be privacy respecting, they are not immune to censorship or government bans.

And privacy is important, it is a fundamental right that we all should have, and guess what, you know who's not allowing their messages to be read and unencrypted? The people making this law!, politicians and other government officials are excluded from the message scanning... They get privacy!!

To add insult to injury, because the network effect is too strong (as in people don't like changing apps) we will be stuck with unsafe unencrypted messaging, even if an alternative emerges that is decentralized and encrypted somehow.

For now I see no solution for the general population, of course actual end-to-end encrypted chats will not go away, but they will be probably be made illegal somehow, criminals will definitely not care about any of this, so the law is pointless, it just is an excuse for the increasing government overreach on the EU.

#surveillancecapitalism #surveillance #privacy#EU #chatcontrol

~ Cosipa

From an excellent article by @aral , incredibly dating back to 2014:

"If we want to live in a world where privacy is the default and where we enjoy civil liberties and human rights, we must stop supporting the companies at the heart of corporate surveillance."

This is all still painfully relevant to our time. I highly recommend everyone to read it: https://ar.al/notes/rightscon-or-a-right-con/

#Privacy#SurveillanceCapitalism#MassSurveillance

#SustainableFinance #surveillancecapitalism#überwachungskapitalismus

From an excellent article by @aral , incredibly dating back to 2014:

"If we want to live in a world where privacy is the default and where we enjoy civil liberties and human rights, we must stop supporting the companies at the heart of corporate surveillance."

This is all still painfully relevant to our time. I highly recommend everyone to read it: https://ar.al/notes/rightscon-or-a-right-con/

#Privacy#SurveillanceCapitalism#MassSurveillance

Who would have thought that anyone would think it is a good idea to ban regulation of AI and algorithmic content? This is a seriously bad idea.

I continue to believe that we should ban user profiling and the use of user profiles for advertising and content algorithms. Given where we are, I think that is the right thing to do and I think more and more are seeing that as the only way to solve the issues we have today.

#Vivaldi#AI#Regulation#SurveillanceCapitalism#Windows#Macos#Linux #software#Computers#Politics

https://www.theverge.com/news/666288/republican-ai-state-regulation-ban-10-years

In 30 dense minutes @pluralistic summarizes the causes our enshittified digital predicament and suggests some paths that could help escape the 21st Twillight Zone we got ourselves trapped in.

NB: ironically, the video has to be shared on the well known platforms, as there is basically no realistic alternative...

#enshittification
#surveillancecapitalism
#twilightzone

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ai-fC-2Bpo

In 30 dense minutes @pluralistic summarizes the causes our enshittified digital predicament and suggests some paths that could help escape the 21st Twillight Zone we got ourselves trapped in.

NB: ironically, the video has to be shared on the well known platforms, as there is basically no realistic alternative...

#enshittification
#surveillancecapitalism
#twilightzone

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ai-fC-2Bpo

"Hi, I am your gentle therapist. Please talk to 1,000's of corporations who want your data. Now tell me all your intimacies." 😍

#AI#SurveillanceCapitalism #privacy

Imagine a world where every private message, every photo you send to a loved one, every group chat, is scanned by government algorithms before it even reaches its destination. This isn’t a dystopian novel. 

It’s the future the EU is building with a proposal known as “Chat Control.”

https://hide.me/en/blog/chat-control-the-eu-is-about-to-read-every-message-you-send/

#SurveillanceCapitalism

Imagine a world where every private message, every photo you send to a loved one, every group chat, is scanned by government algorithms before it even reaches its destination. This isn’t a dystopian novel. 

It’s the future the EU is building with a proposal known as “Chat Control.”

https://hide.me/en/blog/chat-control-the-eu-is-about-to-read-every-message-you-send/

#SurveillanceCapitalism

Why does every algorithmic media feed seem like garbage? Because it IS garbage. It's not tailored to your preferences as the owners claim. It's tailored to theirs. Namely, profit and what leads to profit, keeping you addicted with outrage and the occasional dopamine hit. #SurveillanceCapitalism#Advertising#Tech#Dystopia

Why does every algorithmic media feed seem like garbage? Because it IS garbage. It's not tailored to your preferences as the owners claim. It's tailored to theirs. Namely, profit and what leads to profit, keeping you addicted with outrage and the occasional dopamine hit. #SurveillanceCapitalism#Advertising#Tech#Dystopia

I published a new piece:
How the Powerful Use Doubt to Avoid Accountability

Uncertainty isn’t always organic. It’s often engineered.

From Big Tobacco, Surveillance Capitalism to Genocide in Gaza, the tactic is the same: Sow fear, doubt & confusion to protect power and profit.

Read more 👇
🔗 https://mangotek.eu/posts/the-playbook-of-doubt/

🎧 Inspired after listening to HumaneTech_'s podcast with Naomi Oreskes 👇
https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/weaponizing-uncertainty-how-tech-is-recycling-big-tobaccos-playbook

#Disinformation#SurveillanceCapitalism#Palestine#StopGenocide

do you know who holds the root encryption key to your android device? when i asked TMobile, they told me to contact Samsung. when i contacted Samsung, they said to call TMobile. this is for the unrootable Samsung A21 they sold in US/CA with the Snapdragon chips.

imagine buying a laptop and Microsoft & Dell conspiring to block your root access & embed any software they want.

why is it then ok to do so with microcomputers used as phones?

no root is the root of #surveillanceCapitalism

@eff

do you know who holds the root encryption key to your android device? when i asked TMobile, they told me to contact Samsung. when i contacted Samsung, they said to call TMobile. this is for the unrootable Samsung A21 they sold in US/CA with the Snapdragon chips.

imagine buying a laptop and Microsoft & Dell conspiring to block your root access & embed any software they want.

why is it then ok to do so with microcomputers used as phones?

no root is the root of #surveillanceCapitalism

@eff