The Nexus of Privacy

UPDATE: the amendment failed! Thanks everybody who boosted and called. @thenexusofprivacy@infosec.exchange.

.....

In the usual FISA last-minute drama, Republicans dropped an amendment in the middle of the night and are scheduling the vote almost immediately. The reports I'm seeing are that the final vote potentially in a couple of hours (2:15 am eastern). The amendment has a fake warrant requirement; The Brennan Center's analysis says it actually broadens the use of FISA for criminal cases. And it's for a five-year reauthorization, so it's very very bad. Hopefully D's will all oppose it (and hard-core R's like Massie are likely to as well) ... but you never know/

Staffers are working late too and it's possible that they're checking messages -- or at least getting a report on the number of calls. So if you're in the US (or a US citizen overseas) please call your representative ASAP and tell them to vote NO.

The easiest thing to do is to call the House switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for your Representative -- they're open all night. Or, you can dial your Rep/s office directly; or use @indivisibleteam@mastodon.social's phone tool at https://indivisible.org/actions/tell-representatives-no-to-ai-warrantless-mass-surveillance/

Here's a short script -- you can use it directly or customize it.

Hi, my name is [Your Name], and I’m a constituent from [Your City, State]. I am calling to as [Representative Name] to vote NO on FISA Section 702 reauthorization. The fake warrant requirements in the amendment that just dropped don't provide any additional protection, and a five-year reauthorization is unacceptable.

For more detials

• @SeanCasten@mastodon.social has a good thread on this at @SeanCasten@mastodon.social

• @waprivacy@pnw.zone has screenshots of the Brennan Center analysis at @waprivacy@pnw.zone

• Matt Wood of Free Press has a bit more detail at https://blacksky.community/profile/did:plc:x7y5txbq6jblkqh7tfhgs7m7/post/3mjo2bdvxrs25.

RE: @eff@mastodon.social

Really exciting news: Nicole Ozer is EFF's new Executive Director!

Acorn, a platform for growing and managing communities on decentralized infrastructure -- new from Blacksky!

https://blackskyweb.xyz/introducing-acorn-community-infrastructure-that-grows-with-you/

"It started, as most things do at Blacksky, with moderation."

There's so much to like about Blacksky that this aspect doesn't always get the attention it should, but think about it: how many other social networks have started with a focus on moderation, as opposed to initially ignoring it and then trying to play catch-up?

"Building out this system made clear how deeply embedded moderation is into every piece of infrastructure."

Again, compare-and-contrast with other social networks. And not just centralized social networks! How many fediverse platforms treat moderation as core functionality that's a first-class part of the infrastructure?

"As the community grew, its needs changed and our infrastructure grew to fit those needs. Community need guided every step."

There's a lot to learn here!

#blacksky #moderation #community

👀 From the Verge's interview with Connor Hayes, the head of Threads:

Threads still supports federation with other apps like Mastodon, but Hayes was clear that it’s not a top priority for the current roadmap. “It’s something that we’re supporting, it’s something that we’re maintaining, but it’s not the thing that we’re talking about that’s gonna help the app break out,” he said.

“As someone who has built a zillion consumer products, it’s just really hard to keep these divergent platforms and products consistent on the same protocol over time,” he explained. “There’s always going to be the trade-offs that these companies are thinking about of how much energy do I want to pour into compatibility with this ecosystem versus iterating on this thing I’m building and seeing what’s valuable.”

So wow, it's almost like Mark F---ing Zuckerberg was LYING when he talked about the importance of decentralization when Threads launched! Who, who could have predicted?

Although of course, they're Meta, they could well be lying again. So let's not get complacent here. Still, it's a good opportunity to take a moment to laugh at all the fediverse influencers who pointed to Threads adoption of ActivityPub as a huge victory for our cause -- and a key ingredient to fedi's success going forward. How'd that work out?

And let's also give credit where credit is due: @FediPact@cyberpunk.lol and everybody else who pushed back so strongly against Threads and made it clear that so many of us really don't want them here. They've got infinite resources, and If they were seeing value from the integration, they'd continue to push it. It sounds like they're not, at least for now. Good news!!!!

#FediPact #meta #threads

Here;s Digital Defense Fund’s Abortion Privacy Guide, created with the input of abortion workers, legal experts, digisec experts, and patients.

DDF's materials are always extremely high quality and this is no exception!

There's also a Canva version available with QR codes to download signal and instructions on how to erase your digital history.

#abortion #privacy

Mastodon and today's fediverse are unsafe by design and unsafe by default – and instance blocking is a blunt but powerful safety tool

Part 1 of "Golden opportunities for the fediverse – and whatever comes next"

https://privacy.thenexus.today/unsafe-by-design-and-unsafe-by-default/

Over the course of this multi-part series, I'll discuss Mastodon and the fediverse's long-standing problems with abuse and harassment; the strengths and weaknesses of current tools like instance blocking and blocklists; the approaches emerging tools like #TheBadSpace and #Fediseer take, along with potential problems; paths to improving the situation; and how the fediverse as a whole can seize the moment and build on the progress that's being made; . At the end I'll collect it all into a single post, with a revised introduction.

This first installment has three sections:

- Today's fediverse is unsafe by design and unsafe by default

- Instance-level federation choices are a blunt but powerful safety tool

- Instance-level federation decisions reflect norms, policies, and interpretations

#fediverse #mastodon