ICYMI
Important news and analysis you don't want to miss. Articles from my timeline with >= 40 saves. Newsletter: https://refind.com/cloudthrasher?newsletter=true
Collection by Charles Baldwin
Fast Company
Done with Facebook and Twitter? Try building your own private social network
6 min · · As part of a Mozilla Foundation fellowship, internet artist Darius Kazemi created a guide for building small social networks. It may be a glimpse at the future of the web. · Shared by 88, including Jonathan Kogan, Bernhard Huessy, Rick Powell, Thomas Power, rudolph regter, Ines Bieler, Stephanie A Kowalski, Klaus Eck, Aimee Meifeu ✍️⚖️, Charles Baldwin, Yvette Dubel
The New York Times
Facial Recognition Tech Is Growing Stronger, Thanks to Your Face
7 min · · Large databases, built with images from social networks and dating services, contain millions of pictures of people’s faces. Some are shared worldwide. · Shared by 130, including Charles Baldwin, tektology, Martin Ford, Mike Butcher, Mathew Ingram, Craig Brown, PhD, Marsha Collier, Chris Messina, Javi Cantón @javicanton@mas.to, Michael Grupe, Dan Gillmor is at mastodon.social/@dangillmor, Yvette Dubel, Ouriel @Zengo, Cade Metz, Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯, Wesley Fryer, Ph.D. 🌎🎙🚀 wesfryer.com/after
The New York Times
The Great Race to Rule Streaming TV
20+ min · · In their rush to match Netflix, competitors like HBO, Hulu and Amazon are ordering a slew of content — ushering out the age of “prestige TV” and ushering in an age of anything goes. · Shared by 72, including mrbrown, Chad S. White, Charles Baldwin, Oscar MacDonald, Javi Cantón @javicanton@mas.to
VICE
Revealed: This Is Palantir’s Top-Secret User Manual for Cops
8 min · · Motherboard obtained a Palantir user manual through a public records request, and it gives unprecedented insight into how the company logs and tracks individuals. · Shared by 101, including Oleg Baskov, Clemens M. Schuster, David Nagel, Dominik Grolimund, Korben, Charles Baldwin, Florian Hanke 🍎, Luca Like, 𝚛𝚘𝚐𝚎𝚛, Thomas Pleil, Charlie O'Keefe @charlieok@hachyderm.io, jean marc manach @manhack@social.tcit.fr
BuzzFeed News
A Secret Recording Reveals How Russia Tried To Funnel Millions To Matteo Salvini's Lega Party
18+ min · · A close aide to Italy's deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini held covert talks to pump Russian oil money to his far-right party. BuzzFeed News has the tape. · Shared by 73, including Rico Grimm, Tibor Martini 🇺🇦 @tibor@mastodon.social, Mathew Ingram, Thomas Pleil, Alberto Nardelli, Luca Like, CORRECTIV, Florian Hanke 🍎, Mark Little, Charles Baldwin, Dan Gillmor is at mastodon.social/@dangillmor, Matthias Lampe, Till Quack
The New York Times
The Gold Rush for Private Health Data
5 min · · Data as personal property that you can choose to sell is a tempting but bad idea. · Shared by 68, including Aimee Meifeu ✍️⚖️, Charles Baldwin, Chris Messina, Javi Cantón @javicanton@mas.to, Thomas Power, Bjorn Larsen, Bernhard Huessy, Mathew Ingram, Vishal Gulati (I back scientists)
telegra.ph
Why WhatsApp Will Never Be Secure
6 min · · The world seems to be shocked by the news that WhatsApp turned any phone into spyware. Everything on your phone, including photos, emails and texts was accessible by attackers just because you had… · Shared by 113, including Peter Fenton, Dmitry Solovyev, osioke.eth, Thomas Power, Johannes Lenz, Yvette Dubel, Charles Baldwin, Paolo Sinelli, Josep M. Ganyet, Rick Powell, Rainer Luginbühl ☝, Ferit (at 🏠) 🌙, 瑞拿頭
The New York Times
In Stores, Secret Bluetooth Surveillance Tracks Your Every Move
7 min · · As you shop, “beacons” are watching you, using hidden technology in your phone. · Shared by 114, including Javi Cantón @javicanton@mas.to, Dan Gillmor is at mastodon.social/@dangillmor, Oliver Raduner, Aleksandra Wisniewska, Sam DeZerga, Jane, Luca Like, ɯoɔ ʇop pןɐʍuɐƃɐɹ uo ǝɯ puıɟ, Miguel, Trey Tweets Into the Void, Charles Baldwin, Carissa Véliz
9to5Google
Chrome to limit full ad blocking extensions to enterprise users
3 min · · In a response to negative feedback, Google shared that Chrome's current ad blocking capabilities for extensions will soon be restricted to enterprise users. · Shared by 137, including Jeff Atwood, Ste Davies, Aleyda Solis 🇺🇦, Mark Kaigwa, Wesley Fryer, Ph.D. 🌎🎙🚀 wesfryer.com/after, David Walsh, BrendanEich, jean marc manach @manhack@social.tcit.fr, Dan Gillmor is at mastodon.social/@dangillmor, Mathew Ingram, Marko Saric, Builtvisible, Sachin Rekhi, Cory Doctorow @pluralistic@mamot.fr, Arin Basu, Tony Haile, Yann “不停” Heurtaux ⏚ @shalf@mastodon.social, Sébastien Bonset, Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯
CNBC
Google uses Gmail to track a history of things you buy — and it's hard to delete
3 min · · Google collects the purchases you've made, including from other stores and places like Amazon, and saves them on a page called Purchases. · Shared by 127, including Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯, George M 🇪🇺, Yvette Dubel, Matt Cutts, Builtvisible, Charles Baldwin, Prof. Arun Kumar वाघचौरे, cbz, Grégoire Japiot 🌻, Kiki, Javi Cantón @javicanton@mas.to, Ralph Hutter, Kaspar Manz
NBC News
Millions of people uploaded photos to the Ever app. Then the company used them to develop facial recognition tools.
7 min · · “The app developers were not clear about their intentions," one Ever user said. "I believe it’s a huge invasion of privacy.” · Shared by 145, including Joan Lockwood, Azeem Azhar, Aimee Meifeu ✍️⚖️, Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯, Scott Williams, Oliver Raduner, mastodon.social/@renestalder, Cory Doctorow @pluralistic@mamot.fr, OM, Charles Baldwin, Yvette Dubel, ACLU, Bjorn Larsen, Florian Hanke 🍎, Tobias Kopka, Kashmir Hill, Michael Duergner, Tibor Martini 🇺🇦 @tibor@mastodon.social
MIT Technology Review
Once hailed as unhackable, blockchains are now getting hacked
Summary · 8 min · · Often advertised as a safe place to invest and speculate, blockchain-based cryptocurrency exchanges present a tantalizing opportunity to hackers. As an increasing number of mega-hacks are revealed, even the largest platforms such as Bitcoin and Coinbase acknowledge some risk. Companies specializing in thwarting sophisticated digital thieves propose solutions such as network kill switches and eliminating smart-contract bugs. Regardless, billions of dollars per year disappear into cyberspace, without a chance of recovery. This is a must-read article for anyone considering trading on a cryptocurrency platform. · Shared by 288, including Martin Rajcan, Thomas Telandro, Chris Gledhill, Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯, Mariella Petrigni 🌍 Translator, getAbstract, Oliver Reichenstein, 📁𝐦𝐫𝐯𝐧, Dr. Marigo Raftopoulos, 🇺🇦Evan Kirstel #B2B #TechFluencer, Matthias «Delay» Göbel, Nils Hitze, Khoi Vinh, Ralph Hutter, Ernie Smith is also @ernie@writing.exchange, Thomas Power, Florian Graillot, Damien de France 🌍 🕊️🇺🇦, fernand0, Ian M Calvert
MIT Technology Review
Soon, satellites will be able to watch you everywhere all the time
8 min · · Can privacy survive? · Shared by 92, including Vikram Dutt, Ward Plunet, Marc R Gagné MAPP, Aimee Meifeu ✍️⚖️, Claudia Sommer, Jeremiah Owyang, Charles Baldwin, rudolph regter, Tom Connor, Esther Schindler, Javi Cantón @javicanton@mas.to, Adrian Bührer, Mathew Ingram, René Clausen Nielsen, Stephan Woodtli, Tauno
WIRED
I Opted Out of Facial Recognition at the Airport—It Wasn't Easy
4 min · · Opinion: We've been assured that facial recognition technology is secure, reliable, and accurate. That's far from certain. · Shared by 82, including Ralph Hutter, Yvette Dubel, #MuskOut (not parody), Bjorn Larsen, Mathew Ingram, Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯, Gerd Leonhard, Jose Luis Calvo, Aimee Meifeu ✍️⚖️, Charles Baldwin, Dan Gillmor is at mastodon.social/@dangillmor, Backchannel, Cory Doctorow @pluralistic@mamot.fr
The Verge
Facebook’s image outage reveals how the company’s AI tags your photos
2 min · · ‘Oh wow, the AI just tagged my profile picture as basic’ · Shared by 118, including Mark Kaigwa, Josep M. Ganyet, Mari Smith, hiten.eth, Florian Hanke 🍎, Real Python, Charles Baldwin, Builtvisible, Filippo Valsorda @filippo.abyssdomain.expert, Steven Sinofsky, Merkstatt@troet.cafe 📯, Ronald van Loon, Thomas Power, Matt Navarra, Mahantesh Biradar
PBS
Smartphones aren’t making millennials grow horns. Here’s how to spot a bad study
12+ min · · The “millennials are growing horns” study is flawed, and its journal has launched an internal review. Can you spot the study's six major problems? · Shared by 65, including Esther Schindler, Mark Kaigwa, Charles Baldwin, 📁𝐦𝐫𝐯𝐧, Fern