EFDbackup: March 04

Showing posts with label March 04. Show all posts

Saturday, March 4, 2017

#Cyberculture agenda: “How cryptocurrency will cripple today’s governments…

How cryptocurrency will cripple today’s governments – and they won’t see it coming

Falkvinge on Infopolicy – Discussions on information policy and civil liberties by Rick Falkvinge

Cryptocurrency: Cryptocurrency will cripple governmental ability to collect taxes, and they won’t see it coming. When it’s already happened, expect major changes to take place in how society is organized on a large scale – but also expect governments to act in desperation to retain control.

As bitcoin launched in 2009, most early adopters saw its disruptive potential. While bitcoin has stalled for some time approaching a valid use of the term “stagnation”, cryptocurrency in a larger context is still just as disruptive. In 2011, I stated that bitcoin (cryptocurrency) will do to banks what e-mail did to the postal services. This is not just true, but it will be even more brutal to governments, and by extension, governmental services.

From ‘Boober’ to #DeleteUber, the 12 times Uber disgusted all of us

Mashable! by Kerry Flynn

Uber’s a game-changer for millions of people, providing full-time income (or at least some extra cash) for drivers worldwide, and a (generally) safe, quickly-accessed ride between two points for passengers.

You can help scientists discover new exoplanets in EVE Online

The Next Web by Már Másson Maack

Many of us dream of exploring space and the wonders hidden in the vastness of our galaxy. Entertainment based on space-travel can perhaps give us a glimpse of the experiences future generations might encounter when testing the limits of human discovery.

The automated, invisible revert-wars of Wikipedia’s bot ecosystem

Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

In Even good bots fight, a paper written by Oxford Internet Institute researchers and published in PLOS One, the authors survey the edits and reverts made by Wikipedia’s diverse community of bots, uncovering some curious corners where bots — rate-limited by Wikipedia’s rules for bots —

Vía Erkan’s Field Diary http://ift.tt/2mE0uQ6

Filed under: Uncategorized

#Europe agenda: “Should Germany ban AKP election campaign” while President Erdoğan bids up by claiming: “Germany ‘aids and harbours terror’..

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Debate: Should Germany ban AKP election campaign?

euro|topics

The city of Gaggenau in south-west Germany has cancelled an event at which the Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ was to appear, stressing that this was not a political decision against the campaign for Turkish constitutional reform but a decision based on security concerns. President Erdoğan plans to speak at a rally for his supporters in Cologne in March. This has triggered a debate about banning such appearances. Commentators are sceptical.

Erdogan says Germany ‘aids and harbours terror’

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH)

Ankara and Berlin locked in acrimony as Turkish president lashes out at Germany over cancellation of ministers’ rallies.

German Justice Minister pens letter to Bozdağ over meeting ban

German Justice Minister has penned a letter to Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ over Berlin’s decision to ban Turkish ministers from holding events in two German cities ahead of the April 16 constitutional referendum

Erdogan says Yucel was a PKK plant with German support
Deutsche Welle
In September, Yucel reported on social media trolls in the service of Turkey’s government’s, based in part on emails published by WikiLeaks and the domestic group known as Red Hack. The emails, already publicly available, apparently came from the inbox …
1ST LEAD State news: Erdogan calls arrested journalist Yucel ‘German agent’ By Linda Say and Can Merey, dpaEurope Online Magazine

Turkey’s Erdoğan ‘not welcome’ to campaign in Austria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is “not welcome” to hold campaign events in Austria ahead of the upcoming referendum that will decide whether the current parliamentary system should be shifted into an executive presidency, Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz said on Feb. 27

No one can prevent us from meeting with citizens, Turkish FM Çavuşoğlu tells Germany, Netherlands

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said that neither Germany nor the Netherlands can prevent the Turkish officials from meeting with citizens

Who is Martin Schulz?

BBC News | Europe | World Edition

Why Social Democrat leader Martin Schulz could oust Chancellor Angela Merkel from her post.

Debate: Sweden reintroduces military service

euro|topics

As of July the Swedish government will reintroduce compulsory military service, which had been abolished in 2010. The government justified the step pointing to heightened security risks in the Baltic and the lack of volunteers. All men and women born in or after 1999 must be available, and 4,000 of them will have to do military service each year. Some commentators approve of the move while others cast doubts on its effectiveness.

Dutch election: EU’s most unpredictable vote

EUobserver.com – Headline News

Polls suggest that four or five parties will be needed to form a majority after the 15 March vote. The shrunk size of the establishment parties means that smaller parties may play a role of kingmaker.

Fake News to Be of Major Concern in French Presidential Election Campaign

Global Voices Online by Graham Perra

“Fake News” via Pixabay – Public domain

The dissemination of fake news has been widely blamed for its impact on the 2016 US presidential election, and concerns that such disinformation will also play a role in this year’s French presidential election are being taken very seriously, by both media outlets and candidates’ campaign staff.

City of Paris deploys “anti-refugee boulders” to prevent camping while waiting for space at a humanitarian center

Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

The city of Paris has installed “anti-refugee boulders” beneath a highway overpass in Porte de La Chapelle in a bid to stop Syrian refugees from sleeping in the flyover’s shelter while they wait for space to open up at a nearby humanitarian relief center operated by Emmaus solidarité.

Gallery of London’s urban foxes

Boing Boing by Rob Beschizza

Shot here by Natalie Lowe sunbathing on the roof of its convertible, a fox relaxes before evening’s activities come due. Below, a fox pop takes a trip on the London Underground, as observed by Stephen Ebert. Check out the full gallery at Londonist. A common sight in London, foxes moved in after World War II and have become a symbol of the city. They’re mostly harmless, but the tabloids there love to run fox-ate-my-baby stories.

Podemos emerges from its conference united behind its leader Pablo Iglesias.

ORGANIZED RAGE

Tensions were very high on Friday, with Pablo Iglesias announcing that he would not only renounce the general secretary position if his team and thesis lost, but even his seat in the parliament. An “órdago” (a card move of the most famous Spanish card game Mus, like all-in in poker), to the membership, to make it clear that he would not only leave the party without full control of all its parts, but even abandon any public role in it.

Vía Erkan’s Field Diary http://ift.tt/2lHZfuj

Filed under: Uncategorized

Friday, March 4, 2016

Cyberculture agenda: Now not only Apple but major tech giants vs. FBI

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EFF and 46 Technology Experts Ask Court To Throw Out Unconstitutional Apple Order

EFF.org Updates by Karen Gullo

Forcing Apple to Write and Sign Code Undermining iPhone Security Violates First Amendment

Riverside, California—The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and 46 technology industry experts, including inventors of modern cryptography, told a federal court today that forcing Apple to write and sign computer code disabling crucial iPhone security features that protect millions of users violates the company’s free speech rights.

Silicon Valley companies file official support for Apple vs FBI

The Next Web by Lauren Hockenson

Over the heated battle between Apple and the FBI over the laws and ethics surrounding unlocking the phone of the San Bernadino shooter, many companies have publicly come out in support of Tim Cook and his company’s desire to keep privacy secure at the device level.

Tech Giants Agree: The FBI’s Case Against Apple Is a Joke

Wired Top Stories by Brian Barrett

Apple gets a little help from its frenemies. The post Tech Giants Agree: The FBI’s Case Against Apple Is a Joke appeared first on WIRED.

NSA Is Mysteriously Absent From FBI-Apple Fight

The Intercept by Jenna McLaughlin

The Federal Bureau of Investigation insisted that it was helpless.

The bureau told a judge in February that Apple has the “exclusive technical means” to try to unlock the contents of San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook’s iPhone — and that’s why it should be forced to do so.

Facebook and Twitter take firm stance alongside Apple in encryption debate

The Next Web by Lauren Hockenson

Yesterday, Google CEO Sundar Pichai sent out a lukewarm tweetstorm that tentatively expressed support for Apple CEO Tim Cook’s open letter against the government’s desire to provide a backdoor into iPhones in case of terrorist attacks.

Why Apple is on the side of National Security and not the FBI

Global Guerrillas by John Robb

The FBI wants access to the encrypted data on an iphone owned by one of the the San Bernardino terrorists. The FBI has already gotten access to the data this iphone uploaded to Apple’s cloud. However, the FBI thinks there is more data on the phone that wasn’t uploaded. Here’s a quick recap:

Apple, Americans, and Security vs. FBI

EFF.org Updates by Shahid Buttar

This week’s order by a federal magistrate judge requiring Apple to engineer new security flaws in its iPhone software operating system has prompted widespread and escalating controversy. Legitimate concerns about its implications have driven users around the country to raise their voices in defense of not only their privacy, but also the security of their online platforms threatened by the FBI’s demands.

Debate: The row between the FBI and Apple

euro|topics

Apple chief Tim Cook has refused to help the FBI disable the security features of an iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernadino attackers. In an open letter he said he would defy a court order to cooperate with the intelligence service. Is Apple right to insist that its mobile phones must not be broken into?

FBI Won’t Explain Its Bizarre New Way of Measuring Its Success Fighting Terror

The Intercept by Jenna McLaughlin

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has quietly developed a new way to measure its success in the war on terror: counting the number of terror threats it has “disrupted” in a year.

RIAA and Tech Giants Clash In Usenet Piracy Case

TorrentFreak

pirate-clash-fight Adult magazine publisher Perfect 10 has made a business out of suing online services for allegedly facilitating copyright infringement.

As Apple fights the FBI tooth and nail, Amazon drops Kindle encryption

Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

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Amazon’s Kindle devices run a custom version of Android that, until today, supported full-disk encryption. Now they don’t. (more…)

EFF to Support Apple in Encryption Battle

EFF.org Updates by Kurt Opsahl

We learned on Tuesday evening that a U.S. federal magistrate judge orderedApple to backdoor an iPhone that was used by one of the perpetrators of the San Bernardino shootings in December. Apple is fighting the order which would compromise the security of all its users around the world.

Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders Refuse to Choose Between Apple and the FBI

The Intercept by Jenna McLaughlin

Neither Hillary Clinton nor Bernie Sanders was willing to pick a side Thursday inthe heated battle between the FBI and Apple over the government’s demand that the company create new, less secure software to comply with a warrant.

The tech giant made headlines on Wednesday with its forceful response to a federal judge’s court order that it help the government break into an iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino killers, Syed Farook.

In FBI vs. Apple, New York Times editorial board sides with the tech resistance

Boing Boing by Xeni Jardin

Apple CEO Tim Cook at 2015 WWDC. REUTERS

“Apple is doing the right thing in challenging the federal court ruling requiring that it comply,” reads a New York Times editorial today on the battle of the backdoors brewing between the government and the iPhone’s maker.

Apple vs. the FBI

Slate Articles by Will Oremus

Apple is taking a stand. It’s a strong stand, and an inescapably political one. It’s standing up to the FBI, a federal district court judge, and, by extension, the United States government.

Eleven years and counting: EFF scores a major victory in its NSA mass surveillance suit

Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

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In 2005, a former AT&T engineer named Mark Klein walked into the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s offices and revealed that he had helped the phone company build a secret NSA surveillance outpost at the Folsom Street switching station, through which AT&T was helping the US government conduct mass, warrantless, domestic surveillance. (more…)

Twitter and publicness

Jon Worth

Danny Yadron in The Guardian today wrote a piece entitled “Why do normal people struggle with Twitter?” that, via a conversation with Mathieu, drove me to write this piece. For Yadron’s alludes to an issue that has not been afforded much attention during Twitter’s current woes – namely the very publicness of Twitter.

Why are some of the ugliest sites on the Web also the most popular?

The Next Web by Abhimanyu Ghoshal

If you’ve been on the Web in the past decade, you’ll likely have visited Reddit, Craigslist, Wikipedia, 4Chan, Hacker News, or The Drudge Report at some point. While these sites are all vastly different, they have two things in common: they’re all extremely popular among their audiences and they all look, well, terrible. Web technologies have come so far in the past few years and designers now have a vast array of tools and techniques at their disposal. Yet these sites feature unflattering layouts that have no connection to the modern design philosophies seen around the Web today. Craigslist’s current

Google just filed a patent to run elections in its search results

The Next Web by Kirsty Styles

Google tests and abandons many ideas – but each project it takes the time to look at gives you some window into a future world where it’s running increasingly varied aspects of our lives. Now it’s looking at voting systems. A patent has been filed for a ‘Voter User Interface’ that can be embedded within search results and linked to the social media accounts of relevant “contestants.” The system, the document says, is intended to understand that the search is related to a particular campaign and serves up the relevant poll accordingly. The patent notes that the user will have been ‘authenticated,’ implying this…

Microsoft, Samsung and others form IoT alliance to do what Apple and Google already are

The Next Web by Nate Swanner

Some big names in tech have formed an alliance to make the confusing Internet of Things (IoT) friendlier.

A New Infographic on TPP and Your Digital Rights

EFF.org Updates by Hugh D’Andrade and Maira Sutton

Anyone familiar with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) may find that it can be challenging to explain to others, in simple terms, how it threatens our rights online and over our digital devices. We often begin by describing the secretive, corporate-captured process of the negotiations that ultimately led to the final deal, then go into some of the specific policies—including its ban on circumventing digital locks (aka Digital Rights Management or DRM), itscopyright term extensions that will lengthen restrictions on creative works by 20 years, and its inclusion of “investor-state” rules that could empower multinational corporations to undermine new user protections in the TPP countries.

Infographic: what’s the TPP, what’s wrong with it, how’d we get here, and what do we do now?

Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow

Burning questions that you’re desperate for answers to, and their answers, courtesy of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. (more…)

Report: ISIS seeing ‘diminishing returns’ on Twitter propaganda campaign

The Next Web by Bryan Clark

According to a study by George Washington University, ISIS isn’t having much luck recruiting new members or spreading propaganda messages on Twitter these days. The report, released today, found fewer than 1,000 easily-accessible English-language accounts and that those accounts had a relatively limited reach, as user activity was limited to mostly interacting with each other. The findings have to be considered a huge win for the US, and Twitter, with the latter removing over 125,000 accounts since the middle of 2015, most of which were linked to the Islamic State. “Suspensions have a measurable effect in suppressing the activity of ISIS…

Twitter’s Latest Transparency Report Highlights Evolving Emphasis on Social Content

Social Media Today by Andrew Hutchinson

Twitter has released the latest update of it’s Transparency Report, showing the amount of copyright infringements, takedown requests and tweet removals the platform was called upon to enforce in the second half of 2015.