Olives @olives@qoto.org

While I try to avoid being one of those free expression people who only ever covers some country in Africa violating someone's free expression or privacy, since this came up on my radar, I'll cover it.

https://techcentral.co.za/south-africa-spying-law-is-deeply-flawed/239456/

"In early 2021, the constitutional court found that the country’s State Security Agency, through its signals intelligence agency, the National Communication Centre, was conducting bulk interception of electronic signals unlawfully."

"The court found that there was no law authorising the practice of bulk surveillance and limiting its potential abuse. It ordered that the agency cease such surveillance until there was.

In November 2023, the South African presidency responded to the ruling by tabling a bill to, among other things, plug the gaps identified by the country’s highest court. The General Intelligence Laws Amendment Bill sets out how the surveillance centre, based in Pretoria, should be regulated."

"In the case of South Africa, around 2005, rogue agents in the erstwhile National Intelligence Agency misused bulk interception to spy on senior members of the ANC, the opposition, business people and civil servants. This was despite the agency’s mandate being to focus on foreign threats."

#privacy

If they evolve their policies (i.e. fix the weird Q stuff), then I might give it more credit as a Silicon Valley powered Twitter lookalike. I still won't pretend it is federated, or some "open" thing, because it isn't.

There is the theoretical benefit that Bluesky might be less subject to the whims of one admin after it "decentralizes". However, currently it very much *is* subject to the whims of one admin (well, whoever works at that company).

The British Government can also be fairly "our problem is your problem". Like, in a case, where they complained about how cops supposedly historically called victims liars when they went to them.

Hang on, *you* are the ones who did this, what does it have to do with anyone else.

HOA and admin drama rearing it's ugly head again.

https://edri.org/our-work/health-digital-rights-organisations-and-trade-unions-to-the-council-of-the-eu-uphold-patients-fundamental-rights-in-the-ehds/

"13 organisations and trade unions representing patients, medical professionals, persons with disabilities, consumer and digital rights, are urging the Council of the EU to uphold European patients’ fundamental rights and agree on the right for opting out of the primary and, in particular, secondary use of medical records in the European Health Data Space (EHDS) for all people in the EU."

Frankly, an opt-out doesn't go far enough, it should be an opt-in, although I understand they're trying to stop it getting even worse. #privacy #ehds

Checking, and yup, Dr. Ferguson is still sceptical of the moral panic surrounding minors and social media.

https://9to5mac.com/2024/02/08/ios-17-4-web-app-eu/ Apple nerfing web apps on iPhones in the E.U. It goes without saying that this is a bad idea.

adding 1 to 1 is super problematic

https://reason.com/2024/02/09/new-report-measures-attempts-to-impose-and-evade-internet-repression/

"This week, government officials in both Pakistan and Senegal cut public access to the internet in moves clearly meant to crack down on political debate. Pakistan severed connections to limit information coinciding with a general election of questionable credibility while Senegal's action occurred after the government postponed a presidential vote to the end of the year. The restrictions come amidst global concern about increasing online censorship and surveillance."

If you think about it, QAnon type nonsense has been involved in child abductions (to "save" them), disrupting the ability to carry out sex research, videos being doctored to make the president look like a predator, random people being accused of being predators, a random furniture company being accused of being a sex trafficking enterprise, nonsense with drag shows / libraries. It is so toxic, and I've had enough of it.