Open source
Openness matters
As usual, Randall Munroe at xkcd gives us a terrific insight in the latest privacy developments: I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. xkcd is a work of unadulterated genius.
Facebook
Can you quit Facebook?
I have been feeling quite smug in the last few days. That is, more smug than usual, a certain kind of cultivated perennial smugness is required if you are an academic, but I digress. My disproportionate sense of self-satisfaction comes from the fact that I quit Facebook one year ago. Read more…
Cyber-liberties
Moglen on privacy and the cloud
This is a tour de force speech by Eben Moglen. He talks about privacy in the age of the cloud, and how we need to create new services and architectures that free data from the likes of Facebook and Google. The speech has perhaps the best assessment of Facebook I Read more…
Privacy
Information self-determination in the Google Age
Some weeks ago I had a conversation with a fellow academic about privacy (*waves at Judith*). This is a recurring discussion between us, as we have diametrically opposed views about privacy, technology and how to manage one’s image online. I tend to be in the open camp, while she cherishes Read more…
Google
Darth Google
Excellent video about Google. It is a bit over the top. Google doesn’t want to “own my phone” as such, or know exactly what I’m doing. It wants to target advertising at me. Yes, it is not the best of motives, but they offer all of their services for free. Read more…
Cyber-liberties
Do perverts have rights?
Several press outlets have been giving ample coverage to ChatRoulette, an online video chat service that connects two random people. What seemed to be a great idea, quickly turned into a service for online voyeurs, public self-gratification and much public outrage. It also prompted one of the funniest Daily Show Read more…
Litigation
Defamation online revisited
I have been reading an article in the Chicago Tribune about online anonymity. Most of the story is centred around the defamation dispute between Lisa Stone and an anonymous individual going by the handle Hipcheck16 (see legal documents here). Lisa Stone was running for local office in an Illinois suburb Read more…
Privacy
There ain’t such thing as privacy
A world without privacy has often been depicted as part of a dystopian nightmare in various works of speculative fiction. Yet when we are suddenly thrust upon a world where the very notion of privacy seems to be melting before our very eyes, the public’s response is not one of Read more…
Copyright
Is deep-packet inspection a criminal offence?
Things are heating up in the fight against piracy in the UK. Virgin Media has announced that it will use deep packet inspection (DPI) software to analyse whether its customers are sharing copyright infringing material. Privacy International has brought this practice to the attention of both the European Commission and Read more…
e-commerce
Cookie Law: regulatory failure
There are some things in life that are so wrong at every level that as soon as they see the light of day deserve a big fat “FAIL” caption. That “Mission Accomplished” banner. Boy bands. Any movie bearing the words “A Film by Michael Bay”. Misplaced CCTV cameras. The latest Read more…