Share this page!

Alec Muffett Profile picture
Twitter logo
30 Jun, 4 tweets, 3 min read
"Instagram for Kids" makes a lot more sense than "Kids on Instagram" — so why are #onlinesafetybill #childsafety advocates against it?
It is intuitively & obviously easier, safer, & less error-prone to build a cut-down separate Instagram-like application for kids, so that developers don't have to add all sorts of complex checks & validation on "mixed" accesses by adults & kids.

And yet: digitalprivacy.news/?p=9946
Also:

- much reduced up-front data collection
- no advertising at all, not even implemented
- opportunity for stricter content monitoring
- liberate "instagram for adults" to become more private and more secure.

We should build playgrounds, not turn the Internet into one.
illustration shamelessly stolen from this awesome, must-read essay: decoded.legal/blog/2021/03/u…

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with Alec Muffett

Alec Muffett Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @AlecMuffett

Alec Muffett Profile picture
30 Jun
BREAKING: attached is an extraordinary & electrifying blogpost - one which I *think* should be making major headlines:

magrathea-telecom.co.uk/surcharging-on…

PDF: magrathea-telecom.co.uk/wp-content/upl…
I don't understand this very well, but it's a document describing new, surprise surcharges to phonecalls inbound to the UK - with the charges applied by source CallerID - which may impact/add costs to keeping in touch with relatives abroad.

This is NOT "EU Roaming": ImageImageImage
Bullets:

- Surcharge pricing will be effective on all wholesale tariffs from 1st July 2021

- use the Network CLI to determine if a surcharge is applicable

- CallerID that are missing/malformed/invalid/unreadable will be surcharged at the maximum rate! Image
Read 6 tweets
Alec Muffett Profile picture
30 Jun
The UK Government is now demanding "end-to-end encryption must be switch-offable" - which is not tenable.

Platforms can't feasibly maintain "dual-stack" implementations for kids-vs-non-kids, and it's telling to compare this to the general reaction /against/ "Instagram for Kids".
The fact that they don't want platforms to provide separate apps which are designed to be kid-safe, YET they /do/ want general-purpose platforms to provide "kid-safety" backdoors, demonstrates a lack of joined-up thinking… or that there are ACTUALLY different goals than stated.
This is the UK Government literally pursuing an obligation for platforms to snoop-upon, filter, block, and generally insert themselves into private message content.

If you are not already using an end-to-end encrypted messenger, you should start immediately.
Read 5 tweets
Alec Muffett Profile picture
24 May
A friend messaged me:

"What do you think about the security issues of typing social media passwords into an app from this company?"

socialmediacheck.com

Reply: "How much profanity am I allowed to use?"
I mean, this all sounds like a service dedicated to checking your own shit, right? Unless like me you are entirely shameless, that might be an issue for some:
Oh, wait, what?

"We only conduct a Social Media Check once the person to be checked (subject) has provided consent."

So who is the "your" in "Check your social media", then?
Read 12 tweets
Alec Muffett Profile picture
22 May
There's a bunch of people trying to reboot the #WhatsApp #Policy fake news hysteria, so here's a recap of what it actually is about:

But also: it's really important that we don't fall for the fake news, because...

alecmuffett.com/article/13692
Because encryption is under a threat from government forces, and they are doing everything they can to besmirch the reputation of both encryption in general, and anyone who is attempting to deploy it.

This fake news policy story is very useful to them

Context, for anyone who would prefer to read it in a serious forum with actual journalism: wired.com/story/whatsapp…
Read 6 tweets
Alec Muffett Profile picture
21 May
Write:

« yes, there is stuff in that article that's overblown or polemical, but perhaps we should stop, reflect & reboot "cyber" because maybe we're doing it too mindlessly / mechanically »

…and you'll get unintentionally hilarious hot takes like this. ImageImage
I blogged something about this in 2002, commenting on a page elsewhere that was making a good point, and fortunately all of these are still available:
alecmuffett.com/article/113 Image
Nikolai Bezroukov: "the key problem with hardening is to know where to stop…the key principle is "not too much zeal". Unfortunately corporate security departments often discard this vital principle and use hardening for justification of their existence."

softpanorama.org/Articles/softp… ImageImage
Read 5 tweets
Alec Muffett Profile picture
27 Jan
How to become a Super #Privacy Activist, pt 1:

Find a small coding issue that you can be very angry about; pick on an imperfect user-experience bug or missed opportunity & frame it as intentionally being in breach of a vague aspect of some critical legislation. Launch a crusade.
How to become a Super #Privacy Activist, pt 2:

Adherence to your Rules™ is more important than outcome; petty concerns like "international jurisdiction" pale in comparison to "foreigners should obey the intent of our laws rather than cutting us off"

shkspr.mobi/blog/2018/06/i…
How to become a Super #Privacy Activist, pt 3:

The purpose of the Internet is not for people to communicate. The purpose of the internet is to be a framework which can be regulated by you. Ideally in dramatic courtroom showdowns.

Read 37 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

Like this author's thread?

Get emails when @AlecMuffett has new unrolls!

Check out other threads from @AlecMuffett!

Read all threads by @AlecMuffett

:(