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Phumzile Van Damme Profile picture
Phumzile Van Damme
@zilevandamme
Changemaker. Disinformation + Digital Rights. @Harvard Tech & Human Rights Fellow. @VitalVoices Global Leader. Ex-MP. INFJ. Virago. (South) African Politics.
Aug 2, 2023 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Now @helenzille. You & John have gotten into the habit of posting about me behind blocked accounts because you know you want none of this smoke. You’re dying for it clearly. K. First of all you are a LIAR, that’s besides everything else that wrong with you. I parted ways with YOU That’s the first thing. You wanted to meet with me after to understand because you were so shocked I resigned. You told the media that I agreed to it because you were so desperate not to be the cause of yet another black person resigning.
Jun 20, 2023 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
I dunno, I’m kinda siding with the orcas. A friend of the orca, if you will. The water is their territory. We’re a land species. Plus, their friends have been captured for fun by our species. Eventually every creature gets their revenge. Survival of the fittest, Darwin etc. etc. Homo sapiens really can’t let other species have their own things. Everything must be ours. We suck royally on water. Poor little weak sods us drown & die. Plus, we’ve still only seen 5% of the ocean. Let’s be shy more when on water, it’s not our strong suit. Leave the orcas be.
Jun 20, 2023 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Some pedophila statistics, a thread:
- Over 80% victims younger than 18 are female
- The victim knows the perpetrators in 93% of the cases
- 1/3 the perpetrators are the child’s family members
- Males represent 96% of perpetrators 
- Around 500K predators are active online daily - 1 in 10 children are sexually abused
- Almost 70% of all sexual assaults happen to minors
- 73% of child abuse victims don’t tell about the abuse for at least a year
- 20% of abusers have attacked between 10 & 40 children. 
- 30% of perpetrators are the child’s family members
Jun 20, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Reddit users don’t play, y’all.

Ransomware group BlackCat, which hacked Reddit’s servers in February, is now threatening to release the data it stole unless Reddit rolls back its planned for payment for access to its API.
flip.it/XEUt7u BlackCat claims to have “interesting confidential data” that allegedly includes information on how Reddit tracks users and censors people. BlackCat does not expect Reddit to cooperate and says that it expects to leak the data.
Jun 20, 2023 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Voicebox produces speech audio clips in six languages and can perform tasks beyond its training. It replicates voices from 2s audio files but Meta says it won't be released yet due to potential disastrous consequences.

(It must be really f’ing bad, then)
flip.it/1Mtu2L “Meta has unveiled a new AI tool, dubbed ‘Voicebox’, which it claims represents a breakthrough in AI-powered speech generation. according Meta - it’s the first AI model of its kind capable of completing tasks beyond what it was ‘specifically trained to accomplish’.”
Jun 19, 2023 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Young people, please register to vote. Now I cannot tell you who to vote for, this is a decision you must make for yourself. I relate to the disillusionment with politics, I find myself in the same place. But, vote, I will. Even if it means pinching my nose shut while doing so. I, like you will have to do, have decided what factors I deem important. I find the space of emerging political parties encouraging. Draw up a list of what matters to you & see if there is a party that fits as many as your requirements as possible. There’ll never be a perfect fit
Jun 17, 2023 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
FrEe SPeeCh aBSoluTisT

“Twitter suspended the accounts of PlainSite & its founder Aaron Greenspan, a prolific Tesla & Musk critic. PlainSite is an online database that makes state & federal court filings & other public records available to users for free” flip.it/S9W52k “Greenspan has meticulously tracked litigation by or against companies mostly in the U.S., including Tesla, Twitter — — as well as competitors GM, Meta and a myriad of others. He and Musk have also been involved in litigation over the years.”
Jun 14, 2023 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Almost had to contact DIRCO & ask to be evacuated. I got an “IMMEDIATE DANGER” alert on my cellphone with very loud beeping. There were nuclear alarm sounding sirens over the city. Russia had breached the border, thought I. Turns out it’s a test of the new Emergency Alert system. Image I know it’s only 12 but I need a drink my nerves are shot. 😭 Norway shares a border with Russia. Fun fact: both countries have soldiers trained to fight on snow and ice. They fight on skis. ImageImageImageImage
Jun 14, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
The most bizarre Twitter criticism: "You just want attention." Well yeah, that's why it's on a public platform, to bring it to public attention. Do you see this as your personal secret diary with your hidden thoughts? Calm down. Moral high ground & SM? An arena for human flaws. You need self-awareness to navigate social media to keep you grounded. I am quite aware & deliberate about my Twitter presence. It differs greatly from other platforms. This is where I share my thoughts about politics & controversial issues & I don't care whether people agree.
Jun 14, 2023 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
Wondered why you found Scandoval so engrossing? This.
“Political discourse has increasingly become a battleground of misinfo. Reality shows like “VDP Rules” act as a mirror to our society, reflecting our collective struggle to untangle fact from fiction.“ flip.it/9dhV0F “Scandoval, brimming with manipulations, deceit and obfuscations — despite omnipresent cameras — mirrors a modern political tension that despite access to more information than ever before, objective truth appears increasingly elusive.”
Mar 29, 2022 • 20 tweets • 9 min read
How to disable location tracking on Facebook & the use of your private data for advertising purposes. A step-by-step guide with screenshots. Go to “Settings” and select “Privacy Shortcuts”
Mar 29, 2022 • 14 tweets • 3 min read
Digital Rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation is calling for an outright ban on behavioral advertising. Behavioral targeting meaning serving ads to people based on their activity online and across apps due to it being the root of privacy concerns. flip.it/XQEp_L Behavioural Targeting “is almost single-handedly responsible for the worst privacy problems on the internet today…t he watchdog says that behavioral advertising has “warped” technological development to the point where mobile phones are designed to snoop on users.”
Mar 28, 2022 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
The latest statistics show that the pandemic has intensified the worrying trend of cyber harassments against women. With the numbers soaring the tech industry is reacting with software solutions (My thoughts at the end of thread)

techradar.com/features/meet-… Online violence against women is “very easy to spread and difficult to manage. And, similar to real world violence, women are the ones paying the highest price.”
Mar 28, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
“Leadership has nothing to do with rank or title. I know many people who sit at the highest levels of organizations who are not leaders. We do as they tell us because they have authority over us, but we don't trust them and we wouldn't follow them.” ted.com/talks/simon_si… “And yet I also know many people who sit at very low levels that have no formal rank and no formal authority, and yet they've made the choice to look after the person to the left of them and the person to the right of them, and we would trust them and follow them anywhere.”
Mar 1, 2022 • 6 tweets • 1 min read
“Much like its military campaign, Moscow's information war has been incompetent and unconvincing.”

thehill.com/opinion/intern… “Kremlin leaders were clearly taken by surprise by Washington's partial release of classified information about their political tactics and military objectives, including potential "false flag" operations in staging provocations in the Donbas.”
Feb 28, 2022 • 17 tweets • 3 min read
Now that I have your attention. Let’s start with this. Let’s set the scene. Africa Centre’s research on how Russia uses disinformation influence operations to gain a foothold in Africa. More lessons about Russia and its neo-colonialism in Africa soon.

africacenter.org/experts/joseph… “…how Russia pursues its strategic goals in Africa: expanding geopolitical influence through low cost ventures that hold economic windfalls for Moscow and President Vladimir Putin’s close associates.”
Feb 27, 2022 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
“Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, and Trace claims, quotes, and media to the original context.” technologyreview.com/2022/02/25/104… “The fast-paced online coverage of the Russian invasion of Ukraine followed a pattern that’s become familiar in other recent crises that have unfolded around the world. Photos, videos, and other info are posted and reshared across platforms much faster than they can be verified.”
Oct 4, 2021 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
One day I will tell you the story about the young man in the tweet below. The white EFF supporter. There were death threats. He was being chased down the street. The Jewish community in Cape Town was worried. Why did he support the EFF then said your DA leaders. Shook. We may disagree with his political choices but surely me must be against threats on his life I said. Nope. He shouldn’t be supporting the EFF ‘twas said. The were anti-semitic threats, I said. We should be against that. Nope, ‘twas said. He shouldn’t be supporting the EFF. VILE.
Oct 4, 2021 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
You know, I fought many battles in the DA and I won every single one. Kevin Mileham, the prosecutor of the V & A matter told me "I fight dirty" ahead of the V&A matter. I said "I fight hard." And fight dirty he did. And fight hard I did. He lost. Good triumphs over evil. John Steenhuisen tried SO HARD to get rid of me. Sabbatical. He lost. He had to withdraw it & apologise. He was the one who insisted the V & A disciplinary hearing go ahead despite the first FLC report finding no grounds for one. I am a "problem," he said. He lost.
Oct 4, 2021 • 17 tweets • 4 min read
This saga is long and one the most painful experiences of my life. It is deep-seated trauma I am still recovering from today. I left & I kept quiet for my own peace. It seems my silence was seen as weakness. My silence has perpetuated my abuse. Today I tell part of it. Kevin Mileham (Natasha Mazzone’s husband) was the “prosecutor” for this case. For weeks he has been trying to get me to sign a plea deal that made me admit guilt for something I had not done with heavy punishment. Part of me I wanted an issue that had dragged on for 2 years over.
Sep 13, 2021 • 15 tweets • 3 min read
Deepfake researchers have long feared the day this would arrive - an app breaching an ethical line no other service has crossed before.

technologyreview.com/2021/09/13/103… "MIT Technology Review has chosen not to name the service, which we will call Y, or use any direct quotes and screenshots of its contents, to avoid driving traffic to the site. It was discovered and brought to our attention by deepfake researcher Henry Ajder."