Was reading this Substack post about US gov cloud servers being pointed at AI companies. It observed that a number of US gov cloud servers on AWS are now pointing to IPs at a company called inventry.ai

https://cyberintel.substack.com/p/doge-exposes-once-secret-government

I checked on a few of the IPs mentioned in this writeup, and it checks out. E.g., the IP address 18.253.166.131 from 2020-2024 was tied to us-gov-east-1.compute.amazonaws.com and is part of the gov cloud infrastructure at AWS. Loading that IP into DomainTools Iris, we can see the SSL cert assigned to them is for inventry.ai.

Methinks we need to know more about Inventry.

Imagine being locked in a small cell, cut off from meaningful human contact, sunlight, even for years. This is the grim reality for at least 122,000 people each day across the U.S. in solitary confinement.

Solitary isolates individuals for up to 24 hours a day, inflicting profound harm. Recognized as a form of torture, solitary confinement remains pervasive in U.S. prisons. Here's how bad the situation is, and moreover, how we end this form of torture.

https://lets-address-this-with-qasim-rashid.ghost.io/ending-legalized-torture-in-the-us-carceral-system/

Such an honor to be recognized on the 100 Brilliant Women in #AIEthics 2025 list!

So you suddenly feel the need to "do something" about the fascism?

Step 1: Shut the fuck up. Don't get specific or even "vaguepost-y" / overly suggestive about your intention to do anything.

Step 2: Learn about security culture because you're more effective if you don't go to prison, and you need to not get caught before you do your thing.

An ordered reading list:

"What is Security Culture? A Guide to Staying Safe"
A short basic introduction to the topics of security culture. This is a good primer for all subsequent discussions.
https://www.sproutdistro.com/catalog/zines/security/what-is-security-culture-a-guide-to-staying-safe/

"Confidence. Courage. Connection. Trust."
The best current text on security culture, one that takes an approach that tries to balance openness against much of security's paranoia.
https://www.sproutdistro.com/catalog/zines/security/confidence-courage/

"Mobile Phone Security."
One of the fastest ways to get caught is with the snitch in your pocket. Learn how to be safe with your phone and why these steps are important.
https://opsec.riotmedicine.net/downloads#mobile-phone-security

"Why Misogynists Make Great Informants"
Like the title says, people's shitty behavior is indicative that you shouldn't organize with them. A large number of snitches, informants, and infiltrators are misogynistic or otherwise problematic. Don't ignore it!
https://www.sproutdistro.com/catalog/zines/security/misogynists-make-great-informants/

"Threat Modeling Fundamentals"
You need to be able to reason about threats you face and do more than just wear a mask. How/what you do requires concert though, and this is a guide on how to do that reasoning.
https://opsec.riotmedicine.net/downloads#threat-modeling-fundamentals

"PRISMA: Primer on Radical Information for Secure Militant Actions"
You want to do some shit? You want a specific guide on how you might do that shit? Read no further.
https://ntpfiles.noblogs.org/prisma-primer-on-radical-information-for-secure-militant-actions/

Want to read even more? Download (yes download) PDFs and get ready to get spicy.

https://www.sproutdistro.com/catalog/zines/security/

https://www.notrace.how/resources/

I talked to CNN's Clare Duffy about what a TikTok ban in the US might actually look like and how it's likely to affect creators and fans.

https://www.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/terms-of-service-with-clare-duffy/episodes/9fbd6dce-96cf-11ef-aa1b-a3b6131aff00

URGENT FOR US based folks: Tell your reps to vote NO on H.R. 9495! This dangerous bill would give the Trump administration unilateral power to label any non-profit as terrorist supporting and shut it down without due process. Learn more here:
ℹ️ https://www.fightforthefuture.org/actions/no-on-hr9495/

It's tempting to say "oh NOW you decide to leave!" to those leaving X But... I'm still happy they are doing it. I wish there were more. I wish more would jump to the fedi, not just another private service like bluesky or threads.

It *is* possible to make a choice that gets you out.

I left facebook in 2016 after the election. That feeling of being manipulated, messed with, used, and redirected was so viscerally disgusting.

Welcome to the rest of the internet one and all. I'm here to help.

A New Age of Presidential Unilaterism? http://dlvr.it/TG3wQy

@ifnotnowboston

I signed this letter along with other academics and researchers. What the Dominican Republic does to people of Haitian descent is one of the most disturbing things I've seen.

"The timing of your announcement is not a mere coincidence but an intentional act to show the Dominican state’s policy of continuing the dictator’s plan of ethnic cleansing of Haitian people on Dominican soil."
https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/10/11/open-letter-to-dominican-president-luis-abinader-stop-deportations-now/

How do we find consensus for social change, with so many uneducated, uninformed, and uninterested people, and so many oligarchs and fascists spending billions to keep them that way?
I don’t know the answer, but from what I see of the minimal discussion of any of it, no one else does either. Color me worried for the future. Very worried.

Israel Blamed as Pager Explosions in Lebanon Kill 12 & Injure 2,800; Hezbollah Vows to Respond

http://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/18/lebanon_israel_pager_attack

Headlines for September 18, 2024

http://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/18/headlines

@Sheril @Noupside The book “Weapons of Math Destruction,” by Cathy O’Neil, should be part of the curriculum for students at some point. Searching for reliable information if discriminatory algorithms exist, may be difficult. Not like the old days, where you literally searched for what you wanted to find.

Mystery AI Hype Theater Episode 39: Newsrooms Pivot to Bullshit

https://www.buzzsprout.com/2126417/15660976-episode-39-newsrooms-pivot-to-bullshit-feat-sam-cole

… in which 404media co-founder Sam Cole joins me and @alex to reflect on what’s happening as “AI” gets shoved into journalism.

Thx to Christie Taylor for production!

"I picture the mother who's been calling me for 19 years. I imagine being able to give her an answer that ends her agonizing wait. I think of Yafet, finally knowing what happened to his wife and daughter, and of all the families I've met over the years, trapped in limbo, unable to move forward. While this technology won't bring back those we've lost, it could bring peace to those left behind,"

@palestine

2/2
“It’s been a completely catastrophic humanitarian crisis for children over the last 10 months. They’ve seen and been through everything that a child should not have to go through at that age, or any age for that matter, in terms of scale of conflict, in terms of loss of their homes, of the infrastructure that is so vital for their daily lives and livelihoods.”

UNICEF spokesperson Ricardo Pires

#Gaza
#children

by Jeremy Scahill on Dropsite News

https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/israeli-invasion-west-bank-parallels-gaza?publication_id=2510348&post_id=148309688&isFreemail=false&r=17kx67&triedRedirect=true

Israel is in the midst of its largest scale assault of the occupied West Bank since 2002.

Beginning in the predawn hours on Wednesday, hundreds of Israeli forces in columns of armored vehicles and bulldozers backed by drones and helicopters stormed into refugee camps in Jenin, Tulkarem, and Tubas. Israel also carried out drone strikes and snipers have reportedly been firing on people inside Jenin. Internet and cell phone service, as well as water and sewage systems, were shut down in parts of the West Bank as Israeli forces conducted house raids. Local residents have reported widespread demolitions of their homes and streets and the blocking of ambulances and medical workers attempting to reach wounded people. Israeli forces surrounded the main hospital in Jenin and have reportedly been searching people entering and exiting the facility. 

“This is an incredible scaling up of the violence of the preceding months and in particular weeks,” said Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, “with a full military assault, destroying hospitals, destroying roads, destroying vital infrastructure which had already been severely damaged during the preceding months, and Voila!, telling the Palestinians to go, ordering mass evacuations.” 

https://buildingtheinternational.wordpress.com/2024/08/30/israels-violent-invasion-of-west-bank-parallels-the-early-stages-of-war-on-gaza-un-rapporteur-on-palestine/

We were physically attacked by fellow delegates at the Democratic National Convention for raising a banner that said, “Stop Arming Israel.” We will not apologize, and we will not back down. The Democratic Party must choose: justice or genocide.

https://mondoweiss.net/2024/08/standing-for-justice-why-we-raised-a-stop-arming-israel-banner-on-day-1-of-the-dnc-convention/

#Palestine #Israel #Gaza
@palestine @israel

In this article, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) introduces Tor bridges and explains how this technology can be used by journalists to access Tor.
https://safety.rsf.org/tor-bridges-a-way-to-keep-using-tor-in-countries-that-block-it/