Police are paying big money for unproven “undercover bot” tech that uses AI-generated online personas to collect intelligence, @404mediaco reports. “So like, what is it effective at, violating protesters’ First Amendment rights?” asks EFF’s Dave Maass. https://www.404media.co/this-college-protester-isnt-real-its-an-ai-powered-undercover-bot-for-cops/

#PBS and #NPR teach kids and adults so many things. Publicly funded institutions need our help. They are alternatives to oligarch owned networks like Amazon Prime.

Educated kids become educated and empathetic adults. What's not to love?

The public good should be the norm.

Protect your personal and familial security by maintaining better personal privacy during this US Constitutional Crisis.

Take steps now.
Remain vigilant.
Don't be naive.

Disappearing: happening.
Violating courts: happening.
Unlawful arrests: happening.
Dissenter attacks: happening.
Lost public services: happening.
Lawful resident deportation: happening.

IMMEDIATELY start privacy protocols. Don't believe anyone saying it doesn't help.

#privacy #security #constitution #law #usa

Powering off your phone or laptop erases the key that unlocks its encryption, and so protects against unwanted searches, EFF’s Will Greenberg told AP. “This is why a border agent can’t simply turn a device on to use a tool like Cellebrite.” https://apnews.com/article/internet-privacy-smartphones-travel-e0a3146ae7966ea0e4157dbfae1f6a81

Court document reveals locations of WhatsApp victims targeted by NSO spyware | TechCrunch https://techcrunch.com/2025/04/09/court-document-reveals-locations-of-whatsapp-victims-targeted-by-nso-spyware/

The Shocking Far-Right Agenda Behind the Facial Recognition Tech Used by ICE and the FBI

Thousands of newly obtained documents show that Clearview AI’s founders always intended to target immigrants and the political left. Now their digital dragnet is in the hands of the Trump administration.

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/04/clearview-ai-immigration-ice-fbi-surveillance-facial-recognition-hoan-ton-that-hal-lambert-trump/

#news #politics #uspol #uspolitics #GOPCult #trump #ethics #corruption #maga

Musk/DOGE is a widely exposed single point of failure for international security. All it takes is for a state to overcome the personal security of inexperienced barely-post-tweens to essentially access all American information. There is no oversight on how the people's data is being handled. This is the worst kind of attack surface possible.

#infosec #doge #maga #uspol #privacy #data #attacksurface #trump

It's a large #political action day in the US & the world - Have your mobile devices switched off or leave them at home to avoid being caught in dragnet #surveillance.

Keep them off for the complete journey - before and after. If you must use your mobile, be diligent in your efforts to protect yourself:

- Encrypt your device
- Have it pin-locked
- Disable #biometric logons
- Disable #Bluetooth
- Disable location services
- Carpool

#protest #50501 #handsoff #democracy #privacy #security

“The U.S. government has taken the view that they have the ability to search your devices without a warrant and without suspicion under what’s known as the border search exception to the Fourth Amendment,” EFF’s Saira Hussain told @NBCNews. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/trump-immigration-detained-visitors-border-search-device-visa-passport-rcna197736

If you live in the US, please exercise your right to vote. And here's to hoping your vote is centered on empathy.

#vote #voting #electionday #localelection #government #rights #empathy

Thanks for allowing the long detour of a thought experiment at https://mastodon.social/@theprivacyfoundation/114258140266536566 Comments on that post are off to allow for train of thought.

From a #privacy and #security perspective, it is a unique challenge. Even though it's all hypothetical, one can ponder self protection opportunities and apply safety ideas within legal boundaries to their own needs.

There are no universal situations or solutions to keep people safe. Think on your own situation. How do you stay safe?

#immigration

11 Continued

Unobtrusively mount cameras from interiors and exteriors when possible. Use directional highly sensitive microphones pointed in direction of vehicles.

All just hypothetical.
Just a thought experiment.

11

Is counter surveillance an option?

Use non-internet connected cameras mounted to bikes and side windows (facing forward, sideways and reverse) to look for suspicious people and cars. Maintain maps and times. Make sure all documentation is encrypted.

Have people walk around the block and maintain mental notes until able to securely document. Denote clothing, gender, race, vehicles, license plates, hair color and style - anything that is a quick identifier.

10 Continued

Designated friend should call attorney and initiate their next steps. One person should contact friends and family through Signal. One person should contact local media. One person should contact AP News. One person should contact Reuters. Allow them to break the story. Give each of them a different video to run with.

10

End goal not achieved

Friends should start photographing and not interfere (it’s not going to work). Have a predetermined plan – one person should photograph license plates and vehicles. One person should photograph badges. One person should photograph the arrest. Use 4k video when possible. One person should have a voice recorder in a vest pocket and not visible.

10

End goal achieved:

Contact friends and family. Keep them up to date as soon as possible. Use the same phone as above. Use Signal. Use coded mechanisms if necessary. For example, uploading a photo of a butterfly to a document means safe. Make it simple and easy to remember.

The friends should carry out the vacation as planned. They should have a reason if someone asks where the other person is.

09

Seeking asylum:

For this thought experiment, there is no previously known information on this topic. It's important that the attorney give advice on the proper language when across the border. Where does the asylum request need to take place? How quickly does it need to take place? What are the next steps? What documentation is required?

08 Continued

Don't include people that are nervous or combative. This is important. The goal is to have the most seemingly boring and normal vacation possible.

08 Continued

Everyone involved should be fully invested in their roles and stay in them. No winking, nudging or nodding. Decide from one moment on, that everyone is in character - always even when alone. This will help story corroboration when questioned. Go through all the motions of the cover story.

Talk about the vacation as if it is real - and in fact, once in the asylum country the vacation should be played out, photographed (minus the asylum seeker) for the return trip cover.

08

Protecting identities:

Getting a false identity has risks and that should be weighed against other risks. For this thought experiment, maintaining real identity will be chosen.

Visual cues can trigger authorities. Religious or ethnic dress, hair or adornments should be removed. While a difficult choice, remember the goal of getting somewhere where one is not prosecuted for their belief, ethnicity and identity.