June 2020 - nexa - server-nexa.polito.it

Re: [nexa] Lettera alla ministra Azzolina del Prof. Angelo Raffaele Meo

by Stefano Quintarelli

On 24/06/2020 10:50, Enrico Nardelli wrote: > Scusatemi, ma dove si capisce che WeSchool è una start-up italiana? La > pagina linkeind riporta solo che è una società privata non quotata > basata a Milano. https://www.weschool.com/ Oilproject Srl P.IVA 07236760968 https://www.weschool.com/privacy-policy/ https://www.weschool.com/category/news/ https://duckduckgo.com/?q=weschool+-weschool.com ciao, s. > > Nella notizia linkata da Stefano c'è scritto > > 8x8, Inc. (NYSE:EGHT) today announced Italy-based classroom > collaboration platform WeSchool is using Jitsi.org open-source video > conferencing solution > > Grazie, Enrico > > > Il 24/06/2020 10:20, J.C. DE MARTIN ha scritto: >> grazie per la precisazione, Stefano! >> >> jc >> >> On 24/06/2020 09:44, Stefano Quintarelli wrote: >>> fyi, weschool e' una startup italiana che eroga (inter alia) jitsi >>> come servizio (la piu' grande installazione di jitsi al mondo) >>> >>> https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200320005105/en/Teach-Home-WeSchoo… >>> >>> >>> ciao, s. >>> >>> On 24/06/2020 09:34, J.C. DE MARTIN wrote: >>>> Con grande piacere segnalo questa lettera aperta del Prof. Angelo >>>> Raffaele Meo >>>> (professore emerito del Politecnico nonché Garante del Centro Nexa) >>>> alla Ministra Azzolina. Per sottoscrizioni: >>>> https://scuolalibera.continuity.space/lettera-professor-meo >>>> >>>> Intanto sul sito del Ministero >>>> https://www.istruzione.it/coronavirus/didattica-a-distanza.html >>>> ci sono sempre e solo Google, Microsoft e WeSchool, >>>> e non anche, per esempio, https://iorestoacasa.work/*... * >>>> >>>> Notate anche che giusto ieri il Garante Privacy Soro ha prospettato, >>>> oltre al resto, >>>> la necessità di un "cloud" pubblico: >>>> https://www.garanteprivacy.it/web/guest/home/docweb/-/docweb-display/docweb… >>>> >>>> >>>> Buon San Giovanni! >>>> >>>> juan carlos >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Lettera alla ministra Azzolina >>>> >>>> >>>> *dal professor Angelo Raffaele Meo e le associazioni promotrici >>>> del software libero* >>>> >>>> Ill.ma Ministra, >>>> >>>> la società che fornisce la nota piattaforma di videoconferenza >>>> “Zoom” è stata criticata per "carenze di sicurezza e scelte di >>>> progettazione inadeguate", per le sue politiche di privacy e >>>> condivisione dei dati aziendali e per mancanza di trasparenza. Ciò >>>> ha indotto alcuni governi come quello tedesco a vietare l’uso di >>>> Zoom. Invece, nel nostro paese, alcuni uffici scolastici ne hanno >>>> raccomandato l’uso, per cui quella piattaforma è diventata una fra >>>> le più diffuse nelle nostre scuole. >>>> >>>> Negli ultimi anni le tecnologie di intrusione malevola hanno >>>> registrato progressi clamorosi, per cui quello che è successo con >>>> Zoom potrebbe verificarsi in qualunque momento su qualunque altra >>>> tecnologia proprietaria. Per questa ragione noi riteniamo che nelle >>>> applicazioni della Pubblica Amministrazione che implichino il >>>> trattamento di dati personali, e in particolare nelle applicazioni >>>> per la scuola, si dovrebbe vietare per legge l’uso di prodotti dei >>>> quali non sia conosciuto il codice sorgente. >>>> >>>> Con questo messaggio mi permetto di farLe notare l’inopportunità >>>> delle pagine di suggerimento dedicate sul portale del suo Ministero >>>> a importanti piattaforme didattiche proprietarie che sono ospitate >>>> su infrastrutture controllate dai giganti del web (come Google, >>>> Microsoft e Amazon) dove quindi confluiscono i dati e i metadati dei >>>> nostri studenti. Ricordo anche che le scuole sono tenute a scegliere >>>> le soluzioni da acquisire solo dopo aver realizzato la valutazione >>>> comparativa prevista dall’art. 68 del D. Lgs. 82/2005, che impone di >>>> preferire software libero: sarebbe importante che il Ministero >>>> supportasse le scuole nell’adempiere a quest’obbligo. >>>> >>>> Inoltre, Le chiedo il favore di adoperarsi per la promulgazione di >>>> una legge che: >>>> >>>> * >>>> >>>> (i) Proibisca l’uso di software proprietario nelle applicazioni >>>> della Pubblica Amministrazione che implicano il trattamento di dati >>>> personali >>>> >>>> * >>>> >>>> (ii) Obblighi ad usare formati di file standard e aperti >>>> >>>> * >>>> >>>> (iii) Consenta l’uso di infrastrutture IT in Cloud soltanto se >>>> queste sono nel controllo della pubblica amministrazione Italiana >>>> (Private Cloud). >>>> >>>> Tenga presente che in Rete sono disponibili piattaforme libere >>>> caratterizzate da funzioni e prestazioni paragonabili o superiori a >>>> quelle delle più note piattaforme proprietarie. Ad esempio, >>>> nell’arco di pochi giorni, alcuni tecnici del Politecnico di Torino >>>> hanno realizzato, utilizzando una piattaforma libera, l’intero >>>> sistema di videolezioni che consente ogni giorno di trasmettere >>>> oltre 600 lezioni a 10.000 studenti. >>>> >>>> In conseguenza di scelte scellerate degli ultimi decenni, il nostro >>>> paese è praticamente uscito dal comparto industriale delle >>>> tecnologie dell’informazione. >>>> >>>> Negli ultimi anni, in virtù di un eccezionale sviluppo tecnologico, >>>> l’industria e il mercato dell’informatica libera sono letteralmente >>>> esplosi. Diversi siti specializzati nell’ospitalità e distribuzione >>>> di software libero annoverano milioni di progettisti e programmatori >>>> operanti su oltre 150 mila progetti; da questi siti sono scaricati >>>> milioni di programmi ogni giorno. Si apre così un’importante >>>> opportunità per l’economia del nostro paese. Per questa ragione ci >>>> permettiamo di chiederLe di adoperarsi, nell’ambito del Consiglio >>>> dei Ministri, per cogliere questa opportunità destinando gli >>>> investimenti che verranno a breve realizzati nel digitale >>>> esclusivamente a tecnologie in software libero. >>>> >>>> /Prof. Angelo Raffaele Meo/ >>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> nexa mailing list >>>> nexa(a)server-nexa.polito.it >>>> https://server-nexa.polito.it/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nexa >>>> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> nexa mailing list >> nexa(a)server-nexa.polito.it >> https://server-nexa.polito.it/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nexa > > -- EN > > ===================================================================== > Prof. Enrico Nardelli > Dipartimento di Matematica - Universita' di Roma "Tor Vergata" > Via della Ricerca Scientifica snc - 00133 Roma > tel: +39 06 7259.4204 fax: +39 06 7259.4699 > mobile: +39 335 590.2331 e-mail: nardelli(a)mat.uniroma2.it > home page: http://www.mat.uniroma2.it/~nardelli > blog: http://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/blog/enardelli/ > http://link-and-think.blogspot.it/ > ===================================================================== -- reserve your meeting with me at https://cal.quintarelli.it

June 26, 2020

NYT: (1) Wrongfully Accused by an Algorithm; (2) Many Medical Decision Tools Disadvantage Black Patients [WAS: Fwd: [RISKS] Risks Digest 32.03

by Diego.Latella

RISKS-LIST: Risks-Forum Digest Wednesday 24 June 2020 Volume 32 : Issue 03 ACM FORUM ON RISKS TO THE PUBLIC IN COMPUTERS AND RELATED SYSTEMS (comp.risks) Peter G. Neumann, founder and still moderator ***** See last item for further information, disclaimers, caveats, etc. ***** This issue is archived at <http://www.risks.org> as <http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/32.03> The current issue can also be found at <http://www.csl.sri.com/users/risko/risks.txt> Contents: [ ... OMISSIS ...] Wrongfully Accused by an Algorithm (NYTimes) [ ... OMISSIS ...] Many Medical Decision Tools Disadvantage Black Patients [ ... OMISSIS ...] Abridged info on RISKS (comp.risks) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [ ... OMISSIS ...] Date: Wed, 24 Jun 2020 14:49:41 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty(a)roscom.com> Subject: Wrongfully Accused by an Algorithm (NYTimes) In what may be the first known case of its kind, a faulty facial recognition match led to a Michigan man's arrest for a crime he did not commit. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/24/technology/facial-recognition-arrest.html ------------------------------ [ ... OMISSIS ...] Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2020 09:22:30 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty(a)roscom.com> Subject: Many Medical Decision Tools Disadvantage Black Patients (NYTimes) Doctors look to these digital calculators to make treatment decisions, but they can end up denying black patients access to certain specialists, drugs and transplants. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/17/health/many-medical-decision-tools-disad… [ ... OMISSIS ...] Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2020 11:11:11 -0800 From: RISKS-request(a)csl.sri.com Subject: Abridged info on RISKS (comp.risks) The ACM RISKS Forum is a MODERATED digest. Its Usenet manifestation is comp.risks, the feed for which is donated by panix.com as of June 2011. => SUBSCRIPTIONS: The mailman Web interface can be used directly to subscribe and unsubscribe: http://mls.csl.sri.com/mailman/listinfo/risks => SUBMISSIONS: to risks(a)CSL.sri.com with meaningful SUBJECT: line that includes the string `notsp'. Otherwise your message may not be read. *** This attention-string has never changed, but might if spammers use it. => SPAM challenge-responses will not be honored. Instead, use an alternative address from which you never send mail where the address becomes public! => The complete INFO file (submissions, default disclaimers, archive sites, copyright policy, etc.) is online. <http://www.CSL.sri.com/risksinfo.html> *** Contributors are assumed to have read the full info file for guidelines! => OFFICIAL ARCHIVES: http://www.risks.org takes you to Lindsay Marshall's searchable html archive at newcastle: http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/VL.IS --> VoLume, ISsue. Also, ftp://ftp.sri.com/risks for the current volume or ftp://ftp.sri.com/VL/risks-VL.IS for previous VoLume If none of those work for you, the most recent issue is always at http://www.csl.sri.com/users/risko/risks.txt, and index at /risks-32.00 ALTERNATIVE ARCHIVES: http://seclists.org/risks/ (only since mid-2001) *** NOTE: If a cited URL fails, we do not try to update them. Try browsing on the keywords in the subject line or cited article leads. Apologies for what Office365 and SafeLinks may have done to URLs. ==> Special Offer to Join ACM for readers of the ACM RISKS Forum: <http://www.acm.org/joinacm1> ------------------------------ End of RISKS-FORUM Digest 32.03 ************************ -- Dott. Diego Latella - Senior Researcher CNR-ISTI, Via Moruzzi 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy (http:www.isti.cnr.it [1]) FM&&T Lab. (http://fmt.isti.cnr.it) http://www.isti.cnr.it/People/D.Latella - ph: +390506212982, mob: +39 348 8283101, fax: +390506212040 =================== The quest for a war-free world has a basic purpose: survival. But if in the process we learn how to achieve it by love rather than by fear, by kindness rather than compulsion; if in the process we learn how to combine the essential with the enjoyable, the expedient with the benevolent, the practical with the beautiful, this will be an extra incentive to embark on this great task. Above all, remember your humanity. -- Sir Joseph Rotblat I don't quite know whether it is especially computer science or its subdiscipline Artificial Intelligence that has such an enormous affection for euphemism. We speak so spectacularly and so readily of computer systems that understand, that see, decide, make judgments, and so on, without ourselves recognizing our own superficiality and immeasurable naivete with respect to these concepts. And, in the process of so speaking, we anesthetise our ability to evaluate the quality of our work and, what is more important, to identify and become conscious of its end use. […] One can't escape this state without asking, again and again: "What do I actually do? What is the final application and use of the products of my work?" and ultimately, "am I content or ashamed to have contributed to this use?" -- Prof. Joseph Weizenbaum ["Not without us", ACM SIGCAS 16(2-3) 2--7 - Aug. 1986] Links: ------ [1] http://www.isti.cnr.it

June 26, 2020

Lawmakers propose indefinite nationwide ban on police use of facial recognition - CNET

by J.C. DE MARTIN

https://www.cnet.com/news/lawmakers-propose-indefinite-nationwide-ban-on-po… (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

June 26, 2020

Direttorio sulla catechesi e trasformazione digitale

by don Luca Peyron

Un documento importante per la Chiesa Cattolica con un ampio spazio sulla trasformazione digitale. Buona lettura Dl https://www.vaticannews.va/it/vaticano/news/2020-06/nuovo-direttorio-catech…

June 25, 2020

Youth Connections for Wellbeing Project - Connected Learning Lab

by Alberto Cammozzo

<https://connectedlearning.uci.edu/youth-connections-for-wellbeing/> Fears abound about how social media, smartphones, and digital games are leading to depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems. What is under-discussed and under-investigated is how such technologies can foster social connection and engagement in ways that can build wellbeing among young people. Young people are actively seeking information and support for mental health and wellbeing online, and their experiences vary. Online risks mirror offline vulnerabilities. Parents, educators, clinicians, and technology developers need approaches tailored to the needs and strengths of vulnerable youth. This project dispels murky fears and moves beyond one-size-fits all solutions. Our goal is to identify, support, test, and communicate new digital strategies for tapping young people’s insights, agency, and technology engagements to support wellbeing.

June 25, 2020

Fwd: magnum gaudium

by Angelo Raffaele Meo

-------- Messaggio Inoltrato -------- Oggetto: magnum gaudium Data: Thu, 25 Jun 2020 15:45:08 +0200 Mittente: Angelo Raffaele Meo <meo(a)polito.it> A: comunita(a)comeinclasse.it MAGNUM GAUDIUM NUNTIO VOBIS IN ALLEGATO

June 25, 2020

Archivi lista non raggiungibili

by Roberto Resoli

Segnalo che cercando di accedere agli archivi della lista dal link in calce alle email che arrivano da mailman: https://server-nexa.polito.it/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nexa la richiesta va attualmente in timeout. rob

June 25, 2020

Down the rabbit hole: how QAnon conspiracies thrive on Facebook | Technology | The Guardian

by Alberto Cammozzo

<https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jun/25/qanon-facebook-conspirac…> n early May, QAnon braced for a purge. Facebook had removed a small subset – five pages, six groups and 20 profiles – of the community on the social network, and as word of the bans spread, followers of Q began preparing for a broader sweep. Some groups changed their names, substituting “17” for “Q” (the 17th letter of the alphabet); others shared links to back-up accounts on alternative social media platforms with looser rules. More than just another internet conspiracy theory, QAnon is a movement of people who interpret as a kind of gospel the online messages of an anonymous figure – “Q” – who claims knowledge of a secret cabal of powerful pedophiles and sex traffickers. Within the constructed reality of QAnon, Donald Trump is secretly waging a patriotic crusade against these “deep state” child abusers, and a “Great Awakening” that will reveal the truth is on the horizon. Why we are addicted to conspiracy theories Read more QAnon evolved out of the baseless Pizzagate conspiracy theory, which posited that Hillary Clinton was running a child sex ring out of a Washington DC pizza restaurant, and has come to incorporate numerous strands of rightwing conspiracy mongering. Dedicated followers interpret Q’s cryptic messages in a kind of digital scavenger hunt. Despite the fact that Q’s prognostications have reliably failed to come true, followers rationalize the inaccuracies as part of a larger plan. Q’s initial commentary on the Facebook bans was concise: “Information Warfare,” Q posted on the website 8kun. Two days later, in a post that included a collage of dozens of news headlines about the takedowns, Q went further, speculating that there had been a “coordinated media roll-out designed to instill ‘fear’” in believers and dissuade them from discussing QAnon on social media. “When do you expend ammunition?” Q wrote. “For what purpose?” The anticipated purge never came. Instead, QAnon groups on Facebook have continued to grow at a considerable pace in the weeks following the takedown, with several adding more than 10,000 members over 30 days. A Guardian investigation has documented: More than 100 Facebook pages, profiles, groups, and Instagram accounts with at least 1,000 followers or members each dedicated to QAnon. The largest of these have more than 150,000 followers or members. In total, the documented pages, groups and accounts count more than 3m aggregate followers and members, though there is likely significant overlap among these groups and accounts. These groups and pages play a critical role in disseminating Q’s messages to a broader audience and in recruiting more believers to the cult-like belief system, researchers say. “Facebook is a unique platform for recruitment and amplification,” said Brian Friedberg, a senior researcher at the Harvard Shorenstein Center’s Technology and Social Change Project who has been studying QAnon for years. “I really do not think that QAnon as we know it today would have been able to happen without the affordances of Facebook.” More than 100 Facebook pages, profiles, groups, and Instagram accounts with at least 1,000 followers or members each dedicated to QAnon. Suggested QAnon groups on Facebook. Composite: Eric Pratt/The Guardian Moreover, Facebook is not merely providing a platform to QAnon groups. Its powerful algorithms are actively recommending them to users who may not otherwise have been exposed to them. The Guardian did not initially go looking for QAnon content on Facebook. Instead, Facebook’s algorithms recommended a QAnon group to a Guardian reporter’s account after it had joined pro-Trump, anti-vaccine and anti-lockdown Facebook groups. The list of more than 100 QAnon groups and accounts was then generated by following Facebook’s recommendation algorithms and using simple keyword searches. The Instagram accounts were discovered by searching for “QAnon” in the app’s discovery page and then following Instagram’s algorithmic recommendations. Receiving QAnon recommendations from Facebook does not appear to be that uncommon. “Once I started liking those pages and joining those groups, Facebook just started recommending more and more and more and more, to the point where I was afraid to like them all in case Facebook would flag me as a bot,” said Friedberg. Erin Gallagher, a researcher who studies social media extremism, said she was also encouraged to join a QAnon group by Facebook, soon after joining an anti-lockdown group. [...]

June 25, 2020

Boston votes to ban government use of facial recognition - CNET

by J.C. DE MARTIN

https://www.cnet.com/news/boston-votes-to-ban-government-use-of-facial-reco… (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

June 25, 2020

Facebook loses ground in German legal battle over user data

by Enrico Nardelli

https://www.valleynewslive.com/content/news/Facebook-loses-Germany-court-ba… CBS NEWS - ZDNET Facebook has lost a court case in Germany over its terms of use and default privacy settings but has already filed an appeal. The case was brought about by a longstanding Facebook nemesis, the Federation of German Consumer Organisations, Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband, or VZBV. Over the years, the VZBV has targeted Facebook's Friend Finder tool and its deployment of users' photos in ads, and its data-sharing between WhatsApp and the parent social network. This time round, the Berlin regional court agreed with the VZBV that Facebook is breaking German data-protection law by collecting users' data without giving them the information they need to make informed choices. The court said Facebook's default settings break the law: its mobile app automatically has users sharing their location, and users' profiles are by default findable through search engines. The judges also agreed that eight of the clauses in Facebook's terms and conditions don't meet the legal standards needed to get users' effective consent, because they are too broadly phrased. ..... -- EN ===================================================================== Prof. Enrico Nardelli Dipartimento di Matematica - Universita' di Roma "Tor Vergata" Via della Ricerca Scientifica snc - 00133 Roma tel: +39 06 7259.4204 fax: +39 06 7259.4699 mobile: +39 335 590.2331 e-mail: nardelli(a)mat.uniroma2.it home page: http://www.mat.uniroma2.it/~nardelli blog: http://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/blog/enardelli/ http://link-and-think.blogspot.it/ ===================================================================== --

June 24, 2020