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U.S, E.U will seek to head off subsidy race over chip production, official says | Reuters
by Luigi Scorca May 16, 2022

May 16, 2022

https://www.reuters.com/technology/us-eu-will-seek-head-off-subsidy-race-ov… Luigi

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98° Nexa Lunch Seminar | 25 Maggio 2022 | Modalità Telematica
by Nexa Media May 16, 2022

May 16, 2022

Gentilissimi, vi segnaliamo che il 98° Nexa Lunch Seminar, /*"Disconnessioni digitali attiviste: repertori, limiti, orizzonti"*/, con ospite *Emiliano Treré *(Cardiff University), si svolgerà *mercoledì 25 maggio*, dalle ore 13.00 alle ore 14.00, in modalità telematica, utilizzando la piattaforma di videoconferenza BigBlueButton. Sarà possibile partecipare al seminario connettendosi al seguente indirizzo: https://didattica.polito.it/VClass/NexaEvent Nexa Center for Internet and Society Newsletter Se non visualizzi correttamente questo messaggio clicca qui <https://nexa.polito.it/lunch-98> NEXA 98° Nexa Lunch Seminar Mercoledì 25 maggio 2022, ore 13.00 - 14.00 https://nexa.polito.it/lunch-98 Disconnessioni digitali attiviste: repertori, limiti, orizzonti Speaker Emiliano Treré (Cardiff University) This event will be webcast live: https://nexa.polito.it/nexa-hangout-on-air *PARTECIPA ONLINE ALL'INCONTRO: https://didattica.polito.it/VClass/NexaEvent* Nel campo della comunicazione digitale e dei movimenti sociali, la letteratura ha teso a privilegiare una lettura degli attivisti come attori sociali iper-connessi che sfruttano al meglio le possibilità del digitale. Ma cosa succederebbe se invertissimo lo sguardo privilegiando invece le forme e i repertori di *disconnessione digitale*? Sulla base dei risultati di vari progetti su disconnessione e attivismo nel nord e sud globale, in questo breve intervento si rifletterà sul significato e l’impatto delle pratiche di *disconnessione digitale attiviste*. Nella prima parte, verranno contestualizzate queste pratiche all’interno delle recenti riflessioni su azione collettiva e tecnologie della comunicazione, distinguendo tra disconnessione digitale come repressione, resistenza e performance. Nella seconda parte, verranno quindi illustrate pratiche di disconnessione individuale e collettiva di gig workers osservate in Messico, Cina, Spagna e Italia. In particolare, si porranno in risalto tre tipi di pratiche: *disconnessione solidale, antisommossa e alternativa*. Nella conclusione dell’intervento si evidenzieranno infine i privilegi e le diseguaglianze che definiscono le scelte e la possibilità stessa di disconnetterci nella società digitale. BIOGRAFIA - e informazioni supplementari [Lunch98] *Emiliano TRERÉ* è Professore in Data Agency e Media Ecologies nella Scuola di Giornalismo, Media e Cultura della Università di Cardiff in Galles. È un autore ampiamente citato nell’ambito dell’attivismo digitale e negli studi critici sui dati, gli algoritmi e la disconnessione digitale, con particolare attenzione al Sud globale. Ha co-fondato l'iniziativa “Big Data from the South” e co-dirige il Data Justice Lab. Il suo libro Hybrid Media Activism (Routledge, 2019) ha vinto l'Outstanding Book Award dell'ICA Interest Group 'Activism, Communication and Social Justice'. *Letture consigliate e link utili:* * Kaun, A. and Treré, E. (2018). Repression, resistance and lifestyle: charting (dis)connection and activism in times of accelerated capitalism. /Social Movement Studies/, 19(5-6), pp. 697-715. LINK <https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14742837.2018.1555752> * Natale, S. and Treré, E. 2020. Vinyl won't save us: reframing disconnection as engagement. /Media, Culture and Society/ 42(4), pp. 626-633. LINK <https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0163443720914027> * Treré, E. 2021. Intensification, discovery and abandonment: unearthing global ecologies of dis/connection in pandemic times. /Convergence/, 27(6), pp. 1663–1677. LINK <https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/13548565211036804> * Yu, Z., Treré, E. and Bonini, T. 2022. The emergence of algorithmic solidarity: unveiling mutual aid practices and resistance among Chinese delivery workers. /Media International Australia/, 183: 1, pp. 107-123. LINK <https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1329878X221074793> * Dr. Emiliano Treré on digital activism, democracy and disconnection: VIDEO <https://www.diggitmagazine.com/videos/emiliano-trer%C3%A9-digital-activism> Che cosa sono il Centro Nexa e i cicli di incontri “Mercoledì di Nexa” e “Nexa Lunch Seminar” <https://www.facebook.com/nexa.center/> <https://twitter.com/nexacenter> <https://www.youtube.com/user/NexaCenter> <https://www.instagram.com/nexa_center/> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/3054864/admin/> #nexalunchseminar <https://twitter.com/search?q=%23nexalunchseminar&src=typd> #EmilianoTreré <https://twitter.com/EmilianoTrere> #CardiffUniversitySchoolofJournalismMediaandCulture <https://twitter.com/CardiffJomec> #CardiffUniversity <https://twitter.com/cardiffuni> Il Centro Nexa su Internet & Società del Politecnico di Torino (Dipartimento di Automatica e Informatica) dal 2006 è un centro di ricerca indipendente e interdisciplinare che, in collaborazione con l'Università di Torino, studia Internet (e più in generale le Tecnologie digitali) e i suoi rapporti con la società. Maggiori informazioni all'indirizzo: http://nexa.polito.it/about. Durante i “*Mercoledì di Nexa*”, che si tengono *ogni 2° mercoledì del mese* alle *ore 18 in punto*, il Centro Nexa su Internet e Società apre le sue porte non solo agli esperti e a tutti coloro i quali lavorano con Internet, ma anche a semplici appassionati e cittadini. Il ciclo di incontri intende approfondire, con un linguaggio preciso ma accessibile, i temi legati alla Rete: motori di ricerca, Creative Commons, social networks, open source/software libero, neutralità della rete, libertà di espressione, privacy, file sharing, big e open data, smart cities e molto altro. Al centro di quasi tutti gli incontri un ospite pronto a dialogare con i direttori del Centro Nexa, il Prof. Juan Carlos De Martin del Politecnico di Torino e il Prof. Marco Ricolfi dell'Università di Torino, nonché lo staff e i Fellows del Centro Nexa. Maggiori informazioni sui Mercoledì di Nexa, incluso un elenco di tutti i “Mercoledì” passati, sono disponibili all'indirizzo: http://nexa.polito.it/mercoledi. Si segnala inoltre che dal maggio 2012 *ogni 4° mercoledì* del mese *dalle ore 13 alle ore 14* il Centro Nexa organizza anche i "*Nexa Lunch Seminar*". Una lista di tutti i “Lunch Seminar” passati è disponibile all'indirizzo: http://nexa.polito.it/lunch-seminars. See our events calendar <http://nexa.polito.it/events> if you're curious about future luncheons, discussions, lectures, and conferences not listed in this email. Our events are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted. Responsabile Comunicazione Centro Nexa su Internet & Società: *Anita Botta*, tel: +39 011 090 7219, Mob: +39 347 131 3903, anita.botta(a)polito.it. Maggiori informazioni sui Mercoledì di Nexa e i Nexa Lunch Seminar, sono disponibili all'indirizzo: http://nexa.polito.it/events. Weekly Events Newsletter. Sign up <http://nexa.polito.it/mailing-lists> to receive this newsletter if this email was forwarded to you. To manage your subscription preferences, please click here <https://server-nexa.polito.it/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nexa>. Connect & get involved: Jobs, internships, and more <http://nexa.polito.it/get-involved>. Cordiali saluti, -- Anita Botta Communication Manager Nexa Center for Internet & Society Politecnico di Torino – DAUIN Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, 24 - 10129 Torino web: https://nexa.polito.it/ mail: anita.botta(a)polito.it tel: 011 090 7219

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Re: [nexa] the most i ()mportant AI law you’ve never heard of (MIT Technology Review)
by Giuseppe Attardi May 16, 2022

May 16, 2022

La proposta cosiddetta European AI Act è stata seriamente criticata dall’associazione CLAIRE, che raggruppa oltre 3000 ricercatori europei del settore. https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/1… La proposta parte da una definizione sbagliata di AI, che includerebbe qualunque sistema faccia uso di tecniche statistiche. Inoltre impone requisiti impossibili, ad esempio che sia garantito che “Training, validation and testing data sets shall be relevant, representative, free of errors and complete.” Poi richiede che ciascun paese investa “risorse umane adeguate” in un organismo nazionale incaricato di validare e verificare qualunque prodotto rientri nella categoria precedentemete definita di sistema di AI. Ciò significa tra cento e duecento persone, con una spesa che supera di gran lunga gli investimenti che gli stessi paesi farebbero nella ricerca e sviluppo di tecnologie AI. La normativa sembra minata da una contraddizione di fondo: si afferma in vario modo che su sistemi di AI non si può fare affidamento e dall’altra che attraverso un processo di certifucazione li si possa fare diventare tali. La direzione presa dall’EC di concentrarsi sulla regolamentazione, trascurando di investire nello sviluppo per padroneggiare la tecnologia, finirà per risultare perdente. Già adesso la produzione scientifica in AI è esplosa a livello mindiale, con oltre 300 articoli pubblicati su Arxive ogni giorno (giorno) e oltre 100 miliardi investiti a livello mondiale (vedi rapporto di Stanford su AI Index https://aiindex.stanford.edu/report/) La EC dopo aver promesso ingentiinvestimenti nella ricerca nel settore, si è finora impegnata per poche decine di milioni. Eppure la EC si è invece mossa rapidamente per investire 20 miliardi per rilanciare la produzione europea di semiconduttori, aggirando persino le sue stesse normative contro gli aiuti di stato. Ma lì è intervenuta la lobby dei costruttori di automobili, lamentandosi dei rischi di perdere indipendenza produttiva. Purtroppo aziende di AI o tanto meno di informatica sufficientemente influenti a livello europeo non ce ne sono. Pertanto l’Europa finirà per restare indietro in quella che è la terza GPT (General Purpose Technology), che cambierà drasticamente il nostro futuro. Le aziende Big Tech, che adesso già dominano, aumenteranno il loro dominio mediante l’AI, come spiega Moshe Vardi sulle CACM https://m-cacm.acm.org/magazines/2022/3/258894-acm-ethics-and-corporate-beh… Purtroppo stiamo perdendo un altro treno, come tanti altri che abbiamo perso in informatica (come ci ricorda spesso ARM), per mancanza di determinazione e di coraggio. — Beppe > On 15 May 2022, at 05:58, nexa-request(a)server-nexa.polito.it wrote: > > Date: Sat, 14 May 2022 22:36:20 +0200 > From: maurizio lana <maurizio.lana(a)uniupo.it> > To: nexa(a)server-nexa.polito.it > Subject: [nexa] the most i ()mportant AI law you’ve never heard of ( > MIT Technology Review) > Message-ID: <5f973b9b-3d33-140e-df3f-5a152ad60e39(a)uniupo.it> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed > > segnalo questo articolo dell'ultima uscita di MIT Technology Review: > https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/05/13/1052223/guide-ai-act-europe/ > intitolato "A quick guide to the most important AI law you’ve never > heard of". > questa "AI law", chiamata nell'articolo "EU AI Act", è se non erro > questa cosa qui: > /Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council > laying down harmonised rules on Artificial Intelligence (Artificial > Intelligence Act) and amending certain Union legislative acts/. 2021. > https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52021PC0206&… > <https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52021PC0206&…>. > > non mi sembra che se ne sia ancora parlato qui, ciò che mi colpisce è che > 1) come il GDPR avrà in prospettiva futura effetti anche fuori dell'Europa e > 2) che pur con tanti limiti e difetti che ci si possono trovare [chi non > fa non sbaglia], l'EU (Parlamento e Commissione) è l'unico soggetto > internazionale che opera legislativamente su queste materie dal punto di > vista di un interesse pubblico > Maurizio

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Authoritarian Regimes’ AI Innovation Advantage | Harvard Magazine
by Alberto Cammozzo May 15, 2022

May 15, 2022

"greater mass surveillance drives economic growth." <https://www.harvardmagazine.com/2022/05/right-now-authoritarian-regimes-art…> For the past decade, China has led the world in advanced-facial recognition systems. Chinese companies dominate the rankings of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Face Recognition Vendor Test, considered the accepted standard for judging the accuracy of these systems, and Chinese research papers on the subject are cited almost twice as often as American ones. Many experts recognize the importance of facial-recognition and other artificial-intelligence applications for promoting future economic growth through productivity gains, which makes understanding how China came to dominate this field a competitive concern. And after years of research, Harvard assistant professor of economics David Yang believes he’s discovered an explanation for the Chinese companies’ advantage. In a recent National Bureau of Economic Research working paper, Yang and his colleagues found that authoritarian states like China may have an inherent and decisive advantage over liberal democracies in facial-recognition innovation. Their secret? The flow of massive amounts of surveillance data to private AI companies that develop facial-recognition software for local police departments. Like all AI systems, facial-recognition systems depend on substantial quantities of training data to learn how to recognize faces: the more data they process, the more reliable they become. The researchers’ findings suggest Chinese AI firms use surveillance data to develop sophisticated facial-recognition algorithms that can later be repurposed for commercial applications like more effective targeted advertisements and tracking of customer behavior in stores, which creates a feedback loop where greater mass surveillance drives economic growth. It’s a startling conclusion that will likely have significant repercussions for the commercialization of AI systems in the United States and Europe. Yang’s findings suggest that policymakers in the West need to start considering the economic tradeoffs that come with strong protections for personal data rather than focusing solely on the value of privacy. In fact, the research suggests that overly strong data protections may turn out to be inadvertent anti-industrial policies that starve fledgling AI companies of the data they need to innovate. Unless these tensions are addressed soon, the United States may find itself far behind in the race to build one of the most important technologies of the twenty-first century. At the core of China’s burgeoning facial-recognition industry is an Orwellian mass surveillance system unparalled in scope and scale. More than half of the world’s roughly one billion surveillance cameras are within China’s borders, and nine of the world’s 10 most surveilled cities on a cameras-per-capita basis are Chinese. If Chinese companies are able to tap into this video surveillance network through government contracts they should be able to develop superior algorithms and parlay these systems into commercial applications. “If you want to do any sort of customer identification or personalized advertisements, then being able to identify who comes into a shop for the first time and who is a repeat customer is super important information,” says Yang. “From an algorithm perspective, these commercial applications sound very similar to what a police department might want to do on its own. So once a company uses government data to improve its facial-recognition system’s accuracy rate, it’s natural that it would also use it to help retailers make predictions about their customers.” It’s an intuitive theory, but until Yang and his colleagues collected the data there was scant evidence to support the hypothesis. The researchers started by analyzing publicly available listings of Chinese facial-recognition companies and their major products, which the government requires to be reported to its Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. They identified approximately 1,000 companies that had received a contract to supply local police departments with facial-recognition software, which presumably came with access to local surveillance video data. The researchers’ next step was to determine whether the volume of video data received by these firms correlated with their output of commercial facial-recognition products. They sorted the contracts by the number of surveillance cameras in the police district and labeled contracts with above average numbers of cameras “data-rich” and those with below average numbers of cameras “data-scarce.” There may be “economic tradeoffs that come with strong protections for personal data….” If access to data-rich government contracts didn’t influence the development of commercial facial-recognition software, the researchers would have expected to see a drop in commercial products as firms reallocated engineering talent to service the government contract. But they found the opposite. Firms that secured a data-rich facial-recognition contract with police departments almost immediately produced more facial-recognition software for government /and/ commercial applications than those with a data-scarce contract. This suggests that the government data boost AI innovation because they are applicable to both government and commercial applications. “Our speculation is that this happens because of algorithm spillover,” says Yang. “The companies don’t need to decide between allocating engineering resources to government or commercial applications because the same algorithm can be applied in multiple places at the same time.” The findings have important implications for how the United States and other western countries think about the tradeoff between data privacy and economic policies. While Yang is hesitant to draw any normative conclusions from this work, he says that it does show how one-sided the debate on AI and data ethics has become in the West. By focusing only on the privacy implications of facial-recognition technology, policymakers have ignored the economic effects of denying data to AI firms that need it to develop their technology. As a result, facial- recognition firms have flourished in authoritarian countries like China that lack robust data-privacy protections—and languished in the United States and Europe. Yang says the key to unlocking similar AI innovation in the West may involve reframing access to government data as key public infrastructure comparable to roads or bridges without sacrificing basic privacy protections and civil liberties. “A lot of privacy-protection policies could have anti-industrial consequences because it hurts industries that rely on that data,” he says. “I’m not suggesting whether these policies are or are not justified, but there is an asymmetry in the discussion that only focuses on the value of privacy. Once the economic value is taken into consideration, we can start to think about whether the civil-liberty costs outweigh the economic potential of these innovations.”

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Norway to replace BankID on mobile with biometric apps for improved security | Biometric Update
by Alberto Cammozzo May 15, 2022

May 15, 2022

<https://www.biometricupdate.com/202205/norway-to-replace-bankid-on-mobile-w…> Norway says it plans to replace the digital ID authentication platform BankID <https://www.bankid.no/en/private/> with new apps that will require either face or fingerprint biometrics, and passwords or PINs in some cases, for users to log in and access banking services online, reports NRK <https://www.nrk.no/sorlandet/bankid-pa-mobil-blir-historie_-_-vil-gjore-hve…>. Moves to transition from the BankID to a biometric system were disclosed by an official of Norwegian national payment system BankAxept, Jan Bjerved, in an interview with the country’s public broadcaster, according to a Google translation of the report. The official says replacing the BankID, which has been in use since 2009, is not only meant to streamline the way people can verify their digital identity online, but it will also reduce the time required to log in to 10 seconds, down from 30. The new system will also enhance user security. Bjerved says it is not yet clear when the old system will be phased out but that may likely happen next year, although the intention is to allow a smooth transition from the old to the new system, writes The Local. The article also cites an official from the security department of the National Communications Authority (NKOM), Svein Scheie, as saying another reason for transiting from the BankID system is that the technology on which it was build has become obsolete. Scheie says the system was designed for mobile devices with physical SIM cards, but many mobile devices these days do not function with traditional SIMs. “Many mobile companies are moving away from physical SIM cards. Then it will not be possible to use BankID on mobile as it is today,” Scheie says. Meanwhile, Scheie adds that the physical version of the BankID will remain in use for those who want to. BankID was reported late last year to have 4.3 million users <https://www.biometricupdate.com/202112/e2-8m-funding-for-startup-mobais-bio…>, many of them interacting with the app on a daily basis. The software company behind the app, Vipps, said around the same time that it would integrate biometrics to enforce different levels of authorization <https://www.biometricupdate.com/202111/digital-parenting-minimized-fraud-an…>, as the app’s use is so commonplace people may let friends or relatives use it.

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Curiosità cinesi
by don Luca Peyron May 15, 2022

May 15, 2022

Forse solo un titolo, o forse un ulteriore tassello di un trend https://www.ilmessaggero.it/AMP/tecnologia/cina_diga_stampa_3d_intelligenza… Buona lettura e buona domenica Dl

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articoli sulla rivista Gli Asini
by J.C. DE MARTIN May 15, 2022

May 15, 2022

Non mi sembra sia già stato segnalato in lista l'ultimo numero della rivista Gli Asini, con articoli (tra gli altri) di: Giacomo Tesio, "A scuola di Google" Angelo Raffaele Meo, "Scuola e università: perché preferire il software libero" Davide Lamanna, "I pifferai magici del Cloud Computing e la pubblica amministrazione italiana" https://gliasinirivista.org/rivista/maggio-99-2022/ Bravi! jc

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the most i ()mportant AI law you’ve never heard of ( MIT Technology Review)
by maurizio lana May 14, 2022

May 14, 2022

segnalo questo articolo dell'ultima uscita di MIT Technology Review: https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/05/13/1052223/guide-ai-act-europe/ intitolato "A quick guide to the most important AI law you’ve never heard of". questa "AI law", chiamata nell'articolo "EU AI Act", è se non erro questa cosa qui: /Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down harmonised rules on Artificial Intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act) and amending certain Union legislative acts/. 2021. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52021PC0206&… <https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52021PC0206&…>. non mi sembra che se ne sia ancora parlato qui, ciò che mi colpisce è che 1) come il GDPR avrà in prospettiva futura effetti anche fuori dell'Europa e 2) che pur con tanti limiti e difetti che ci si possono trovare [chi non fa non sbaglia], l'EU (Parlamento e Commissione) è l'unico soggetto internazionale che opera legislativamente su queste materie dal punto di vista di un interesse pubblico Maurizio ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |mural of Giulio Regeni in Mohammed Mahmoud Street, Cairo the source is https://alwafd.news/images/thumbs/752/new/027f918bb62bf148193d5920ca67ded7.… the meaning of the place https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-20395260| ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Maurizio Lana Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici Università del Piemonte Orientale piazza Roma 36 - 13100 Vercelli tel. +39 347 7370925

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Hackers Are Now Demanding NVIDIA To Make Their Drivers Open Source Or They Will Leak More Data
by Giacomo Tesio May 14, 2022

May 14, 2022

After evaluating our position and NVIDIA's, we decided to add one more requirement. We request that NVIDIA commits to COMPLETELY OPEN-SOURCE (and distribute under a foss license) their GPU drivers for Windows, macOS and Linux, from now on and forever. It this request is not met, on Friday we will release the COMPLETE SILICON, GRAPHICS AND COMPUTER CHIPSET FILES for all recent NVIDIA GPUs, including the RTX 3090Ti and UPCOMING REVISIONS! Of course, this includes all files with extensions such as .v, .vx, .vg and more. So, NVIDIA, the choice is yours! Either: - Official make current and all future drivers for all cards open source, while keeping the Verilog and chipset trade secrets... well, secret OR - Not make the drivers open source, making us release the entire silicon chip files so that everyone not only knows your driver's secrets, but also your most closely-guarded trade secrets for graphics and comuputer chipsets too! YOU HAVE UNTIL FRIDAY, YOU DECIDE! https://t.me/minsaudebr/144 Contesto: https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/03/cybercriminals-who-b… E' importante notare come questi hacker non richiedano denaro. Chiedono conoscenza, e non solo per sé, ma per tutti. E oggi è venerdì. :-) Giacomo

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Will Elon Musk’s Twitter 2.0 unmask anonymous Arab dissidents? | Technology News | Al Jazeera
by Alberto Cammozzo May 13, 2022

May 13, 2022

<https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/5/3/will-elon-musks-twitter-2-0-unmask-…> Twitter appears to be going private, leaving dissidents in the Middle East and North Africa concerned that a safe space to speak freely, amid various forms of state censorship, is about to disappear. Under the prospective ownership of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the popular social media app is expected to undergo changes. But turning Twitter into a private venture with no oversight means some of these changes are bound to restrict the safety and privacy of users, effectively silencing them, activists and experts say. Along with making algorithms open-source and defeating the controversial issue of bots, the billionaire entrepreneur, who reached a buyout deal with Twitter Inc. last week, has also pledged to “authenticate all humans”. “No matter how you spin it, this will exclude certain users of the platform,” Jillian York, director for international freedom of expression at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), told Al Jazeera. Many have questioned how the self-proclaimed “free-speech absolutist” plans to go about verifying the identity of human users and whether it would force anonymous users to reveal their real identities. If “authenticating all humans” includes de-anonymisation, it is “sure to have a profoundly negative impact on pro-democracy movements across the globe”, Kareem Rifai, a Syrian-American pro-democracy activist, told Al Jazeera. “De-anonymisation makes it dangerous or impossible for opposition activists living under dictatorial regimes to safely criticise their oppressors,” Rifai said. What does ‘authenticating all humans’ mean? Authenticating human users is a process that can be done in various ways. Wael Alalwani, a digital rights advocate and data scientist, explained it could range from “ticking a CAPTCHA box … all the way to uploading official documents and personal photos”. Regardless of how it’s done, both York and Alalwani agree there is “absolutely” cause for concern. While authentication was mentioned as a “solution” to the flourishing bots and spam presence on Twitter, Alalwani believes these “can’t be solved by authentication per se”. Combatting bots in a linear manner may lead to unintended consequences, that do not serve the long-term objective, he said, adding that Twitter users who tweet anonymously against repressive governments will be the first segment affected if they end up revealing their identity. York agrees. “A user who tweets anonymously against a repressive regime … would have to weigh their physical safety against the importance of their work – a choice they shouldn’t have to make,” she said. “I would like to see bots gone, as Musk said, but I’ll still not be happy if anonymous accounts were not allowed any more”, a Cairo-based Twitter user whose pseudonym is The Big Pharaoh, told Al Jazeera. The Big Pharaoh, who has been blogging anonymously since 2004, is known for their strong stance against the Egyptian government. They have nearly 75,000 Twitter followers. They say their anonymity stems from “security concerns”, but also because their blog – also The Big Pharaoh – has become synonymous with their pseudonym. Clamping down on dissent In their earlier days, platforms like Twitter and Facebook provided activists with the means to organise and amplify their demands, essentially becoming key tools that played a role in kickstarting some of the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011. In the few years leading up to the revolutions, dissenting voices who had been blogging anonymously since the early 2000s found a wider audience on Twitter as the platform’s popularity skyrocketed after 2008. In a political climate that did not allow independent media to thrive, local activists like The Big Pharaoh were finally able to offer an alternative view that resonated with millions of people. This was also the case for Mahmoud Salem, an Egyptian cybersecurity analyst who authored the blog Rantings of a Sandmonkey. In 2005, Salem started blogging anonymously in a bid to fuel debate on social and political issues at home and in the region. He later turned to Twitter and now shares his thoughts with more than 176,000 followers. Salem says it was “super important” to be able to tweet anonymously in the lead up to the Egyptian uprising, especially in terms of “not confusing the message with the messenger”. Tweeting anonymously, he explained, meant that you were stripped of any labels or affiliations. Egypt Salem, eventually revealed his identity in February 2011, after he said he was almost killed by the police, who briefly detained him for participating in a protest in downtown Cairo. According to Salem, if Twitter decides to force users to relinquish personal information under Musk, it will be the “end of online anonymous activism”, suggesting that users may start to move elsewhere, with the encrypted messaging app Telegram being “the most obvious option”. Salem believes it may also be the end of “fake accounts, and by extension Twitter users’ growth”, casting doubt on whether the new feature will be implemented at all. The formerly anonymous activist now “sporadically” blogs using his real name, but no longer lives in Egypt. “It made sense to leave”, he said, after his friends and business partners all “ended up arrested or exiled”. In recent years, Egypt has launched an unprecedented crackdown on the media, imprisoning dozens and occasionally expelling foreign journalists. In 2019, it introduced tighter restrictions that allow the state to block websites and social media accounts for “fake news” or incitement. And just last week, in Syria, where President Bashar al-Assad’s government violently repressed what began as a peaceful uprising in 2011, amendments were made to existing cybercrime laws that would imprison Syrians for up to 15 years for criticising the regime. ‘Protect the privacy of users’ Despite Twitter becoming a haven for hate speech and disinformation over the years, anonymous users have still been able to speak freely without fearing immediate reprisals. To better shield and support anonymous users, The Big Pharaoh said Twitter should continue to “protect the privacy of users”. Salem agreed. “If such a process exists, then there needs to be a mechanism that prevents Twitter from sharing said information,” he said. Otherwise, Twitter may be aiding regimes in extending their repressive practices to digital spaces, too. Alalwani warns that knowing the real identities of activists could “augment the mass-surveillance activities applied by governments with the support of the new Twitter”. While Twitter has historically handed user data to foreign governments in response to legal requests, it has done so carefully and, at times, “fought back when they deem such requests to be unjust”, York said. However, Musk has so far given no indication that he has a sense of the issue. In a tweet published on Tuesday, Musk says: “By ‘free speech’, I simply mean that which matches the law.” He continues: “I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law. If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect.” The statement alarmed activists, who cross the free speech boundary set by their respective governments and guarded by Musk, and indicates “their data could be easily shared with the government to enforce the law”, Alalwani said. Instead of the app being in the hands of a sole private owner with huge infamous influence, ways of “collective governance, co-ownership, and data ownership should be discussed”, he suggested.

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