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How Facebook Warps Our Worlds
by fabio chiusi May 22, 2016

May 22, 2016

Frank Bruni, NyTimes THOSE who’ve been raising alarms about Facebook are right: Almost every minute that we spend on our smartphones and tablets and laptops, thumbing through favorite websites and scrolling through personalized feeds, we’re pointed toward foregone conclusions. We’re pressured to conform.But unseen puppet masters on Mark Zuckerberg’s payroll aren’t to blame. We’re the real culprits. When it comes to elevating one perspective above all others and herding people into culturally and ideologically inflexible tribes, nothing that Facebook does to us comes close to what we do to ourselves.I’m talking about how we use social media in particular and the Internet in general — and how we let them use us. They’re not so much agents as accomplices, new tools for ancient impulses, part of “a long sequence of technological innovations that enable us to do what we want,” noted the social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, who wrote the 2012 best seller “The Righteous Mind,” when we spoke last week.“And one of the things we want is to spend more time with people who think like us and less with people who are different,” Haidt added. “The Facebook effect isn’t trivial. But it’s catalyzing or amplifying a tendency that was already there.”...http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/22/opinion/sunday/how-facebook-war…

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The blockchain is a threat to the distributed future of the Internet
by Alessandro Mantelero May 22, 2016

May 22, 2016

The blockchain is a threat to the distributed future of the Internet https://english.lasindias.com/blockchain-is-a-threat-to-the-distributed-fut… -- Prof. Avv. Alessandro Mantelero Politecnico di Torino Nexa Center for Internet and Society | Director of Privacy Politecnico di Torino–Tongji University| Coordinator, Double Degree program in Management and IP Law Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology | Part-time Expert, School of Public Administration European Data Protection Law Review | Associate Editor http://staff.polito.it/alessandro.mantelero EMAIL POLICY: twice a day (Mon-Fri)

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violazione della privacy- sentenze on line
by Mauro Alovisio May 21, 2016

May 21, 2016

Gent.me/mi segnalo sentenza di interesse che ha riconosciuto la violazione della privacy nel caso di diffusione di dati sanitari attraverso la pubblicazione on line di sentenze della Corte dei Conti http://www.adnkronos.com/fatti/cronaca/2016/05/20/piu-privacy-sulla-salute-… Buon fine settimana Mauro Alovisio

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analisi documenti Datagate
by Alberto Cammozzo May 21, 2016

May 21, 2016

German journalists about working with the Snowden documents Last Monday, the website The Intercept started publishing larger batches <https://theintercept.com/snowden-sidtoday/> of documents from the Snowden trove, so they can now also be examined by the public. It's a new phase after previously documents were generally disclosed as part of journalistic reports, but the number of such publications steadily declined over the last two years. For how it was to work with the Snowden documents can be learned from an interesting interview <http://www.isarrunde.de/nr15/arbeiten-mit-geheimen-snowden-dokumenten.html> with two journalists from the German Magazine Der Spiegel. They not only published a whole range of articles based upon the Top Secret NSA documents, but also a book <http://www.randomhouse.de/Buch/Der-NSA-Komplex/Marcel-Rosenbach/e460131.rhd> which is much more informative than that of Glenn Greenwald. <http://electrospaces.blogspot.it/2016/05/german-journalists-about-working-w…>

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Impatto della legge dell'Illionois sulla biometria sull'entertainment
by Alberto Cammozzo May 21, 2016

May 21, 2016

Why Hollywood Should Pay Attention to Biometric Privacy An Illinois biometric law is sparking a wave of class actions [] The Illinois law <http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=3004&ChapterID=57> was enacted in 2008 upon the appearance of finger-scan technologies at grocery stores, gas stations and school cafeterias. There was growing concern of how biometric identifiers could be misused. In the past year, though, this statute has captured the attention of class-action attorneys. Much like the spate of lawsuits targeting entertainment companies <http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/how-entertainment-companies-are-fi…> over the Video Privacy Protection Act, there have been a growing number of class actions over biometric privacy. And they are proving a nuisance for defendants. In April, Shutterfly settled a lawsuit <https://www.dataprivacyandsecurityinsider.com/2016/04/shutterfly-settles-il…> after a judge refused to accept its argument that the Illinois law's exemption on photographs left it immune from claims. Two weeks ago, a judge rejected Facebook's argument <http://www.theverge.com/2016/5/5/11605068/facebook-photo-tagging-lawsuit-bi…> that its terms of service meant that it was only bound by California and federal laws. Google is also facing a biometric suit. And it's not just tech companies. The Illinois law has already hit the outer reaches of the entertainment industry. Last October, video game maker Take-Two Interactive was hit with a putative class action over its /NBA 2K15/ and /NBA 2K16/ games. It's alleged in the complaint that Take-Two had failed to obtain informed consent from those using PS4 and Xbox cameras to scan their facial geometry to create personable basketball player avatars. The case is being litigated in New York thanks to a forum clause in the user agreement, but that's not stopping the judge from examining whether Take-Two is violating Illinois' biometric statute by collecting and storing face scans. Interestingly, a ruling last week by the U.S. Supreme Court could impact these lawsuits. In /Spokeo v. Robins/, the high court ruled <http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/15pdf/13-1339_f2q3.pdf> that to have standing, plaintiffs must show an injury that is both “concrete and particularized.” In other words, merely showing a company is storing biometric data might not be enough. There's got to be concrete harm, whatever that means. The Supreme Court kicked it back to a lower appeals court to examine. Just a day after it did so, Take-Two told its judge about the /Spokeo/ development. Take-Two has a pending motion (read here <https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2840029-TakeTwo-Biometric.html>) that's premised on the argument that because there's no allegation that /NBA 2K16 /users have been "aggrieved" by biometric collection, the lawsuit should be dismissed. [] <http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/why-hollywood-should-pay-attention…>

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How the Chinese Government Fabricates Social Media Posts for Strategic Distraction, not Engaged Argument
by fabio chiusi May 20, 2016

May 20, 2016

Abstract The Chinese government has long been suspected of hiring as many as 2,000,000people to surreptitiously insert huge numbers of pseudonymous and other deceptivewritings into the stream of real social media posts, as if they were the genuine opinionsof ordinary people. Almost all scholars, activists, journalists, and participantsin social media claim these so-called “Fifty Cent Party” posts argue vociferously forthe government’s side in political and policy debates. Yet, almost no systematic empiricalevidence exists for this claim, or, more importantly, for the Chinese regime’sstrategic objective in pursuing this activity. In the first large scale empirical analysisof this operation, we show how to identify the secretive authors of these posts,the posts written by them, and their content. We estimate that the government fabricatesand posts about 488 million social media comments a year. In contrast to priorclaims, we show that the Chinese regime’s strategy is to avoid arguing with skepticsof the party and the government, and to not even discuss controversial issues. Weinfer that the goal of this massive secretive operation is instead to regularly distractthe public and change the subject, as most of the these posts involve cheerleadingfor China, the revolutionary history of the Communist Party, or other symbols ofthe regime. We discuss how these results fit with what is known about the Chinesecensorship program, and suggest how they may change our broader theoretical understandingof “common knowledge” and information control in authoritarian regimes Il paper qui: http://gking.harvard.edu/files/gking/files/50c.pdf f.

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EU cybersecurity and police chiefs reach breakthrough agreement on encryption – EurActiv.com
by Pier Paolo Franco May 20, 2016

May 20, 2016

TWIMC: *EU cybersecurity and police chiefs reach breakthrough agreement on encryption – EurActiv.comTwo EU agencies that have been on opposite sides of a heated debate over encryption just agreed on limits to law enforcement agencies' access to private data.http://www.euractiv.com/section/digital/news/eu-cybersecurity-and-poli… <http://www.euractiv.com/section/digital/news/eu-cybersecurity-and-police-ch…>*

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The digital Gilded Age: DC faces Silicon Valley's riches – and ever-growing power | Technology | The Guardian
by J.C. DE MARTIN May 20, 2016

May 20, 2016

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/apr/17/zuckerberg-trump-silicon… (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

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Canada: Examination of differential pricing practices related to Internet data plans
by J.C. DE MARTIN May 19, 2016

May 19, 2016

Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2016-192 Ottawa, 18 May 2016 /File number: 1011-NOC2016-0192 <https://services.crtc.gc.ca/pub/instances-proceedings/Default-defaut.aspx?E…>/ Notice of hearing 31 October 2016 Gatineau, Quebec Examination of differential pricing practices related to Internet data plans *Deadline for submission of interventions: 17 June 2016* [Submit an intervention or view related documents <https://services.crtc.gc.ca/pub/instances-proceedings/Default-defaut.aspx?E…>] The Commission will hold a public hearing, beginning on *31**October 2016* at *9:00 a.m.*, at the *Conference Centre, Phase IV, 140 Promenade du Portage*, in *Gatineau, Quebec*. /The Commission hereby initiates a proceeding to examine the policy issues surrounding the use of differential pricing practices by Canadian Internet service providers related to the provision of Internet data plans. This proceeding stems from an application made by several parties concerning the pricing practices used by Videotron when offering its Unlimited Music service to its mobile wireless customers. / /As a result of this proceeding, it is expected that Canadians and Internet service providers alike will benefit from a clear and transparent regulatory policy regarding differential pricing practices for Internet data plans. / […] Continua qui: http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/archive/2016/2016-192.htm

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Jacobin: "Against the Crowdfunding Economy"
by J.C. DE MARTIN May 19, 2016

May 19, 2016

*Against the Crowdfunding Economy* /Crowdfunding websites marketize goodwill./ by Keith A. Spencer Which people get to live their dreams and which do not? In the art world, as elsewhere, success is often tightly correlated with pedigree and acceptance into elite institutions. Simpsons writers are likely to be Harvard grads; musician and writer Leonard Cohen purchased his Greek artist’s retreat with his trust fund; Lena Dunham’s debt-free college education gave her the financial freedom to make her first film. Of course most artists aren’t so lucky. And amid the increasing consumption of digital media, the conditions for success have become ever more fraught. Instant access to media — and the massive amount of free content online — makes many feel they should be able to watch, listen, or read whatever they want, whenever they want, at no cost to them. Tech companies, in turn, rely on free content to get eyeballs on their advertisements, and make a tidy profit in the process. Hence, while Silicon Valley profits from our collective free labor, many once-remunerated artists are now paid in exposure. Famed rocker Iggy Pop recently admitted that he couldn’t survive off his music anymore. Actor Wil Wheaton described his frustration last year at being solicited by Huffington Post to write for free. And Nobel Prize–winning poet Tomas Transtromer was never able to support himself as an artist. […] Continua qui: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2016/05/crowdfunding-kickstarter-gofundme-charit…

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