TL;DR: With Firefox 56, Mozilla combined Firefox Health Report and Telemetry data into a single setting called “technical and interaction data”, which was then enabled by default. This data was then shared with advertising partners on a de-identified or aggregated basis.

Privacy Badger on Bluesky

Using an older version of Firefox?

ALL add-ons will stop working on Firefox versions older than 128 (or older than ESR 115.13+) on March 14, in just a few days from now.

To keep using your add-ons including Privacy Badger, you will need to update Firefox: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/root-certificate-expiration

I haven't played Minecraft since 2015, but I get the feeling I might again in the new few years as I wanna find new hobbies. I know that game has changed a whole lot but I don't have any official online data on it.

I've had this Microsoft account for over a decade and its probably full of personal information that I wanna let go of, I've already exported all my data. I would need to pay $30 for another copy of Minecraft, same price I paid in 2013. I just did a bunch of searching and its not possible to transfer my Minecraft license to another account.

We're very happy to share Techlore's video review of the BusKill Kill Cord.

Can't see video above? Watch it on PeerTube at neat.tube or on YouTube at youtu.be/Zns0xObbOPM

Disclaimer: We gave Techlore a free BusKill Kit for review; we did not pay them nor restrict their impartiality and freedom to publish an independent review. For more information, please see Techlore's Review Unit Protocols policy. We did require them to make the video open-source as a condition of receiving this free review unit. The above video is licensed CC BY-SA; you are free to redistribute it. If you are a video producer and would like a free BusKill Kit for review, please contact us

To see the full discussion about this video on the Techolore forums, see:

• discuss.techlore.tech/t/buskill-secure-your-laptop-in-seconds

Support BusKill

We're looking forward to continuing to improve the BusKill software and looking for other avenues to distribute our hardware BusKill cable to make it more accessible this year.

If you want to help, please consider purchasing a BusKill cable for yourself or a loved one. It helps us fund further development, and you get your own BusKill cable to keep you or your loved ones safe.

Buy a BusKill Cable
https://buskill.in/buy

You can also buy a BusKill cable with bitcoin, monero, and other altcoins from our BusKill Store's .onion site.

Stay safe,
The BusKill Team
https://www.buskill.in/
http://www.buskillvampfih2iucxhit3qp36i2zzql3u6pmkeafvlxs3tlmot5yad.onion/

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/2088202

Archived

[...]

For their own people [the Chinese Communist Party, CCP, has] imposed a dystopia, including the “great firewall” to control information from the outside. It also exerts strict control over domestic Internet information, uses a vast surveillance camera network with facial recognition and monitors financial transactions done online. If the CCP can think of any way to impose more control over their subjects they will do it.

Abroad they traditionally used RICE (Reward, Ideology, Coercion and Ego) techniques to not only recruit spies, they have used it to win over politicians, scientists and other useful people. They have weaponized overseas Chinese community groups, taken over their media and even set up police stations around the world.

Through software like ByteDance’s TikTok they are capable of sweeping data collection, while Chinese hackers steal all sorts of information and attack online systems. Huawei used their telecommunications equipment to collect yet more.

They have worked to subvert algorithms even in foreign Web sites by flooding the Internet with disinformation and misinformation. Their infamous “little pink” and “50-cent” armies roam the Internet spreading their agenda.

MAKING PROPAGANDA

AI is taking this to an exponentially higher level.

The CCP is investing heavily in AI because it opens opportunities for the CCP’s United Front Work Department (UFWD) and Ministry of State Security (MSS) to vastly increase its power worldwide.

While Hailuo [a very popular AI used to create videos which is based in Shanghai] can be very useful in creating propaganda, TikTok owner ByteDance’s just released OmniHuman-1, which is explicitly for deepfakes and is shockingly good. It is able to produce videos from pictures, video and audio fed by the user to create videos realistic enough to require paying attention.

[...]

The gullible will fall for outrageous deepfakes in partisan social media, but these are pretty easy to discredit. It is the more subtle videos that are concerning because they can be used subtly to change the narrative, such as editing a video of the US Secretary of State and swap out “one China policy” for “one China principle.”

[...]

The release last month of DeepSeek-R1 AI by Hangzhou-based High Flyer rightly attracted a vast amount of attention. Users amused themselves trying to get around the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) imposed censorship, but more alarmingly hackers discovered unprotected data ports [in Deepseek], that data was being shared with TikTok and many reminded us that by law they must share any data with the CCP.

[...]

Perhaps intentionally to avoid widespread press scrutiny, the most powerful AI agent ever, UI-TARS, was released during the DeepSeek hoopla. AI agents by American companies require a paid subscription but offer powerful research capabilities and other functions by taking over a browser and doing work for you.

Unlike previous AI agents, UI-TARS comes in two varieties, one taking over the browser like the others, but with a second option to take over the entire computer or phone.

It can install software, scrape any bit of data it likes and make all sorts of modifications all on its own following whatever instructions it is given whether online or not. That could completely change how we work, play and communicate on our devices.

UI-TARS is open source, so unlike the American AI agents, developers can access, modify and distribute the software for free. This should encourage widespread adoption, including under different branding as long as they retain the original copyright notice, license text and notices in the source code, which non-coders never read.

Why would they do this for free instead of requiring a subscription? To make sure it gets on to as many devices as possible.

How nice of ByteDance, the developer of UI-TARS.

[...]

Soon people will be downloading off-brand UI-TARS without knowing it, and there could be hundreds or even thousands of brands running it. Your [...] AI agent running on UI-TARS can act as spyware tracking your every move and stealing all your data for Beijing, and it will know everything about you — opening up blackmail opportunities on a massive scale.

[...]

As is the case on TikTok, results playing up the CCP line would also be prioritized and content scrubbed from the results as DeepSeek-R1 AI does now, albeit still rather clumsily. DeepSeek-generated articles and books, propaganda videos made with Hailuo AI and deepfake videos made or modified by OmniHuman would feature prominently.

Millions of people around the world could soon be constantly surveiled through their own cameras and microphones, monitored and tracked and living in an alternate information reality — just like in China.

The CCP would have the ability to control nearly every aspect of these people’s lives — just like in China.

But unlike the Chinese, they would not even know how much power they have lost to the CCP.

Trying to move away from FireFox.

I know that there is LibreWolf and GNU IceCat.

What are the pros and cons for each?

I tried GNU IceCat and I don't know how to install extensions. How to get extensions for GNU IceCat? Is it easier on LibreWolf?

I need the following extensions:

• ublock origin
• send to MPV player
• privacy badger
• Distraction free youtube
• Unhook
• LeechBlock NG
• Privacy Badger
• Tab Session Manager
• KeePassXC-Browser

It has been around a month since my last similar post, so it might be interesting to have a look at the stats

[email protected]

• 735 users / day
• 2.42K users / week
• 3.52K users / month

[email protected]

• 11 users / day
• 19 users / week
• 507 users / month

If people want to have a look at other privacy communities: https://lemmyverse.net/communities?query=privacy&order=active

In a nutshell, [email protected] is the most active after [email protected] (Week: 4.4k / Month: 7.2k)

Safe email client

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/56161993

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/29755539

South Korea has accused Chinese AI startup DeepSeek of sharing user data with the owner of TikTok in China.

"We confirmed DeepSeek communicating with ByteDance," the South Korean data protection regulator told Yonhap News Agency.

The country had already removed DeepSeek from app stores over the weekend over data protection concerns.

...

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/36880616

Help Combat Internet Censorship by Running a Snowflake Proxy (Browser or Android)

Internet censorship remains a critical threat to free expression and access to information worldwide. In regions like Iran, Russia, and Belarus, journalists, activists, and ordinary citizens face severe restrictions when trying to communicate or access uncensored news. You can support their efforts by operating a Snowflake proxy—a simple, low-impact way to contribute to a freer internet. No technical expertise is required. Here’s how it works:

What Is Snowflake?

Snowflake is a privacy tool integrated with the Tor network. By running a Snowflake proxy, you temporarily route internet traffic for users in censored regions, allowing them to bypass government or institutional blocks. Unlike traditional Tor relays, Snowflake requires minimal bandwidth, no configuration, and no ongoing maintenance. Your device acts as a temporary bridge, not a permanent node, ensuring both safety and ease of use.

Is This Safe for Me?

Short answer: Yes.

Long answer: pobably. Here is why:

• Your IP address is not exposed to the websites they access. So, you don't have to worry about what they are doing either. You are not an exit node.
• No activity logs. Snowflake cannot monitor or record what users do through your connection. The only stored information is how many people have connected to your bridge. Check docs for further info on this.
• Low resource usage. The data consumed is comparable to background app activity—far less than streaming video or music.
• No direct access to your system
• No storage of sensitive data. Snowflake proxies do not store any sensitive data, such as IP addresses or browsing history, on your system.
• Encrypted communication. All communication between the Snowflake proxy and the Tor network is encrypted, making it difficult for attackers to intercept or manipulate data.

You are not hosting a VPN or a full Tor relay. Your role is limited to facilitating encrypted connections, similar to relaying a sealed envelope.

Your IP address is exposed to the user (in a P2P-like connection). Be mindful that your ISP could also potentially see the WebRTC traffic and the connections being made to it (but not the contents), so be mindful of your threat model.

For most users, it is generally safe to run Snowflake proxies. Theoretically, your ISP will be able to know that there are connections being made there, but to them it will look like you're calling someone on, say, Zoom.

Historically, as far as we know, there haven't been any cases of people getting in legal trouble for running entry relays, middle relays, or bridges. There have a been a few cases of people running exit nodes and getting in trouble with law enforcement agencies, but none of them have been arrested or prosecuted as far as I know it. If you are aware of any cases, let me know so I can update this post.

Do not hesitate to check Snowflake's official documentation for further reference and to make informed decisions.

How to Set Up a Snowflake Proxy

Option 1: Browser Extension (Brave, Firefox, or Chrome)

1. Install the Snowflake extension.
2. Click the Snowflake icon in your browser toolbar and toggle "Enable Snowflake."
3. Keep the browser open. That’s all.

Note: Brave users can enable Snowflake directly in settings. Navigate to brave://settings/privacy and activate the option under "Privacy and security."

Option 2: Android Devices via Orbot

1. Download Orbot (Tor’s official Android app).
2. Open the app’s menu, select "Snowflake Proxy," and toggle it on.
3. For continuous operation, keep your device charged and connected to Wi-Fi.

Your device will now contribute as a proxy whenever the app is active.

Addressing Common Concerns

• Battery drain: Negligible. Snowflake consumes fewer resources than typical social media or messaging apps.
• Data usage: Most users report under 1 GB per month. Adjust data limits in Orbot’s settings or restrict operation to Wi-Fi if necessary.

Why Your Participation Matters

Censorship mechanisms grow more sophisticated every year, but tools like Snowflake empower ordinary users to counteract them. Each proxy strengthens the Tor network’s resilience, making it harder for authoritarian regimes to isolate their populations. By donating a small amount of bandwidth, you provide someone with a critical connection to uncensored information, education, and global dialogue.

Recent surges in demand—particularly in Russia—highlight the urgent need for more proxies. Your contribution, however small, has an impact.

By participating, you become part of a global effort to defend digital rights and counter censorship. Please, also be mindful of your threat mode and understand the potential risks (though very little for most people). Check Snowflake's official documentation for further reference and don't make any decisions based on this post before taking your time to read through it.

Please share this post to raise awareness. The more proxies, the stronger the network.

– llama

Mostly out of curiosity, but also somewhat related to Proton's recent political involvement, I'm curious about alternatives to using their services, open to suggestions for:

• Proton Mail: anything that can support custom domain, email aliases, and email scheduling?
• Proton Drive: not the most important, but interested in privacy first, encrypted hosting services
• Proton Pass: anything I should take a look at besides Bitwarden and Keepass?
• Proton VPN: that one's the hardest, it was really good, I think Mullvlad is the one most often recommended?
• Proton Calendar: didn't really care about that one, but it was nice that it connected to Mail

My Unlimited plan renewed in December so I'll probably keep it for a year, it was nice having only one subsctiption to keep in mind, but I'm thinking of exploring other options

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/1834745

cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/1834743

The Italian regulator, known as the Garante, said on Tuesday it wanted to know what personal data is collected, from which sources, for what purposes, on what legal basis and whether it is stored in China. It gave DeepSeek and its affiliated companies 20 days to respond.

[email protected] as announced in a previous post

The mod is okay with me opening this post: https://sopuli.xyz/comment/14240553

[email protected]

Hello everyone,

After a discussion on [email protected] ( https://feddit.org/post/6950586 ), a few people interested in privacy decided to reopen [email protected] as an alternative to [email protected] .

Feel free to join us there!

This post contains a canary message that's cryptographically signed by the official BusKill PGP release key

The BusKill project just published their Warrant Canary #009

For more information about BusKill canaries, see:

• https://buskill.in/canary

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA512

Status: All good
Release: 2025-01-14
Period: 2025-01-01 to 2025-06-01
Expiry: 2025-06-30

Statements
==========

The BusKill Team who have digitally signed this file [1]
state the following:

1. The date of issue of this canary is January 14, 2025.

2. The current BusKill Signing Key (2020.07) is

   E0AF FF57 DC00 FBE0 5635  8761 4AE2 1E19 36CE 786A

3. We positively confirm, to the best of our knowledge, that the 
   integrity of our systems are sound: all our infrastructure is in our 
   control, we have not been compromised or suffered a data breach, we 
   have not disclosed any private keys, we have not introduced any 
   backdoors, and we have not been forced to modify our system to allow 
   access or information leakage to a third party in any way.

4. We plan to publish the next of these canary statements before the
   Expiry date listed above. Special note should be taken if no new
   canary is published by that time or if the list of statements changes
   without plausible explanation.

Special announcements
=====================

None.

Disclaimers and notes
=====================

This canary scheme is not infallible. Although signing the 
declaration makes it very difficult for a third party to produce 
arbitrary declarations, it does not prevent them from using force or 
other means, like blackmail or compromising the signers' laptops, to 
coerce us to produce false declarations.

The news feeds quoted below (Proof of freshness) serves to 
demonstrate that this canary could not have been created prior to the 
date stated. It shows that a series of canaries was not created in 
advance.

This declaration is merely a best effort and is provided without any 
guarantee or warranty. It is not legally binding in any way to 
anybody. None of the signers should be ever held legally responsible 
for any of the statements made here.

Proof of freshness
==================

14 Jan 25 01:01:33 UTC

Source: DER SPIEGEL - International (https://www.spiegel.de/international/index.rss)
A Miracle? Pope Francis Helps Transsexual Prostitutes in Rome
Boost for the Right Wing: Why Did a German Newspaper Help Elon Musk Interfere in German Politics?

Source: NYT > World News (https://rss.nytimes.com/services/xml/rss/nyt/World.xml)
What an Upended Mideast Means for Trump and U.S. Gulf Allies
Russia and Ukraine Battle Inside Kursk, With Waves of Tanks, Drones and North Koreans

Source: BBC News - World (https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/world/rss.xml)
Gaza ceasefire deal being finalised, Palestinian official tells BBC
Watch: Moment man is saved from burning LA home

Source: Bitcoin Blockchain (https://blockchain.info/q/latesthash)
0000000000000000000042db9e17f012dcd01f3425aa403e29c28c0dc1d16470

Footnotes
=========

[1] https://docs.buskill.in/buskill-app/en/stable/security/pgpkeys.html

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----

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NTAjUQUvOj6nrA/r3j2ywFMDZtFR/jBjXULWE77ca3iJmc/FUdg=
=xahN
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

To view all past canaries, see:

• https://www.buskill.in/category/Canary/

What is BusKill?

BusKill is a laptop kill-cord. It's a USB cable with a magnetic breakaway that you attach to your body and connect to your computer.

Watch the BusKill Explainer Video for more info youtube.com/v/qPwyoD_cQR4

If the connection between you to your computer is severed, then your device will lock, shutdown, or shred its encryption keys -- thus keeping your encrypted data safe from thieves that steal your device.

Basically create an alias for every combination to prevent privacy cross contamination.

For instance, not only should you make an email alias for an Eventbrite account, but for every organization you sign up for events with. You are required to enter an email (any email) for the event, which can be seen by both Eventbrite and the organization. If you enter in the email of your Eventbrite account then the org could give that away, resulting in email spam and you can't be sure if it was either Eventbrite itself or the org that sold you out. If that happens then you would probably want to delete email address but then you have to change it in other places you need to send/receive emails from.

Another example is Discourse forum sites. While Discourse is open source and self-hostable, you may not always be sure if a Discourse site is self-hosted or using paid hosting. A lot online places have both their own website and a separate discourse site. Bitwarden's forum site doesn't have a sign-in option using your Bitwarden.com account, and Raindrop.io uses canny.io to track app feedback which has also uses its own login. (I'm actually glad I made an alias for every single Discourse forum site before realizing all of this).