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  • Happy Digital Independence Day

    Happy Digital Independence Day

    Auf dem Chaos Communication Congress hat digitale Selbstbestimmung seit jeher einen festen Platz im Programm.

    Und obwohl Marc-Uwe Kling und sein Känguru schon lange als Kritiker von Big Tech bekannt sind, ist der Vortragslot zunächst nur als Lesung aus “Die Känguru Rebellion” im Programm zu finden. Am Ende der Lesung schlägt das Känguru eine Sache vor, die man mal ausprobieren sollte. Einen “Digital Independence Day”.

    “Wir dachten, wir probieren das mal aus”, kündigt Marc-Uwe zusammen mit Linus Neumann am Ende der Lesung an: “Der is kein kostenloser Service eines Milliardärs, was seine Verbreitung ein, was seine Verbreitung ein wenig einschränkt.”

    Die Initiative bekommt Unterstützung

    Und ich möchte das auch mal ausprobieren. Diese Digitale Unabhängigkeit, Souveränität wie sie im politischen und geschäftlichen Zusammenhang oft genannt wird, liegt mir sehr am Herzen. Außerdem ist gerade die Zeit für gute Vorsätzen.

    Am 4. Januar, also heute, ist der erste Digital Independence Day, und deshalb möchte ich heute auch etwas dazu schreiben. Ich möchte dieses Vorhaben nämlich unterstützen und mit erklären, wie es geht. Das ganze Jahr lang, jeden ersten Sonntag im Monat.

    Heute möchte ich mit Alternativen zu WhatsApp beginnen. Es gibt eine Alternative namens Signal, die für beide populären Handy Platformen verfügbar ist. Signal kann für iOS, Android oder einen PC Desktop auf der Download-Page des Dienstes bezogen werden: https://signal.org/download/

    Signal zeichnet sich vor allem durch seine radikale Transparenz und den Schutz der digitalen Souveränität aus. Durch seinen quelloffenen Code (Open Source) ist unabhängige Überprüfung der Sicherheitsversprechen möglich. Anstatt Nutzerdaten für Werbezwecke zu kommerzialisieren, setzt Signal auf strikte Datensparsamkeit, lückenlose Ende-zu-Ende-Verschlüsselung und macht Anwender von großen Tech-Konzernen unabhängig. Signal bietet einen geschützten Raum für Kommunikation, der Privatsphäre nicht als optionales Feature, sondern als unverzichtbares Grundrecht behandelt.

    Und weil ich anbieten möchte, beim Umstieg auf alternative Lösungen zu unterstützen, bin ich natürlich selbst auch auf Signal erreichbar. Fragt mich.

  • Hacking the ‘❤️’

    Was Herzchen über Whatsapp Benutzer so alles aussagen können. Die ganze Verwendung von Emojis sagt für sich schon recht viel über Benutzer aus, aber Gabriel K. Gegenhuber, Maximilian Günther, Markus Maier, Aljosha Judmayer, Florian Holzbauer, Philipp É. Frenzel, Johanna Ullrich haben sich mal angeschaut, was die Herzchen, die man als Feedback an Nachrichten kleben kann noch so alles bedeuten können. Und auf der Defcon dieses Jahr vorgeführt.

  • #39C3 Power Cycles

    The time “in between years” is busy, every time. Not to take this as an excuse, but an opportunity to rather dump my notes from into here. It’s more than I typically blog on a average year.

  • AI: Slop Evader

    Browse the Internet like it’s 2022 with “Slop Evader”

    Bei aller Begeisterung der ganzen Welt für die Wunder der “Artificial Intelligence” (oder “Künstlicher Intelligenz”) wird eine Seite der ganzen Entwicklung meiner Ansicht nach viel zu wenig öffentlich diskutiert. Nämlich die Akzeptanz der Benutzer. Denn allein die Existenz solcher Plugins ist ein starker Hinweis auf die Stimmung im Internet: Slop-Evader

  • Is email really easy? Think again! 🤯

    We use it every day, but behind the scenes, email is a surprisingly complex beast. This fascinating read from e-mail.wtf breaks down the intricate layers that make email work (or sometimes, not work!).

    It’s a brilliant reminder that what seems simple on the surface often has incredible engineering underneath.

    https://e-mail.wtf/

    What’s the highest “score” you’ve ever achieved navigating email quirks or debugging an email issue? Share your stories and “high scores” in the comments! 👇

  • Cloudflare blocks AI scrapers now

    Even by default, reports Ars Technica.

    This has been sitting in my inbox as a draft for a couple of days. Still, I wanted to make this Block post nevertheless foremost because I think it’s noteworthy. What Cloudflare does – or tries – here in this context, is basically a shift in a business model.

    Under the old model, or regular approach, AI scrapers are trying to pick up as much content as they can. This practice has been under a discussion for as long as the hype took up. Content owners, be it, individual contributors or communities see a violation of their rights, whereas AI companies rely on this data to improve their models. So far, there is no law to regulate the approach to automated processing through AI.

    Only Cloudflare tries to change this situation now, with their new offering, with not only blocking AI scrapers, but actually offer an option to content owners to charge per scrape.

  • Track ISS with DNS

    This is an awesome us of DNS Standards. For the inclined tech and internet standard nerd.

    Get the location of the ISS using DNS

  • Trump’s “Big Bill”: Debt, Discontent, and a Deadline

    Donald Trump is fiercely campaigning for his “Big Beautiful Bill,” a massive legislative package aiming to deliver record tax cuts and increase spending on the military and border security. Touted as a way to benefit every American and fulfill his election promises, the bill has already passed the House of Representatives but now faces significant hurdles in the Senate, even within his own Republican party. Despite White House claims of economic growth, the independent budget office projects the bill could add a staggering $2.8 trillion to the national debt over the next decade, raising concerns among some Republicans.

    The core of the Senate’s resistance lies in the bill’s financial implications and proposed cuts. While many Republican senators support tax relief, they disagree on how to offset the costs. Some advocate for deeper cuts to essential health and social programs like Medicaid and food assistance for low-income families, aiming to reduce the national debt. However, senators like Lisa Murkowski of Alaska vehemently oppose these cuts, arguing they would harm vulnerable populations and rural healthcare, creating a “red line.” Further complicating matters are proposed eliminations of subsidies for renewable energy and electric vehicles, a key part of the previous administration’s economic plan, which also draws opposition from several Republicans.

    With four Republican senators potentially holding the decisive votes, the “Big Beautiful Bill” faces an uncertain future. Trump has set an ambitious deadline of July 4th for its passage and has reportedly threatened dissenting senators with political consequences. The bill, if passed, would be one of the largest tax packages in U.S. history, but its passage is far from guaranteed as internal party conflicts over fiscal responsibility and social safety nets continue to erupt.

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    👉 [Read the full article]

  • RFK Jr. Halts US Aid to Gavi: Why?

    The United States has abruptly withdrawn its financial support from Gavi, the global vaccine alliance, a move announced by US Health Minister Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy justified the decision by alleging that Gavi “ignores science” and has “lost public trust,” demanding accountability for the $8 billion America has contributed since 2001. He also raised concerns about Gavi and the WHO’s alleged collaboration with social media companies during the COVID-19 pandemic to suppress differing viewpoints and restrict free expression. This dramatic shift comes despite Gavi’s reported success in vaccinating over a billion children and saving an estimated 18 million lives globally.

    Gavi’s CEO, Sania Nishtar, expressed disappointment over the US withdrawal, which historically covered around 13% of the alliance’s budget. Despite this setback, Gavi secured €7.7 billion at a recent donor conference, though this sum is less than the €10.9 billion needed to protect 500 million children over the next five years. In a contrasting move, Germany pledged €600 million, with its Development Minister reaffirming a strong commitment to global health and vaccination, highlighting it as the most efficient way to save lives and prevent worldwide pandemics, even as other nations retract their support.

    👉 [Read the full article]

  • Gemini Arrives: Android Control, No AI Training

    Google is paving the way for Gemini to completely replace Google Assistant on Android devices with a significant upcoming update. Starting July 7th, Gemini will gain the ability to control various phone features and apps, such as making calls, sending messages via Phone or WhatsApp, and utilizing utilities, even if a user’s “Gemini Apps Activity” setting is disabled. This is a crucial change, as previously, turning off this activity setting prevented Gemini from performing these convenient, integrated tasks, forcing a trade-off between privacy and functionality.

    The update addresses initial confusion and privacy concerns by allowing users to leverage Gemini’s personal assistant capabilities without contributing their conversations to Google’s AI training datasets or product personalization efforts. Google has clarified that this is “good for users,” providing more control while ensuring that Gemini interactions won’t appear in the activity log when the setting is off. Although conversations will still be temporarily saved for up to 72 hours for security, this move effectively decouples functional device control from AI data collection, making Gemini a more private and powerful assistant ahead of its full Android integration later this year.

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    👉 [Read the full article]