Despite attempts at reform, the Kafala system in Gulf countries is still custom-built to exploit workers:

openDemocracy

The wage slaves of the Kafala system

Despite attempts at reform, the Kafala system in Gulf countries is still custom-built to exploit workers

It should matter that one of Bluesky's investors is Alumni Ventures, which also funded Outlogic (formerly known as X-Mode Social) - basically a data broker that collected and sold location data by tracking various mobile apps (including dating, music, weather, and Muslim prayer apps.) Among other controversies, Outlogic/X‑Mode had supplied location data to U.S. military contractors:

Gay/Bi Dating App, Muslim Prayer Apps Sold Data on People’s Location to a Controversial Data Broker – The Markup

The Markup identified 107 apps that sold data to X‑Mode in 2018 and 2019

#Bluesky #Privacy

Dozens of entities and funders newly featured on Surveillance Watch:

Surveillance Watch: They Know Who You Are

Surveillance Watch is an interactive map revealing the intricate connections between surveillance companies, their funding sources and affiliations.

Thanks to everyone who supported with submissions, research and sourcing. Truly appreciate communities coming together to help build this resource. #Privacy #Surveillance #Spyware

Next week, I'll be speaking about Surveillance Watch and grassroots movements resisting surveillance at the Color of Surveillance event in Georgetown Law. This series aims to put racial and economic justice at the center of conversations about digital era surveillance:

The Color of Surveillance: Surveillance / Resistance

#Privacy #Surveillance

"This life is utterly unbearable. I don’t have the energy to endure it anymore. I hope this war ends and I’ll be back home, even to the rubble of my home. I miss making three meals a day. I miss calm and peace. I hope we’ll restore the beautiful times, and this occupation will end. I dream of seeing and living in a free Palestine before I die."

Nakba Survivor Forced to Flee Jabaliya, Her Home of 82 Years

“My hometown is just a pile of debris”

#Gaza #Palestine

"What we are seeing today is not only how advanced systems are created and tested in a tech-facilitated genocide but also new methods in the weaponization of everyday things." "Pushing back on the normalization of techno-terror is important for the lives of millions of people in the Middle East, but also for everyone on the globe. If we are to contend with any work related to 'tech and society,' the boomerang must be grabbed and broken."

Tech Policy Press

The Weaponization of Things: Israel’s Techno-Violence, A Litmus Test for Technologists | TechPolicy.Press

This moment should be a massive wake-up call for anyone doing tech and society work, writes Afsaneh Rigot.

Thanks to Naomi Brockwell for this interview about Surveillance Watch. You can watch / listen to the full discussion here: #Privacy #Surveillance #Data

"Technology is playing a central role in enabling the relentless mass slaughter and destruction unleashed in Gaza. From supplying the dystopian AI systems used to automate the killing and bombing, to facilitating the spread of state-sponsored disinformation and online incitement to violence and war crimes, Big Tech is deeply embroiled in this brutal war."

Access Now

Big Tech and the risk of genocide in Gaza

Big Tech is playing a central role in enabling the relentless mass slaughter and destruction unleashed in the war in Gaza.

#BigTech #Gaza #Palestine

From an interview I had with privacy advocate Naomi Brockwell: "The reality is that we don’t truly know what someone else’s threat model is, what risks they’re facing, or what social circles might make them an unwitting target. So when people reveal their privacy preferences, you should listen." "Your decision to overshare or to use less secure communication doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It can have real consequences for others."

The Nordic Times

Your privacy choices affect others too - The Nordic Times

Naomi Brockwell: By using unsecured channels, you might be exposing others to privacy risks they never agreed to take.

#Privacy #Surveillance

"When a senior American official lies to Congress in the middle of genocide so that the government can keep funding that genocide, he is deliberately flouting the law and prolonging the suffering of millions of innocent people." "Blinken should resign or be impeached." https://www.commondreams.org/news/blinken-resign #Gaza #Genocide #Israel