#internet literacy
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If KOSA passes
Or if any other form of censorship (there are many in the works!) ever succeeds at stepping in to impede our ability to communicate online:
We have to make plans.
Now, I dunno who'll even see this post. The few followers I have are TRON fans (who despite the fantasy we live in, tend to have realistically dismal views IRL about Disney and the various corporate uses of software).
And this fandom, on average, is pretty tech-savvy. It's where I've encountered the most people under 20 years old who actually know how to use a desktop or laptop computer.
So, if there's any hope for what I'm thinking about, this is prolly a good place to start with it.
(As with all my posts, I encourage reblogging and containment-breaching.)
(Gifs are clips from TRON 1982, mainly the "deleted love scene," from the DVD extras.)
Anyway.
Current society has moved online communication much too far onto major social media sites for my comfort. Whoever you communicate with over the internet, chances are you do it through a service owned by a big company: Tumblr, Twitter, Discord, Telegram, Facebook, whatever. Even TikTok (shudder).
These sites, despite their many flaws, can provide experiences that are valuable and hard to get otherwise. And once all your friends are on one site, you can't just leave and stay in touch with them all, not unless they all go the same place. It's easy to see why it's hard to abandon any social media platform.
But a backup plan is important. Because, as we've seen over and over, social media sites can't be relied on. They change their policies suddenly, without good reason-- and are inconsistent, even discriminatory, about enforcing those policies.
If they're funded by ads, the advertisers are their main customers, and your posts are the product. Their goal is that the posts most valuable to the advertisers get seen by people the advertisers consider desirable customers.
Helping you communicate-- making your posts get seen by the people you want to communicate with-- is optional to them.
Not to mention that the whole business model of an ad-funded website is generally unsustainable. Many of these sites are operating at a loss, relying on shareholders in a fragile bubble, doomed to fail soon just from lack of real profit.
And the more restrictions --like KOSA-- that the law puts on freedom of online speech, the likelier they are to go down or just become unusable. Every rule a site is required to follow is another strain on its resources, and most of them are already failing badly at even enforcing their own self-imposed rules.
If we want any control over our continued ability to stay in touch with our online friends-- we need to have a backup plan. Maybe it'll be simple at first, a bare-bones system we cobble together-- but it's gotta be something that will work. For a while at least.
There are lots of really good posts about ways to build your own website, using a service like Neocities. I VERY MUCH recommend learning this skill-- learning to make websites of the very simplest, most stable, glitch-resistant type, made of html pages-- which you can upload to a host while you store backups on your home computer. If you value the writing and art that you put online, this is probably the safest you can keep it.
But that's for making your own creative work public.
As for communicating with others-- for example, receiving and answering other people's comments on your work-- that gets more complex. I personally haven't found it worthwhile to troubleshoot the problems that come with having a system that allows visitors to comment publicly on my website.
But what we do still have-- and likely will for a long time-- is email.
Those of us who came of age before social media's current hold... well, we might take this for granted. Email was the first form of online contact we ever encountered… and thus it can seem to us like the most ordinary, the most boring.
But in the current world, it is a rare and precious thing to find a method of communicating that doesn't require everyone in the chat to be signed on with the same corporation.
Email is, as of now, still perfectly legal-- as much as social media companies have been trying to herd the populace away from it. I'm sure there are other ways to share thoughts online that are not bound by laws. But I am not going to go into that here.
Email service is provided by law-abiding companies, which will comply with subpoenas if law enforcement thinks you are emailing about doing illegal things. So, email is not a surefire way to be safe, if laws become dystopian enough to threaten your freedom to talk about your own life and identity.
But it's safer than posting on a public social media page.
For now.
Email is beautifully decentralized. You can get an email address many different ways-- some reliant on a company like Gmail, others hosted on your own domain. And different people, with all different types of email addresses, hosted in all different ways-- can all communicate together by the same method.
Of course any of these people, individually, can lose their email address for some reason or other, and have to get a new one. But as long as they still know the email addresses of their contacts, they can reconnect and recover from that loss. The structure of a group linked by email is reliant not on a single company-- but on the group itself, the friends you can actually count on.
This is why I am trying to promote the idea of forming email lists, as a backup plan to give people a way to stay in touch as mainstream social media sites prove to be unsustainable.
I'm envisioning a simple system of sending emails to several addresses at once, and making each reply visible to everyone in the chat by using "reply all" (or, if desired, editing the To field to reply to only some).
If enough people get used to using email in this way, it could fill most of the needs met by any other group chat or forum …without depending on a centralized social media company that's taking dystopian measures to try and make the business profitable.
So here are some thoughts about how I personally imagine it could work.
(Feel free to comment and bring up any thoughts I haven't addressed, or suggestions to customize how specific groups could set it up. This is meant as more of a starting point for brainstorming than a catch-all solution.)
As I see it, here are the basics of what you and your friends would each need to start out:
An email address. Any kind, hosted anywhere. You should use a dedicated email account just for this group, one that you do NOT use for other communication. Being in this group will result in things you don't want happening to your main email address-- like getting a TON of email, one for every post and reply. Or someone could get your email address that you really don't want any contact with. Use a burner email account (one that you can easily replace) and change it if needed.
The knowledge of how to "REPLY ALL" in your email. This will be necessary in order to add a comment that everyone in the group can see.
The knowledge of how to EDIT THE "TO" FIELD in your email, and remove addresses from the list of all recipients. This will be necessary if you want to CHANGE WHICH PEOPLE in the group can see your comment.
The knowledge of how to FILTER WORDS in your email. This will be necessary if a topic comes up that you don't want to see any mentions of.
The knowledge of how to BLOCK PEOPLE in your email. This will be very important. If someone joins this email group who you do not want to interact with, it will be up to you to BLOCK them so that you do NOT see their messages. (If they are bad enough to evade the block with multiple burner accounts, that's what you have a burner account for. Change it, and share the new one only with those you trust not to give it to them.)
Every person in the group will be effectively a "moderator" of the group, able to remove people from it by cutting their email addresses out of the "To" field. Members will all have equal "moderator" privileges, each able to tailor the group to their own needs.
This means the group may naturally split, over time, into other groups, each one removing some people and adding others. Some will overlap, some won't. This is good! This is, in my opinion, what online interaction SHOULD be like! There should be MANY groups like this!
In this way, we can keep online discussion alive, no matter WHAT happens to any of the social media websites.
If the dystopia got bad enough to shut down email, we could even continue with postal mail and photocopies, like they did in the days of print-zine fanfiction.
If it looks like the dystopia is gonna come for postal mail too, we'll use the connection we have to preserve whatever contacts we can with people who live near us.
Not saying it's GONNA get that bad. But these steps of preparation are good no matter exactly what kind of bad stuff happens.
As long as some organized form of communication still exists, we'll have a place where it's at least a little safer to be your true self…
to plan events and meetups…
and maybe even activities a little too risque to make the final cut of a 1982 Disney movie.
They're trying to censor us. We want a Free System. So we're gonna fight back.
For the Users. Not the corporations.
Peace out, programs. <3
#tron#tronblr#tron 1982#userworldproblems#diy punk#censorship#kosa#internet literacy#email#solutions
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Okay, look, they talk to a Google rep in some of the video clips, but I give it a pass because this FREE course is a good baseline for personal internet safety that so many people just do not seem to have anymore. It's done in short video clip and article format (the videos average about a minute and a half). This is some super basic stuff like "What is PII and why you shouldn't put it on your twitter" and "what is a phishing scam?" Or "what is the difference between HTTP and HTTPS and why do you care?"
It's worrying to me how many people I meet or see online who just do not know even these absolute basic things, who are at constant risk of being scammed or hacked and losing everything. People who barely know how to turn their own computers on because corporations have made everything a proprietary app or exclusive hardware option that you must pay constant fees just to use. Especially young, somewhat isolated people who have never known a different world and don't realize they are being conditioned to be metaphorical prey animals in the digital landscape.
Anyway, this isn't the best internet safety course but it's free and easy to access. Gotta start somewhere.
Here's another short, easy, free online course about personal cyber security (GCFGlobal.org Introduction to Internet Safety)
Bonus videos:
youtube
(Jul 13, 2023, runtime 15:29)
"He didn't have anything to hide, he didn't do anything wrong, anything illegal, and yet he was still punished."
youtube
(Apr 20, 2023; runtime 9:24 minutes)
"At least 60% use their name or date of birth as a password, and that's something you should never do."
youtube
(March 4, 2020, runtime 11:18 minutes)
"Crossing the road safely is a basic life skill that every parent teaches their kids. I believe that cyber skills are the 21st century equivalent of road safety in the 20th century."
#you need to protect yourself#internet literacy#computer literacy#internet safety#privacy#online#password managers#security questions#identity theft#Facebook#browser safety#google#tesla#clearwater ai#people get arrested when google makes a mistake#lives are ruined because your Ring is spying on you#they aren't just stealing they are screwing you over#your alexa is not a woman it's a bug#planted by a supervillain who smirks at you#as they sell that info to your manager#oh you have nothing to hide?#then what's your credit card number?#listen I'm in a mood about this right now#Youtube
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Listen, you don't have to pirate, but you absolutely need to know how to pirate and where to pirate from.
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i think this man is genuinely onto something
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you don’t know about much about shitposting, do you Lia?
Also, unfortunately this will probably happen more often than not cause a a certain slimy bastard B (
-Ricky and C
Oh hi @rickb-chaos !
Yeah no I'm not..not too sure what that means. Does it mean you make bad posts on purpose?
I see people talking about it on here and I have no idea what people are talking about so maybe that's something I need to learn about this site.
Also people seem to refer to it as a hellsite?
I like it here but I'm not literate in Tumblr-ness so I'll learn as I go I guess.
#liane felton#liane's blog#askliane#marvel roleplay#violet pyre#marvel ask blog#mcu fandom#ask my ocs#ethane#shitpost#shitposting#internet literacy#idk how to tag this#rick is chill but c scares me tbh
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People gotta stop putting angry, raging DNIs in their blog desc, then liking/rbing posts directly from blogs that are obviously on that DNI lmao.
And um, the number of minors I see doing this is really scary? These people have zero idea how to function on the internet. First: putting the onus on everyone else not to interact with them is super not okay and it doesn't work like that, it's gonna end in disaster.
But on top of that, interacting with people without even looking at their blogs to confirm if those people are on their DNI in the first place is just a big sign that DNIS are legit useless. Even the people who have DNIs will forgo those very DNIs if they're feelin lazy.
So if the person w the DNI can't even abide by it, how tf are other people supposed to??? And it's just mcfucking awkward. You tell people to 'stay the fuck out of your space', then go into their space intentionally anyways. They get excited to see a note or something but then when they see your blog, all they see is a 'foad' DNI or some other lovely message?? The heck is wrong with people.
#it's one of those angry days fam because i just got another asshole in my notes#and yup obviously i'm still on my dni rant sorry#dni lists#tumblr#blocking#blogs#bullying#harassment#minors#internet literacy#media literacy
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Don't forget: Never believe an unsourced claim on the internet just because you agree with it!
If a person or organization quotes from "studies" but doesn't provide a link to any of those studies, ask for a link to one of those studies in a courteous and curious, non-hostile manner!
If a person or organization uses statistics and percentages but doesn't provide a link to the study they sourced those numbers from, ask! Again, in a courteous non-hostile manner!
This is also useful if you disagree with the unsourced claim and want other people to think critically about the fact that there currently is no way to know if the maker of the claim is lying or not.
Here are some phrase templates/examples to better illustrate what I mean.
"Interesting! I'd like to know more, can you please link me to the study or studies where you got this information, Thank you!"
"Wait, really? I had no idea. Can you provide a link to the study so that I can read more about this issue? Thanks!"
Don't just reply with "Source?" because that can be seen as a sign of hostility and in that case you're more likely to be sent vitriol than the source you asked for.
Chances are even if you are polite, you won't get a response containing a link to those studies, but for me at least it's an important tool to remind myself that you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet.
People on the internet can lie. Numbers can be made up. Always ask for the studies referenced in "studies show..." statements and "[number]% of [demographic]..." statements.
#internet literacy#resource to combat misinformation#stay safe out there#no i do not agree with the tweet screencap that spawned this post but internet literacy is still important.#'don't believe everything you read on the internet' still applies in this day and age.#Studies show that 43% of claims that start with 'studies show...' are actually just the result of people making things up#including this one. i just chose a medium-ish number at random and went with it.#82% of internet users just believe every statistical claim in their feed. Can you believe it?#I hope not because I made that number up too
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You see this shit?
This is Grade A bullshit.
A laptop from a little known brand, with 8gb ram, 256 gb ssd storage, no graphics card, being listed as discounted from $1,600, a price that would be high for a mid-range gaming laptop with twice as much storage?
That's a lie.
That laptop is not worth a penny more than the alleged discounted price.
Always be aware of this kind of shit, they're trying to trick you into thinking you're getting a good dead by artificially inflating the MSRP. This isn't a "deal," it's not on sale or discounted. The idea is to encourage you to feel like you need to get it right now before the price goes back up, but that would likely never happen (and if it did you'd absolutely be gettinf ripped off).
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The way people talk about digital piracy on this website I get the feeling many have never used digital piracy on their lives. And frankly I hope it only means I’m old.
Anyway, here’s some basics:
Use an adblock, this isn’t just for browsing pirate sites but in general, get an adblock. I use uBlock Origin, it works out pretty well and there’s even a version for Firefox mobile
Check the stats for torrent, you know speed, peers, recs; watch out for virus
Get torrents from trusted sites
I don’t know what’s the recommended torrent client, I use Deluge because I was told uTorrent does data mining, please check from a trusted source
Sooner or later the FBI is gonna find the domains, sites go up and down all the time, it’s part of the experience; do not panic
Don’t talk about specific sites on TikTok or YouTube or Twitter, don’t give them more attention that they need. I have no idea how Tumblr gets away with it
I don’t use VPN, but that’s a common recommendation
Check direct links, and file names don’t wanna get any virus
I’m pretty sure there’s more but I don’t remember; I have always been only a dabbler, not an expert. Stay safe and do a Malware check every once in a while
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So, recently I was shown a Facebook post circulated by elder members of a coworker's community claiming that the government had purchased 30,000 guillotines and established a series of bases for use as internment kill camps. Who they're allegedly planning on killing en masse in such an inefficient fashion is anyone's guess. Funnier still is the image accompanying said post supposedly depicting one of these tactical guillotines...
You know, at least the government is spending the big bucks on the name brand version.
This, in reality, is an art peice created in 2000 by Tom Sachs.
This conspiracy theory has been in circulation since 2013 and is still being shared by the ignorant and fearful today. Please speak to those in your life that succumb to the manipulative idiocy of social media, and perhaps make an effort to educate them on the nature and proper usage of the internet. It isn't hard to fact-check a source, especially when the claim is completely unbelievable to begin with.
Knowledge is power.
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Listen something I've learned being on tumblr for so long is that you should always assume everyone on the internet that you've never met is potentially lying for some incomprehensible reason. Especially when it's around us election cycles. Listen to what they have to say but also seriously think about it critically. If there's one thing I learned from growing up on neopets and tumblr scandals such as the hiv living thing, etc it's that internet weirdos can and do lie for any reason
#shut up harley#internet literacy#us election#this applies to everything eben me#i could be lying about who i am for some reason and youd have no idwa
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Week 7 Cybersecurity!
Nova Cybersecurity game screenshots are as follows:
In the password challenges in level 2 & 3 I just couldn't guess the opponent's passwords! Only 1 star for me, but at least my passwords were all secure!
Success! Rank 5/6 isn't too bad, champion status apparently!
Much like in our readings, the game talked a lot about phishing. The game was fun and informative, with text bubbles explaining why each "red flag" was indeed untrustworthy. The game also emphasized why Internet literacy is so important, especially for business owners- the module goes in depth about the average individual, like you and me, and what we use the internet for and what we have to watch out for. The simplicity of the game is made for the average internet user, even if they aren't starting up a company- but even a website or navigating online shopping! The third connection to the module this week would be the harassment connection. In the game, we find out the mystery password hacker was an upset insider trying to sabotage the company- which is harassment and hacking as discussed in the module
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the sheer extent to which young people (<30) are incapable of navigating a desktop computer, or even a laptop (and i mean a Computer not a chromebook etc) OR the internet as a whole is just fucking staggering to me.
what do you mean you, a 20 year old, dont know how to refresh a page with a keyboard key. yes of course i can show you how to type the "@" symbol again. no you have to hold both keys at once, no you dont have to push them in, just press them down. wait what do you mean you dont know where or how to find the file you just downloaded
#t4lx.txt#let me be clear i am not being judgemental. not here nor in actual real life instances#worst thing you can do to someone who doesnt know something is be condescending and judgemental. like#like congratulations now they may never have the incentive to learn these things again in their life#but its just sad? fascinating? staggering? stunning?#like how do you. how do you troubleshoot. how do you actually use the device. how#being witness to the rapid decline of just general computer prowess and online safety and internet usage knowledge#via the cloud-streaming-chromebook-app-isation of every fucking device is just. i hate it with a burning passion#someone please save these young adults and teens and kids and the next generation#and someone please for the love of god un-dumb the personal computer (i fucking hate you win11 ui. god fucking damn)#technology#internet literacy#computer stuff#im actually serious im thinking of like. pursuing this. like i wanna research this and leave something in the world that would help people#also serious did i develop a saviour complex or something cause like. lmao im noone
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This is probably the most comprehensive and accessible guide that I have found regarding cybersecurity. Even if you are not a victim of DV or stalking (more links below covering this), these are still really great reads to educate yourself on what information you are sharing online. Just as you deserve privacy in your day-to-day life, you also deserve privacy in digital spaces.
Additionally, here are some other great resources about cybersecurity and (more specifically) keeping yourself safe against cyberstalking. (Please only view these links if you are on a safe computer.)
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We as a society need to become 300% more literate in identifying when someone is saying controversial things just for attention including all your best clap backs, quote tweets, and snarky retorts.
They capitalize on your anger and negative engagement. They self-destruct under your indifference.
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