Do you remember being in school and having to write reports? And how you had to go find then cite sources? Facts 101! Well, its a good habit! The trick with the internet is there is so much out there that’s true, false, partially correct, maliciously written, speculation, and more. Eek! What’s a person to do? Well, Jonathan talks about that! Best Websites For Fact Checking | Avast
It was a crap week. Here’s why. (1/9/21 Part 1)
So, its been a helluva week. Are We Sure that 2020 is Over? And as such, we need to talk politics and tech for a bit. We sort of hate that. But here we are! 1st Amendment, options for platforms, the importance of Section 230 of the Telecommunications Act… we get it in a concise manner!
Its our annual Holidays and Scams talk! (11/28/20 Part 1)
Its the holiday season! And thus our annual installment of Holidays and Scams! Holiday SCAMS! Charity watchdog sites https://www.charitywatch.org/home https://www.charitynavigator.org/ http://www.give.org/ https://www.guidestar.org/ Charity scams Charity Scams – How to Tell If a Charity Is a Fraud (aarp.org) How To Recognize Veteran Charity Scams (aarp.org) https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/features/how-donate-wisely-and-avoid-charity-scams https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/tax-exempt-organization-search http://www.nasconet.org/resources/state-government/
Section 230: no, its not a Star Wars reference (10/17/20 Part 2)
Jonathan takes on the Communications Decency Act of 1996. Its in the news again, and its a BIG topic. Section 230 – Why Should I Care? Particularly because there is an Executive Order regarding it and Social Media. https://www.eff.org/issues/cda230 https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/10/ajit-pai-says-hell-help-trump-impose-crackdown-on-twitter-and-facebook/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/09/trump-admin-sends-congress-its-blueprint-for-weakening-section-230/
Love it! Hate it! Stupid Facebook! (10/3/20 Part 1)
Don’t you love it when things change? Facebook changes and Interface Discussion Windows, Gmail, Office, and untold others have changed how they look and work over the years. And now? Well, its Facebook’s turn! Jonathan has a few things to say about that. Make Facebook look like it used to! https://revertsite.com/ Customize Windows to look how you want it to! https://www.stardock.com/products/ Facebook Messenger the website (no app required!): https://www.messenger.com/
Tik Tok and you don’t stop… (8/8/20 Part 1)
President Trump signed an executive order concerning TikTok and its owner ByteDance, plus Wechat and parent company Tencent. But on top of that? Their subsidiaries and companies they have a business interest in might be affected too! TikTok and slippery slopes Join Jonathan, LD, Sam and special guest Danno! https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-addressing-threat-posed-tiktok/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-addressing-threat-posed-wechat/ For more reading: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/08/trump-plans-tiktok-wechat-ban-declares-apps-national-emergency/ https://www.pcgamer.com/every-game-company-that-tencent-has-invested-in/ https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/7/21358252/tencent-wechat-ban-trump-executive-order-consequences https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/08/beware-of-find-my-phone-wi-fi-and-bluetooth-nsa-tells-mobile-users/ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/centre-bans-59-mobile-apps-including-tik-tok-uc-browser-others/articleshow/76694828.cms#:~:text=India%20Business%20News%3A%20The%20government%20of%20India%20on,apps%20terming%20them%20to%20be%20prejudicial%20to%20the https://www.zdnet.com/article/pentagon-bans-military-from-using-devices-with-gps/ https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/07/how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-mostly-and-love-my-threat-model/
Deplatforming! What is it? (8/8/20 Part 2)
“You can’t be here anymore! Nyah!” Deplatforming! What is deplatforming? What is going on? Who is doing it? Join Jonathan, LD, Sam and special guest Danno as we talk about this pretty hot topic!
Sigh…. CONGRESS. (8/1/20 Part 2)
So, Congress has been having tech hearings as of late. Are Tech Giants Monopolies? The trick with hearings is sometimes they’re nothing but pro-wrestling and “look how tough I am” chest beating for an election year. But sometimes there’s real substance to what’s going on. So, what’s going on? https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/07/big-techs-big-day-congress-grills-ceos-over-competition-bias/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/07/telegram-files-eu-antitrust-complaint-against-apples-app-store/ https://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-spotify-tech-eu-idUSKBN1QU18G https://www.businessinsider.com/australia-to-make-google-and-facebook-pay-for-news-content-2020-7
Hacking for Fun and Profit (7/18/20 Part 2)
If you want fun and profit, apparently computer system hacking is a promising field! Analysis of the Twitter Bitcoin Hack Jonathan did a bunch of research so you can hear his thoughts this hour! https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/15/21326200/elon-musk-bill-gates-twitter-hack-bitcoin-scam-compromised https://slate.com/technology/2020/07/why-cryptocurrency-advocates-think-the-twitter-hack-could-help-bitcoin.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/16/twitter-hackers-made-121000-in-bitcoin-analysis-shows.html https://krebsonsecurity.com/2020/07/whos-behind-wednesdays-epic-twitter-hack/
Those Darn Bad Guys on Social Media… (6/27/20 Part 2)
The baddies are really, really pains in the keister. Hijacking Social Media We talk about it today, whether we like it or not, because it is an election year. Additionally, social media seems to be quite divisive, doesn’t it? Its not an accident! https://www.brainpickings.org/2014/01/03/baloney-detection-kit-carl-sagan/ https://www.bbc.com/news/av/business-38919403/how-do-fake-news-sites-make-money https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/11/18/this-is-how-the-internets-fake-news-writers-make-money/ https://www.snopes.com/news/2020/06/24/how-fake-accounts-constantly-manipulate-what-you-see-on-social-media/ https://www.mcafee.com/blogs/consumer/family-safety/spot-fake-facebook-account/ https://www.wikihow.com/Reveal-a-Fake-Facebook-Account https://opendorse.com/blog/how-to-spot-fake-social-media-followers/