Edward Snowden Echoes Richard Stallman's Warnings On Proprietary Software After User Says 'Adobe Can Not Be Trusted'
Edward Snowden Echoes Richard Stallman's Warnings On Proprietary Software After User Says 'Adobe Can Not Be Trusted'
Edward Snowden endorsed Richard Stallman's warnings about proprietary software after Adobe Inc.'s new terms and conditions, which allow for user content review, sparked backlash from professional users.
It’s still very challenging to get a blobless Linux running on open hardware & firmware as a daily driver.
It's a herculean effort at the moment.
We all know that companies like Adobe, Amazon, Google, Zuckerbot products and M$ are everything, but trustworthy when it comes to security and privacy. But too many times FOSS is confused with being reliable, secure and private, which is profoundly false, especially in recent years, since precisely the aforementioned companies got massively into the world of OpenSource, injecting and controlling many FOSS products with their APIs.
The big evil today is called surveillance advertising, that is, selling user data to advertising companies and others, to create income, which is not only an invasive privacy problem, but also a serious security problem as it is not controllable how these data, often sensitive, are processed and protected.
Especially in products from the US, where privacy regulation is practically non-existent and which require an urgent review in this regard, irrelevant if it is FOSS or proprietary soft. It also requires a revision of the definition of OpenSource, where products that send data to third parties and large companies are not really Open Source, other than in an evil sense..
Which FOSS projects are you speaking of
All from Google Code (Chromium, Chromium OS, Android, irbase, etc....) and alot of third parties which include APIs from Google, Facebook and the other mencioned. Well, as FOSS you can all of these gut and fork, but if not, the are not more private and secure as any other proprietary soft. You can take a look also on the over 6200 Microsoft Open Source repositories in GitHub (also from MS), eg Docker, LinuxTracepoints, Live-share.....
https://github.com/orgs/microsoft/repositories?type=all
Or in the Open Source repositories from Zuckerbot (eg. React)
Also Amazon
https://aws.amazon.com/en/opensource/
Most trustworth those from the NASA, but most very specific apps. Maybe Worldwind as alternative to Google Earth.
Edward Snowden cannot be trusted.
He was all high and mighty with respect to leaks in the US (arguably relevant and justified), but immediately folded when things got real and decided to collaborate with the Russians (arguably one of the most brutal fucked regimes both currently and historically).
He is at Rusia because Europe denied him passage when he was traveling to south-america. And of course, he benefits the fact that Rusia and the US are not in good terms. But... how in earth that makes him accountable by the acts of the government of the country he lives in? That's just a falcious argument (ad-hominem), not a real fact. Where, in which acts, what actions he did to "collaborate" with "one of the most brutal fucked regimes currently and historically"? Is like saying you as american citizen (if you are), are directly accountable for all the "brutal and fucked up" actions your government does and supports along the world. But this is not technology, is politics... in what this article is important for this comunity is that a remarkable known specialist on security endorses what we (supporters of FOSS way of doing things, that includes Stallman, on which we could have also a lot of other difference, but not on that) have been saying during years.
He has been directly collaborating with russian security services via his internet outreach. I don't know if you know russian or know anything about their propaganda initiatives (both current and its ideological roots), but this is pretty obvious from his messaging. I disagree with your characterization as a fallacious argument; you seem to be ignorant of the matters at hand. Honestly, you seem concerned that someone dared criticize an individual that you seem to venerate.
You don't see any issue (in context of technology-focused discussion) of highlighting his endorsement of FOSS while ignoring that he works for a regime that has absolute surveillance powers over local digital services and routinely jails people for social media posts?
Very few places that wouldn't extradite Snowden instantly, even fewer that can't be paid to do it. With Russia, Venezuela, and North Korea remaining his options, then Russia was the obvious choice. At least survival in Russia came with a price, had he stayed then the pay-to-play model for life wasn't available.
He could have chosen to not collaborate with the russians and refused to act as their mouthpiece (For example, he was hardcore promoting the "russia is not going to invade" rhetoric before Feb 24; a key element of russia's short term communication strategy at that point).
There are many people in russia (both well known dissidents and just average people) who refused to toe the government's line or even in some cases took direct action against the regime.
Don't you see the irony of Snowden focusing on "spying in the US", while also choosing to work with the russian regime that has absolute control over local digital services and arrests people for social media posts and Twitch stream?
This might not a big deal for you, but on a purely theoretical level, you don't see how this hypocrisy could be important for others?
I'm curious, what other regimes are on that list?
Your comments completely lack empathy, wow. If you were in Snowden!s shoes, I bet you'd have folded to Russia at their first threat. "Visa or plane to Washington" and that would've been the and of it.
But because you are the big tough guy on the internet, Snowden is weak willed. You, the Alpha Moonchild would've resisted Russia in their prison and died like Navalni, with your head held high after they tortured your girlfriend in front of you. A true martyr baths in the glory and knowledge that their cause is just and true.
Your death would've driven all Americans and Europeans onto the streets! It would've been the flint to light the fire of a generation ♨️ like a true Scotsman, a patriot, a fearless defender of truth, morals, and internet tough guys!🫡
We all respect your hypothetical sacrifice and moral superiority. Long may it live in our memories.