Newsletter Archives

• Secure messaging on Windows with Signal

  Posted on March 18, 2024 at 02:45 CDT by Mary Branscombe • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.11 • 2024-03-18

  PRIVACY

  

  By Mary Branscombe

  Signal is a smartphone secure-messaging app that also works in Windows. Here’s why you want it, and how to get started.

  Sometimes you need to send a message that you can be certain will stay private. Perhaps a friend urgently needs a place to stay while you’re out of town, and you must give them your alarm code (and maybe tell the neighbor who has your spare key how to recognize them).

  Or perhaps you want to discuss a medical condition, or something that’s perfectly legal but might still get you into trouble at work, such as whistleblowing or staging a protest.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.12.0, 2024-03-18).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Privacy Instagram, Mastodon, Newsletters, RCS, Signal, SMS, Twitter, WhatsApp, X

• Tmas Greetings!

  Posted on December 4, 2023 at 02:43 CST by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  It is a mystery why a company would voluntarily replace one of the most recognizable product names in the world with a name that has multiple pre-existing uses and connotations.

  It isn’t the first time that a famous brand changed its logo. Standard Oil of New Jersey replaced ESSO with EXXON in 1972. But it’s a rare event, so it is interesting when the owner of a famous brand announces such a major change in brand identity.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.49.0, 2023-12-04).

  Legal Brief Branding, Legal, Newsletters, Trademarks, Twitter

• Will Threads be the real Twitter killer?

  Posted on July 24, 2023 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  The parent company of Facebook and Instagram — Meta Platforms — launched this month Threads, a Twitter-like social network. It looks like the first serious contender to knock Twitter off its perch.

  Unlike other Twitter competitors — Mastodon, Bluesky, Truth Social, and many more — Threads has already attracted a gigantic audience. The Threads app for iOS and Android surpassed 100 million users in just its first five days. That makes it the fastest-growing app ever, besting ChatGPT, which required two months to hit the same mark.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.30.0, 2023-07-24).

  Public Defender Facebook, Instagram, Newsletters, Social networks, Threads, Twitter

• The best tech secrets of 2022: AirTags, TikTok, Twitter, oh my

  Posted on December 26, 2022 at 02:45 CST by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 19.52 • 2022-12-26

  Look for our BONUS issue on January 2, 2023!

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  Amid my efforts to help you protect yourself against some rather aggressive technologies, I’m glad to report that there’s been at least some progress this year on the worst aspects of our “labor-saving” devices.

  Please note: I’m not claiming that my columns by themselves caused any of the changes I describe below. I just report the problems. We can all celebrate when bad tech is improved, whoever may have developed a particular solution.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.52.0, 2022-12-26).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Public Defender AirTags, Cryptocurrency, Newsletters, NFT, Privacy, Security, Surveillance, TikTok, Twitter

• Will the last tech worker who is fired please turn off the server

  Posted on December 19, 2022 at 02:44 CST by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  A wave of layoffs by the world’s largest technology companies is causing widespread fears. People are afraid that the growth spurt in online commerce that occurred during the coronavirus pandemic may be over — and opportunities for tech employment may never be the same again.

  Firings and separations are certainly ripping through the Internet at a rapid pace. But the impact of all this downsizing may not be exactly what you might expect.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.51.0, 2022-12-19).

  Public Defender Amazon, Facebook, Financial, Google, Microsoft, Netflix, Newsletters, Tesla, Twitter

• The Council of Truth and Wide Diversity

  Posted on November 14, 2022 at 02:42 CST by Max Stul Oppenheimer • Comment in the Forums

  LEGAL BRIEF

  

  By Max Stul Oppenheimer, Esq.

  Elon Musk now owns Twitter and has announced that it will return to being a platform for free speech.

  With exceptions, of course.

  While the Twitterverse was all atwitter about the acquisition, Musk explained what he meant.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.46.0, 2022-11-14).

  Legal Brief Elon Musk, Free Speech, Misinformation, Newsletters, Twitter

• Twitter accounts are 80% bots, expert says

  Posted on September 12, 2022 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  More than 80% of the accounts on Twitter are likely to be nothing more than automated bots, according to a study by the head of intelligence at F5, an international network-security firm with offices in 43 countries.

  Even worse, bots represent as much as 99% of the login traffic at some highly visible websites — perhaps even one of your favorites.

  These are the conclusions of a study by Dan Woods, who was a cyberoperations officer with the CIA prior to taking his current role at F5 six years ago.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (19.37.0, 2022-09-12).

  Public Defender Bots, Newsletters, Public Defender, Security, Twitter

• Massive Twitter hack: Don’t send bitcoin in response to a Twitter request

  Posted on July 15, 2020 at 17:23 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  This is happening right now…

  The Twitter accounts of Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Apple, Kanye West, Mike Bloomberg, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Uber and many more were compromised by persons unknown. They’re sending out tweets that look like this:

  

  

  Not sure how Twitter is going to fix it.

  P.S. You can watch the Bitcoin account get larger here. As of 3.30 pm Pacific time, it’s at 12.86030607 bitcoin, which is worth roughly $118,000.

  Other Bitcoin, Twitter
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