Serge Egelman
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v0max.bsky.social
Serge Egelman
@v0max.bsky.social

Scientist. Dir. of Usable Security & Privacy at the International Computer Science Institute (icsi.berkeley.edu). Founder, AppCensus (appcensus.io). All opinions are those of his employer(s), and not his own.

https://www.guanotronic.com/~serge/ .. more

Computer science 55%
Sociology 15%

Yeah, I feel like foggy is just a modifier for any of the others, since it’s always a possibility.

I grew up in MN, so I like to say I put my time in, and thus have earned not having to deal with snow again.

I like that snow is entirely elective here: if you want to see it, you can drive to it!

We have seasons in Northern California! They’re rainy, wildfire, and nice.

Reposted by Serge Egelman

That Ring “search party” ad was unsubtle enough that even my 10yo watched it and was like “are they gonna use this for ICE?”

Same facts as the Apple case that was settled last year and the Amazon one currently being litigated. All are about companies using recordings they knew were from false activations.

Also, new euphemism for sex trafficking just dropped: “aggressively fundraising for one’s lab.”

Reposted by Serge Egelman

THIS is why so many of us have warned for years about why AdTech & Big Data -- those companies that gather your highly revealing online data & auction/sell it -- MUST be tightly regulated or better, forbidden. It's so damn revealing that ICE wants access to it. www.mediapost.com/publications...
ICE Issues RFI For 'Ad Tech Compliant' Data
The agency is "gathering information to better understand how the industry's commercial Big Data and ad tech providers can directly support investigations activities."
www.mediapost.com
I am. But there are three things at play here regarding ICE collecting private data. Quick rundown on the issue, why you should be paying attention, and what I'm doing about it:
So which politician is calling for the dismantling of the probably illegal database that ice & this government is collecting biometric data of protesters?
Downfall Bovino Edition. You're welcome.

Reposted by Serge Egelman

ICE is riddled with sex criminals.

A January 2026 report by the Pacific Antifascist Research Collective identified 30 ICE and CBP agents with documented convictions and arrests, some for serious violent and sexual crimes.

At least 20 committed offenses with underage victims.
Here’s How Many ICE and CBP Agents Allegedly Preyed on Children
Apparently the institutions are riddled with accused sex criminals.
www.yahoo.com

I don’t think it’s a lack of self-preservation, but an overinflated sense of self-worth: they don’t expect the leopards to eat *their* faces.

It’s worth noting that even if you don’t explicitly share this information, it can often be inferred from things like your likes, friends/followers, etc.

This has been shown for decades now by researchers; companies are clearly doing this internally for ad targeting.

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

(There’s a reason why they’re terrorizing cities one at a time.)

Not really: do you have any idea how many polling places there are vs ICE agents? It doesn’t scale, it’s a paper tiger.

(I suppose I should clarify, using their constitutionally-protected rights to call out the government for violating the law.)

Good for the WSJ editorial board for being marginally less fascist.

But it shouldn’t be called “civil disobedience” when it’s citizens calling out the government for violating the law…
Editorial board of Murdoch’s WSJ also urging Trump to back down. www.wsj.com/opinion/time...
Editorial board of Murdoch’s WSJ also urging Trump to back down. www.wsj.com/opinion/time...
And, tonight, the network's flagship news program -- 60 Minutes -- ran a clip show of old celeb interviews to "celebrate the movies" rather than put together an episode focused on what's going on in Minnesota.
The person who publishes the Free Press — where the words “Minneapolis” and “Minnesota” never appear tonight — also runs CBS News.
The latest evidence that broadcasting people’s movements and intimate data in the Real-Time Bidding online advertising system is truly dangerous.

www.wired.com/story/ice-as...
ICE Asks Companies About ‘Ad Tech and Big Data’ Tools It Could Use in Investigations
A new federal filing from ICE demonstrates how commercial tools are increasingly being considered by the government for law enforcement and surveillance.
www.wired.com

I could totally see an entire Veep episode about this.

and, presumably, people skills.
🔵 This week's Tom the Dancing Bug
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A BUSY, BUSY ICE ENFORCEMENT OPERATION
with apologies to Richard Scarry
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Brought to you by the rough and ready Inner Hive, including long-time member Brady Marsh and new member SquirrelSaver7. ( bit.ly/theInnerHive )
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READ IT RIGHT HERE👇

This is a very common dodge in US privacy policies.

“We don’t share your data with anyone except our business partners!”

But who are your “business partners”?

“Anyone we share data with.”
This is a mad thing to say in privacy policy for a home alarm / security camera monitoring app (Alarm.com)

Paraphrasing the highlighted text -
“We will not your data with others … unless ‘necessary’ for our business”

Reposted by Serge Egelman

This is a mad thing to say in privacy policy for a home alarm / security camera monitoring app (Alarm.com)

Paraphrasing the highlighted text -
“We will not your data with others … unless ‘necessary’ for our business”

I’m not sure I would have taken the under on dissidents hauled before military tribunals at the one year mark, yet here we are!
AP: Hegseth intends to send JAGs to Minneapolis

"CNN ... says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is asking the branches to identify 40 lawyers known as judge advocate general officers or JAGs, and 25 of them will serve as special asst U.S. attorneys in Minneapolis."

Reposted by Serge Egelman

AP: Hegseth intends to send JAGs to Minneapolis

"CNN ... says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is asking the branches to identify 40 lawyers known as judge advocate general officers or JAGs, and 25 of them will serve as special asst U.S. attorneys in Minneapolis."

I guess it could also be a joke about syphilitic dementia.

I feel like there’s an Idi Amin joke hidden in here…

Someone really needs to create Monopsony, the board game in which everyone plays a competing government contractor!

Up until this moment, I had completely forgotten that this is a real product that exists.

Thanks.