Lisa LeVasseur
@lalevasseur.bsky.social
Founder of Inter Safety Labs, measuring invisible tech harms.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
Many journalists are tracking the procurement and deployment of new technologies and tactics, but it's hard to get the entire picture. A generational threat to civil liberties that I suspect future governments will struggle (or refuse) to roll back. Dramatic reform/abolition will be required.
The news has entirely failed to grasp the unprecedented scope of the ICE and DHS budgets. Nothing like it in modern history. A galaxy of public/private surveillance and caging institutions for $100,000,000,000s unleashed on a public that will be forever changed. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
ICE Wants to Go After Dissenters as well as Immigrants
The Trump administration is being open about its plans to violate Americans’ First and Fourth Amendment rights.
www.brennancenter.org
December 1, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Many journalists are tracking the procurement and deployment of new technologies and tactics, but it's hard to get the entire picture. A generational threat to civil liberties that I suspect future governments will struggle (or refuse) to roll back. Dramatic reform/abolition will be required.
💯this 👇
and all of the arguments we made 5 yrs ago in this paper about why the idea of robot rights relies on faulty assumptions about the nature of human cognition and intelligence still hold
Robot Rights?: Let's Talk about Human Welfare Instead dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1...
Robot Rights?: Let's Talk about Human Welfare Instead dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1...
November 25, 2025 at 11:02 PM
💯this 👇
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
Powerful keynote on human dignity and moral nihilism by Bhikku Bodhi.
“(1) The first factor pushing us toward moral nihilism is the transnational economic system driven by unregulated predatory capitalism.” /1
“(1) The first factor pushing us toward moral nihilism is the transnational economic system driven by unregulated predatory capitalism.” /1
November 23, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Powerful keynote on human dignity and moral nihilism by Bhikku Bodhi.
“(1) The first factor pushing us toward moral nihilism is the transnational economic system driven by unregulated predatory capitalism.” /1
“(1) The first factor pushing us toward moral nihilism is the transnational economic system driven by unregulated predatory capitalism.” /1
I don’t see how, as a society, we can tolerate or accept this set of “ai” technologies woven into every aspect of our lives. youtu.be/5mtcSL4S3HQ
Howard University AI Panel
YouTube video by Tiera Tanksley
youtu.be
November 23, 2025 at 4:41 PM
I don’t see how, as a society, we can tolerate or accept this set of “ai” technologies woven into every aspect of our lives. youtu.be/5mtcSL4S3HQ
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
As I get older the most unrealistic thing I see on tv is people over the age of 50 making dinner plans for 8 pm.
September 27, 2025 at 2:04 PM
As I get older the most unrealistic thing I see on tv is people over the age of 50 making dinner plans for 8 pm.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
1/ A longtime Wired editor just wrote a mush-brained essay about how he totally missed the political rot of Silicon Valley (& still doesn't get it).
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
September 24, 2025 at 6:36 PM
1/ A longtime Wired editor just wrote a mush-brained essay about how he totally missed the political rot of Silicon Valley (& still doesn't get it).
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
But here’s a thought: maybe the solution isn’t tweaking consent mechanisms or expanding exceptions. Maybe it’s time to kill third-party cookies by law – simply prohibit them along with other unsanctioned tracking.
September 25, 2025 at 9:09 AM
But here’s a thought: maybe the solution isn’t tweaking consent mechanisms or expanding exceptions. Maybe it’s time to kill third-party cookies by law – simply prohibit them along with other unsanctioned tracking.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
At Internet Safety Labs, we're committed to making the digital world a safer place. If you find our work valuable, consider supporting our mission! Your donations help us continue to provide critical insights and transparency in software safety.
👉 Donate here: internetsafetylabs.org/donate
👉 Donate here: internetsafetylabs.org/donate
September 19, 2025 at 4:40 PM
At Internet Safety Labs, we're committed to making the digital world a safer place. If you find our work valuable, consider supporting our mission! Your donations help us continue to provide critical insights and transparency in software safety.
👉 Donate here: internetsafetylabs.org/donate
👉 Donate here: internetsafetylabs.org/donate
Calling all parents!
We're updating our app safety labels (if you've never seen one, here's an example appmicroscope.org/app/403/) and we're going to be adding in a bunch of information about app behaviors that present unique risks to children.
We're updating our app safety labels (if you've never seen one, here's an example appmicroscope.org/app/403/) and we're going to be adding in a bunch of information about app behaviors that present unique risks to children.
appmicroscope.org
September 5, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Calling all parents!
We're updating our app safety labels (if you've never seen one, here's an example appmicroscope.org/app/403/) and we're going to be adding in a bunch of information about app behaviors that present unique risks to children.
We're updating our app safety labels (if you've never seen one, here's an example appmicroscope.org/app/403/) and we're going to be adding in a bunch of information about app behaviors that present unique risks to children.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
You can add up all the enjoyable pursuits of LLMs and the work productivity hacks and none of them, separately or together, will be more important than AI’s ecological costs or political disruption.
“We” is more important here.
“We” is more important here.
August 23, 2025 at 7:02 PM
You can add up all the enjoyable pursuits of LLMs and the work productivity hacks and none of them, separately or together, will be more important than AI’s ecological costs or political disruption.
“We” is more important here.
“We” is more important here.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
I know there's a lot going on right now and one thing that's going on is the Trump admin is trying to roll back rules for making new buildings accessible.
There are six days left to make comments about it.
There are six days left to make comments about it.
New Attempt to Roll Back Accessibility Requirements - Comments Needed
For over forty years the United States has had regulations that say new buildings must be accessible to people with disabilities if the building is built by an organization that receives federal funds...
www.lflegal.com
June 10, 2025 at 4:12 AM
I know there's a lot going on right now and one thing that's going on is the Trump admin is trying to roll back rules for making new buildings accessible.
There are six days left to make comments about it.
There are six days left to make comments about it.
Currently reading @naomiaklein.bsky.social Doppleganger and her mention of Chaplin’s speech at the end of The Great Dictator couldn’t be more timely. youtu.be/J7GY1Xg6X20
Charlie Chaplin - Final Speech from The Great Dictator
YouTube video by Charlie Chaplin
youtu.be
June 10, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Currently reading @naomiaklein.bsky.social Doppleganger and her mention of Chaplin’s speech at the end of The Great Dictator couldn’t be more timely. youtu.be/J7GY1Xg6X20
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
But it would be a mistake to focus too much on which statutory power is being used here. What matters it that Trump is federalizing the Guard for the purpose of policing Americans’ protest activity. That’s dangerous for both public safety and democracy. 8/19
June 8, 2025 at 3:25 PM
But it would be a mistake to focus too much on which statutory power is being used here. What matters it that Trump is federalizing the Guard for the purpose of policing Americans’ protest activity. That’s dangerous for both public safety and democracy. 8/19
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
meta is spying on android users' browsing data in an even sleazier and sneakier way than previously known
this is the stuff you get when you live in a country that's too corrupt to pass a modern privacy law
this is the stuff you get when you live in a country that's too corrupt to pass a modern privacy law
The covert method Meta uses to track mobile browsing without consent — even in incognito mode or with a VPN
A group of researchers has uncovered a system that Instagram and Facebook have been using since September 2024 to collect users’ web browsing history on Android devices
english-elpais-com.cdn.ampproject.org
June 6, 2025 at 12:48 AM
meta is spying on android users' browsing data in an even sleazier and sneakier way than previously known
this is the stuff you get when you live in a country that's too corrupt to pass a modern privacy law
this is the stuff you get when you live in a country that's too corrupt to pass a modern privacy law
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
Heavily armed paramilitary forces stormed a local San Diego restaurant today, deployed stun grenades against a crowd of onlookers, and kidnapped a handful of kitchen workers.
May 31, 2025 at 5:33 AM
Heavily armed paramilitary forces stormed a local San Diego restaurant today, deployed stun grenades against a crowd of onlookers, and kidnapped a handful of kitchen workers.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
I know, norms and all that, but the default Dem position should be:
We think this is illegal but if the courts say you can do this then we are going to rip the guts out of the entire conservative movement. No more Heritage, FedSoc, etc. All of them lose their tax exempt status.
We think this is illegal but if the courts say you can do this then we are going to rip the guts out of the entire conservative movement. No more Heritage, FedSoc, etc. All of them lose their tax exempt status.
May 2, 2025 at 2:54 PM
I know, norms and all that, but the default Dem position should be:
We think this is illegal but if the courts say you can do this then we are going to rip the guts out of the entire conservative movement. No more Heritage, FedSoc, etc. All of them lose their tax exempt status.
We think this is illegal but if the courts say you can do this then we are going to rip the guts out of the entire conservative movement. No more Heritage, FedSoc, etc. All of them lose their tax exempt status.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
Digital surveillance and data collection via school laptops is a HUGE issue and every parent (or very involved aunt) should understand it and be able to explain it to the kids they love
Nearly half of K-12 students are subject to digital surveillance systems on their school-issued laptops according to a new lawsuit.
Read more: www.teenvogue.com/story/school...
Read more: www.teenvogue.com/story/school...
School-Issued Laptops Are Monitoring Students' Every Word
Nearly half of K-12 students are subject to digital surveillance systems.
www.teenvogue.com
April 2, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Digital surveillance and data collection via school laptops is a HUGE issue and every parent (or very involved aunt) should understand it and be able to explain it to the kids they love
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
What do we really know about the apps we install? We mostly know what the maker deigns to tell us. @internetsafetylabs.bsky.social is putting our apps under an App Microscope to reveal their makeup. Lisa LeVasseur explains why we need this info.
podcast.firewallsdontstopdragons.com/2025/03/31/m...
podcast.firewallsdontstopdragons.com/2025/03/31/m...
Microscoping Our Apps - Firewalls Don't Stop Dragons Podcast
We’ve been installing apps on our smartphones for almost two decades now. The iPhone and Android app stores kicked off in 2008 and we...
podcast.firewallsdontstopdragons.com
March 31, 2025 at 2:10 PM
What do we really know about the apps we install? We mostly know what the maker deigns to tell us. @internetsafetylabs.bsky.social is putting our apps under an App Microscope to reveal their makeup. Lisa LeVasseur explains why we need this info.
podcast.firewallsdontstopdragons.com/2025/03/31/m...
podcast.firewallsdontstopdragons.com/2025/03/31/m...
Synthetic teachers is right up there with synthetic monks and priests. Innately wrong.
March 28, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Synthetic teachers is right up there with synthetic monks and priests. Innately wrong.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
Note to editors and producers: If an executive order demands action that is illegal or outside of the president’s authority, then you should not describe it as ordering something. You should say it seeks to achieve some outcome and then note it is illegal or beyond the power of the president.
March 28, 2025 at 5:20 AM
Note to editors and producers: If an executive order demands action that is illegal or outside of the president’s authority, then you should not describe it as ordering something. You should say it seeks to achieve some outcome and then note it is illegal or beyond the power of the president.
wow. And sure, a personal surveillance bot assistant sounds great. What could possibly go wrong?
And yes ai teachers/tutors etc 💯 the enshittification of education.
And yes ai teachers/tutors etc 💯 the enshittification of education.
Most have focused on the fact that @umich caved to the fash, but we should also take a moment to appreciate this encapsulation of the enshittification of what used to be a pretty good public university.
March 28, 2025 at 1:11 PM
wow. And sure, a personal surveillance bot assistant sounds great. What could possibly go wrong?
And yes ai teachers/tutors etc 💯 the enshittification of education.
And yes ai teachers/tutors etc 💯 the enshittification of education.
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
23andMe has filed for bankruptcy to sell itself, which means any data they hold about you is going to change hands soon. If you're worried about your privacy don't rush in and delete your account - scramble it first. This way, any residual data they retain after deletion will be useless too 🧵
March 24, 2025 at 10:40 AM
23andMe has filed for bankruptcy to sell itself, which means any data they hold about you is going to change hands soon. If you're worried about your privacy don't rush in and delete your account - scramble it first. This way, any residual data they retain after deletion will be useless too 🧵
Reposted by Lisa LeVasseur
The below walks you through how to delete your DNA data from 23andMe before it goes bankrupt.
Your DNA is for sale.
This is the danger of all personal data. As a commodity, it is always at risk of being sold. oag.ca.gov/news/press-r...
This is the danger of all personal data. As a commodity, it is always at risk of being sold. oag.ca.gov/news/press-r...
Attorney General Bonta Urgently Issues Consumer Alert for 23andMe Customers
Californians have the right to direct the company to delete their genetic data OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued a consumer alert to customers of 23andMe, a genetic testing ...
oag.ca.gov
March 24, 2025 at 3:27 AM
The below walks you through how to delete your DNA data from 23andMe before it goes bankrupt.
We should be talking more about musk's comparing Social sec to a ponzi scheme. It's so pointedly inaccurate. Clearly the understanding of someone for whom SS matters not. (and if "entitlement" means the return of my own money that the govt is holding then, sure, I'm entitled to my own money.)
March 13, 2025 at 9:11 PM
We should be talking more about musk's comparing Social sec to a ponzi scheme. It's so pointedly inaccurate. Clearly the understanding of someone for whom SS matters not. (and if "entitlement" means the return of my own money that the govt is holding then, sure, I'm entitled to my own money.)