Hans-Christoph Steiner @eighthave@librem.one
Joined Aug 2019
Hans-Christoph Steiner
boosted
We’re sponsoring the EU Open Source Policy Summit 2026 (Brussels, 30 Jan), hosted by @OpenForumEurope.
The theme is “Digital Sovereignty Runs on Open Source."
@Amandine will be talking about the importance of interoperability and open standards.
Hans-Christoph Steiner
boosted
If, like me, you absolutely hate the recently introduced sidebar-like overlay "side-panel" that opens up when you click tickets in #GitLab, I finally found the obscure place where you can turn it off.
It's not in your user preferences or kebab menu, it's… tucked in that little "Display options" icon-only button between the tickets searchbar and the sorting order combobox:
Hans-Christoph Steiner
boosted
Great #DSA report by @bitsoffreedom about how #Snapchat manipulates its users through notifications:
"From 109 notifications we categorized 39 as misleading." They contained "false information (e.g., “check out this post from someone you follow”—even though we weren't following anyone), resembled a personal message from other users, or were incorrectly labeled as being “time-sensitive”."
https://www.bitsoffreedom.nl/2025/12/05/how-snapchat-manipulates-its-users-through-notifications/
#DigitalRights #DarkPatterns #DigitalServicesAct #BigTech #InterfaceDesign
#Google #Chromebook has a good reputation for #security. They let any user install a #Debian container where you can then install anything from Debian, even add Flathub or directly install downloaded .deb packages. All of this without anything like the #AndroidDeveloperVerification requirements.
https://www.howtogeek.com/how-to-install-and-use-linux-apps-on-a-chromebook/
Hans-Christoph Steiner
boosted
Oh yes, and then there is this! 😄
"Leading facial #AgeEstimation tools were easily fooled by a $22 "old man" mask, a Guy Fawkes mask, and other cheap party costumes, researchers have found."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-02/social-media-ban-vpns-masks-age-checks-disguises/105836134
#AgeVerification #DigitalRights #privacy #Australia #SocialMediaBan
Just to be sure, I scanned all apps on @fdroidorg and found no apps that used the libs vulnerable to #ReactServer #CVE-2025-55182 aka #React2Shell.
I'm no #Javascript nor #React dev though, maybe it was silly to scan apps for server components? In any case, #FDroid's data collection is easy to scan via scripts, so better safe than sorry.
Hans-Christoph Steiner
boosted
Elon Musk and X are once again proving why institutions should never rely on corporate-owned, centrally-controlled social media platforms to reach their people.
Looking for strict #HTTPS enforcement when using #Git in #Python code? I implemented it here: https://github.com/gitpython-developers/GitPython/issues/2020
It should be easy to port to other languages since it is mostly using git config options.
#AgeVerification is a hot topic right now. Societies around the world are asking for it because of real harms to children. Shady companies use it as a way to gather more data, or to distract from their exploitation of vulnerable people.
But it does not have to be that way.
We can have real age verification without sacrificing #privacy. For example, #Phreeli uses #ZeroKnowledge payment verification. This same technique can be used for age verification https://www.phreeli.com/blog/DoubleBlindArmadillo
@fj as much as I like to see social democratic values being defended, I must also point out that there is also a tone of nationalism in what she is saying, as in "we should keep what we have here in Europe". We should also never stop recognizing that the wealth of Europe was built on the backs of so much of the world. And we have a massive climate impact debt to the world.
Hans-Christoph Steiner
boosted
Phreeli founder Nick Merrill “is somebody who is extremely principled and willing to take a stand for his principles,” EFF’s Cindy Cohn told @WIRED “He's careful and thoughtful, but also, at a certain level, kind of fearless.” https://www.wired.com/story/new-anonymous-phone-carrier-sign-up-with-nothing-but-a-zip-code/
@Tutanota It is true that some are trying to utilize age verification to gather more data, but it does not have to be that way. We can have our cake and eat it too. We can have real age verification on the internet and in apps without sacrificing privacy. That is the most important takeaway here. Phreeli is a new phone company that does zero knowledge payment verification. This same technique can be used for age verification as well!
Joined Aug 2019
