Online privacy? Forget it!

peeterpaul@motskula.net (Peeter P. Mõtsküla) — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0000

Let me start from a bold prediction and a daring statement.

The prediction is that in 2020, online privacy will be more or less in the same place where digital copyright is today: there will be a growing majority of people who knowingly violate the respective laws on the grounds that the legal system has remained inert while the real life has moved on.

The statement is that privacy laws and copyright laws have nearly nothing to do with the interests of their alleged subjects — the individuals and authors, respectively. Instead, they serve the interests of the “big guys” in each scene. In case of copyright, this means the “copyright industries” — record labels, movie studios, “old school” software companies, publishing houses, etc. In case of privacy, this means the institutions who are the biggest processors of personal information today — national, state, and local governments as well as banks, insurance companies, telecoms and utilities.

Open letter to IFJ

peeterpaul@motskula.net (Peeter P. Mõtsküla) — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Referring to IFJ Appeals to Microsoft as Russia Uses Anti-Piracy Campaign as a Cover for Media Intimidation:

Why don’t you consider an opportunity to help Russian independent media outlets migrate to free/libre open-source software (FLOSS) instead of begging Microsoft to donate free or discounted licenses for their computers?

With more than 20 years of computing experience, having worked in and with newspapers, and having first-hand knowledge of Windows, Mac OS X and Linux operating systems, I dare to say that FLOSS is a suitable alternative for most people employed in a media organization.

Freedom on @ppmotskula

Online privacy? Forget it!

Open letter to IFJ