5 ms·
Nice to see some pushback in the most egregious abuses of privacy. I wonder why we are getting this with Flock but not seeing the same with private security cam
by SoftTalker 5mo ago
Nice to see some pushback in the most egregious abuses of privacy. I wonder why we are getting this with Flock but not seeing the same with private security cameras such as Ring, pervasive tracking of mobile devices by carriers and apps, and internet browser tracking. Is it just that there's a direct personal benefit with those devices, and people view the trade-off as being worth it?
- rigrassm 5mo ago> Is it just that there's a direct personal benefit with those devices, and people view the trade-off as being worth it? I think that's mostly it. Basically since Flocks only use is for the systematic tracking of people for use by police and government agencies, it's a lot easier to get people to turn against it. There's just no upside to them that any individual would ever benefit from. It's sad because if/when Flock dies the death of deserves, the software/infrastructure will likely just get sold off and reapplied to some other deployment scheme like Ring quietly forgoing the big Superbowl Ad.
- malwrar 5mo agoI don’t think people realize that these devices can even be used that way. I talk with people outside of the tech scene frequently, and they are routinely surprised when I tell them about this sort of capability. The ring doorbell Super Bowl commercial about finding lost dogs was a genuine shock to people! I think there’s a degree of visibility you need to get people’s attention on an issue, and it’s just difficult to see a doorbell as a threat for the average person.
- iugtmkbdfil834 5mo agoI so want to push back that all this is too little too late, because the system ,though still distributed , is effectively in place already. But.. I also don't want to be the old guy telling kids not to rebel. After all, being young and thinking ( knowing! ) one can change the world, is what being young human is all about. FWIW, it may well be their version of decss, ows and so on. On the other hand, come to think of it, despite OWS being broken up by fancy new approaches ( rumor has it, Walls Street got spooked enough to see what effective methods can be employed given that Pinkerton approach would have been frowned upon then ), I don't recall FBI marking the participants in any special way ( please correct me if I am missting anything ).
- toomuchtodo 5mo agoWith a nationwide effort in swing to dismantle corporate surveillance, the follow up is to pass legislation state by state that prohibits its implementation in the future. Federal legislation on this matter is unlikely to occur until sometime after midterms, and so state legislation is the path to success in the interim.
- mothballed 5mo agoWe voted out the cameras locally, the feds just installed them at every nook and cranny they had available. Turned out, there was a lot of federal property, so it was back to square one.
- toomuchtodo 5mo agoRegime change is coming, its harm reduction until then.
- tartoran 5mo agoAre you sure about that? Seems pretty shameless and determined to bend all the rules to stay in power, I surely hope the change is coming though.
- toomuchtodo 5mo agoDem advantage heading into midterms is highest in 20 years [1]. I am hopeful if democracy is directly attacked during the upcoming election cycle, the attempt will be contained, but agree it remains to be seen and you should have an exit plan if democracy fails. Mental model: I am sure of nothing. All models are wrong, but some are useful. Better to have a plan and not need it than need it and not have it. Hope alone is not a strategy. [1] https://emersoncollegepolling.com/april-2026-national-poll/ https://emersoncollegepolling.com/april-2026-national-poll/
- 5mo ago
- nenadg 5mo ago>the most egregious abuses of privacy wait until you hear about EU's EES
- riffraff 5mo agodo you really believe your biometrics being checked once when you enter a continent as a foreigner is the same as being videotaped at every moment in your own country as a citizen?
- nenadg 5mo agoI think both are bad and there's no guarantee they are not keeping their eyes on me all the time
- olyjohn 5mo agoThe problem is that you're not being videotaped at every moment. You're trying to make one sound worse than it is, and downplaying the other one. Two things can be bad at once.
- cryo32 5mo agoRing is dead near me. Everyone had Ring doorbells until someone went around with a hammer and fucked them all up.
- smcg 5mo agoSurely one of the cameras saw who it was...?
- EdwardDiego 5mo agoHoney, did you order a ski mask and a hammer because someone is delivering them now according to the cam... nevermind.
- sieabahlpark 5mo ago[dead]
- brikym 5mo agoWish that same person would do something about obnoxious digital billboards
- PunchyHamster 5mo agoThere is some push on that too but Flock is sponsored by people's taxes, while ring is someone's personal choice.
- treebeard901 5mo agoDont forget about Waymo and similar. As much surveillance as flock.
- punkyblewster 5mo agoDoes Waymo track individuals for businesses and governments? If so, I'll stop using them. If they just happen to need cameras, that's fundamentally different.
- brikym 5mo agoIt's not much of a stretch to think they'd sell the data or be compelled to given the NSA and data brokers exist.
- Brian_K_White 5mo agoBugs me no end that my latest upstairs neighbor (I've been here for 15 years) has a ring on their door which means I have to be in front of it every time I go in & out my own door. It doesn't matter how thoughtful you are, someone else will be thoughtless for you.
- punkyblewster 5mo agoRing did get some pushback when they advertised the "pet finding" feature that folks realized meant would allow anybody to be found. But overall, being tracked by your _own_ device feels different than being tracked by somebody else's device. Especially when taxpayer dollars are being used for that other device.
- brikym 5mo agoIt's not just inputs/sensors but also outputs. It seems like every public space is abused with bright obnoxious digital billboards now the cost is cheaper and cheaper.
- trhway 5mo agowait until satellite constellations would start displaying ads ... as well as there is huge still unused space on the face of the Moon :)