Software taking the principle of Track-Me-Not and AdNauseam further?
Is there more software that, like TrackMeNot and AdNauseam, generate random internet activity so as to reduce the accuracy of any profiles tracking companies keep about you? E.g. software that carries out complete plausible-looking surfing journeys in the background: not just issuing searches (like TrackMeNot) and following ads (like AdNauseam), but also clicking on other links, scrolling, going back, perhaps even watching a YouTube video every once in a while and browsing Facebook? (All this, of course, respectful of the environment and the limited resources of small projects.) Or apps for the smartphone to generate false but plausible-looking position data and the like?
(Background: As many of you know, trackmenot is a browser extension that enhances your privacy by generating random search queries in the background, watering out the profiles that Google, Microsoft (and Yahoo, Baidu and AOL) have of you. It's available in the Firefox extension store; whereas for Chrome, Google has banned it from its store for unfathomable reasons. There's also AdNauseam, which works towards the same goal by randomly clicking ads in the background.)
TrackMeNot – Get this Extension for 🦊 Firefox (en-US)
Download TrackMeNot for Firefox. An artware browser add-on to protect privacy in web-search. By issuing randomized queries to common search-engines, TrackMeNot obfuscates your search profile and registers your discontent with surreptitious tracking.addons.mozilla.org
I'm actually not in favour of obfuscation methods, as recent events have shown - authorities questioning a dude for wearing the same innocuous shirt?
Random traffic might turn out to be 'traffic of interest' for just being the at the wrong place, wrong time. I would prefer actual strong cryptography and isolation.
authorities questioning a dude for wearing the same innocuous shirt?
Why wouldn't they tho? Both persons had the same shirt on. That seems like a no brainer to me. Maybe I'm missing something. It's one of the reasons when I go out in public, I do not wear clothing that are emblazoned with logos, graphics, words, etc. For one, it doesn't do anything for me to wear logos, graphics, words. To me, it's akin to having a political yard sign or bumper sticker. What do you gain from it? What's it do for you? Some guy wearing a t-shirt with a cannabis leaf across the front, again why?, and it's an easy identifier and puts another tick mark for complimentary evidence.
I’m actually not in favour of obfuscation methods
I'm a big fan of it all.
Maybe I should clarify - I'm not a fan of human noise (there's probably a more precise term) - I'm more in favour of privacy/anonymity in the midst of actual, randomized noise, that isn't just random human activity.
I don't even mean t shirts with a logo. It could've been a pair of jeans on a specific date at a place in conjunction with 5 other (random obfuscated) things that a poi also happened to do. Like googled 'how to fold a swan' or whatever.
Even if you didn't do these things but was instead random generated traffic, it would generate unnecessary attention.
One might argue that if enough people adopted such methods, authorities would have too many leads to follow up. But then again, the chances of a random string of generated activity coinciding with that of a poi isn't high, so there likely will be a manageable number of leads.
Even if the number were higher, they have proven to have no qualms about skipping due process. As long as they might've gotten the actual poi, they have no problems subjecting many more unrelated to the same treatment because everyone is some sort of terrorist now.
They could also arrest you just because you have higher than normal randomized traffic and activity that you can't or won't answer for.
"Why did you search how to fix a sink leak and then how to fold a parachute within 2 minutes of each other?? You must be a terrorist generating random activity to hide your true actions. What do you have to hide?" - "found coke stuffed in all the couches and beds boss"
They could also arrest you just because you have higher than normal randomized traffic and activity that you can’t or won’t answer for.
I hear what you're saying, and I'm not going to call it paranoia, however, that isn't in my threat model. Entities that can come into your home, arrest you, and ship you off to Guantanamo for buying a parachute and a drain kit for the sink are not in my scope. Frankly speaking, that is probably not in 90% of most people's threat model, who care about privacy, anonymity, and security. Those entities don't even need to fabricate an excuse like a couch full of coke, to give you that full Guantanamo experience.
To tell the truth, I probably couldn't account for 75%+ of the websites I've visited just today. When I get to researching something, it's usually pages and pages, from many, many different sites. Highlight, search, read, nothing here, go back, highlight, search, bingo! Now for more in depth reading. Highlight, search....ad nauseam. This process happens very quickly. I don't watch TV at all, and I don't read fiction. 99.99% of what I do read tho, comes off the internet. So, they'd have to sift through a bunch of data.
Even if you didn’t do these things but was instead random generated traffic, it would generate unnecessary attention.
I'm quite certain that all of my privacy, anonymity, security, and obfuscation efforts has put me on someone's list, but again, that's not in my threat model. I'm not hiding from the government. I send them tax forms every year. I vote prolifically in both local and nationwide elections. I pay property taxes, etc. They know who, and where, when it comes to finding me. If I were a person of interest, they'd come visit. Now, I'm certainly not going to overshare with them in the least either. Hell, I'm not hiding from anyone. I'm just preventing unauthorized access. That is what keys and locks do.
Rock on bro!
There’s also AdNauseam, which works towards the same goal by randomly clicking ads in the background.)
Funny thing that I found out is that you actually have to have advertisements allowed on your network for it to work. LOL
Samsung Embeds Israeli Surveillance App on Phones Across MENA
A nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing human rights in digital spaces across West Asia and North Africa — is warning that Israeli-linked software secretly embedded in Samsung phones across the MENA region poses a serious surveillance threat.
According to SMEX, Samsung’s A and M series devices either come preloaded with the app “Aura” or install it automatically through system updates, without the user’s consent. The application reportedly collects a wide range of personal and device-specific data, including IP addresses, device fingerprints, hardware details, and network information.
In 2022, Samsung MENA partnered with Israeli tech company IronSource, integrating its Aura software into Galaxy A and M series phones across the region. The partnership was publicly marketed as a way to “enhance user experience” with AI-powered apps and content suggestions.
like this
I'm afraid it will be hard in the future.
like this
Is there a black market for Doctors (other than charities) ? Feels like an opportunity for an enterprising group of doctors.
Forking the medical industry with free treatment probably needs a gofundme . . . . . Or what the rest of the world calls a national health service.
Announcing the Soft Launch of Fedora Forge
Announcing the Soft Launch of Fedora Forge – Fedora Community Blog
We are thrilled to announce the soft launch of Fedora Forge, our new home for Fedora Project subprojects and Special Interest Groups (SIGs)! This marks a significant step forward in modernizing our development and collaboration tools, providing a pow…Ryan Lerch (Fedora Project)
FYI
We are thrilled to announce the soft launch of Fedora Forge, our new home for Fedora Project subprojects and Special Interest Groups (SIGs)!
Some clients show an excerpt (I ain't complaining about you putting it in a comment though) so probably to that guy it looked like you just copy/pasted this thing
So I value those who add a comment to their post and say why they post it and find it interesting. Isn't Lemmy all about sharing thought, so does poster except other to do it for him and just want to have popular posts?
Plex or Jellyfin for my Raspberry Pi?
Jellyfin all day every day
It still has issues to fix but it's open source and actually yours
Plex is an enterprise solution, if you need your tech illiterate grandma to access the media it's easier to pay them. If it's just a local network or you're okay with going down a rabbit hole of setup, then Jellyfin does everything and does it better IMO (Plex requires you to be online to login before it shows you your local data, plus you're sharing information on what media files you have to Plex).
I personally have been using Jellyfin for years, and my only complain is that the LG app is slow and I get some videos that stuck for a few seconds in it (probably some codec thing, that I could fix by transcoding the media but I haven't been bothered enough to figure it out)
The Israeli Soldiers Who Have Gone Insane Are Actually The Sane Ones. The Real Insane Ones Are Those Who Are Not Psychologically Wounded By The Crimes They Have Done
The Israeli Soldiers Who Have Gone Insane Are Actually The Sane Ones. The Real Insane Ones Are Those Who Are Not Psychologically Wounded By The Crimes They Have Done - Walid Shoebat
There was an article that was published on Haaretz about IDF soldiers losing their minds due to the crimes they have committed.Shoebat (Walid Shoebat)
Corbyn and Sultana clash over new party membership
Corbyn and Sultana clash over new party membership
MP Zarah Sultana says she is a victim of a "sexist boys' club" in row over setting up new left wing party.Sam Francis (BBC News)
like this
Netanyahu: ‘These So-Called Genocide Experts Have Probably Never Committed A Genocide In Their Lives’
JERUSALEM—In response to an independent United Nations inquiry concluding that Israel is committing an ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a defiant statement Thursday in which he criticized the commission’s finding, declaring that “these so-called genocide experts have probably never committed a genocide in their lives.”
“Until you’ve killed countless civilians, the word ‘genocide’ shouldn’t even come out of your damn mouth,” said Netanyahu, arguing that the pampered intellectuals at the U.N. were nothing more than a bunch of armchair human rights abusers. “Name one ethnic group you’ve attempted to obliterate. I’ll wait.
I mean, have you even bombed a single children’s hospital? Please, you’ve got no idea what you’re talking about. Maybe you read a book about the 1948 Genocide Convention? Well, I’ve read Sports Illustrated, but that doesn’t mean I’m a quarterback.
Netanyahu: ‘These So-Called Genocide Experts Have Probably Never Committed A Genocide In Their Lives’
JERUSALEM—In response to an independent United Nations inquiry concluding that Israel is committing an ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a defiant statement Thursday in which he criticized the com…The Onion Staff (The Onion)
Formatting test [Because I don't understand how some images show up as links while others reflect the image themselves also extra long title test inbound
HTML GUESS:
BB GUESS:
Thumb HTML GUESS:
Thumb BB GUESS:
signal-2025-08-23-13-11-07-825 hosted at ImgBB
Image signal-2025-08-23-13-11-07-825 hosted in ImgBBImgBB
***the cake is a lie***Answer seems no
US Plans to Deploy the Golden Dome Missile Defense System: Problems and Prospects
Former Deputy Chief of Space Operations for the US Space Force, General Michael Gattlein, announced that the deployment plan for the Golden Dome missile defense system has been completed.
The US Department of Defense is not disclosing details of the program or its cost. The Pentagon statement stated that a review is currently underway, so no further information is available.
A look at the general's changing tone makes it clear that the project is facing difficulties. In July, he claimed that he would present an "objective plan" and disclose the program concept after the 60-day deadline.
As for the cost, one can conclude that Trump's $175 billion plan was optimistic. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the development and deployment of the missile defense system will require $542 billion, and that's just the cost of creating the interceptor system. Defense Department spokesperson Kingsley Wilson stated that cost details should not be disclosed because the program is critical to national security.
Although the project has a relatively short development timeline, it already has its critics. They argue that the effectiveness of a missile defense system depends on a variety of factors, from its location on the planet to the types and number of threats the system must counter, as well as its expected reliability.
Computer modeling has shown that the guaranteed destruction of several warheads would require dozens of times more interceptor missiles. A simple calculation shows that the system could easily be overwhelmed by the launch of several missiles, not to mention a massive nuclear missile strike. Military analyst Todd Harrison of the American Enterprise Institute warns that even minor changes to the system's parameters could increase its cost by hundreds of billions of dollars.
- YouTube
Profitez des vidéos et de la musique que vous aimez, mettez en ligne des contenus originaux, et partagez-les avec vos amis, vos proches et le monde entier.m.youtube.com
UK regime partners up with Palantir
New strategic partnership to unlock billions and boost military AI and innovation
The UK will be at the leading edge of defence innovation as the government signs a new partnership with Palantir to unlock billions in investment and deliver on the Government’s Plan for Change.Ministry of Defence (GOV.UK)
geneva_convenience likes this.
The Economic and Strategic Logic Behind China’s Power Sector Engagement in Africa
China’s Financing Power Plants Transforming Africa's Energy
Why is China financing power plants across Africa? This analysis breaks down China’s motivations — from resource security to export markets — and what’s at stake.The China-Global South Project
Speaker Johnson says China is straining U.S. relations with Nvidia chip ban
Speaker Johnson says China is straining U.S. relations with Nvidia chip ban
The Cyberspace Administration of China ordered companies to halt purchases of Nvidia's RTX Pro 6000D, a chip that was made for the country.Samantha Subin (CNBC)
“They steal our intellectual property,” Johnson told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Wednesday.
Why the fuck would they do that when their own is so much better
US vetoes UN Security Council Gaza ceasefire demand for sixth time
US vetoes UN Security Council Gaza ceasefire demand for sixth time
‘Forgive us, Palestinian brothers, sisters,’ says Algerian ambassador to UN Amar Bendjama after devastating outcome.Lorraine Mallinder (Al Jazeera)
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Developer / Potential Contributor Question: how to add a custom post/comment ranking algorithm to Lemmy?
How would I add a new ranking algorithm to Lemmy as a contributor? I'm a developer by trade, but unfamiliar with Rust and the codebase of Lemmy specifically. It doesn't seem like Lemmy has a concept of 'ranking plugins', so whatever I do would have to involve an MR.
Specifically, I'd like to introduce a ranking system that approximates Proportional Approval Voting, specifically using Thiele's elimination methods, like is used in LiquidFeedback.
I'm pretty sure that with a few tweaks to Thiele's rules, I can compute a complete ranking of all comments in a thread in O(ClogC + E + VlogC), where C is the number of comments, E is the total number of likes, and V is the number of users. This would also support partial approvals, upvotes could decay with age.
I believe this would mitigate the tendency towards echo chambers that Lemmy inherits from Reddit. Lemmy effectively uses Block Approval Voting with decays to rank comments and posts, leading to the same people dominating every conversation.
I was thinking of it as a drop-in replacement for "hot" just so that it doesn't require any changes on the UI to implement. I'm a bit rusty with UI development, lol. The frontends wouldn't have to add a new button, and the Lemmy API wouldn't need to add a new sort type. That said, maybe that sort of thing is easy to do?
As far as it would work, Thiele's elimination rules is computed roughly as follows (I'm assuming that only upvotes are counted; I haven't considered yet if the process works if disapprovals count as a vote of "-1" or how the process could remain scalable if an abstention counts as a vote of "0.5":
begin with the list of posts, list of users, and list of votes
# initial weighting, takes O(E)
for each post:
for each vote on the post:
lookup the user that voted on the post
based on the number of votes the user has given, determine how much the user would be made "unhappy" if the current post was removed
# the basic idea here is that if the user didn't vote for a post, then they won't care if its removed
# if the user did vote for a post, but also voted for 100 others, then they probably won't care if one gets removed as long as 99 remain
# if the user did vote for a post, but only voted for 2 or 1 others, then they'll care more if this one gets removed
# if this is the only post the user voted for, then they'll care a lot if it gets removed
# LiquidFeedback uses a formula of "1/r", where r is the total number of votes the user has given
# as posts get removed, the votes get removed too, so surviving votes get more weight
# for the sake of efficiency, I'll probably use a formula like "if r > 20 then 0 else 1/r" so that users only start to contribute weight to posts once they only have 20 approvals left. Replace 20 with a constant of your choice
add the user's resistance to the post being removed to the post
# initial heap construction, takes O(C)
construct a min-heap of the posts based on the sum of the users' resistances to the post being removed
# iterative removal of posts
while posts remain in the heap: # O(C)
remove the first post in the heap - this has the least resistance to this post being marked 'last' in the current set # O(logC)
yield the removed post
for each vote for the removed post: # in total, O(E) - every vote is iterated once, across the entire lifetime of the heap
lookup the user that voted on the post
compute this user's resistance to this post being removed
remove this vote from the user
based on the number of remaining votes the user has given, compute the user's resistance to the next post being removed
compute how much the user's resistance to their next post being removed increased (let this be "resistance increase")
if "resistance increase" is nonzero (based on my formula, this will happen whenever they have less than 20 votes remaining, but not if they have more than 20 votes remaining):
for each vote for a different post by this user:
increase the post resistance to removal by "resistance increase"
perform an "increase_key" operation on the min-heap for this post # this will be O(logC)
# worst-case, each user will perform 20 + 19 + 18 + ... "increase_key" operations -
# they only begin once there are 20 votes remaining
# when they have 20 votes remaining, they have 20 increase_key's to do
# when they have 19 votes remaining, they have 19 increase_key's to do
# etc.
# because this is a constant, it doesn't contribute to the time complexity analysis.
# so each user performs at worst a constant number of O(logC) operations
# so the overall time complexity of the "increase_key" operations is O(VlogC)For this algorithm, the
yield the removed post statement will return the sorted posts in reverse order. So worst to best. You could also interpret that statement as "Give the post a rank in the final sorting of count(posts) - (i++)".Thiele says that process can be used to elect a committee of size N by stopping your removal when N votes remain. But because it's a "house monotonic" process (electoral speak for "increasing the size of the committee by one and re-running an election is guaranteed not to cost any existing members their seat), I figure it could be repurposed to produce a ranking as well - the top one item is "best one", the top two items are the best two, the top three are the best three, etc.
To make the above process work for approvals that decay over time, we'd just treat a decayed approval as a partial approval. I still have some work to do on how exactly to integrate partial approvals into the "resistance to removing each post" calculations without ruining my time complexity. But basically it's a proportional score voting election instead of proportional approval.
Adding a new sort type is not a big deal, so dont worry about it. And a new admin setting for this would also require UI changes, so the new sort type is easier overall.
The current sort options calculate the rank for each post only from the data on that post (number of votes, creation time). Your suggested algorithm looks much more complicated than that, as it requires two iterations and needs to access data from multiple posts at once. Im not sure if this can really be implemented in a way thats performant enough for production use. Anyway feel free to open a pull request, then hopefully other contributors can help you to get it working.
How to protect my identity while running an online store?
Hello, Sorry if this is the wrong place for this.
I am looking to start an online store for some art projects/crafts/stickers mostly as a creative outlet for some of my current frustrations.
Since some kinds of people take art way too personally, I want to take precautions from doxxing or being harassed.
What are some best practices for an online shop? Are there any recommended storefronts or something like that? I’m sure there’s a lot of things I’m not even considering.
Any help would be much appreciated, Thanks
Contractor Used Classified CIA Systems as ‘His Own Personal Google’
Contractor Used Classified CIA Systems as ‘His Own Personal Google’
This article was produced in collaboration with Court Watch, an independent outlet that unearths overlooked court records. Subscribe to them here.A former CIA official and contractor, who at the time of his employment dug through classified systems for information he then sold to a U.S. lobbying firm and foreign clients, used access to those CIA systems as “his own personal Google,” according to a court record reviewed by 404 Media and Court Watch.
💡
Do you know anything else about this case? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at joseph.404 or send me an email at joseph@404media.co.Dale Britt Bendler, 68, was a long running CIA officer before retiring in 2014 with a full pension. He rejoined the agency as a contractor and sold a wealth of classified information, according to the government’s sentencing memorandum filed on Wednesday. His clients included a U.S. lobbying firm working for a foreigner being investigated for embezzlement and another foreign national trying to secure a U.S. visa, according to the court record.
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Subscribe nowContractor Used Classified CIA Systems as ‘His Own Personal Google’
Dale Britt Bendler “earned approximately $360,000 in private client fees while also working as a full-time CIA contractor with daily access to highly classified material that he searched like it was his own personal Google,” according to a court re…Joseph Cox (404 Media)
I'm pretty sure he's far from the only one. Databases with such a vast amount of "forbidden" knowledge will always be misused.
That's why we shouldn't have global surveillance, espionage and "highly classified material" wherever it's possible for agencies to do their jobs without them.
And I'd argue most of the data the contractor had access to was neither relevant for his own work, nor for the work of all of the CIA.
like this
We’ve known since Snowden that these people browse private info for fun, and exchange anything spicy they find with each other. But this guy was straight up selling classified info to anyone who would buy it.
I’m shocked they’re letting this guy off with a plea deal. This was so far beyond misuse of systems. This was full on treason.
I’m shocked they’re letting this guy off with a plea deal. This was so far beyond misuse of systems. This was full on treason.
but he didn't try to run or get caught running in russia; so he's ok. lol
Depends which kind of partisan you’re talking to. One kind believes it’s ok to keep them in boxes in a bathroom. The other kind thinks ok to keep them in the trunk of a car or a private server.
Reasonable people want both kinds held accountable.
oh wow these are for sure essentially the same level of Nazi apologia
Fact : what's really behind the Swiss E-ID
End of September, Switzerland will vote for E-ID.
A big threat for our privacy as it will widely used for tons of new use cases.
Behind the government pitch of an "open source project, completely optional" hides big tech industry... Which will make it mandatory to access their services.
What are your thoughts on that ?
like this
private ids where always the scope of the privacy movement. However, it may as such present other challenges which can include age based discrimination. It as such must be implemented wisely.
Age is already being weaponised against us (child protection, etc), this shouldn't be like that - We can already see what kind of power governments hold. Ageism is what will ultimately destroy us.
Filter Your Files Directly in Zsh, Without Long Pipelines | Bread on Penguins
0:00 zsh opts
1:31 wildcards
2:46 when to glob!
4:08 special patterns
4:50 filtering, sorting
7:10 $f example
8:25 when not to glob!- YouTube
Profitez des vidéos et de la musique que vous aimez, mettez en ligne des contenus originaux, et partagez-les avec vos amis, vos proches et le monde entier.www.youtube.com
i use zsh on my work macs and now i'm thinking of doing so too on my linux machines because of this lady's videos.
i've been using bash for 20+ years and my work macs keep reminding me that the transition is going to have hiccups because bash has become muscle memory for me.
Bloody Day For Israel With Six Soldiers Killed In Gaza And West Bank (Videos, Photos)
Bloody Day For Israel With Six Soldiers Killed In Gaza And West Bank (Videos, Photos)
Six Israeli soldiers were killed on September 18 in two separate attacks that took place in the occupied West Bank...Anonymous1199 (South Front)
Russia challenges ICAO’s findings on MH17 crash in UN Court of Justice — ministry
Russia challenges ICAO’s findings on MH17 crash in UN Court of Justice — ministry
Russian diplomats also noted that although the tragedy occurred over 11 years ago, "there is still a long way to go in the quest for truth"TASS
Texas Man Is Charged With Making Threats Against Mamdani
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/18/nyregion/zohran-mamdani-threat-nyc-mayor.html
Murena launches phone with hardware kill switch
mastodon.social/@murena/115225…
Meet your everyday privacy HIROH🥳 Introducing the HIROH phone powered by Murena:
🔸 Built-in privacy with /e/OS
🔸 Hardware Kill Switch button
🔸 Premium quality hardware: 1.5K AMOLED display & 108MP rear camYour everyday phone should be your private phone.
👉 Pre-order & save 200€/$: murena.com/products/smartphone…
Beijing Prefers Peaceful Reunification with Taiwan But Warns Conventional Arms Are Sufficient
Beijing Prefers Peaceful Reunification with Taiwan But Warns Conventional Arms Are Sufficient
Retired PLA Lieutenant General He Lei said China has enough conventional weapons to resolve the Taiwan issue if necessary, though peaceful reunification remains Beijing’s preferred pathPavel Morozov (Pravda English)
ordnance_qf_17_pounder
in reply to lol669 • • •lol
silly goose meekah
in reply to lol669 • • •ColdWater
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in reply to ColdWater • • •silly goose meekah
in reply to ColdWater • • •this is beyond steroids
steroids make you muscles grow unnaturally fast.
this is literally just liquid to pump into the muscle to make it look bigger
SeekPie
in reply to lol669 • • •HiddenLayer555
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in reply to lol669 • • •lol669
in reply to SubArcticTundra • • •