David 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

No DMs please (simply because I'm not doing the age-verification nonsense). Feel free to use Signal: David.7323 Thanks.

😬 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I have no words… 😶

I’ve had a few fruitless conversations with UK civil society over the years along the lines of: you know the far right is outplaying and out-strategising and out-organising you in every way, while you’re wanking around with a Mastodon install and calling it impactful advocacy b/c it’s decentralised

As per my previous blogging about real history being age-gated, a folk song merely about the 1966 Aberfan disaster now requires age verification. Which is a fairly awful irony. Chapeau @cjforms.bsky.social

The problem isn't rogue #AI models, it's *negligent companies*. If a biomedical firm put their product in public water supply because they wanted to test it 'in the real world', they'd be treated as criminal at corporate & individual level. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

In fact by the time the quantum issue is revealed it may be that it is already been a problem for a while we just haven't seen it and we will be retrospectively, and urgently, fixing the problem. I think the problem will be far larger than the AI issue at least medium term

With all the concern about AI cyber security issues people seem to have completely forgotten about the upcoming issue of quantum computing and the impact it's going to have on encryption..... Note that whilst you're seeing the issues with AI in real time- the quantum issue will appear suddenly

As expected, now public info: the legal contention re: the TCN which the Home Office issued to Apple under the Investigatory Powers Act, ordering Apple to disable end-to-end encryption/Advanced Data Protection for UK users is, as we suspected might happen, going to drag on well into 2027.

Hello to all our new American followers, who have found us via a 'no AI' media list. We can confirm we use no AI. We are a volunteer run media outlet in Oxfordshire UK. Do follow us for a dose of escapism. This week's newsletter features thriving local democracy and a 700 year old college.

Essential reading on the Christian nationalist associations of Reform's head of policy, who has some pretty retrograde views of his own.

Here's a #HigherEducationPostcard of the City part of @citystgeorges.bsky.social Known for years as the Northampton Institute, after the Marquess of Northampton, who donated the land on which it is built If you like this image, I’d really appreciate a repost - remember, BlueSky has #NoAlgorithm

It’s really weird how displaying some semblance of humility seems to have been extinguished as a cultural value in the United States over the course of, what, 15 years? Yes, Americans were never BIG on humility, but I swear I recall it being something powerful people used to get praised for.

Sigh… 🙄

There must also be limits. Researchers are still employees & employing organisations still have reasonable expectations about performance in role. Researchers are employed to research in particular areas (the clue is often in the job title) related to institutional priorities and personal expertise.

Make a band bigger: The Thompson Triplets

🚇 Tubed #142 · 🟢 Easy · solved in 0:56 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Optimal route! ✨ No hints used 🏆 Can anyone match this? ➡️ playtubed.co.uk

Better... 🙂

@cyberleagle.bsky.social

Day 5 of #Sophiefromromania adventures on the beach and she’s doing zoomies into the sea - hard to remember that days ago she was scared of the waves

This morning I dropped out of a plane at 15,000 feet above North Oxfordshire, strapped to a lovely man called Keith. Thanks - huge thanks - to those who sponsored me, and if you still wish to, you can www.justgiving.com/page/mishcon...

Catch 21 Star scuffles Dropped catch 22 The medium length day Dr Strangelike Remains of the afternoon Documented migrant [don’t overthink it] Lock, stock and a smoking barrel The long average Friday

So, there is a precedent for vetoing an MP's resignation Viscount Chelsea (Henry Cadogan) applied for the Chiltern Hundreds in 1842 The Chancellor (Goulburn) refused because, get this, Cadogan wanted to resign to obstruct an investigation for bribery h/t @fascinatorfun.bsky.social and @gazhay.com

It’s very hard to persuade people that ‘regulation’ in the abstract isn’t a thing and that actual regulations can have very different effects so you have to get into the (yawn) details

Seriously! That's how orators have laid out their points since frikking Cicero!

YES this exactly. I am gonna emdash. I refuse to apologize for learning, and using, proper punctuation!

It is crazy that standard practices of good writing are now identified and labeled by AI as proof of nonhuman writing. AI needs to sit down and actually read a fucking book (instead of ingesting all of them at once).

AS PER MY PREVIOUS years of pointing this out would happen: the age verification sector is now behaving as privatised law enforcement, based on the user’s mere use of a non-big tech privacy-centric OS and not any actual offense committed. I get to name this, so let’s call it “grassware”.

That will depend on whether the evidence points to the conclusion they had already decided in advance.

I am once again begging, praying, weeping for lists of written instructions rather than videos. I do not want to watch your two minute video in the hope of catching the two seconds where you whizz past what goddamn menu the thing is under. Write. It. Down.

Yes please.

“We believe the attacking group to be highly sophisticated and, I strongly suspect, significantly accelerated by AI” — “Accelerated by AI” is 2026 for “Nation State threat actor” isn’t it 🙄

I haven't had a long enough breath to talk about how AI is ruining the open web. API after API I used to use is closing - literally because paying the $$$ required to feed these impersonation machines is prohibitive.

First proper walk of the year… Oxford Canal.

Security people worried about AI generated 0days when they don't have MFA and have windows 2008 still around. Almost no one is getting hacked by unknown exploits - they are getting hacked by credential theft and unpatched machines.

He didn’t do it intentionally but Trump has finally managed to unite the right and left of US politics in condemnation of his illegal aggression and use of collective punishment (a war crime) as a coercive negotiating tactic.

Age Verification causing people to stop installing security updates on iPhone https://alecmuffett.com/article/153062 #AgeVerification #OnlineSafety #OnlineSafetyAct #censorship #irony #surveillance

Great, so we now have a third initialism in the tech space... AV - Audio Visual AV - Anti Virus AV - Age Verification What could possibly go wrong 🙄

“Led by a corgi…” @oldenoughtosay.com x.com/yoda4ever/st...

This frankly makes me proud to be British. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

@lisaforte.bsky.social Hi Lisa, can I ask where the best place for coffee is in Bristol these days? 🙂 I’m going to be there on Saturday for a thing, so local knowledge would be helpful. Thanks!

@hbsj.bsky.social x.com/tim_hedleyj/...