Uncomfortable Questions About Android Developer Verification
https://commonsware.com/blog/2025/08/26/uncomfortable-questions-android-developer-verification.html
Google to require developer verification to install and sideload Android apps
https://9to5google.com/2025/08/25/android-apps-developer-verification/
AI Agents Need Data Integrity
AI agents will soon act autonomously, making data integrity the core security pillar of Web 3.0.
Decentralized protocols, like ActivityPub/Mastodon, let users own and verify data, embedding cryptographic verification, formal proofs, and transparent governance to ensure trustworthy AI operations.
Without robust integrity controls, AI systems risk amplified errors, regulatory non‑compliance, and loss of trust, so future designs must embed layered verification, transparent auditing, and stakeholder‑driven governance as core principles.
Bruce Schneier wrote a great article about this:
https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2025/08/ai-agents-need-data-integrity.html
People (rightfully) are up in arms about the #id #verification but most don't realise they do it already.
What do you think #captcha systems like #recaptcha are?
They #fingerprint your device and collect data about your connection and set persistent #cookies on your system to identify you.
They cover over 90% of the internet in some form and are one of the worst anti #privacy measures out there.
Our #geolocation tool SPOT just got a lot smarter:
The latest version features:
- cluster search ("find THREE lamp posts...")
- improved OSM integration (categories!)
- sharper spatial understanding (prepositions!)
- an upgraded, more robust LLM (by Mistral)
Needless to say, we still comply with Trustworthy #AI principles. And the tool remains free of charge.
Take SPOT for a test drive via this link: https://www.findthatspot.io/
Standard Automata theory and process algebra, update.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2205.03515
“#Google first announced plans to use machine learning to power age estimation earlier this year, which aligns with a global #crackdown on child safety online.
Last week, the UK’s #OnlineAgeVerification rules went into effect, requiring users to verify their ages on sites with porn or content deemed “harmful.”
Several states have passed laws blocking minors from accessing porn sites, while efforts to age-gate social media platforms have largely fallen flat. The #EuropeanUnion is also testing an age #verification prototype that it will eventually link with #DigitalID s.”
#OnlineSafteyAct / #OAS / #UK / #AUS / #USA / #BigTech / #censorship <https://theverge.com/news/715343/youtube-age-estimation-ai-minor-account-restrictions>
UK Court Ruling Leaves Wikipedia Facing Years Of Uncertainty Under Online Safety Act
13/16 If a source lies, the journalist bears responsibility.
That’s why verification, cross-checking, and confronting perspectives are essential.
12/16 On sources: talk to everyone, even the worst.
Never blind trust — understand the source’s agenda and never become its prisoner.
13/16 Si une source trompe, la responsabilité est celle du journaliste.
D’où l’importance de la vérification, du croisement des témoignages et de la confrontation des points de vue.
12/16 Sur les sources : parler à tout le monde, même aux pires.
Pas de confiance aveugle : comprendre l’intérêt de la source et ne jamais être prisonnier de son agenda.
How are your Guards doing with your NickServ correlated with your Tor chat?
#Cwtch looks a lot better as a messenger. It just needs the #Rust !
Have you ever tried to get a rusted bolt loose? Might as well be written in weld.
-----------------------------------------------------------
How many people still use #IRC ? Is it considered trusted and a known quanity because it has been arround for a long time? #Whonix removed it because it is unmaintained. #Tor blog mentions Hexchat in the #oniux announcement. You will have troubles authenticating and never get to the Palladium #onion if you try oniux hexchat. #old or #new : who to trust? When it comes to technology, treachery of the old and fidelity of the new?
@torproject - what works:
oniux element-desktop
https://forums.whonix.org/remove-hexchat-unmaintained
https://github.com/whonix/anon-meta-packages
But to have oniux, you need #Debian #Trixie and Whonix is still stable.
Something I wrote almost exactly a year ago, on the need of systematic verification protocols for authenticity and even personhood.
https://gimulnaut.wordpress.com/2024/08/24/we-are-already-making-the-same-mistakes-with-ai-as-we-did-with-social-media/
#ai #deepfakes #posttruth #verification
Now that we have migrated our website from GoDaddy's services to our own setup, we can finally verify Spiderbro and Spiderbro 2 on Flathub! Hooray! 
secret account verification gif
Here's another major problem with #age #verification that nobody is talking about.
It will circumvent anti #fingerprinting measures.
When you change the way your device appears, your user-agent, canvas api etc you will need to re-verify as the site doesn't recognise you anymore. This occurs with #cloudflare and #recaptcha already.
This will enable every device online to be identified. This is the wet dream of #authoritarian govts.
“Mastercard Responds To Censorship Allegations After Forcing Storefronts To Remove Adult Games”
“Adult games--and games with #AdultThemes--have been #delisted from #digital game sales portals #Steam and #Itchio recently, following pressure from companies that process those platforms' payments to remove them.
After an extended period of silence on the matter, #Mastercard has released a statement and says that its recent actions are based on the "rule of law" and aren't an attempt to enforce #censorship.”
The flip side of verification is CENSORSHIP #OSA / #verification <https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mastercard-responds-to-censorship-allegations-after-forcing-storefronts-to-remove-adult-games/1100-6533641>
“Ready or not, age verification is rolling out across the #Internet”
“It’s just a taste of the issues that many other countries might face as they launch their own systems, and it’s a situation that privacy and security experts have long warned about — to little avail.
Following a yearslong political push to make the internet safer for kids, age #verification has started seeping into online spaces across the globe. Lawmakers in the #USA, #Europe, #Australia, and elsewhere have all passed #AgeGating #rules, and platforms have begun to comply.
The likely methods for verification are similar to those in the UK. #Platforms typically ask users to either enter a #PaymentCard, upload a #GovernmenIssuedID, take a selfie, or allow a platform to use their #data (like account #CreationDates and #UserConnections) to “estimate” their age. Most rely on #ThirdParty services: #Bluesky uses the #EpicGames-owned Kids Web Services; #Reddit is working with #Persona; and #Discord has partnered with #kID.”
#UK / #OnlineSafetyAct / #OSA / #AgeVerification / #surveillance / #control <https://www.theverge.com/analysis/715767/online-age-verification-not-ready> (paywall) / <https://archive.md/jQuvd>
♬ 
