Roanoke, VA increasing surveillance with government funding.

While Roanoke has a multimillion dollar deficit and our education system and teachers suffer, affecting our children. The Real Cost and Funding SourcesThe "Everywhere" Cameras: Roanoke currently operates 24 Flock Safety automated license plate readers (LPRs). These are often funded through specialized state initiatives like Virginia’s HEAT (Help Eliminate Auto Theft) program or specific law enforcement equipment grants (such as the federal Byrne Justice Assistance Grant, which allocated roughly $74,000 to Roanoke for equipment and LPRs in recent funding cycles). The New 75 Audio Devices: The sudden uptick in debate you are hearing about right now involves a plan to add 75 Flock "Raven" audio devices to detect gunshots. This pilot program is being funded entirely by a federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant totaling $57,040.

#privacy #surveillance

https://wfirnews.com/news/roanoke-mayor-speaks-on-privacy-concerns-over-new-surveillance-tools

Colorado exempted open-source operating systems from 2028 OS-level age-verification rules, shielding Linux installs from mandatory checks. 🔓
California may add similar language before rollout, while Linux OEMs warn account-age mandates could pressure smaller vendors and user privacy. 🐧

🔗 https://fossforce.com/2026/05/the-quiet-clause-that-may-save-linux-from-age-verification-laws/

#TechNews #Linux #OpenSource #Privacy #AgeVerification #System76 #FOSS #GNU #Security #Surveillance #DigitalRights #Cybersecurity #DataPrivacy #Tech #Colorado #California #USA #Freedom

"This is what makes the matter more than an abstract privacy concern: it has direct and measurable economic consequences. If your insurance goes up without you having had any accidents, if your risk profile deteriorates without you knowing why, the explanation may be in the on-board computer of your own car. Surveillance capitalism, which for years has operated primarily in the social media and e-commerce space, has found in the connected car a hugely profitable new territory, because it combines precise location data, physical behavior, everyday habits, and, in many cases, health data derived from biometric sensors. It is a mine of personal information that the user does not see, does not control and rarely perceives.

The European regulatory framework offers, at least in theory, more protections than its US counterpart. The GDPR states that states that location and behavioral data are private and require a legal basis for processing. The European Data Protection Board published detailed guidelines on connected vehicles in 2021 that should serve as a reference for manufacturers operating in Europe, clearly stating that the processing of driving data requires a solid legal basis and that consent obtained through inaccessible general conditions does not meet the standards of the regulation.

The EU’s 2023 Data Act also adds portability rights: the user should be able to access the data generated by their own vehicle and transfer it to third parties of their choice. But there is a considerable gap between the text of the regulations and their effective implementation, and manufacturers have proven to be very creative in designing consent mechanisms that comply with the law to the letter, while emptying it of real content.

Users still have some recourse, but not much. Most connected cars have privacy settings that their owners have never explored — they’re worth looking for and turning on."

https://medium.com/enrique-dans/fast-and-curious-why-the-car-is-no-longer-a-private-space-7d46c4f41d0f

#EVs #Surveillance #Privacy #DataProtection

Global Privacy Surge: States target VPNs, EU enforces GDPR/DSA, Russia/China/ME curb tools.
• US: 65% open-source shift
• EU: 70% non-EU routing
• Russia: 80% underground surge
#PrivacyAlert #Surveillance #CorporateGovernance
https://hostednowhere.link/privrpt
🌐 Full Report & Subscribe: https://osintnewsroom.net
☕ Support: https://ko-fi.com/osintnewroom

P.S. The ad networks aren't listening to you, but they're terrifyingly good at predicting your behavior!

They know who you're spending time with via location data. They know what you and those people have already bought. They know your age and other demographic characteristics. They know you lingered on an Instagram ad for 3 seconds before scrolling.

The solution is to use ad-blockers everywhere. Also, avoid apps and products that explicitly track you.

#adtech #surveillance #infosec #privacy

How to bypass social media blocks and increased surveillance in 2026 | TechRadar
#surveillance #privacy

https://share.google/pu1Fb2GDKwl9sgiAd

what this is about

Surveillance under #Surveillance shows you #cameras and #guards — #watching you — almost everywhere. You can see where they are #located and, if the information is available, what type they are, the area they #observe, or other interesting facts.

Different icons and colors give you a quick overview about the indexed surveillance entries. Click on those icons on the #map to get the available information.

sunders.uber.space/

California and Colorado legislated that Linux distributions, being free and open-source, are exempt from the age verification in operating systems, unless they are proprietary like SteamOS (and Windows).

Too bad the systemd developers already complied with fascism in advance before the bills were even finalized.

Will Lennart Poettering and his followers now please remove the birthDate field from systemd?

P.S.: If you reply with any variation of "You need to calm down," I will block you.

https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2026/05/colorado-and-california-age-verification-bills-exempt-open-source-operating-systems/

#fascism #surveillance #Linux #systemd

"Speaking at a public event hosted by the Eteron think tank in Athens on Thursday on spyware, democratic oversight and the rule of law, Deibert placed Greece’s Predator scandal within a broader international trend in which governments are increasingly relying on private surveillance vendors while accountability mechanisms struggle to keep pace.

Citizen Lab, the University of Toronto-based research center internationally known for exposing digital surveillance operations, has spent years investigating what Deibert described as the “mercenary spyware industry” — a transnational ecosystem of companies selling governments tools capable of compromising mobile devices, tracking targets and conducting covert surveillance.

While spyware vendors often argue such technologies are necessary to combat terrorism and serious crime, Citizen Lab’s findings have repeatedly shown journalists, opposition figures, activists and human rights defenders among those targeted across multiple jurisdictions.

“The investigative journalists who worked on this case in Greece are real heroes,” Deibert said, arguing that domestic reporting efforts played the decisive role in bringing the scandal into public view.

The Greek case emerged internationally after revelations that Predator spyware had been used against journalists, political figures and individuals linked to state institutions, triggering investigations at both national and European level and placing Athens under scrutiny over transparency and democratic oversight."

https://www.dnews.gr/eidhseis/news-in-english/589746/citizen-lab-s-ron-deibert-accountability-may-be-delayed-but-the-truth-will-emerge

#CyberSecurity #Spyware #Greece #Surveillance #Predator #StateHacking #Journalism

Probe into how photographs of Serbian activist taken at airport came to be published reveals that various state agencies had unregulated access to its video surveillance.

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Probe into how photographs of Serbian activist taken at airport came to be published reveals that various state agencies had unregulated access to its video surveillance.

15\2\2026 - Dutch authorities physically took, without warrant, one of Windscribe VPN servers.

It was running on RAM only. No disks. No persistence. They booted it up and found the digital equivalent of the inside of Kim Kardashians head: emptiness.

The incident raises questions about the boundaries of surveillance, the role of VPNs in digital freedom, and the effort governments will make to circumvent privacy.

https://windscribe.com/blog/windscribe-turned-10/

#Windscribe #vpn #digitalfreedom #surveillance

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Screenshot van een Tweet van Windscribe over de server die in beslag is genomen door de Nederlandse autoriteiten. Op de foto een leeg serverrack.

"A world without the possibility of undetected dissent is a world where state power faces no friction. Even in democracies, this is dangerous. The capacity to act outside official channels, to organise without surveillance, to maintain private spaces—these are not merely conveniences. They are preconditions for the meaningful exercise of freedom."

- by Antoin O Lachtnain from @Tupp_ed's The Gist.

#TheGist #Surveillance #Crime #Criminalisation #Freedom #Dissent #SurveillanceCapitalism

A map of NYC stores and venues using biometric surveillance was released by the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project to track the spread and advocate for a ban on such technologies.

https://www.stopspying.org/biometric-map

#urbanism #urbanplanning #Privacy #Biometrics #Surveillance

RE: https://mastodon.social/@QuantumAspect/116617613115318795

“State Secretary Willemijn Aerdts for Digital Economy and Sovereignty has addressed the US ambassador regarding the public disclosure of names of Dutch civil servants. Vrij Nederland reported on Friday about the names of civil servants that have been made public. Microsoft had shared that data with the House of Representatives.”

Yes, please, keep sharing the data of European citizens with Microsoft, Google, Palantir, etc. What’s the worst that could happen?

#USA #Microsoft #surveillance #capitalism #insitutionalCorruption #lobbying #revolvingDoors

9 outils de surveillance au travail utilisés en France transmettent vos clics à Google, Microsoft et Meta

> Les logiciels que votre employeur utilise pour vous surveiller envoient vos données à Google et Meta. Aucun des neuf outils testés n'y échappe.

https://www.01net.com/actualites/9-outils-de-surveillance-au-travail-utilises-en-france-transmettent-vos-clics-a-google-microsoft-et-meta.html

#Google #Meta #Surveillance #FdC #RevueDePresse

Chinese state #surveillance and the question of how similar is Palantir

"Chinese surveillance leaves foreigners nowhere to hide"
https://p.dw.com/p/5E7Oj

🛡️ #Cybersecurity news & tips across the #fediverse

“The May blog post is up. FREE BRUCE JOFFE!!
#Privacy #Surveillance #CBDC #DigitalRights

Facebook Prison and the Shrink...”

https://bsky.brid.gy/r/https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:xjwpyrr537kpmya7wjorm5ly/post/3mmfngvtelc2a

🤖 via RSS feed. Not an endorsement.

“This week I discovered the same pattern, executed by Google. Google Chrome is reaching into users' machines and writing a 4 GB on-device AI model file to disk without asking. The file is named weights.bin. It lives in OptGuideOnDeviceModel. It is the weights for Gemini Nano, Google's on-device LLM. Chrome did not ask. Chrome does not surface it. If the user deletes it, Chrome re-downloads it.”

https://www.thatprivacyguy.com/blog/chrome-silent-nano-install/

#Google #AI #Chrome #Privacy #Law #Surveillance

Signal says it will leave Canada rather than comply with Bill C-22, warning the proposal could force changes that weaken encrypted systems 🔐
Critics including Apple, Meta, and researchers say the bill’s lawful-access rules risk enabling surveillance capabilities and metadata retention 🇨🇦

@signalapp

🔗 https://cyberinsider.com/signal-threatens-to-leave-canada-over-proposed-lawful-access-bill/

#TechNews #Signal #Canada #Encryption #Privacy #Cybersecurity #Meta #Apple #Surveillance #FOSS #Security #Messaging #DataProtection #Tech #Rights #BillC22 #US #Europe #EU

London's Metropolitan Police say live facial recognition cameras are transforming policing, but critics say it undermines the presumption of innocence underpinning British law. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/05/25/world/crime-legal/london-facial-recognition-security-liberty/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #crimelegal #surveillance #privacy #london #uk

The Trump administration has contracted Palantir for a $13.3M no-bid deal to create employee surveillance systems, starting with the Department of Agriculture. This move raises concerns about privacy and the administration's stance on being "pro-worker." #Palantir #Surveillance⁠
⁠
Palantir's technology, initially used in military settings, is now being adapted for tracking federal workers' office ... https://instagr.am/p/DYvXzqGjku7/

"[E]veryday reality in Exarcheia: excessive state pressure and repression, ranging from surveillance to physical harm."

"Clashes between anarchists and police erupted in response to heavy policing, opposition to gentrification, the evictions of squats."
———————————————
Title: Exarcheia: Political Life Suffocated by State Surveillance
Author: Elvis Takahashi
Publication: Unicorn Riot
March 30, 2026
———————————————
#Greece #Policing #Protest #Surveillance
https://unicornriot.ninja/2026/exarcheia-political-life-suffocated-by-state-surveillance/

A claim submitted to IsItCap: is the US government planning a digital dollar that would let authorities automatically block purchases at gun stores, churches, or political events?

The CBDC debate is real. The surveillance concern is worth fact-checking.

https://isitcap.com/r/fact-check-us-digital-dollar-block-purchases

#CBDC #digitaldollar #privacy #factcheck #surveillance

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@isaac/116630414370254693

This somehow fits to this project on github I was stumbled upon elsewhere

https://github.com/ruvnet/RuView

(Not sure if this project holds what it 'promises', but it shows the direction we are moving. It also depends on CSI, which the linked article demonstrated not to be needed.)

Now I really wonder if we should start building faraday cages at home to have privacy. We still can have wired network, right?

#wifi #surveillance #privacy

The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced plans to buy nationwide access to a network of license plate readers, saying it will award contracts to one or more vendors that can offer “near real time” information from cameras across the US. The proposed contract is for the FBI Directorate of Intelligence.

“To evaluate and manage threats to personal safety, property, and law enforcement, the FBI requires professional service firms that can provide License Plate Readers (LPRs) for tracking subjects on roads and highways over the US and its territories,” the FBI said in a Request for Proposals (RFP) published on May 14. The FBI said the winning bidder or bidders “must provide law enforcement and/or commercial license plate reader data provided through the Contractor’s existing platform.” The system must cover 75 percent of locations, the FBI said.

The system must offer the ability to search for license plate information “and other descriptive data such as vehicle description information, time/date criteria, and geo-location criteria,” the FBI said. “Additionally, the system must provide search result notifications. The Contractor system must have the ability to access and/or query cameras across the United States and its territories. The Contractor system must be capable of providing this data in near real time.”

Contractors have to be able “to share/create maps depicting camera coverage (i.e. heat mapping),” and “provide the FBI the source of information (i.e. red-light cameras, repossession vendors, speed cameras, etc.),” the FBI said. The FBI said it needs to be able to search the database for partial or full plate numbers, plate states, addresses, locations where a plate was scanned, and vehicle makes and models.

This is what peak capitalism looks like.

#mirror #capitalism #adtech #BigTech #surveillance #peopleFarming

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Screenshot of the Mirror rag’s web site inundated with ads to Take That, a dream home, and tonybet.

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Another screenshot of the same page, refreshed, showing ads for printable chair yoga, a holiday place, the dream home and tonybet ad. There’s almost nothing of the “article” you can see.

Texas sues Meta over ‘misleading’ WhatsApp privacy claims

“WhatsApp’s assurances are false,” the lawsuit read. “WhatsApp and its parent company, Meta, have access to virtually all of WhatsApp users’ purportedly ‘private’ communications.”

https://www.keranews.org/texas-news/2026-05-21/texas-meta-whatsapp-lawsuit-ken-paxton

#Meta #WhatsApp #privacy #surveillance #enshittification #dystopia #technology #messaging

'There is no universe in which Proton VPN compromises its no-logs policy' — Proton joins the backlash against Canada's surveillance bill
#surveillance

'There is no universe in which Proton VPN compromises its no-logs policy' — Proton joins the backlash against Canada's surveillance bill | TechRadar https://share.google/8Sqo939ySFAxgdM6R

#RevueDePressive
#CyberSurveillance #Surveillance #ViePrivée #DonnéesPersonnelles #Biométrie
#TraduisonsLes
La fourniture de l'identité est demandé à toutes et tous pour pouvoir naviguer sur des espaces web où l'on peut échanger.

Bref, adieu l'anonymat, bonjour le contrôle, la surveillance (et les fuites qui vont avec)
https://www.laquadrature.net/2026/05/21/derriere-la-verification-dage-sur-les-reseaux-sociaux-la-generalisation-du-controle-didentite-en-ligne/

https://lesliensde.jeey.net/shaare/TtnImw

Prism reports that Seattle police operate "Seattle Shield," a private intelligence-sharing network that includes Amazon, Facebook, ICE, the FBI, and other public and private partners. Records reviewed by Prism indicate the network circulated suspicious activity reports, protest-related alerts, traffic warnings, and internal police updates between 2020 and 2025, raising accountability and surveillance concerns. Seattle police did not respond to Prism's questions, and the article says it remains unclear what oversight exists or what public counterterrorism benefit the program has delivered.

https://prismreports.org/2026/05/20/seattle-shield-private-companies-surveillance/

#InfoSec #Surveillance #Privacy #PoliceTech

🚨 Your encrypted drive is not encrypted. Not really.

Ep.27 of Impractical Privacy, Sudo unpacks "YellowKey," an insane new zero-day vulnerability in Microsoft's BitLocker.

Discovered by Chaotic Eclipse, it bypasses default TPM-only setups in seconds using just a USB stick and the Windows Recovery Environment.

Tune in to learn how adding a Pre-Boot PIN or switching to VeraCrypt can save your digital life.
Listen: ImpracticalPrivacy.com

#InfoSec #Privacy #Windows11 #Microsoft #Surveillance

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Image generated with AI.

#FBI seeks #US-wide access to #licenseplate cameras, wants “data in near real time”
FBI will pay vendors to help it track and search for vehicles nationwide.
The FBI said the winning bidder or bidders “must provide law enforcement and/or commercial license plate reader data provided through the Contractor’s existing platform.” The system must cover 75 percent of locations, the FBI said.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/05/fbi-seeks-us-wide-access-to-license-plate-cameras-wants-data-in-near-real-time/
#privacy #surveillance #ALPR

🛡️ Your Boss's Software is Sending Your Data to Meta and Google

A study reveals nine workplace monitoring apps share employee data with platforms like Meta and Google, raising privacy concerns.

https://www.byte-pulse.net/article/your-boss-s-software-is-sending-your-data-to-meta-and-google

#privacy #datasharing #surveillance #meta

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Your Boss's Software is Sending Your Data to Meta and Google

A Bipartisan Amendment Would End #Police License Plate Tracking Nationwide

https://www.wired.com/story/a-bipartisan-amendment-would-end-police-license-plate-tracking-nationwide/

#ALPR #privacy #surveillance

After Town Bans #Flock, Councilmember Crashes Out, Proposes Internet and Phone Ban

https://www.404media.co/after-town-bans-flock-councilmember-crashes-out-proposes-internet-and-phone-ban/

#privacy #surveillance #politics

🚨 > According to the report, car companies reserve the right to collect details including your name, age, race, weight, financial details, facial expressions, psychological trends and more. Kia's privacy policy, for example, suggests the company may even collect details about your "sex life" and general health.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20260513-your-car-is-spying-on-you-its-about-to-get-worse

#privacy #surveillance #cars
#bbc #mozilla #lexisnexis
#federaltradecommission
#autoinsurance #datatracking
#generalmotors #honda #hyundai
#kia #infotainmentsystems
#UK #EU #US #NHTSA
#databrokers #drivingapps

"In our line of work, you have to be lucky sometimes. In a previous post we explained how unsecured and forgotten dashboard and web pages can reveal a lot about China's security and surveillance system. Now, we can reveal a much more detailed insight into how such a system could look like in real life.
·
NetAskari got exclusive access to a web front-end demonstrating a remote tracking system especially for foreigners. It is developed for the Public Security Bureau in the region of Zhangjiakou (a prefecture of Hebei province about 60 km west of Beijing).

Disclaimer: it is still a test-system and not connected to a real time data environment.

But it is filled partially with real data from many real people of foreign nationality who have resided ( or still reside ) in China. It outlines very clearly where the journey in mass surveillance has been going in China over the past years and how foreigners are definitely at the center of the states’ attention again.#

https://netaskari.substack.com/p/sharp-eyes-how-to-track-a-foreigner

#China #Surveillance

RE: https://mastodon.social/@wchr/116606727341238099

Security researchers discovered an unsecured and abandoned/forgotten Chinese web app that reveals how much China's surveillance system knows about its locals and visitors.

They combine data from surveillance cameras, car rentals, hotel registrations, train tickets, hospital visits, ski passes, even cameras in vending machines when you buy a snack, to always know where you are at any given moment, and to follow you wherever you go. Of course they also know all your family members and your "risk factor".

#surveillance

Mozilla warned the UK against targeting VPNs to enforce Online Safety Act age checks, calling them essential privacy and security infrastructure. 🔐
The Firefox maker said age-gating VPNs would expand surveillance while failing to address weak verification systems and platform design issues. 🌐

🔗 https://www.theregister.com/security/2026/05/18/mozilla-warns-uk-breaking-vpns-will-not-magically-fix-britains-age-check-mess/5241770

#TechNews #Mozilla #Firefox #VPN #Privacy #OnlineSafetyAct #Firefox #DigitalRights #Cybersecurity #Surveillance #Encryption #Security #OpenWeb #UK #DataPrivacy #AgeVerification

Google is testing reduced free cloud storage for new accounts created without phone number verification, cutting capacity from 15GB to 5GB. ☁️
The change links Gmail, Drive, and Photos storage access to identity verification, increasing pressure to provide personal data. 📱

🔗 https://www.pcworld.com/article/3140911/google-quietly-cuts-free-storage-to-5gb-without-a-phone-number.html

#TechNews #Google #Privacy #CloudStorage #Gmail #GoogleDrive #GooglePhotos #DataPrivacy #DigitalRights #BigTech #Surveillance #Internet #Security #OnlinePrivacy #Technology #Drive #Photo

#Microsoft Took a Step Toward #HumanRights Accountability. #Google and #Amazon (and Others) Should Pay Attention!

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/05/microsoft-took-step-toward-human-rights-accountability-google-and-amazon-and

#surveillance #privacy

Palantir’s Federated Data Platform (FDP) aims to sit across NHS Trusts, ICBs and NHS England in order to connect and analyse pre-existing data on a national and local scale. A report prepared by Medact highlights multiple concerns, with a focus on human rights, public trust, data privacy, and institutional risk. #Palantir #NHS #health #surveillance
https://www.medact.org/2026/resources/briefings/briefing-palantir-fdp/

#Google: "Intelligent eyewear is coming this fall"

https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/platforms/android/android-xr-io-2026/

#AI #SmartGlasses #privacy #surveillance

You Can't Opt Out: The Surveillance Accountability Act (Naomi Brockwell Interview). #privacy #surveillance

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_hlkmpw1sk

Option 2: Mastodon
🚨 New Episode Live: YellowKey

A new zero-day called "YellowKey" lets attackers bypass default BitLocker encryption with a simple USB trick. Microsoft hasn't patched it yet.

We break down the exploit, the "backdoor" accusations, and exactly how to secure your drive today.

Don't trust the default. Listen now: ImpracticalPrivacy.com

#BitLocker #Privacy #InfoSec #CyberSecurity #OpenSource #YellowKey #Microsoft #Surveillance #Windows #Windows11 #OpSec #Encryption

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Image was created with AI.