Welcome to Sott.net
Fri, 05 Nov 2021
The World for People who Think

Society's Child
Map

Dig

Zuckerberg will testify before Congress on Facebook data mining 'if it's the right thing to do'

zuckerberg
© KAY NIETFELD/AFP/Getty Images
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a recent interview that he would be "happy" to testify before Congress about the site's recent data scandal but dodged a commitment to do so by adding the caveat that he would testify only if it is "the right thing to do."

Recode reports that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg commented on the company's Cambridge Analytica user data scandal. When asked would he be willing to testify before Congress about the situation, Zuckerberg stated, "I'm open to doing that. We actually do this fairly regularly ... There are lots of different topics that Congress needs and wants to know about, and the way that we approach it is that our responsibility is to make sure that they have access to all of the information that they need to have." But Zuckerberg did hedge this offer by saying, "the short answer is, I'm happy to if it's the right thing to do"

Eye 1

Study on Google and Facebook finds social media's ability to manipulate elections poses profound threat

thumbs down facebook google
Dr. Robert Epstein is a research psychologist at the American Institute of Behavioral Research and Technology.

On Friday Dr. Epstein joined Tucker Carlson to discuss an upcoming presentation on "The Search Suggestion Effect (SSE): How Search Suggestions Can Be Used To Shift Opinions and Voting Preferences Dramatically." The AIBRT researchers looked at the power of Google and Facebook to influence elections. The study spanned five years of investigations.

The results are stunning.
Dr. Epstein told Tucker Carlson: I can tell you we should be paranoid because Google and Facebook can do is really mind-boggling. For example if Mark Zuckerberg on election day last year, if he had chosen to press the enter key early morning and just sent out a message to Hillary Clinton supporters only saying, "Go out and vote," that would have sent her an additional 450,000 voters that day with no one knowing that this had occurred. And that's just Facebook. What Google can do is really off the scale. Our studies show that Google can take a 50-50 split among undecided voters and change it into a 90-10 split with no one knowing they had been manipulated and without leaving a paper trail... It has to do with those search suggestions. Literally from the very first character that you type into the search bar you are being manipulated. And we've done 16 months of experiments. We've done all the research now and we know exactly how this works... The threat is absolutely, positively profound.
This was a shocking segment. Even Tucker Carlson was stunned by Dr. Epstein's study.

Comment:


No Entry

Conservatives in Croatia march against transgender rights

Protesters march in Zagreb
© Antonio Bronic / Reuters
Protesters march in Zagreb
Thousands of conservative Croatian protesters have taken to the streets of Zagreb to speak out against a treaty designed to combat violence against women. Activists are unhappy that the legislation provides for transgender people.

Protesters sang songs as they marched through the Croatian capital, chanting slogans critical of the Istanbul Convention, the European treaty adopted by Croatia's conservative government earlier this week. The legislation defines gender as "social roles, behaviors, activities and characteristics that a particular society considers appropriate for women and men." Its opponents have said that the European treaty introduces "a third gender" and indirectly legalizes gay marriage.

Pistol

Contradiction: Armed police, military protect thousands at 'March for Our Lives' gun control rally

armed police officers protect anti gun rally
© Drew Angerer/Getty Images
While hundreds of thousands march for gun control in Washington, armed police officers protect the rally.
Hundreds of thousands of students and Americans have descended on Washington for the first ever "March for Our Lives" rally. The rally was organized by students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who are outspokenly in-favor of gun control.

So it wasn't without irony when photos and videos surfaced showing a very heavy police and military presence at the march. And yes, those offering protection are armed with firearms.

Map

Houthis calling for peace with Saudi-led coalition

Houthi rebels
© Sputnik/ Osama al-Saba
The Supreme Political Council of Ansar Allah, the movement of the Houthi rebels, has called for the reconciliation of all Yemenis, including those who are fighting today on the side of the coalition led by Saudi Arabia, according to the Houthi statement.

"Choosing peace may not be in the plans of the enemy coalition, but we must not give up after all the sacrifices. We need to strive for inner reconciliation and offer our hands to Yemenis who fight with them to protect the oppressed people and alleviate their suffering," the Houthis' Ansarullah political council chief, Saleh al-Samad said in a statement.

The Houthi chief said that Yemen's enemies in Riyadh are profiting from the war and spend millions daily to maintain hostilities.

Fire

Zuckerberg runs full-page apology ads in British Sunday newspapers trying to put out Cambridge Analytica dumpster fire

mark zuckerberg facebook
© Stephen Lam / Reuters
Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg, head of the world's largest social media platform, has issued an apology for the scandal over Facebook's security. Zuckerberg chose a decidedly quaint medium through which to do so - the British newspaper.

The billionaire placed full-page ads in a number of Sunday publications in response to pressure from US and European governments following the leak of 50 million users' data to Cambridge Analytica. The UK political consulting firm is accused of using the information to influence the US presidential election. "We have a responsibility to protect your information. If we can't, we don't deserve it," the advert read. The Observer, the newspaper that has led the Cambridge Analytica revelations in recent days, also carried the ad.

Comment:


Cell Phone

Download your Facebook user data - you will be surprised by how much informaton they have about you.

facebook
© Regis Duvignau / Reuters
People are being encouraged to download their Facebook data following concerns about the information the social media giant collects on its users. It seems to include phone calls, text messages and other non-Facebook activity.

New Zealand software developer Dylan McKay highlighted the issue after he downloaded his data from Facebook and found that the company had recorded his text and call data. McKay posted the information to his Twitter feed.


Comment: Almost all apps that you put on your phone will ask 'permission' to use features like, photos, contact lists, messaging etc. When you say yes, that is essentially carte blanche for them to do as they please. If you decline, that's fine - but the app may not work properly if at all. These guys are all in the business of data mining, and 'privacy' when it comes to smartphones is an outdated concept. See also:


Pills

Whoops our bad! Innocent mom jailed for 5 months as cops mistake vitamins for opioids

Rebecca Shaw
Rebecca Shaw, a mother of four who has never been in trouble with the law before, ended up spending five months in jail because a field drug test falsely identified her vitamins as opiates.

One night, Rebecca's car ran out of gas and she was stranded on the side of the road. When an officer pulled up behind her she was hoping that she would get some help. However, instead, he asked to search her car.

Not thinking that she was doing anything wrong, Rebecca allowed him to search her car, and when he did, he found vitamins and accused her of having oxycodone.

Comment: So if field drug testing kits don't work why do they still use them?


Arrow Down

David Hogg fights the Second Amendment but complains that clear backpack policies are unconstitutional

David Hogg
© YouTube
David Hogg
Broward County public schools superintendent Robert Runcie announced this week his district was implementing a "solution" to thwart future gun violence. He said that following students' spring break, only clear backpacks would be permitted at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

David Hogg, the outspoken MSD student who has spent more than a month advocating for stricter gun control laws, believes the move infringes on students' constitutional rights.

What did he say?

According to Grabien News, Hogg appeared at a gun control forum hosted by Axios' Mike Allen on Friday where he bashed the policy change and claimed it infringes on students' First and Fourth Amendment rights.

Hogg said students shouldn't feel as if they're going to school at a "prison" and cited privacy concerns of female students who may not want other students to see their feminine products.

Light Saber

Assange doesn't have to #DeleteFacebook: Never had account with 'giant intel database controlled by a megalomaniac'

assange
© Neil Hall / Reuters /File
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is seen on the balcony of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London
In the fallout from the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica data mining scandal, Julian Assange has reminded his followers that it is highly unwise to trust all their personal data to a "megalomaniac" who calls his users "dumb f**ks."

Assange recalled an exchange with an unnamed friend immediately after the beta version of the social media giant was launched in 2003. He spoke of how Mark Zuckerberg was surprised that the first "dumb f**ck" users immediately trusted the newly-launched platform with their private data.

Comment: