Recent searches

No recent searches

Search options

Only available when logged in.
toad.social is one of the many independent Mastodon servers you can use to participate in the fediverse.
Mastodon server operated by David Troy, a tech pioneer and investigative journalist addressing threats to democracy. Thoughtful participation and discussion welcome.

Administered by:

Server stats:

218
active users

toad.social: AboutProfiles directoryPrivacy policy

Mastodon: AboutGet the appKeyboard shortcutsView source codev4.4.1

#netwars

1 post1 participant0 posts today
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Magic math balls", marvels at the escalation of the US-UK-Apple case of the backdoored encryption and wonders at the surrealism of "woke AI": <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/07/25/magic-math-balls/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/07/25/magic-math-balls/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/encryption" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>encryption</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Apple" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Apple</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/AI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>AI</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>In this week's net.wars, "Cautionary tales", I consider becoming a child for the purposes of age verification, and Substack becomes a unicorn. Dare we predict enshittification? <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/07/18/cautionary-tales/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/07/18/cautionary-tales/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/OnlineSafetyAct" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>OnlineSafetyAct</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/AgeVerification" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>AgeVerification</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Substack" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Substack</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/VentureCapital" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>VentureCapital</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/HumanRights" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>HumanRights</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Conundrum", goes to a meeting on copyright's "existential threat" to generative AI: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/07/11/conundrum/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/07/11/conundrum/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Copyright" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Copyright</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/AI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>AI</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Second sight", recounts the results of four months comparing the difference a cataract makes: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/07/04/second-sight/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/07/04/second-sight/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/cataracts" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>cataracts</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Revival", ponders the purported death of Bluesky and the company town potential of large companies exploring stablecoins: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/06/27/revival/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/06/27/revival/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/SocialMedia" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>SocialMedia</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Crypto" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Crypto</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "A thousand small safety acts", talks to lawyer <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.neilzone.co.uk/@neil" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">@<span>neil</span></a></span> about the Online Safety Act's impact on the community Internet - the small web boards, forums, chat channels, projects, and volunteer services: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/06/20/a-thousand-small-safety-acts/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/06/20/a-thousand-small-safety-acts/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/FreeSpeech" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>FreeSpeech</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/OnlineSafetyAct" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>OnlineSafetyAct</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/UKPol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>UKPol</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Negative externalities", watches Texas police use license plate data to search for a woman they think might have self-managed an abortion; pushes back on a report that suggests a publicly funded NHS period-tracking app is a better idea; and notes the passage of the UK's new data bill weakening citizens' rights over their data: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/06/13/negative-externalities/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/06/13/negative-externalities/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/UKpolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>UKpolitics</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Abortion" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Abortion</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/DataBill" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>DataBill</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Privacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Privacy</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Nephology", attends the US House Judiciary Committee's Thursday hearing on "Foreign Influence on Americans' Data Through the CLOUD Act", at which four experts expertly defended encryption: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/06/06/nephology/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/06/06/nephology/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/USpol" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>USpol</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/surveillance" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>surveillance</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/encryption" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>encryption</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Apple" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Apple</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/UK" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>UK</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Sovereign", signs an open letter to Keir Starmer advocating UK technological sovereignty, finds model collapse plaguing AI, and reads an unexpected clause in Starlink's terms of service: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/05/30/sovereign/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/05/30/sovereign/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/AI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>AI</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/UK" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>UK</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Starlink" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Starlink</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Mars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Mars</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Dangerous corner", goes to CPDP and finds that privacy issues have expanded to include the electrical grid and farming. "Simplify!" says the EU. For whose benefit? <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/05/23/dangerous-corner/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/05/23/dangerous-corner/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/privacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>privacy</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/HumanRights" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>HumanRights</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/CPDP" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>CPDP</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Hallucinations", tours the increasing unreliability of "AI" and its chatbots: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/05/16/hallucinations/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/05/16/hallucinations/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/AI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>AI</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "The Skype of it all", says goodbye to Skype and remembers what came before it - a little slice of Internet history and a reminder of the importance of network neutrality: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/05/09/the-skype-of-it-all/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/05/09/the-skype-of-it-all/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Skype" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Skype</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/VOIP" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>VOIP</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Lawfaring", visits Apple's day being rebuked by the court, 23andMe in bankruptcy proceedings, and Palantir's work on the master database to rule them all: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/05/02/lawfaring/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/05/02/lawfaring/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Apple" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Apple</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Privacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Privacy</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Three times a monopolist" mulls what can be done about Google as it is *again* ruled guilty of monopolistic behavior: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/04/25/three-times-a-monopolist/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/04/25/three-times-a-monopolist/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/antitrust" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>antitrust</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/google" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>google</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Unscreened", is inspired to think about screenless devices and the future of consent by an essay by Gus Hosein at Privacy International: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/04/18/unscreened/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/04/18/unscreened/</span></a> <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.xyz/@privacyint" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">@<span>privacyint</span></a></span> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/privacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>privacy</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Predatory inclusion", goes to <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/WeRobot2025" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>WeRobot2025</span></a>, where understanding how robots and law interact takes a distinctly Canadian flavor: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/04/11/predatory-inclusion/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/04/11/predatory-inclusion/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Robots" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Robots</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Law" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Law</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/Privacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Privacy</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Catoptromancy", goes to the workshop day of We Robot 2025: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/04/04/catoptromancy/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/04/04/catoptromancy/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/robots" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>robots</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/law" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>law</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/werobot" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>werobot</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "The risks of recklessness", hears diplomats consider how to cope with emerging technologies: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/03/28/the-risks-of-recklessness/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/03/28/the-risks-of-recklessness/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/diplomacy" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>diplomacy</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/signal" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>signal</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossman<p>This week's net.wars, "Dorothy Parker was wrong", has cataract surgery and tells the doctors that sometimes myopic eyesight is is the *best* eyesight: <a href="https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2025/03/21/dorothy-parker-was-wrong/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://</span><span class="ellipsis">netwars.pelicancrossing.net/20</span><span class="invisible">25/03/21/dorothy-parker-was-wrong/</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/NetWars" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NetWars</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/health" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>health</span></a> <a href="https://mastodon.xyz/tags/aging" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>aging</span></a></p>
Wendy M. Grossmanuspol
TrendingLive feeds
About