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Topics /
Society, Policy & Culture
The most popular blog posts about society, policy & culture on Hacker News. 580 posts.
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There are now at least eight Chromium-based Android default browsers
Google Chrome is not the default browser on Android 4.3+. There are now at least eight Chromium-based Android default browsers, and they are all subtly, though not wildly, different.
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Japanese government dismantles freedom of the press
In 2010, Japan was ranked #11 in Reporters Without Borders’ global Press Freedom Index. By February 2015, that number had plummeted to #61 - and next year it will likely fall further. Since coming to power in 2012, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party have …
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Greece
Greece is a remarkable country full of wonderful people, but along dimensions of development and governance, the place is plainly pretty fucked up. It has been fucked up that way for a long time, for decades at least . This has never been secret. Anyone who has visited Athens knows it has far more in common with…
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New South Wales Attacks Researchers Who Found Internet Voting Vulnerabilities
A security flaw in New South Wales’ Internet voting system may have left as many as 66,000 votes vulnerable to interception and manipulation in a recent election, according to security researchers. Despite repeated assurances from the Electoral Commission that all Internet votes are “fully...
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Shipping Culture Is Hurting Us
Yet another programming blog. Thoughts on software and related misadventures.
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The decline in unionization has fed the rise in incomes at the top
The decline in unionization in recent decades has fed the rise in incomes at the top
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United Airlines Stops Researcher Who Tweeted about Airplane Network Security
Our client, Chris Roberts, a founder of the security intelligence firm One World Labs, found himself detained by the FBI earlier this week after tweeting about airplane network security during a United Airlines flight. When Roberts landed in Syracuse, he was questioned by the FBI, which ultimately...
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Reasons the MI6 Story Is a Lie
The Sunday Times has a story claiming that Snowden’s revelations have caused danger to MI6 and disrupted their operations. Here are five reasons it is a lie. 1) The alleged Downing Street source is quoted directly in italics. Yet the schoolboy mistake is made of confusing officers and agents. MI6 is staffed by…
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There's No DRM in JPEG – Let's Keep It That Way
If you have ever tried scanning or photocopying a banknote, you may have found that your software—such as Adobe Photoshop, or the embedded software in the photocopier—refused to let you do so. That's because your software is secretly looking for security features such as EURion dots in the...
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Important Allies Join the Fight Against NSA Internet Backbone Surveillance
Last week, the ACLU filed a welcome additional challenge to the NSA’s warrantless Internet backbone surveillance (aka “Upstream” surveillance) on behalf of Wikimedia and a number of other media and human rights organizations. We applaud all of those involved in bringing the case. It adds another...
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I Hate the News (2006)
Some people start their day by reading The New York Times . Others end it by watching the nightly news. Some get it from The Daily Show . Others download it from a variety weblogs. Some keep up-to-the-minute by following CNN. Others have instant news updates automatically text messaged to their phone. But everybody…
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Locking the Web Open: A Call for a Distributed Web
(Short form article, Short lecture , Long lecture , demo of a fraction of the idea of a distributed website (or paste this link in maelstrom ))
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Reports that Bassel Khartabil has been sentenced to death
Bassel Khartabil, a leading figure in the Syrian Open Source software community, has been imprisoned by the Syrian government since...
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VMware GPL Enforcement Suit in Germany Continues
Software Freedom Conservancy is pleased to provide updated information regarding the ongoing GPL enforcement lawsuit for Linux, funded by Conservancy, that Christoph Hellwig has brought against VMware in Germany. Information about the suit is available on the FAQ page.The lawsuit continues to progress. VMware has…
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World map of the difference between solar and clock time
A better map of the difference between solar and standard time, and some trivia
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The Government Uses Zero Days for “Offense”
Little by little, the government is opening up about its use of computer security vulnerabilities. Last month, the NSA disclosed that it has historically “released more than 91% of vulnerabilities discovered in products that have gone through our internal review process and that are made and used...
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Tor Exit Nodes in Libraries – Pilot
Hello Tor Community! We first introduced you to the Library Freedom Project back in February...