Direct messages (DMs) on #Mastodon / #ActivityPub / the #fediverse are not end-to-end encrypted (#e2ee) and you should never include sensitive/private information in them.
Until they are e2ee, this is all we should be telling people. Anything else is irresponsible and could cause vulnerable people harm.
Specifically, it doesn’t matter:
if your instance admin is ethical or not
whether Elon Musk can read DMs easier on Twitter
etc.
It’s not end-to-end encrypted. It’s not private. End of.
🚨 BREAKING: The UK government has confirmed it is rowing back on its plans to scan private messages.
They've finally back down with an announcement that Ofcom won't use powers in the spy clause contained in the Online Safety Bill until it's 'technically feasible' to do so.
They've conceded that no current technology exists that would protect privacy or avoid breaking encryption.
The UK is a useful idiot for authoritarian regimes.
The Online Safety Bill is set to puncture the security of messaging apps to enable mass surveillance. It’ll give permission for it to be done in other countries.
🔴 Over 80 international civil society organisations, academics and cyber-experts warn the UK government that the Online Safety Bill threatens the security and privacy of billions of people who use apps like WhatsApp and Signal.
Encrypted messaging protects people’s security online. But powers to scan private messages in the Online Safety Bill will expose people to hacking and abuses of private information.
Politische Überwachungsphantasien, die mit dem Vorwand gerechtfertigt werden, "schlimmste Verbrechen wie den sexuellen Missbrauch von Kindern zu bekämpfen", sind unerträglich.
Wer wirklich etwas für Kinder tun will, engagiert sich im Kampf gegen den Klimawandel, für sichere Schul- und Radwege, für Bildung, gewaltfreie Familien, Chancengleichheit und freie Entfaltungsmöglichkeiten.
Yesterday we sent an open letter to the UK government from 80 experts and civil society groups.
It isn't possible to scan messages in a way that only gets the 'bad guys'. Client-side scanning turns everyone's chats into dangerous spaces for privacy and security.
Without end-to-end encryption "the UK becomes more vulnerable to attacks which can expose personal information and, especially in the case of LGBTQ+ youth, lead to non-consensual outings with potentially disastrous consequences."
Secure messaging provides essential security both within the UK and to people living in oppressive regimes in other countries.
The spy clause in the Online Safety Bill threatens the #lgbtq community.
"An operator of a messaging service wishing to introduce an advanced security feature would now have to first let the Home Office [UK] know in advance."
Secure IT systems prevent fraud in commercial transactions and protect our private lives from undue intrusions.
If the UK government were concerned about national security, they’d want to encourage (rather than delay) security updates or end to end encryption.
David Davis & Caroline Lucas MPs are supporting an amendment to the Online Safety Bill that would seek to protect the end-to-end encrypted services. If you have time today, please contact your MP and ask them to support this amendment #onlinesafetybill#encryption#privacy#E2EE