#onlinesafety — Public Fediverse posts

"Meta has taken a “don’t ask, don’t tell” strategy when it comes to the safety of children on its social media platforms, according to a whistleblower who testified during a landmark trial against the company on Tuesday. He is slated to continue his testimony on Wednesday."

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/aug/19/meta-safety-trial-whistleblower-testimony

#Meta #OnlineSafety #ArturoBejar #TechBros #Technology #SocialMedia

⁉️ Here’s WTF happened this week:

➡️ Read the full round-up: https://elliottbledsoe.wtf/wtf-now-48/

1️⃣ Screen Australia has released Screen Currency 2026, 5 significant reports looking at the audiences, the industry and the economy of Australia’s screen and games industry.

2️⃣ OpenAI has launched a 'for Teens' offering for ChatGPT with stronger built-in safety protections and an educational focus.

#WTFnow #Screen #VideoGames #ScreenAustralia #ArtsResearch #AI #ChatGPT #OpenAI #ChildSafety #OnlineSafety

Hollywood Reporter: Inside the Fake Celebrity Podcast Scam Fooling Hollywood. “[Seth] Rudetsky had stumbled into an increasingly sophisticated scam in which fraudsters impersonate famous podcasters and their representatives, using flattering, highly personalized invitations — most likely composed by AI — to lure prospective guests into handing over money, login credentials or control of […]

Reuters: Meta rejects claims it sought to hook children to Facebook, Instagram. “Four lead states — California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey — accused Meta of designing Facebook and Instagram to hook young users, fueling anxiety, depression and even suicide, and misleading consumers about the platforms’ safety. All 29 states accused Meta of violating federal law by improperly […]

For reasons I cannot get into I will be adding Mastodon.social and Mastodon.online to my blocklist. Additionally, I am adding JoinMastodon.org including several sub-domains currently functioning under that domain, for example, demo.joinmastodon.org

#Mastodon #OnlineSafety #Fediverse #ActivityPub

Associated Press: Discord halts livestreams in Brazil after watchdog cites child safety failures. “In July, an underage girl in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul was allegedly coerced by other users into committing suicide during a livestream on the platform, putting the company under increased scrutiny. Brazil’s first lady Rosângela Lula da Silva, known as Janja, said on Aug. 6 that the […]

Associated Press: OpenAI launches ChatGPT for Teens, promising a more age-appropriate chatbot. “The San Francisco-based company says ChatGPT for Teens, which launches Tuesday, is tailored for kids aged 13 to 17 with stronger protections including content restrictions around things like suicide, self-harm and romantic or sexual chats. It also provides homework and study support designed to help […]

RE: https://flipboard.com/@pcmag/pcmag-s-top-stories-enri7nshz/-/a-RY5fwHf_Qp2KuygO-hX2Tw%3Aa%3A1861800451-%2F0

Here’s the thing: when you’ve got a system that produces output you have no direct control over, all you can do is try to build filters to catch harmful output, which only work as well as the various outputs that you can anticipate. There will always be edge-cases or scenarios you didn’t account for. And it’s already been demonstrated how easy it is to re-word/modify prompts to work around safeguards.

#LLMs #AI #OnlineSafety

Meta trial over social media harm to children begins
https://www.dw.com/en/meta-trial-over-social-media-harm-to-children-begins/a-78408050

#boycottmeta #boycottusa #BoycottAmerica #boycotttrumpistan #trumpistan #childsafety #onlinesafety #socialmedia #addiction #MentalHealth #instagram #facebook #threads #zuckerberg #boycotttechbros

Public Comment: It Is Past Time for You to Quit Elon Musk’s X. “That does not mean that everyone who uses X is going to get brainwashed into becoming a Nazi. But propaganda can work on you in subtler ways as well. It can insinuate extreme ideas into the texture of your everyday life. It can create a whole dreamscape for you to sleepwalk through. And the more time you spend in that dreamscape, […]

🔐 Cybersecurity Monday: Think Before You Scan

QR codes are convenient — and attackers know it.

A malicious QR code can lead to a fake login or payment page designed to steal your information.

🔎 Check for stickers covering the original code
🌐 Verify the web address before continuing
🔑 Don't enter credentials blindly
💳 Be cautious with QR-code payments
🚩 If something feels urgent or unexpected, verify it another way

#CybersecurityMonday #Cybersecurity #Phishing #QRCode #OnlineSafety

one of Burnham's tech policy advisors pulling a surprised Pikachu face that U16 social media bans caused an undesirable chain reaction is so hilarious

"A global movement [...] has gained momentum, winning social media bans for children in Australia, Spain, France and the UK. But what is curious is that there is now no obvious stopping point for regulation." https://www.arguably.uk/p/the-war-on-digital-harms-needs-limits

#Privacy #SocialMediaBan #SocialMedia #AgeVerification #Surveillance #Tech #Technology #TechPolicy #OnlineSafety

Associated Press: States take Meta to trial in California in the biggest fight yet over social media harms to children. “Of the thousands of lawsuits Meta faces over child safety on its platforms, none may be more consequential than one going to trial this week in California. States are seeking extensive financial damages that could, in theory, total as much as $1.4 trillion, plus changes to […]

AI deepfake scams are impersonating Australia's most public faces
By Jasper Wells

Regulators are removing record numbers of fake celebrity-endorsed investment scams, using AI images of famous figures from the prime minister to Alan Kohler and Gina Rinehart.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-17/asic-ai-powered-impersonation-scams-warning-alan-kohler/107038256

#AI #ConsumerProtection #AIEthics #OnlineSafety #JasperWells

Sun-Journal: Is the Maine news on your social media feed AI-generated? How you can tell.. “Paywall-free, editorially derelict and tuned for social media engagement, AI local news is exploding online in Maine in the age of the attention-grabbing algorithm and declining trust in legacy media. While some avid news readers are skeptical of these sites, others engage unknowingly, with the sometimes […]

Pew Research: Americans’ use of social media for health information differs by race and ethnicity. “Overall, 36% of U.S. adults say they get health information from social media at least sometimes, according to a Pew Research Center survey from October 2025. But this varies by racial and ethnic group. Hispanic (49%), Asian (47%) and Black adults (45%) are particularly likely to get health […]

Futurism: Grok Calls for Assassination of Elon Musk, Accusing Him of Pedophilia. “Elon Musk’s “maximum truth-seeking” AI Grok is dropping some nuclear takes about its creator. ‘ELON MUSK WATCHES CHILD PORN,’ the notoriously foul-mouthed chatbot raged on X this Tuesday. Shortly afterwards, as if hyping up a political campaign, it called for violence: ‘ASSASSINATE ELON MUSK 2026.'”

Personal data is often collected and sold without consent, leading to increased spam and potential scams. Incogni offers an automated solution to remove your family's information from data brokers, enhancing privacy and reducing unwanted communications. They're currently offering a 55% discount, making it more accessible to protect your family's online presence.

#Privacy #DataProtection #Incogni #CyberSecurity #OnlineSafety #DataBrokers

https://thedailytechfeed.com/protect-your-familys-privacy-with-incognis-55-discount/

Young people have their say: rethink the UK social media ban.

It makes a bad situation worse. Teens are just being pushed into unregulated spaces.

A ban does nothing to actually tackle the cause of online harms coming from the business model of the platforms themselves.

That’s what we need to fix.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/prime-minister-burnham-uk-government-scotland-keir-starmer-b3031838.html

#socialmediaban #ageverification #bigtech #onlinesafety #ukpolitics #ukpol

Looking forward to this TFGBV Community of Practice discussion on “Defining Intimacy, Consent and Harm in the Digital Age" hosted by the Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI).

on 25 August 2026,

9 am EDT | 6 pm IST | 3 pm SAST.

Register at: https://www.svri.org/webinars/defining-intimacy-consent-and-harm-in-the-digital-age/

#TFGBV #DigitalSafety #OnlineSafety #OGBV #GBV #DigitalRights #Consent #DigitalConsent #TechAndSociety #GenderAndTechnology

This week's net.wars, "Feeding the Machine", mulls a Texas court's order to lock a foreign-owned .com domain worldwide and the resonance of the strange case of the New Zealand bookshop with Vernor Vinge's novel Rainbows End: https://netwars.pelicancrossing.net/2026/08/14/1386/ #NetWars #AI #OnlineSafety #censorship

Bloomberg: Phoebe Gates knew Phia shopping app took credit for sales it didn’t drive. “Phia co-founders Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni pushed for features in the e-commerce startup’s software that took credit for sales it didn’t drive, according to internal communications and people with knowledge of the matter.”

📱🔐 YOUR PHONE KNOWS MORE ABOUT YOU THAN YOU THINK

Location, photos, contacts, apps, connections, permissions — your smartphone can reveal far more about your daily life than most people realize. 👀📍 A few simple privacy checks can make a huge difference in how much information you share and who gets access to it.

💬 Comment PRIVACY if you want more guides to help you take control of your digital footprint.

#CyberSecurity #DigitalPrivacy #OnlineSafety #PhoneSecurity #CyberAwareness

TechSpot: FBI warns hackers are breaking into social media accounts to steal and sell users’ nude photos. “The FBI has issued a warning for anyone who likes to take explicit photos (i.e., nudes) of themselves. Hackers are targeting both adult and underage users by compromising their social media and personal accounts to steal these images and sell them on criminal marketplaces – and they […]

🚨 ACCOUNT COMPROMISED? THE FIRST 10 MINUTES MATTER.

An unexpected login, a password change you didn’t make, or a strange security alert can be an early warning sign. 🔐⏱️ Knowing what to do immediately can help protect your data, secure your identity, and regain control before the situation gets worse.

💬 Comment SECURE if you want more practical account security guides like this.

#CyberSecurity #AccountSecurity #OnlineSafety #DigitalSecurity #CyberAwareness

Very usefull website about digital #security and #privacy (not only for #political activists):

#internet #vpn #onlinesafety #web #politics #censorship

Digital Security Checklists for Activists
https://activistchecklist.org/

‘You’re a 4 out of 10’: the troubling rise of AI appearance ratings
#AI #Youth #Tech #BodyImage #MentalHealth #Looksmaxxing #SocialMedia #OnlineSafety #EatingDisorders #DigitalHealth #BodyDysmorphia #MuscleDysmorphia
https://the-14.com/youre-a-4-out-of-10-the-troubling-rise-of-ai-appearance-ratings/

BBC: Discord ordered to suspend livestreams in Brazil. “Brazil’s data protection authority (ANPD) has ordered Discord to suspend its livestreaming feature after a teenage girl was allegedly encouraged to take her own life in a broadcast on the platform.”