How To Stop Censorship & Protect EndUsers
I've been saying this all along, It's not entirely been clear though until literally yesterday here thanks to
https://www.loomio.org/d/ikJUaz3l/word-tag-filter-option
My original concerns, post & inquiry re: issues began after being directed both on Twitter & while i was on Diaspora itself to come here:
https://www.loomio.org/d/tuFjC4Tn/concerns-re-abuse-child-safety
So, This is what i propose & have all along & why.
#1. You are making #podmins #censors which is not needed. The only system you have in place in current build of this network is to 'report/flag' someone for what they say. That means you then make the podmin the censor. That's not freedom, that's not free speech & that is entirely contrary to why we all need / desire a voice on a decentralized foss platform.
#2. In order to comply with both US and International Law re: Minor's and Pornography. That part is really, really simple. When a new user signs up on any pod, make them designate as adult or minor in their own country.
Once that part is in place, restrict all NSFW content so Minor's accounts can't view it. Voila! You've just entirely eliminated ALL legal liability for anything that is legal. ie. Adults can post porn, speak freely and be trolls. Kids can use Foss Diaspora Social Network on any pod and have the ability to not get sex ed the wrong way.
#3. Ultimately this is my belief, Using Tags, Minor Accounts, Clearly Warning Kids & Parents Overall With This Project PUBLICLY and making an effort to make it safe for kids to use alongside free speaking adults i think ultimately strengthens Diaspora's stronghold in future development of said Decentralized Social Networks empowering free speech vs Censoring it as you do now.
#4. I don't code ruby on rails, This is now your work ;-)
Brad Koehn Sun 20 Jul 2014 2:48PM
I would recommend that we restrict the conversation to the topic described. If you wish to discuss security or steganography please open another topic.
L4C0F Mon 21 Jul 2014 2:36AM
Brad Koehn Mon 21 Jul 2014 4:01PM
I don't think conflating the NSFW tag with content inappropriate for minors relieves one of any legal liability (I don't think there is liability in most countries including the US). Can you cite the specific US and international laws that say that a website cannot show pornographic content to minors and is liable for damages if it does? I would think most porn sites would have serious legal troubles if this is the case.
lnxwalt · Sun 20 Jul 2014 2:41PM
It is routine to encrypt passwords, but not any other part of the database. It would make most web applications unusable. The continual encrypt/decrypt cycle would nearly paralyze a server (pod) that has more than a very minimal amount of activity (including activity federated from other pods).
Do you store the keys on the server, or do you make podmins enter the keys every time there is a reboot? Because it would certainly be hard to run most SELECT x WHERE ... queries when the contents of the database are just opaque blobs.
So it is not just Diaspora that doesn't do this. It is nearly every site anywhere.
That is up to the individual podmin and that person's hosting company. Some hosting services forbid TOR. Some hosting services may allow Tor hidden services, but forbid relays or exit nodes. Tor is not a magic wand, so those who choose to host Tor services, relays, exit nodes should take the time to understand the implications of what they are doing first.
Steganography is security by obscurity. As soon as someone who can intercept your messages suspects that you are using steganography, hiding secret messages within the content of other files or messages, the content of your hidden messages is in danger. Naturally, it depends on the resources available to your presumed attacker, but if you assume that a government agency or one of the large telecoms that carry the data has an interest in it, they will get the hidden message.
That being said, individual users on various pods can (and have) discussed steganography. It is definitely not something that should occupy the time of Diaspora developers (that is, D* should not add a data-hiding tool), but it is certainly of interest to some users.