mastodon - Link to source
#privacy #selfhosted #infosec #surveillance #foss @uBlockOrigin
in reply to Sergio

mastodon - Link to source

k3ym𖺀

@sergiodomeyko every time you open one of these AI chat websites, before you type a single word, the website is secretly making hundreds of connections to other companies’ servers in the background.

those connections are sending those companies information about you — what browser you use, what computer you have, your screen size, your timezone, sometimes a unique digital fingerprint that can identify you specifically.

you’re paying a monthly subscription for these AI tools, and they’re ALSO selling information about how you use them to analytics companies, ad companies, and in Google’s case, adding it to the giant file they already have on you from Gmail, Search, Maps, and everything else.

uBlock Origin is a free browser extension that blocks all of this. it’s like a bouncer for your browser. Lmk if you want some help installing it 😀

hope that helps. welcome to the modern internet - it’s a mess out here.

@Sergio
in reply to Joseph Lim

mastodon - Link to source

k3ym𖺀

@joseph11lim @sergiodomeyko

Did I understand this thread correctly that Mistral also does the same "bouncer" function as UBlock origin, but with the added advantage of EU ethos?


Not quite - it's not that Mistral is doing the same "bouncer" function as uBlock, it's that Mistral is built differently than the other AI websites in that it doesn't discretely spy on you.

In essence, there's very little (or nothing) for the bouncer (i.e. uBock) to do when you're using Mistral.

either way I highly encourage everyone to use uBlock 😀

@Joseph Lim @Sergio
in reply to Olivier Burnier

mastodon - Link to source

k3ym𖺀

@OlivierBurnier
Mistral: two blocked requests.

Cloudflare Insights ("is the site up") and a single Intercom beacon POST that didn't even retry.

that's it. no Statsig. no tracking GIFs. no Google Analytics. no distributed tracing. no proof-of-work challenge. no KETCHUP_DISCOVERY_CARD. nothing.

a French AI company nobody talks about is running the cleanest frontend in the entire field by a factor of roughly 150x and we're all sleeping on it

les français ont tout compris

#mistral #privacy #infosec

#privacy #infosec #mistral @Olivier Burnier
in reply to k3ym𖺀

mastodon - Link to source

MayaMayaMaya

> Also ships your usage data to Google Analytics. OpenAI. To Google. You cannot make this up.

I was working on an internal analytics dashboard at some other Very Large Company What Competes With Google and someone pushed a change to fetch and run an analytics package directly from Google servers. I had to spend almost a week ripping out their changes and redoing the analytics using a lib that wasn't directly sourced from our primary competition (also I'm pretty sure the way it was used violated it's license).

So yea my lack of surprise is palpable.

in reply to Quercus

mastodon - Link to source

k3ym𖺀

@QuercusMacrocarpa uMatrix is unfortunately abandoned — development ended in 2021, same developer as uBlock Origin, he just stopped. there's also an unpatched vulnerability in it so I'd avoid it at this point.

uBlock Origin in medium mode covers most of what uMatrix used to do for this specific threat — it blocks third party scripts and XHR requests by default which is exactly what catches the telemetry pipelines I documented.

one important caveat though: if you're on Chrome, uBlock Origin was gutted by Google in late 2024 as part of their Manifest V3 changes. the full version no longer works on Chrome. for real protection you need Firefox or Brave with uBlock Origin installed. which, honestly, is probably worth a separate post.

@Quercus
in reply to k3ym𖺀

mastodon - Link to source

Kerplunk

@QuercusMacrocarpa
one important caveat though: if you're on Chrome, uBlock Origin was gutted by Google in late 2024 as part of their Manifest V3 changes. the full version no longer works on Chrome. for real protection you need Firefox or Brave

OR UngoogledChromium uBlock from
github.com/gorhill/uBlock/rele…

Add localcdn or privacy Badger.

Do not use googles store, it is a pernicious tracker... and

Releases · gorhill/uBlock

uBlock Origin - An efficient blocker for Chromium and Firefox. Fast and lean. - gorhill/uBlock
GitHub
@Quercus
in reply to Kerplunk

mastodon - Link to source

Ansar Smagul

@Kerplunk @QuercusMacrocarpa
We're building an open-source, system-wide ad-blocker called Zen.

It sits outside the browser, so it's unaffected by the artificial limitations of Manifest V3 (among other benefits), so I'd recommend it to anyone still using Chrome.

We're aiming for 100% feature parity with uBO and other ad-blockers (already 90% there). Check it out if you're interested: github.com/ZenPrivacy/zen-desk…

GitHub - ZenPrivacy/zen-desktop: Simple, free and efficient ad-blocker and privacy guard for Windows, macOS and Linux.

Simple, free and efficient ad-blocker and privacy guard for Windows, macOS and Linux. - ZenPrivacy/zen-desktop
GitHub
@Quercus @Kerplunk
in reply to k3ym𖺀

lemmy - Link to source

NotFrenchJack

I only use the free models on offer by duck.ai, and do it sparingly and in a self-contained manner. I decided that if those models are not enough for a problem, then I would probably be better off seeking a source with real authority and intelligence. They can track my anonymous private (network and browser) sessions all they want 😎, if they wish to.

(And that annoying non-cross-poster can go fuck itself. I'm deliberately posting this here because of it. So, Mission Accomplished!)

This entry was edited (2 days ago)
in reply to k3ym𖺀

friendica (DFRN) - Link to source

plan-A (ﾟヮﾟ)

 — (8 - Bit)
@k3ym𖺀 I pay them 0 $ but I use those my RAM permit, what about that?
Here the saying is adverse you see?
"If you don't pay a product, you are the product" from Kevin M ( may he rest in peace ) do not count for me and many many others that opened their mind to it as one day you'll have to compete, or troubleshoot your network problem offline etc etc while I use the product and them not me.
And spare me the legality of things aspect, they are all open source> just look around.
@k3ym𖺀
in reply to k3ym𖺀

friendica (DFRN) - Link to source

plan-A (ﾟヮﾟ)

 — (8 - Bit)

@k3ym𖺀 Now you will tell me but it stay's slop while I kept proving that it is not the case and that you can learn it if you took the trouble and time to read the official docs of those open source models.
You can do or make your own RAG system as making your own checker that no API can do for those that pay.
I oppose the fact that they push it ( Big tech Corp's ) to even GitHub and so many things where the consumer has no choice ( as some mobile phones ) or the search engines AI likes or the ones you use in fact and pay for it that really scrape the web aggressively for the cash.
But do not tell me that all AI is what you seem to use.

All telemetry and websocket etc issues are a no brainer as solution to run it on local host no internet needed.
Wishing you a good day

@k3ym𖺀
in reply to k3ym𖺀

mastodon - Link to source

Michael T Babcock

these are people who didn't pay attention to the Cambridge Analytica situation or at least don't understand how dangerous metadata is.
Imagine what a bad actor could manipulate you into believing through prompt responses based on its deep knowledge of your past thinking.
The psychological manipulation possibilities are truly frightening.
#skynet #ai #cybersecurity
#ai #cybersecurity #skynet
in reply to Michael T Babcock

mastodon - Link to source

k3ym𖺀

The media in this post is not displayed to visitors. To view it, please go to the original post.

@mikebabcock

don’t understand how dangerous metadata is.


That’s an understatement.

“We kill people based on metadata.”
— Michael Hayden, Former Director of the NSA

sauce

"We kill people based on metadata" - General Hayden (2014)

The Price of Privacy: Re-Evaluating the NSA, A Debate. This year's Presidential Event was a debate between General Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA...
Woke Media (1) (YouTube)
@Michael T Babcock
in reply to k3ym𖺀

mastodon - Link to source

caneToad

Thanks for your analysis, good stuff. Confirms my suspicion that GenAI LLM are a kind of AdTech Surveillance Capitalism on steroids, draining way more data from the victim than 'traditional' TechBro corporate eavesdropping.

I suggest to establish digital self defence:

1) Use common sense and avoid bullshit products based on stolen data (GenAI LLMs use HUGE amounts of energy and water for ... what?). Practice good thinking and figure what you can do on your own, with your brain, and without a lying electric parrot crutch.

2) Harden your browser > uBlock Origin, and get to protect your network on DNS level > e. g., with Pi-hole. There, add AI blocklists.

3) Get independent, and off TechBro ripoff services and subscription products. Reclaim your digital freedom.

This entry was edited (2 days ago)
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