PRISM break with Trisquel and Free Software
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I actually feel MORE inclined to use free software now that all these leaks have come out about further tracking of my info.
Wow, that's a pretty nice listing!
On Sunday 16 June 2013 08:39 PM, name at domain wrote:
> http://prism-break.org/
>
The public DNS is a rescue.
While using ISP's DNS sometimes I used to get a squid proxy page when I
mistyped an website address.
I added it to Reddit for Linux Action Show and getting some love: http://www.reddit.com/r/LinuxActionShow/comments/1gghj1/prism_break/
Speaking of DNS, what do you guys think of using OpenDNS with DNSCrypt? Technically your data is being stored on their servers, but the DNS info is encrypted in the process and your ISP may not see what is being sent.
Wow, the site doesn't recommend Ubuntu!
The site creator actually took my suggestion to give Trisquel its own little icon!
https://pay.reddit.com/r/privacy/comments/1g2vs4/opt_out_of_prism_the_nsas_global_data/caib0ir
It's a very good list, but it could be improved, because it might be a bit misleading.
If a user thinks "well, I trust this list and replace windows with "tails" and my internet explorer for everyday use with "tor browser" ", then he might get frustrated....
I just posted this on facebook:
If you're using proprietary software, your computer could be informing on you. One problem with proprietary software is that users cannot know what it does, beyond the superficial.
The company that made it may assure you it respects privacy. You could take their word for it. Or you could use free software.
Free software is about certain freedoms; it's not a matter of price. Part of what it means to be free is that users can get full disclosure of the instructions that make up the program. This requirement for transparency means that people can audit it, and alert others to intrusive features.
I'm happy to help anyone switch to a free OS. If you want to keep Windows or MacOS, and take smaller first steps, that's fine. Let me know if I can help.
[end of post]
If you have any critique/suggestions, please let me know. I would really appreciate it.
On 17/06/13 09:23, adel.afzal wrote:
> I just posted this on facebook. I know, I know, facebook. Sorry
> okay? I stayed off for a few years but it's hard not to compromise
> sometimes.
If you use Facebook, I recommend using https://m.facebook.com/ as it
doesn't require non-free JavaScript. Else, the normal Facebook tracks
whose profile pictures you hover your cursor over (among other things).
Andrew.
+1
I use m.facebook.com as well to avoid their JavaScript, as well as because I find it much easier to navigate the simple HTML pages. Of course I'd rather not use Facebook at all, but I'm in too deep and my friends/family aren't using anything else.
The post sounds good, by the way. :-)
Andrew.
Thanks for the tip Andrew. I will use the url that you posted.
Does the standard facebook page track people in that way, even if they access facebook with an OS like Trisquel? I use a free OS (Trisquel) ...so I assumed that I don't have Java on my computer. Does their tracking work even without Java?
It sounds like Andrew said Javascript, not Java.
On 17/06/13 10:02, adel.afzal wrote:
> Thanks for the tip Andrew. I will use the url that you posted.
>
> Does the standard facebook page track people in that way, even if
> they access facebook with an OS like Trisquel? I use a free OS
> (Trisquel) ...so I assumed that I don't have Java on my computer.
> Does their tracking work even without Java?
The tracking uses "JavaScript" (JS), which is different from Java. JS is
often described as the the scripting language of the web. Abrowser has
JavaScript enabled by default, so it is easy to run non-free JS even on
this OS.
Unfortunately, preventing JavaScript tracking isn't so simple. Many
websites are designed to rely on JavaScript (because nearly everyone has
it enabled) so disabling it will cause a lot of websites to not work.
There is a Firefox/Abrowser/IceCat/Iceweasel addon called LibreJS which
only runs JavaScript marked as free software. I prefer to disable JS
entirely, and others here run an addon called NoScript which allows you
to selectively run JavaScript from certain websites.
I have a feeling that Ruben won't include LibreJS or disable JavaScript
by default because Trisquel is designed to be easy for anyone to use,
and too many websites won't work on Trisquel with it disabled.
Richard Stallman has an article on GNU.org called "The JavaScript Trap"
which goes into some detail on the issue of non-free JavaScript:
https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/javascript-trap.html
I also posted some other ways non-free JS can be harmful at
https://trisquel.info/en/forum/harmful-effects-non-free-javascript
TL;DR: Yes, Facebook can use non-free JavaScript for some tracking
techniques on Trisquel, and it's not such an easy problem to solve.
Andrew.
Oh, my bad. Thanks guys. Sorry for the confusion; I don't know much about computers, just the philosophy and ideals. Thanks for explaining!
No problem. You know the best.
The most only know about computers but nothing about philosophy and ideals.
:-)
haha, thanks man
Hi, i only browse the internet with JS disabled:
1) Do i still need NoScript? (apparently yes: Java, WebGL, etc)
2) Because of JS disabled i end up viewing a lot of pages in No Style mode. The problem is that when i open a link in a new tab it goes back to Basic Page Style. I want it to happen only when i select it again. I searched about:config and the web but i couldn't find the solution
Thanks
Your text sounds very good, but to be honest, it sounds awkward when posted on facebook.
Facebook is, in my opinion, almost as bad as proprietary software.
It's designed to do harm to the users and it's bad for society.
You can read http://stallman.org/facebook.html for further reasons.
I think if one participates in facebook, though not frequently uses it, he keeps this unjust system alive and growing.
Quitting is the only way possible.
I quitted myself years ago, some friends were keeping this in mind and quitting a bit later.
For myself, social networks aren't conveniant, but for other people they are; the best choice is to join an ethical alternative, no matter how unpopular at the moment.
Thanks quantumgravity. I will think carefully about your post.
I am a member!
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Brilliantly put!
Copied this to my Facebook and Diaspora pages - hope you don't mind.
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=w4DO
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Thanks Lloyd
I don't mind at all
i need to download all my sentimental pictures and romantic comments between me and my girlfriend so that i can inactivate my facebook account because i already know they will keep all my data anyway... how can i do it with out doing it manually?
On 08/07/13 13:02, rova wrote:
> i need to download all my sentimental pictures and romantic comments
> between me and my girlfriend so that i can inactivate my facebook
> account because i already know they will keep all my data anyway...
> how can i do it with out doing it manually?
Facebook has a data download utility which you can use (apparently it is
in your "Account Options"). Hope that helps.
Andrew.
Is Fedora really that open or does it include non-free blobs like Ubuntu? With that in mind, how about CentOS or Scientific Linux? As we all know, both of those are binary compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux as they take the source code and create a community distribution.
The only problem with Fedora is nonfree firmware. You can remove this easily with Linux-libre. [0]
Different of Ubuntu because they recommend many nonfree softwares in Software Center, drivers and coming with nonfree firmwares too.
FSF say Red Hat has the same problem of Fedora (nonfree firmware from upstream Linux). [1]
[0] http://www.fsfla.org/ikiwiki/selibre/linux-libre/freed-ora.en.html
[1] http://www.gnu.org/distros/common-distros.html#RedHat
I didn't know about Diaspora* before I saw this page. It's really neat. I ended up making an account at ilikefreedom.org (as opposed to joindiaspora.com, because that "pod" uses scripts stored on cloudfront.net (Amazon CloudFront), which I know nothing about and don't want to whitelist).
Look at the absurdities!
"*This website uses the Free Software Foundation’s definition of free software."
yeah, right... "GNU/Linux Free, open source operating system." ( https://gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html )
"Debian Popular ethical GNU/Linux distribution." No, the ethical ones are above. And are the only Operating Systems you can really trust in terms of security/privacy/anonymity.
You are mistaken. Debian does not include any non-free software. Only way to get non-free software (including firmware) with Debian is to write "non-free" into sources.list (apt configuration file). If you do that, you are well aware of the fact that non-free software is what you want.
No, you're the one mistaken.
https://gnu.org/distros/common-distros.html
Debian GNU/Linux
Debian's Social Contract states the goal of making Debian entirely free software, and Debian conscientiously keeps nonfree software out of the official Debian system. However, Debian also provides a repository of nonfree software. According to the project, this software is “not part of the Debian system,” but the repository is hosted on many of the project's main servers, and people can readily learn about these nonfree packages by browsing Debian's online package database.
There is also a “contrib” repository; its packages are free, but some of them exist to load separately distributed proprietary programs. This too is not thoroughly separated from the main Debian distribution.
Previous releases of Debian included nonfree blobs with Linux, the kernel. With the release of Debian 6.0 (“squeeze”) in February 2011, these blobs have been moved out of the main distribution to separate packages in the nonfree repository. However, the problem partly remains: the installer in some cases recommends these nonfree firmware files for the peripherals on the machine.
We all know this text, but nevertheless, Debian can be used 100% in freedom and so in an ethical way.
It might not be appropriate for people who don't know much about free software and might add the proprietary repos; that's the reason why the fsf doesn't endorse it.
But an OS which can be used 100% in freedom can be called "ethical" without any problems.
Yup.
To let *anyone's* list decide for you what is ethical (or not) is to make the same mistake that fundamentalist religionists make all the time--to take a text as gospel and turn off your brain.
The FSF's strict standards are a good thing. I support them, and they have a use.
But that use is not to be the sole arbiter of what is Ethical and what is not.
There is a moral absolute for free software, just like everything else. I just don't think I've figured it out yet.
kernelKurtz said: "But that use is not to be the sole arbiter of what is Ethical and what is not."
I agree
I just watched the Stallman vid on Ubuntu spyware that someone linked again in another thread.
He says, roughly, that most distributions contain some ethical flaws.
A much more nuanced and accurate thing than simply saying:
"Not On The List = Unethical".
I agree.
It looks like http://prism-break.org is less brave at recommending free software, now. At the top of the list for free operating systems is Linux Mint.
How free is the Linux Mint No-Codecs Edition? Their website is pretty vague on licensing. I know that it uses the blobbed kernel.
It's the same repos as the regular DVD. The only difference is it doesn't include the software for playing patented formats on the live medium. They have this ISO as an option because it can be more freely distributed by some people than the regular DVD.
To be perfectly clear, it's no more free than the regular DVD. It still includes Flash and recommends a lot of proprietary software via the repo (since it's the same repo).
It seems that convenience and popularity has been prioritized over freedom and privacy on that list. It would be fair to every one if it was alphabetical.
If the list is in alphabetical order, then Trisquel should change its name to 000Trisquel. :)
Hey folks, interesting discussion! I've got a question that may sound simplistic, but I used to be a tech writer and I found that asking simplistic questions was often illuminating.
I'm a recent convert to Triskel, the KDE version of Trisquel. I've got my Tor browser running and it says it's happy on the Tor net. I understand the reasons for excluding Flash and avoiding Javascript and so on. I also remain an Opera fan to the point that I'm not yet willing to give up one of my four favorite applications of all time, my emailer as well as my browser for well over a decade.
So I'm wondering first if it's possible for a fully Tor'd browser and a non-free app like Opera to co-exist peacefully on a Triskel system, and second what you think and feel about the ethics of the situation. Could I have Opera with a working Flash which I used when I didn't care about being watched, and a Tor browser I used most of the time?
I am a translator!
I feel that one should avoid using non-free software. I'm not the person to pressure people into switching from their favorite programs if they don't care about freedom issues. But I think you care, since you use Triskel.
The software should be free, because only in that case it gives the user full control over the computer. A piece of software, that is non-free takes away that control from the user, which is wrong. It's your computer, you should be able to control it 100%.
So non-free software is basically unethical. Refusing to use it is one way of fighting it. If everyone refuses to use it, there will be no non-free software anymore, because there will be no market for the commercial non-free stuff, and the non-free stuff that is distributed without cost (like Opera) will go away because no one will download it.
That's why it is important to not use non-free software, even if it is very usable and technically advanced etc.
If you want to use a non-free program on Trisquel, you are of course still welcome to be a member of this community and people will help you out if you have any questions. It's just we will not help you install non-free software and we won't help you with any issues that are associated with it.
For
privacy install these add-on on Abrowser:
http://priv3.icsi.berkeley.edu/
https://www.gnu.org/software/librejs/
https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere
Some of them are in Trisquel's Extensions or Add-ons.
Now about https://prism-break.org:
They have Linux Mint , Fedora as recomandation! These distributions have
a non-libre kernel with blobs (proprietary code) executabile in kernel. They
are not free kernels. This demonstrates that owner of the site don't
care about GNU philosophy and FREEDOM.
He recomended Linux Mint "Linux Mint is probably the easiest-to-use
distribution for people migrating from Microsft Windows." -so he
recomand conveniece rather than FREEDOM. (this is not ours philosophy)
The sentence: "We recommend the no-codecs edition, as the others are
encumbered with software patents." is an excuse and I ask how a noob from
Windows will know where to fiind a Libre-Linux kernel , how to install
it, how to edit a source list to remove that repository whith
proprietary software. etc.
Conclusions:
Owner of the site if cares about Libre software and GNU philosophy must
to put in first place and recomandations for
GNU/Linux-Libre distributions. If not than we can't recomand his site
because is misleading the users on a wrong path with Linux Mint being in
GNU philosophy which is not (they have Nvidia drivers in repo)
Now he will says his site is not about GNU phylosophy is just for
Prism-break. Well, I ask myself how you hide from Prism if you have in
your distribution the same software, drivers which you had in Windows.
Because all you done is you replace the name Windows with another name
of linux distribution. Because the softare in these distributions are
FREE IN PRICE (or gratis) not FREE (as in freedom - Libre - Liber).
Now this is the same mistake (even bigger because now is about ours
freedom) like one which has been made long time ago when peoples said GNU + Linux
is Linux and after 20 years is hard to tell peoples that linux is just a
kernel and you can't install Linux on a pc and surf the web, send emails,
wach youtube with him.
So the owner of the site must to guide users that FREEDOM is important
and convenience is in second place always.
Hardly anyone in this community switched to trisquel in one step.
There are lots of members here who used a distro like linux mint first.
The only thing I can accuse the creator of this site is not clearly to point out that people should use linux mint only for getting used to the gnu/linux system if their current pc is not able to run trisquel and if they are not yet convinced to abandon their prop. programs 100%.
He has to write that the only final solution and the only real "prism break" is using a 100% free distro;
I'm a big advocate of graduate acclimatization (don't know a better expression).
But yes, he recommends Linux Mint as if it's a good and final solution, that's not ok.
@graduate acclimatization: Is it appropriate if you recommended here a "graduate" distro for the current Windows user? I do not have, nor was able to find a hardware that would fully support Trisquel. But the start it would probably be better to try some "Linux" distro at least, which supports much wider variety of hardware (e.g. Broadcom wireless). I hope it can be considered as a one step forward (and none back). Most of the software I use (except games) has GPL licence and now I'd like to proceed with the next step.
If you want to make a choice between running windows and a not completely free gnu/linux distro, you should prefer the latter.
In this case, I would recommend debian.
After you checked out the distro with your current hardware, debian offers you the possibility to remove the non-free parts;
so if you run well with debian and you like the system you can proceed and buy a freedom-friendly wireless card (for example from thinkpinguin) or, if your pc is old and you consider buying a new one anyway, you can choose the right hardware.
Debian seperates the free parts from the non-free parts in different repos.
Your current hardware will only work with parts of the non-free repos.
Once you canceled out the non-free repos from the sources.list, you run an almost 100% free system.
I hope this was helpful!
Abandon proprietary software is a step forward in any case.
Will Debian be a better choice than Ubuntu since Trisquel is based on Ubuntu (12.04?). I'd like then to proceed to Trisquel (after I find THE laptop), but I don't want to learn things on Debian which will then be different on Trisquel - if there are any major differences, of course (e.g. different desktop environment).
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