this post was submitted on 13 Mar 2024
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No thanks China! (lemmy.today)
submitted 8 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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[–] [email protected] 51 points 8 months ago (6 children)

The fundamental difference is who is in control, and for what purpose.

American spyware is controlled by corporations, and is all about selling you shit you don't need.

Chinese (and Russian) spyware is--apparently--controlled rather directly by their respective governments, and is being used to suppress democracy and increase polarization in the US and EU.

I don't like any spyware. But the latter category--spyware that's functionally state-sponsored--is clearly more immediately dangerous. The former is more like a slow-growing cancer.

[–] [email protected] 30 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (9 children)

All of the US corporate social media platforms are part of the US military-industrial-intellegence complex now. Look at their boards of directors and executives. Look at the Twitter Files. Look Hamilton 68.

Look at Reddit:

.
TikTok as well. The US already forced them to move their service to the US on an American-owned hosting provider, and they have already put people with a history of aligning with “American interests” into executive positions, like CEO Shou Zi Chew and vice president Michael Beckerman.

They have their eye on the fediverse now: Atlantic Council » Collective Security in a Federated World

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 8 months ago

So it's only okay for them to suppress democracy and increase polarization if they use American platforms? Because that's already happening.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago (1 children)

The former is more like a slow-growing cancer.

One that we can actually fight, I might add, and we should.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

I'm not defending China here, but since Snowden we now know that American corporate spyware does serve the government. And they are suppressing democracy - this isn't a democracy yet, and peaceful protests for democracy are met with violent police resistance - Occupy, BLM, etc.

I sincerely hope that Lemmy can grow large enough to serve as a staging ground for democratic protests in America, just because it's not corporate controlled.

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[–] [email protected] 42 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (3 children)

My main reason is I'm an American, China (probably) can't do shit to me. But here I'm subject to so much shit America can do legally and illegally, with zero repercussions.

If China fucked me in particular over, odds are it would at least spark debate here. If America spied on my messages and stopped me from protesting something, that's just a Tuesday afternoon here.

The only reason why Congress wants to ban it, is due to pressure from news agencies and the government, because TikTok can't be controlled by the CIA. You can't manufacture consent of the people if the content comes from someone else you don't control.

https://www.npr.org/2024/03/13/1237501725/house-vote-tiktok-ban

They'll ban tiktok but won't punish overly aggressive police.

They'll ban tiktok but won't make food or rent affordable.

They'll ban tiktok but won't denounce Israel's bullshit.

They'll ban tiktok but won't cancel student loans.

They'll ban tiktok but won't take Covid seriously.

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[–] [email protected] 29 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Honestly way less afraid of China snooping on my data than US corporations. Only one of those groups regularly colludes with the FBI/CIA/other three letter agencies.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 8 months ago

only one can send armed goons to my house too

[–] [email protected] 28 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Hah! yeah

How does Microsoft always fly under the radar?

[–] [email protected] 22 points 8 months ago (1 children)

2013: Microsoft handed the NSA access to encrypted messages

Microsoft has collaborated closely with US intelligence services to allow users' communications to be intercepted, including helping the National Security Agency to circumvent the company's own encryption, according to top-secret documents obtained by the Guardian.

The files provided by Edward Snowden illustrate the scale of co-operation between Silicon Valley and the intelligence agencies over the last three years. They also shed new light on the workings of the top-secret Prism program, which was disclosed by the Guardian and the Washington Post last month.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago

For fun context, Google "Microsoft Vortex Service"

[–] [email protected] 18 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I'm not big of a fan of Chinese surveillance but to most peoples point that have already posted here, if this was about privacy then the government should be passing laws to protect consumer privacy as a whole and not just targeting Chinese companies. Really shows that the government doesn't give a shit about your privacy just who's able to get it.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 8 months ago (6 children)

What China can do in violating my privacy is much less than my own government.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago

The concern about TikTok acquiring your private information for marketing purposes is a red herring. The concern of our government here is propaganda and narrative control -- power.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

A whole lot of censoring on these posts on lemmy.ml

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