From e629cc77768ad029445648540a0dd4129ce869a7 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Kumar Damani Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2022 18:56:16 -0400 Subject: moved to hugo --- self-host.html | 187 --------------------------------------------------------- 1 file changed, 187 deletions(-) delete mode 100644 self-host.html (limited to 'self-host.html') diff --git a/self-host.html b/self-host.html deleted file mode 100644 index d64161b..0000000 --- a/self-host.html +++ /dev/null @@ -1,187 +0,0 @@ - - - - - - - - - - - -

Why do I self-host?

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Digital freedom/independence

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- To put it simply, if you use a service such as Lastpass, iCloud, Dropbox, GDrive, OneDrive, etc. to store your - data, you do - not own it. - You are trusting corp. X to store it, secure it, and make it available to you. - Beyond the obvious privacy pitfalls with this, there are many other things that - could go wrong with your data being stored this way: -

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- Personally, I don't feel comfortable depending on the existence of corp. X for data that is important to - me i.e. a lifetime's worth of documents, memories, and passwords etc. - I 💤 much better at night knowing I am avoiding most if not all of the risks above. -

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Privacy

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Normies often ask me some variation of: -

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- To such questions, I follow-up with: -
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- Do you want to contribute to a dystopian (Orwellian) future? -
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- If your answer is yes, then no need to read further, the following will not change your mind. -

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- If your answer is no, but you aren't convinced that/how these are related, - then the argument goes something like this... -
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- We live in a world of mass data-collection/surveillance.
- This enables corp. X to use techniques such as ML (Machine Learning) to build/train models (or "AI" - - Artificial Intelligence) - that aim to predict human behaviour.
- That by itself is not a problem here.
- The problems arise when corp. X use these techniques for profit - without regard for the harm they cause at a population level.
- I have unfortunately lived through enough of these cases to be able to cite a few recent examples: -
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- Instagram (etc.) designs its apps/products optimizing for maximum addiction [0]. - Think slot-machines. - You might think you are "too smart" to fall for these tricks, and you might be right, - but what about the millions of adolescents using these platforms who aren't as wise as you? - The data collected, and techniques developed from your usage enables platforms - to target not only you, but all users on the platform, including the most vulnerable. -
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- Unfortunately, many of these kids will end up suffering from mental-health, - body-image, self-esteem issues [1], and for some it will be fatal. - I do not think this is morally acceptable, and is primary reason I refuse - to participate in social-media platforms. -
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- [0], - [1] -
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- You could say "well that's due to bad parenting", but the point remains that - more and more of the digital world is having real world negative consequences regardless of - your individual participation level. For example: -
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- By now its well known that Facebook's (etc.) targeted advertising - played a significant a role in the 2016 US Elections [2]. Facebook was able to do this - thanks to its users voluntarily giving personal information for two decades. - However, the policies that come out of this election has real world consequences to millions - (if not billions) of people, regardless of their individual Facebook usage, which - undermines the very purpose of a democratic republic. Regardless of your political affiliation, - it should worry you that this can happen. -
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- [2] -
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- To summarize, it might not be a problem if individuals disregard their - privacy at the individual level, but in aggregate, a population-wide disregard - has dystopian consequences. -

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- So the question you have to ask yourself is... -
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- What can I do? -
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- Start by valuing your privacy. - Then, follow some of the tips below to say no... -

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