Bitchute: Still Powering Those Ultra Bits
January 28, 2021
Republicans view Democrats with suspicion. Democrats stare back at Republicans. Both political parties have media outlets that support each of their political ideologies. The only problem for either party are the extremists (and conspiracy theorists) that haunt their ranks. That being said welcome to BitChute, a conservative video streaming platform that allows frisky speech, conspiracy theorists, and Web 3.0 thinkers.
Mashable deep dives into the platform in: “BitChute Welcomes The Dangerous Hate Speech That YouTube Bans.” BitChute has not received as much attention as other alternative social media Web sites. British citizen Ray Vahey, a Web developer, founded BitChute as a free speech platform when Google banned certain contentious speech and extremist content on YouTube. Vahey lives in Thailand and he actively supports conspiracy theories.
BitChute is funded by donations and will start playing ads from the advertising company Criteo. Most of BitChute’s content comes from YouTube and it is not owned by the uploads. Reuters, for example, has a channel, but Reuters does not own it. There have been takedown allegations, although they were copyright infringement and not community guidelines.
“As HOPE not hate’s report puts it: “BitChute exists to circumvent the moderation of mainstream platforms.” BitChute really seems like the Wild West. The company lists basic community guidelines on the site, but users can easily find videos that violate them. And it’s not like there’s so much content that BitChute couldn’t moderate it all. “
There are fewer uploaders to BitChute than YouTube enjoys, but that does not limit the depth of unusual factoids shared in videos. BitChute’s guidelines state terrorism recruitment videos were not allowed, yet there are many available as well as mass shooting videos.
BitChute may be poised for growth.
Whitney Grace, January 28, 2020
DarkCyber for January 26, 2021, Now Available
January 26, 2021
DarkCyber is a twice-a-month video news program. The stories cover cyber crime, lesser known Internet services, and online. The feature in the January 26, 2021, program is a conversation between Ric Manning, a former Gannett technology columnist and author, and Stephen E Arnold, author of CyberOSINT: Next Generation Information Access. Arnold and Manning talk about the online implications of deplatforming users. Manning points out that protections extended to online platforms free the managers from the constraints in which other media are enmeshed. Arnold points out that government involvement is likely to take place and have significant unforeseen consequences.
Others stories in this program are the deanonymization of digital currency users, a book of algorithms selected for their usefulness in intelligence analysis, and our mini-feature about drones. This week, learn about the flying ginsu knife.
You can view the video at www.arnoldit.com/wordpress or at this url on YouTube.
Kenny Toth, January 26, 2021
Microsoft Teams: More, More, More
January 12, 2021
Last week I was on a Zoom video call. Zoom is pretty easy to use. What’s interesting is that the cyber security organizer of the meeting could not figure out how to allow a participant to share a screen. Now how easy is it to use Microsoft Teams compared to Zoom? In my opinion, Microsoft Teams is a baffler. The last thing Teams needs is another dose of featuritis. Teams and Zoom both need to deal with the craziness of the existing features and functions.
I have given up on Zoom improving its interface. The tiny gear icon, one of the most used components, is tough for some people to spot. Teams has a couple of donkeys laden with wackiness; for example, how about those access controls? Working great for new users, right? But Microsoft who is busy reinventing itself from Word and SharePoint wants to be the super Slack of our Rona-ized world. Sounds good? Yep, ads within Office 10 are truly an uplifting experience for individuals who use Windows 10 to sort of attempt work. Plus, Teams adds Channel calendars. Great! More calendars! Many Outlooks, many search systems, and now calendars! In Teams!
I noted this BBC write up: “Pupils in Scotland Struggle to Get Online Amid Microsoft Issue.” I thought teachers, parents were there to help. The Beeb states:
A number of schools, pupils and parents have reported the technology running slowly or not at all.
What’s Microsoft say? According to the Beeb:
A Microsoft spokesperson said: “Our engineers are working to resolve difficulties accessing Microsoft Teams that some customers are experiencing.” When pressed on whether demand as a result of home schooling was causing the issue, Microsoft declined to comment.
Just like the SolarWinds’ misstep? Nope, just working to make Teams more interesting. Navigate to “Microsoft Teams Is Getting a More Engaging Experience for Meetings Soon.” If the write up is accurate, that’s exactly what Microsoft has planned for its Zoom killer. The write up reports an item from the future:
Microsoft is working on making Teams meetings more engaging using AI and a “Dynamic View” to give more control over meeting presentations.
And what, pray tell, is a more engaging enhancement or two? I learned that in the future (not yet determined):
The Dynamic view is said to let you see what’s being shared and other people on the call at the same time. With the call being automatically optimized in a way that lets participants both see the important information that’s being shared and the people presenting it in a satisfying way.
News flash. The features appear to add controls (hooray, more controls) and the presentation seems just fine for those high-resolution displays measured in feet, not inches.
Bulletin. Just in. More people are using mobile devices than desktop computers. How is Teams on a mobile device with a screen measured in inches, not feet?
Oh, right. Featuritis and tiny displays. Winners. Maybe not for someone over the age of 45, but that’s an irrelevant demographic, right?
Stephen E Arnold, January 12, 2021
DarkCyber for January 12, 2021, Now Available
January 12, 2021
DarkCyber is a twice-a-month video news program about online, the Dark Web, and cyber crime. You can view the video on Beyond Search or at this YouTube link.
The program for January 12, 2021, includes a featured interview with Mark Massop, DataWalk’s vice president. DataWalk develops investigative software which leapfrogs such solutions as IBM’s i2 Analyst Notebook and Palantir Gotham. In the interview, Mr. Massop explains how DataWalk delivers analytic reports with two or three mouse clicks, federates or brings together information from multiple sources, and slashes training time from months to several days.
Other stories include DarkCyber’s report about the trickles of information about the SolarWinds’ “misstep.” US Federal agencies, large companies, and a wide range of other entities were compromised. DarkCyber points out that Microsoft’s revelation that bad actors were able to view the company’s source code underscores the ineffectiveness of existing cyber security solutions.
DarkCyber highlights remarkable advances in smart software’s ability to create highly accurate images from poor imagery. The focus of DarkCyber’s report is not on what AI can do to create faked images. DarkCyber provides information about how and where to determine if a fake image is indeed “real.”
The final story makes clear that flying drones can be an expensive hobby. One audacious drone pilot flew in restricted air zones in Philadelphia and posted the exploits on a social media platform. And the cost of this illegal activity. Not too much. Just $182,000. The good news is that the individual appears to have avoided one of the comfortable prisons available to authorities.
One quick point: DarkCyber accepts zero advertising and no sponsored content. Some have tried, but begging for dollars and getting involved in the questionable business of sponsored content is not for the DarkCyber team.
Finally, this program begins our third series of shows. We have removed DarkCyber from Vimeo because that company insisted that DarkCyber was a commercial enterprise. Stephen E Arnold retired in 2017, and he is now 77 years old and not too keen to rejoin the GenX and Millennials in endless Zoom meetings and what he calls “blatant MBA craziness.” (At least that’s what he told me.)
Kenny Toth, January 12, 2021
DarkCyber for December 29, 2020, Is Now Available
December 29, 2020
DarkCyber for December 29, 2020, is now available on YouTube at this link or on the Beyond Search blog at this link. This week’s program includes seven stories. These are:
A Chinese consulting firm publishes a report about the low profile companies indexing the Dark Web. The report is about 114 pages long and does not include Chinese companies engaged in this business.
A Dark Web site easily accessible with a standard Internet browser promises something that DarkCyber finds difficult to believe. The Web site contains what are called “always” links to Dark Web sites; that is, those with Dot Onion addresses.
Some pundits have criticized the FBI and Interpol for their alleged failure to take down Jokerstash. This Dark Web site sells access to “live” credit cards and other financial data. Among those suggesting that the two law enforcement organizations are falling short of the mark are four cyber security firms. DarkCyber explains one reason for this alleged failure.
NSO Group, a specialized services company, has been identified as the company providing technology to “operators” surveilling dozens of Al Jazeera journalists. DarkCyber points out that a commercial firm is not in a position to approve or disapprove the use of its technology by the countries which license the Pegasus platform.
Facebook has escalated its dispute with Apple regarding tracking. Now the social media company has alleged that contractors to the French military are using Facebook in Africa via false accounts. What’s interesting is that Russia is allegedly engaged in a disinformation campaign in Africa as well.
The drone news this week contaisn two DJI items. DJI is one of the world’s largest vendors of consumer and commercial drones. The US government has told DJI that it may no longer sell its drones in the US. DJI products remain available in the US. DJI drones have been equipped with flame throwers to destroy wasp nests. The flame throwing drones appear formidable.
DarkCyber is a twice a month video news program reporting on the Dark Web, lesser known Internet services, and cyber crime. The program is produced by Stephen E Arnold and does not accept advertising or sponsorships.
Kenny Toth, December 29, 2020
Another Xoogler Explains Algorithmic Manipulation
December 25, 2020
I don’t want to make a big deal about a former Google engineer talking about algorithmic manipulation. I know what happened to the Google AI expert who pointed out that training data can and does bias how numerical recipes make decisions.
I spotted this 2019 statement in an ancient write up called “‘YouTube Recommendations Are Toxic,’ Says Dev Who Worked on the Algorithm.” The speaker is a Xoogler (the semi official name for someone who worked at the Google) who allegedly worked on the YouTube recommendation algorithm. Now keep in mind that the Google is a pretty chaotic outfit, and it is possible for people to “work on” something and the outside world will have zero idea whether the contribution was a quality test or something substantive like fiddling thresholds to meet a harried superior’s goal. (Bonus time causes some interesting activities I have heard.)
Here’s the quote, and I have put in bold face the important statement which I found important and possibly accurate:
“It isn’t inherently awful that YouTube uses AI to recommend video for you, because if the AI is well tuned it can help you get what you want. This would be amazing,” Chaslot told TNW. “But the problem is that the AI isn’t built to help you get what you want — it’s built to get you addicted to YouTube. Recommendations were designed to waste your time.”
The write up does not dig into wasting time. I want to share my perception of the time wasting angle. In the good old days, Web sites wanted to be sticky. That’s why mere search engines became portals and eventually massive one stop shops with everything in one “experience.”
For YouTube, the more time a person invests in watching videos on YouTube, the more ads Google can slam into the video. If you think there are a lot of ads for a video now, just wait until the “game plan” is rolled out to the Googlers in the Spring of 2021.
Therefore, the purpose of the YouTube algorithm is to create opportunities to display ads. Are these relevant or irrelevant. I must say that I am quite adept at clicking past blandishments for Grammarly, Liberty Mutual, and many other hapless companies dumping cash into the coffers of the world’s most wonderfulest Web search system. Grammarly, isn’t “wonderfulest” a real word when used with “Google”? Maybe I should as DeepMind? Oh, right. DeepMind is busy doing healthy things and losing hundreds of millions of dollars every year.
Burn that ad inventory. Absolutely.
Stephen E Arnold, December 25, 2020
DarkCyber Video News Link Fixed for 12-15-20 Video
December 22, 2020
Maybe it was I? Maybe it was AMP? Google knows, of course. If you were trying to locate the December 15, 2020, DarkCyber video news program, the malformed url has been fixed. No more “Video not found” messages, at least for now. Since I was fully responsible and those AMP messages are ever so helpful, I was able to reform myself, obtain another copy of the video url from the ever reliable Google, and make this change. I’m off to don a hair shirt and a barbed wire undergarment to remind myself to improve. Oh, both garments have a Google logo. Inspiration at hand.
Stephen E Arnold, December 22, 2020
DarkCyber for December 15, 2020, Now Available
December 15, 2020
The DarkCyber video news program for December 15, 2020, is now available at this link. This week’s program includes:
- Fact or fiction: Work around iCloud security for an iPad
- Germany opens backdoor to one encrypted email system
- The Dark Web and Covid is a thing
- Smart weapons and surgical strikes: The future of war
- NSO Group in the spotlight again
- Current information about beam weapons.
You may also view the program via the embedded player on the Beyond Search Web site at this link. Plus, no begging for dollars and no advertising.
Kenny Toth, December 15, 2020
Cisco Webex: An Amazing Assertion
December 9, 2020
I am not a fan of video meetings. I am not thrilled with video in general. I did, however, read “Webex Could Finally Be Catching Up to Zoom and Microsoft Teams.” Cisco acquired Webex in 2007. So that’s 13 years ago. At the time WebEx was better than previous solutions. Hey, anyone remember Databeam? The article, not surprisingly, focuses on what Cisco WebEx is now going to do in the zooming 2020s. Put that aside. This is the passage in the write up which caught my attention:
This is why we are driven to deliver a Webex experience that is 10x better than in-person—and at the same time make in-person interactions 10x better too.
Now most in person meetings I have attended were generally awful. Years ago a lawyer and Washington, DC, big wig named Manning Muntzing could run good meetings: Started on time, agenda, and a time limit. Dick Cheney, the Halliburton executive who accidentally shot his attorney, also ran a good meeting. I won’t comment on how disagreements were handled.
But Silicon Valley meetings in venture backed companies were not good experiences when revenue goals were not met. Often there were wizards toying with mobile phones, coming and going, occasional smirking, and a lot of fidgeting.
Now Webex is going to make a meeting 10x better. Okay. And the interaction thing. Yeah, that works well in the Rona era. Yep, 10x. Now. After 13 years. Got it.
Stephen E Arnold, December 9, 2020
Venture Outfit Explains Obsolescence to Main Stream Media, Amazon Twitch, and Google YouTube
December 8, 2020
I am delighted to admit that I am not involved with TikTok or other whizzy video confections. Ever try Neverthink? The name explains the service. I did, however, read “Live, Social, and Shoppable: The Future of Video.” This is a breezy, MBA, venture firm style report. More remarkable, the document appears to be available without registration hoops, crazy pop ups, or blandishments to call us for investment advice.
What the write up does do is make the poobahs stunned with the announcement that Wonder Woman is headed to streaming get another gut shot. You can work through the report, the jazzy graphics, and the little icon forests yourself.
I want to focus on a single section called “The Video First Future,” specifically, the education statements. The main idea is, in my opinion,
… video can enhance the excitement of mastering a subject and the motivation to learn.
What’s this mean? First, hasta la vista to the traditional textbook publishers, a group already tethered to revenue with a thin cotton cord. Second, YouTube variants like Udacity and its compatriots must confront change. Third, the TikTok thing is a harbinger of the future of learning.
Yep, TikTok. The write up points out:
These types of platforms take academic curriculum and mix it with fun. The resulting edutainment is a hit for both kids and parents. How can a customer churn when their kid likes their class as much as Saturday morning cartoons and video games? In these kid-friendly entertaining education platforms, kids get that immediate feedback and virtual rewards whenever they get an answer right.
The anigif example requires a knowledge of Chinese and a certain youthful spirit to appreciate.
Several observations:
- Cultural differences in managing hungry young minds play no part in the write up
- The issue of controlling the information generated from these platforms is not considered
- The future suggests that game-ification, psychological strokes and slaps, and fragmented attention are the new big thing.
Perfect for generating interest in new investment funds and for sending shock waves of fear through organizations not into the TikTok-ization of information. Perhaps there is an existential question which YouTube must answer, “Can we avoid the fate of the media our service has disrupted?”
Focus may be a challenge for thumbtypers, regardless of their age and Fortnite skills.
Stephen E Arnold, December 8, 2020
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