Janus Kopfstein
technology writer + researcher
Janus Cassandra Kopfstein writes dystopian non-fiction stories about surveillance, technology, privacy & power. Pronounced "JAN-iss" ⚧ she/her/hers. ✉🔒 Contact: https://github.com/janusgrave/contact
PROJECTS
theintercept.com
The Dark Side of VR
Virtual reality allows the most detailed, intimate digital surveillance yet
Vocativ
Facial Recognition Is Everywhere — But So Are Tools To Defeat It
Researchers and privacy activists are creating new tools that thwart the rise of face recognition, but for how long?
Vocativ
JetBlue's Face Recognition Boarding Poses Privacy Risks
According to its own documents, the Dept. of Homeland Security is feeding face photos into a biometric surveillance system that detects threats and suspicious activity
Motherboard
I Replaced My Fingerprints With Prosthetics to Avoid Surveillance
Biometrics are quickly becoming the keys to our digital lives. Luckily, replacing a fingerprint is now as easy as applying a band-aid
Al Jazeera
Digital Rights Are Human Rights
We’re all cyborgs in the age of Big Data, but our rights don't extend to the digital shadows we produce
The New Yorker
How to Survive an Internet Apocalypse - The New Yorker
We are frighteningly ill-prepared to create parallel networks of our own — the ones we may need the most.
Motherboard
Meet the Companies that Helped Hacking Team Sell Tools to Repressive Governments
Emails and documents from the 400 gigabyte mega-leak reveal a sprawling network of resellers that helped put spyware into the hands of human rights violators
The Christian Science Monitor
Fake fingerprints: The latest tactic for protecting privacy
A project to create artificial and reusable fingerprints addresses the security and privacy risks associated with the growing use of biometric technology
Motherboard
Cuba's Mysterious 'Numbers Station' Is Still on the Air
Even with diplomatic relations warming, Cuba's Cold War-era spy station is still broadcasting encrypted messages
arstechnica.com
Inside Citizen Lab, the “Hacker Hothouse” protecting you from Big Brother
Globe-spanning white hat network hacked for the Dalai Lama, inspired arms legislation
The New Yorker
The Mission to De-Centralize the Internet
In response to fears about diminished privacy, some programmers want to make the Internet more like it used to be
The New Yorker
Blackphone: A Phone for the Age of Snowden
A number of companies have emerged in the post-Snowden world peddling products that protect from unwanted surveillance
Al Jazeera
Facebook's virtual reality gamble is about data mining
Oculus Rift will allow Facebook to track and monetize user behavior in yet another domain
The New Yorker
Hackers Without Borders: Ethiopia's Dissident Surveillance Program
Tadesse Kersmo, an Ethiopian refugee, is the first U.K. resident to challenge the use of hacking tools by a foreign power.
Al Jazeera
Net neutrality: What is it, and why is the U.S. about to lose it?
A new FCC proposal could give faster access to websites that pay a premium — and slower service to everyone else