6th March 2011 – notes from Northern Indymedia outreach/meeting @ Canny Little Library / Star & Shadow, Newcastle

Sketchy notes/minutes by Protag

Present¶

(and interests, if mentioned, and captured by note taker)
Jen
Protag
Keiran – student
David – Sunderland
Helen
nab – squatter bikes
Jess – NIMC TCP bikes
Sofia – Investigative Journalist
Bethan – activist trauma support / Star & Shadow / etc.
JD

(n.b. a couple more people added after the tea-break incl SRL)

Intro¶

what this session will encompass:

1) will show how to publish on Northern Indymedia
2) social networking – implications for personal data security
3) subjects from the floor

nab – note that the website is a work in progress – let us know if you want improvements and we’ll try and accommodate/incorporate those ideas.

JD- background to Indymedia – Seattle etc. – launch – nodes – 65 countries – unified voice against corporate websites.

Jen – what’s going on in Newcastle?

Keiran – variety of groups spring up since early Jan – anti cuts network – workers students etc. trying to get all in one room to plan events. Using FB and blogs and student website but working on own website (in progress).

Bethan – No Borders group – WordPress site – Crabgrass organising – film season at Star & Shadow

Helen supporting dole claimants, protests against benefits cut via WordPress blog – email list (public/private).

David – sorry, missed it

Canny Little Library has WP site and uses email

Jen – will show how to publish story on NIMC in case that’s helpful

Some questions from the floor about posting and anonymity:

Anonymous posting – or use group name (e.g. “Star & Shadow”)

Bethan – What about intermediary computers?

Ans: HTTPS means all the data is encrypted – will hand out HacktionLab booklet later. Your ISP will know you requested pages from NIMC, and when, but not be able to read the traffic..

What about data on your own computer?
Ans: Page will be cached…but you are in control of that -

Posting – as logged-in user vs. anonymous –

login allows fixing text and adding pics etc. Anonymity is ensured by not logging in. An account can be set up anonymously though so probably worth setting up an account.

New people – SRL / David Matthew (public anger) -

The dangers of Facebook¶

data potentially valuable thus enabling continuation despite lack of revenue during start-up years. Data mining.

Funny ads – never forgets – little bits of data – how are you networked, how can they sell you data, and to whom.

Facebook accounts – how to delete?

Activity – who might want to view your data on FB?
Game to see who might be interested in your data:

MY BOSS – e.g. I work at University and I might be opposed to animal testing – Uni might want to check what I think and where I’m going
EX Partner – might want to get away from them, will be difficult if entangled in FB
Cyber-bullying whoa! Invasive of your privacy
MY UNI – e.g when occupations were on, useful for UNI authorities to snoop onn FB communications. Was an amazing tool to organise action, but the data behind the action didn’t belong to the activist.
Powercos – have an interest in who is pissed off with them. EG Plane Stupid were infiltrated by N3 investigators – similar for environmental activists
DWP – if the want to investigate you for fraud – so any incriminating data (even a joke engagement or trip out when your off work) …mention of workwhile claiming bfts. Discussion –
Police – might want to find out about occupations.
The owner of the house I live in – could be problem with squatters of renters if sub-letting – or general privacy issues- no parties – pets
Acpo
One of my psychology clients – looked up by clients
Teachers – getting busted

Employers / potential employers / counter-groups / anyone who wants to buy data from Facebook.
link to Mubarak story vs. policy statements – discussion of how this differs with NIMC (FB don’t want to go to court so will just give over data).

Indymedia regional servers – make if difficult to hassle data owners. With FB or whatever you don’t know where your data is…

Facebook – you can share your NIMC story on FB. You will be identified as a reader of the article (not the author)..

Twitter – snapped up by “the movement” due to instantaneous nature of reporting. Status-net – opensource totally secure version of Twitter – will push news out to twitter – also working on text-to-website to functionality.

Possibility to connect securely to FB by HTTPS

Way to connect to FB/IM whatever:

Might just need access/connection – blocking software, triggered on keywords or URLS (WORKPLACE, uni) – can get around if you have your own hardware.
Firefox – can have a portable version (with TOR) on a USB drive-also thunderbird – Liberkey – encryption . Means you can run a version on your computer without surveillance.

VPN – request from machine to server – if going by proxy then if will appear to loggers that you are just viewing the proxy. Slows down the browser.

TOR is a network of proxies – request chopped up and takes different routes across the internet, presenting challenges to anyone tracking to re-assemble and understand.

VPN encrypts data so everything will get through as filters/blockers won’t recognise anything to match against list of blocked sites.

mob.northern-indymedia.org options

Apocalpyse-tech – there is a big euro-switch to turn off the web. Techs are working on decentralised battery powered local webs. With Egypt there was a dial-up service enabled (in France) to allow continued comms.

Space satellite being bought!

What’s coming up? poss re-occupations – anti-cuts – closing down disability centre, may be resisted or occupied. Anti-

More articles we’d like – all the action and protest stuff but also community stuff, successes of campaigns as well as what’s coming up.

Mobile equpt – laptops, solar panels, mobile media centre-

What next in Newcastle?¶

Green Fest – council event – how to cover

Meet up after film seasons?

Who reads the stuff? – goes on to UK sites and may go global.

Good to have links locally.

Maybe every month meeting with reps from other activist groups? Maybe like Bristol have a film/social bi-monthly.

Talk around developing more locals

Join list blurb