Post #2103324

2026-04-27 16:59 UTC

@markgrieveson @pluralistic If you were running a Mastodon server instance on a box in your closet would you like to be responsible for collecting and maintaining the personal data of your server instance users? (I know someone who is literally running a Mastodon instance from their closet).

Replies (1)

@markgrieveson@mindly.social 2026-04-27 18:04

@leftylabourtech @pluralistic I read Cory's article. Good article. His simile that it presents a dilemma similar to the goal of creating water that's not wet is interesting. Later he states it may be possible via ZKP, but that its complexity would likely provide inaccessibility for some people of less means. I note the focus is on the UK's law, rather than Australia's. The BBC article stated that, besides ID, other options were available, including simply assessing what is already there. In the case of a wrongful decision, apparently the option of providing a "video selfie" (which frankly is almost the entirety of what currently exists on these social media sites; so, it's not like the companies would be asking for anything new) exists. What of a data breach? That can happen with any site, including our government's site that often collects SIN and other private stuff. Should all government sites be shut down? Perhaps, that's a whole different discussion. As mentioned previously, other not completely perfect (is anything perfect?) options besides ID are available. And the article says that any personal data "may only be used for age verification and must be subsequently destroyed, with 'serious penalties' for breaches." Wikipedia is not targeted. From the article: "Firms argued it would be difficult to implement, easy to circumvent and time consuming for users, and would pose risks to their privacy." You're simply echoing big tech's arguments against regulation.

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