It is so funny to read. They are so stupid.
The moment the UK does this, politicians in other Western countries are going to start thinking that its a good idea and attempting to copy the UK.
VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
171–180 of 400 posts
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#172What if I use a VPS instead? What if it's a virtual private VPS wholely in memory? What if it's a pool of VPS boxes shared by me and a network of people?
There's always a way around, but this direction is concerning.
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#173Earlier quoted context omitted.
Or perhaps we should expect parents to take some responsibility for their kids' screen use?
You expect the average parent to outwit Meta and TikTok and their teams of psychologists scheming to get their kids attention? The social media companies could have done the socially responsible thing a decade ago and avoided all this.
I expect them to give a shit, yeah. Just like they should care about what they read or watch, or who they hang out with.
Don't let your kids have an internet-connected phone, or keep it locked down so they don't have parasitic apps preying on their pre-frontal immaturity until they're old enough to handle it.
All of this needs to be done intentionally, of course, or it will feel like the kids are being punished. But I can't emphasize this enough... it's our job as parents to raise our kids.
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#174Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#175In Russia, they claimed that new measures to block websites are necessary to protect the children online. Of course, they immediately used these new capabilities to block opposition websites and sources critical of the government. Now, seeing many European governments tirelessly push for these new measures to protect the children , I'm pretty sure that the children are finally going to be safe online.
"The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule." H.L. Mencken
The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#176In Russia, they claimed that new measures to block websites are necessary to protect the children online. Of course, they immediately used these new capabilities to block opposition websites and sources critical of the government. Now, seeing many European governments tirelessly push for these new measures to protect the children , I'm pretty sure that the children are finally going to be safe online.
The only (probably) good thing here is that one can at least try to apply Russian experience at circumventing the censorship, where it's currently way more severe, up to the point when entire companies have their workflows disrupted because remote workers can't connect through the VPN (which is blocked). Maybe that will help.
You seriously think the government has a clear, honest reasons, as stated?
Companies will be exempt (with remote employees having to identify linking their IP and computer's fingerprint with their real identity), and the next step, after using the law to silencing dissent, will be penalisation.
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#177[deleted]
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#178Earlier quoted context omitted.
It is really disheartening to see the sentiment around privacy erode like this. Fifteen or even ten years ago this would have been unanimously and vehemently opposed, but now it is somehow up for debate?
Social media got worse. We've had time to witness the damage of a dopamine-doomscroll. I personally know children who've posted too much, and children who've been solicited directly by adults, both to try and meet and for nudes. And we've seen the complete lack of positive action from platforms. Roblox is full of paedophiles and Grok was letting you nudify your classmates just a few months ago. These places aren't su…
> But some inconvenience is a price worth considering.
You're trying to frame it as an "inconvenience" and not a blatant attack on the fundamental freedom of expression. I get that social media is bad, but sometimes (often) the cure is worse than the illness.
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#179Earlier quoted context omitted.
It is really disheartening to see the sentiment around privacy erode like this. Fifteen or even ten years ago this would have been unanimously and vehemently opposed, but now it is somehow up for debate?
Social media got worse. We've had time to witness the damage of a dopamine-doomscroll. I personally know children who've posted too much, and children who've been solicited directly by adults, both to try and meet and for nudes. And we've seen the complete lack of positive action from platforms. Roblox is full of paedophiles and Grok was letting you nudify your classmates just a few months ago. These places aren't su…
I love how every harm you listed, is a platform design problem, and your fix touches none of it. A kid bypassing VPN age checks can still doomscroll and Roblox all day on a school wifi with no VPN at all. The only thing you've actually accomplished is stripping privacy and security from every adult who isn't a child abuser, to feel like you did something about the ones who are.
Re: VPN ban update for UK households as government looks at 'age-gate'
#180Enclosure of XXI century