Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

thenerve.news

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

271–280 of 326 posts

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#271

Post by Uhhrrr »

jacquesm wrote: post #238
Uhhrrr wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is an incomplete quote from a pro-freedom essay: https://www.cato-unbound.org/2009/04/13/peter-thiel/educatio... Edit: Also, that quote does not provide evidence that he is "on the record" saying he would abuse access or make health or security worse.

You fail at reading comprehension. That's fine, but don't do it here. Thank you.

I'm trying to understand better. You said "Thiel is on the record in many ways that would justify the GPs statement."

And your support for this "on the record in many ways" claim was a single quote, "I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible."

Are you basing your claim about Thiel's trustworthiness on a belief that only people with faith in democracy can be trustworthy?

Edit: For example, Tocqueville wrote, "Some have not feared to assert that a people can never outstep the boundaries of justice and reason in those affairs which are peculiarly its own; and that consequently full power may be given to the majority by which it is represented. But this is the language of a slave." Do you find him untrustworthy now?

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#272

Post by anonymous_user9 »

GorbachevyChase wrote: post #267
munk-a wrote: post #197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hence the Carney strategy up here in Canada. We can realize in hindsight that we were far too dependent on a single ally. We're diversifying - and even if America wants to become reliable again we've learned and will (hopefully) never be so dependent again. In the post WW2 era most western countries grew lazy about sovereignty due to America's open-handed approach - this has been a wake up call and has severely lower…

China is not going to defend Canadian interests, friend.

America has already failed to defend them. Our deranged president has threatened to invade them, and yet he's still in power.

Has China ever threatened to invade Canada?

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#273

Post by munk-a »

GorbachevyChase wrote: post #267
munk-a wrote: post #197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hence the Carney strategy up here in Canada. We can realize in hindsight that we were far too dependent on a single ally. We're diversifying - and even if America wants to become reliable again we've learned and will (hopefully) never be so dependent again. In the post WW2 era most western countries grew lazy about sovereignty due to America's open-handed approach - this has been a wake up call and has severely lower…

China is not going to defend Canadian interests, friend.

Who said we'd assume China will defend Canadian interests? The current strategy is focused on growing much closer to the EU while becoming a trade bridge for Atlantic/Pacific relations. Canada has a lot of clout on the international stage so we've been able to match-make trade linkages while expanding our market.

Canada isn't a first rate power - if the US or China decided to unilaterally target us it'd be deeply damaging. The hope is that working in concert with other middle powers we can form a cushion to soften a blow - not fully turn it.

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#274

Post by autoexec »

sizero wrote: post #226
qweiopqweiop wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you sure they hold sensitive data themselves though? My understanding was they integrate their tools with customers own data and don't have access to it themselves (at least in theory). Of course I agree that quote is insane and you can dislike them for political reasons, but I want to understand the technological fears and see if any are unfounded.

The article mentions “while the underlying data may remain under the MoD’s control, any insights derived from that data do not. The implications of this, the insiders say, are far-reaching, especially because of the vast quantity of personal and other data the company has access to across UK government departments.”

It's really the insights you get from data that is of value. It's no problem at all if some company has a list of GPS coordinates showing everywhere I've been until they start looking to see what those places are and start using that data to make assumptions about what I'm doing and where I'm likely to go in the future.

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#275

Post by raven12345 »

alephnerd wrote: post #248
generic92034 wrote: post #242

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The question is if the Chinese support for Russia can be broken, by economical incentive or threat. But anyway, over short or long the EU needs to build its own military to a strength it can at least work as a strong deterrence for aggressors.

> if the Chinese support for Russia can be broken, by economical incentive... China is not interested in breaking with Russia. Russia helps China put pressure on Japan [0], helps China put pressure on South Korea [1], allows China to expand it's influence in Central Asia [2], acts as a backchannel for China-India diplomatic normalization [3], gives China the ability to access ONG without dealing with Hormuz or Malacc…

good point

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#276

Post by raven12345 »

alephnerd wrote: post #210
generic92034 wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very bold words. I am not even convinced the USA will stay relevant on the world stage, in the long run. Cutting ties hurts, but the process is underway. Also, "vassalage" is a bold word, if the US cannot make the EU give up Greenland or come running to help them in the Strait of Hormuz (there are also other examples). It is almost as if European politicians are playing it smart.

And my question is - are you fine sacrificing Ukraine in return for a Russian and Chinese military umbrella? This is the hard requirement for China to engage with the EU [0]. The answer in Poland, the Baltics, Czechia, and Finland is NO and that Russia is worse and that Ukraine must be supported, and will back the US no matter how transactional we become. The answer in Hungary, Slovakia, and Belgium [1] is YES and th…

It might seem strange, but China hopes for a Russian victory, but will not support or oppose a Russian occupation of Ukraine.

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#279

Post by gib444 »

qweiopqweiop wrote: post #86
vrganj wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Two Reasons: 1) It holds deeply sensitive data and does so in the US. In times of increased mistrust of the US, many (including myself) see that as a risky choice. 2) Speaking of mistrust in America and American corporations, have you heard their execs talk? It's absolute cuckoo-town: > If they are not scared, they don’t wake up scared, they don’t go to bed scared, they don’t fear that the wrath of America will come…

Are you sure they hold sensitive data themselves though? My understanding was they integrate their tools with customers own data and don't have access to it themselves (at least in theory). Of course I agree that quote is insane and you can dislike them for political reasons, but I want to understand the technological fears and see if any are unfounded.

Stop sealioning

Re: MoD sources warn Palantir role at heart of government is threat to UK security

#280

Post by lesuorac »

edgyquant wrote: post #26
jagged-chisel wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does Palantir specifically need to exist? To funnel those juicy government budgets into shareholders' pockets. Why does anyone bother to use them? Because they have convincing marketing (which may or may not include buttering government palms with, um, "incentives" ...) Occam's razor: It's a big pile of "list of things being handled by an outside entity so I neither have to think about it, nor hire for them."

If Palantir wasn’t highly effective at aggregating data no one would care about the. They are considered a threat to privacy and freedom because they are a good product

Is Palantir actually that good? Or did all the governments just have enough brain drain they can't think of an alternative?

Like if their product was so good why isn't Amazon using it? Like their case studies all seem to be pre-internet companies that probably never developed a computer competency.

If I bring a themostat back into the past all the peasants are going to think it's black magic. If I show it off as a college project I'm not getting a passing grade.

Post reply on HN