Authenticity
We explore various means to a valuable end.
A Quick Plug
Episode 112: Pseudonymous Authentication for Twitter
Katherine Druckman and Kyle Rankin talk to Dave Huseby about his new approach to pseudonymous user authentication.
Episode 114: Ethical Advertising
Doc Searls and Katherine Druckman talk to Dave Huseby of Cryptid.tech about pseudonymous authentication and verifiable data.
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Authenticity as a Theme
For the last few weeks, our overarching theme has been authenticity, and we’ve covered this from a few angles with frequent guests Kyle Rankin and Dave Huseby.
Episode 112 was heavily inspired by the ongoing conversation around Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. Whether or not that deal goes through, one of the issues raised in the process is the subject of user authentication and eliminating fake or “bot” users. Dave wrote a thoughtful piece about the importance of anonymity to freedom of expression, and this was the springboard for our conversation. History nerds among us will particularly appreciate Dave’s intro.
In a well-studied and famous letter dated October 17, 1788 from James Madison to Thomas Jefferson, Madison discusses the proposed Bill of Rights and his plan for getting it passed in the first session of Congress. One fact that many do not know is that the letter is encrypted in part using a cipher invented by Thomas Jefferson. In the letter, Madison details the bitter and extremely contentious politics among the states, especially between the prominent Anti-Federalists and the Federalists like themselves. Madison’s chief concern was passing the Bill of Rights to quell any organized opposition to the Constitution.
There are more fun historical tidbits in the post, as well as an in-depth explanation of Dave’s take on maintaining ideological freedom through pseudonymous authentication. It’s worth reading in full before enjoying our conversations with Kyle and Dave in episodes 112 and 113.
Then, in Episode 114, we tackled authenticity from a completely different angle with Kyle Rankin as we discussed his thoughts on ethical advertising, which in his case seems related to an idea of brand authenticity. Doc, Kyle, and I share many of the same values when it comes to privacy and ethical handling of user data, and in order to respect our own personal brands and the brands we represent, in this case Purism and the Reality 2.0 podcast in particular, we strive to promote said brands in the most ethical ways possible.
Kyle writes:
Is ethical advertising possible? We all certainly know unethical advertising is possible, we live with it every day. The ad-driven Internet has created an insatiable hunger for personal data and as a result most of what the average person does in their web browser, or on their phone, and in real life is being measured, tracked, and sold to some degree. Yet if a company actually cared about your privacy and wanted to advertise its products, could it do so ethically? Can you track what a visitor does on your website without violating their privacy? We have been thinking about these issues heavily at Purism as we consider how to expand our marketing and in this article I’m going to explore where we currently are in our thinking.
And again, his post is well worth reading before listening to our conversation in episode 114.
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This Week’s Reading List
Is Ethical Advertising Possible? – Purism — Is ethical advertising possible? We all certainly know unethical advertising is possible, we live with it every day. The ad-driven Internet has created an insatiable hunger for personal data and as a result most of what the average person does in their web browser, or on their phone, and in real life is being measured, tracked, and sold to some degree. Yet if a company actually cared about your privacy and wanted to advertise its products, could it do so ethically? Can you track what a visitor does on your website without violating their privacy? We have been thinking about these issues heavily at Purism as we consider how to expand our marketing and in this article I’m going to explore where we currently are in our thinking.
Doc Searls Weblog · People vs. Adtech — Below are blog posts, articles and essays I’ve written toward four goals in fighting surveillance of our private spaces online by the tracking-based advertising business and its dependents in publishing.
Opinion | In Stores, Secret Bluetooth Surveillance Tracks Your Every Move - The New York Times — Imagine you are shopping in your favorite grocery store. As you approach the dairy aisle, you are sent a push notification in your phone: “10 percent off your favorite yogurt! Click here to redeem your coupon.” You considered buying yogurt on your last trip to the store, but you decided against it. How did your phone know?
Authentication With Pseudonymity - Cryptid Technologies — Authentication With Pseudonymity How Elon can Legally Transform Twitter with Pseudonymous Free Speech by Dave Huseby “Authentication is important, but so is anonymity for many. A balance must be struck.” — Elon Musk (@elonmusk)
Reality 2.0 Episode 61: The Future of Authenticating Your Data — Katherine Druckman and Doc Searls talk to Dave Huseby about the authentic data economy, and the future of authentication.
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