My thoughts exactly. I always suspect that these articles are aimed at convincing the naive that these networks are currently secure and immune from govt level snooping.
It’s in an even worse position being self hosted by people/entities with no power or sway in the face of a state.
Is there a technical provision that applies to people hosting mastodon instances that doesn’t apply to large social media cos and cannot be beaten with a $5 wrench?
Mastodon is federated, which means everyone can start a instance. There will always be instances not controlled by the government and you cannot chase everyone.