[MandieD]

Yeah, that's some Gestapo level business... or since they don't like that word, Stasi.

As in, there were loads of people in the DDR (East Germany, 1949-1989) whose job it was to read people's personal mail, along with the network of neighborhood snitches.

[otterdude]

All those out of work programmers here's an opprotunity to create some disruption, pad your resume, and possibly create a job.

While we still have a free internet, it would be great to see efforts to create technology to replace centralized social media, cloud-tech, and businesses.

We need to make it so fucking hard for the gov, advertisers to get access to your data that it very expensive to maintain a system like this. And please please please do not work for or lend talent these jerks!

[01HNNWZ0MV43FF]

The network effect and the funding is the hard part. People want to be on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram because they spend billions hosting images for free and they have a million para social friends there

Any competitor will have to compete not on technical competence or privacy, but on "can I upload lots of HD video?" and "are my favorite celebrities there?"

Offramps to let people migrate easier, syndication to let people leave and still do POSSE, a solution to the problem that all free image hosting eventually attracts CSAM, those are difficult problems

[otterdude]

Facebook, Twitter and Instagram all took advantage of "viral marketing", ontop of lots of venture funding for advertising potential.

Distributed/P2P tech is essential because of the income from marketing maintains these systems, selling user data. P2P changes that by allowing people to own their data and share it their way. User-Hosting shouldn't be such a wild idea in 2025, especially if its like IPFS based which already has infrastructure for low-effort hosting such as a chrome plugin.

As long as transition is easy I dont see why change cant happen. A browser plugin to scrap your existing profiles and bring them to NEWSITE.com is all thats needed

There's No reason change cant happen especially when so many people see social media as despotic, and gov takeover of tiktok beckons. Be the motherfucking change yo!

[swed420]

I've seen a lot of general support for the criticisms and concepts described in this article:

https://www.noemamag.com/the-last-days-of-social-media/

Anyone who builds what they describe there can expect it to take off faster than ever.

[SergeAx]

Since the current US admin is right-wing, Gestapo is a correct term, whether they like it or not.

[eej71]

re: the extensive surveillance network of the stasi...

In case you missed it, check out the movie _The Lives of Others_.

[MandieD]

Fantastic, heartbreaking film.

[netsharc]

They really should just create "report your fellow users" snitching website.

Oh, I should make such a website and sell it to the Stasi, I'm going to be rich!

Easier would be to hint at Zuck that Trump wants that feature built-in on Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, and the subservient billionaire will get right on it.

[Dig1t]

Reading public posts on a website is not the same as reading people’s private mail though. Not really an equivalent comparison IMO.

[femiagbabiaka]

The distinction between public and private is obvious to the initiated, but probably not to everyone. e.g. https://www.kenklippenstein.com/p/charlie-kirk-assassination...

With the right sorts of access given by companies seeking to avoid the ire of the administration, I'm pretty sure even private profiles could be considered to be public.

[Dig1t]

>I'm pretty sure even private profiles could be considered to be public.

I don’t think there’s any evidence that this is happening, the article itself talks about public posts.

It’s well established that if you post evidence of a crime publicly on social media the government will find it and use it. Illegal immigration is a crime by definition, using public information to find people who committed this crime is not the same as reading private mail.

[femiagbabiaka]

Agreed that there's no evidence that's happening yet -- but I don't think that the median Discord user understands their discord posts to be public in the same way that an X user would.

[immibis]

FWIW, illegal immigration isn't a actually a crime, it's a civil issue (i.e. more akin to breach of contract)

[conception]

Hey, aspirations gotta start somewhere!