Is the “Year of Linux” a Trap?
the.unknown-universe.co.uk
Governments and Big Tech are building a digital cage. As age verification mandates loom, we have to decide: is Linux a refuge or just another trap?

I’ve spent years championing Linux as the only escape from Big Tech, but I’m starting to get twitchy.

While we’re distracted by the Steam Deck making Linux “mainstream,” the corporate players and politicians are busy building a digital cage. Between California’s AB-1043 mandates and Microsoft’s “Face Check” infrastructure, I’m worried we’re heading for a hard schism: “Sanitised Linux” vs the “Free Rebel” distros.

If the compliant, age-gated version becomes the industry standard, where does that leave the rest of us? Digital exile?

I’ve put some thoughts together on why the “Golden Cage” is closing in and why education, not mandates, is the only real fix.

  • non_burglar@lemmy.world
    2·
    9 hours ago

    Security is nice to have but it’s not the reason I’m using Linux, so handing over my photo ID to a third party I trust is an acceptable if disappointing risk.

    And for us who don’t find it an acceptable risk? Will I need an ID to read a book next?

    • FoundFootFootage78@lemmy.mlEnglish
      11·
      9 hours ago

      You need ID to drive a car, which is essential in modern America. Worse still you need ID to rent a house and that’s normally getting fed straight into a massive insecure database. The advantage of Linux is that we could theoretically choose who we give our ID to (whether that’s Red Hat, Ubuntu, OpenSUSE, Debian, Arch, etc). Handing over your ID is necessary for some essential parts of modern life, and while I wouldn’t want to hand it over to access my operating system, I would be able to accept it.

      Thinking critically, let’s imagine that only government approved companies could verify your ID and those companies are Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Persona. At that point I’d … really hate it but I’d hand over my ID. Then I’d double check my operating system isn’t logging and sharing my internet traffic.

      There’s no indication that our online traffic will be required by law to be linked with our proven ID. If such a thing does happen, then firstly we are totally screwed, and secondly it would likely involve all major websites participating. We fundamentally won’t be able to get around it in that case.