Inbox Question: What good is hope in a digital prison?

Wrestling for direction in uncertain times

I got an interesting query that I felt was critical to share. This person shares a fear that I imagine is quite prevalent these days. While there are many exciting censorship resistance and privacy tools, they are not so widely adopted we can simply ignore ongoing power-grabs. I hope you’ll find this exchange helpful.

Question:

I would love to talk to you about internet entrance ID. As far as i can see nobody is talking about what we can do when internet use is only possible after identification. Surely all use of vpns, tor en fediverse is then a bit silly because authorities will know who we are anyway. When that kicks in normal people (non- nerds) will have no way to discover the solutions that the nerds think up. As far as i can see we’re nearly fucked. But nobodys talking about it. Everyone is talking about digital ids and cbdc’s and censur and like but if we cant get onto the internet because are ISP wont let is in without identification then isnt the game then over?

At the same time history is being deleted (wayback machine) and history can be rewriten (1984) in any way that suits the times. I know that you are very positive about the future and that you are inclined ( like James Corbett) to rant about black pilled people who “give up” but i havent seen anyone answer my question. You dont really believe that any of you guys will be allowed on the internet if it is so easy to shut you down and as far as i can see this is what is going to happen. It seems to me that the only real solution to this world wide dystopian situation is that we all throw away our phones and refuse to be digital prisoners anymore. But this of course will never happen.

I think that there is also a possibility that you and other digital freedom lovers and promoters are making the situation even worse because you promote hope. We can keep hoping and hoping and hoping and then suddenly free use of internet will not be possible anymore and we will be prisoners for life and for ever. And don’t imagine that revolution will work then because it won’t. I read and follow your stuff and i am willing to pay for your great work but i would really like a few answers first. Is there a way to get around an ISP?

Answer:

To be clear, it is already the case that it is normal for people to have internet access associated with their real-life identities. At least here in Canada almost every residential ISP will be able to pass on subscriber information to law enforcement when a request is made. This is even more true for mobile data, where your internet access is linked to a single person instead of a household. To oversimplify a bit, all VPNs do is allow you to “share” a connection with people over the Internet. This means that depending on the policies and procedures of a particular VPN (such as logging, and cooperating with law enforcement) they may offer differing protection against state surveillance. That said, even in situations where state-level surveillance is omniscient, I think it is important to still prioritize privacy and security from other threats. (Such as corporations, scammers, cyber-criminals and mobs)

You’re right to point out that VPNs and overlay networks like Tor are definitely next in line to be targeted by these measures. How big a problem this is may depend on your jurisdiction. For example in China people often have to use workarounds to access the Tor network for both practical and legal reasons. While motivated tech-savvy people will always find ways around these problems, the vast majority of people are going to “go along to get along” effectively entrenching the censorship and control. In many ways, the biggest problem here isn’t strictly ID verification by ISPs, but the legal and technical mechanisms governments will use to secure sovereignty over cyberspace at the expense of their citizens. The fine line here isn’t strictly the risk to individuals, but also the fact that in time it may be entirely impractical for anyone to run an online service for others that in any way clashes with stated and unstated policy. So all I’ve done here is confirmed and enhanced your concerns. In short, the Internet as we know it isn’t dying, but is being killed.

So what’s the solution? This is a trend that extends far beyond a single national government, and the impacts are worldwide regardless of which nations do and don’t participate. Whatever is able to coordinate and carry out this assault on digital freedom worldwide is absolutely outside the reach of the ordinary ‘checks and balances’ of democratic governance. The traditional technical solutions to this are unlikely to reverse and resolve this situation. There simply isn’t a critical mass of the public interested in protecting their digital rights, if there was we wouldn’t be even having this conversation. When it comes to “real solutions” it is important to consider that technology is just part of the picture. It can’t be the entirety of the answer because our digital experience is shaped by an array of “collective action problems”.

Therefore, if it is as bad as you say and technological solutions alone are insufficient to address these problems, what purpose is it to share hope in technical solutions at all? I believe in human creativity and ingenuity. I am wholeheartedly committed to the idea that even people trapped in a relentless digital prison may still find ways to make a difference. These draconian measures by governments across the world are serious problems, but that’s not the same as it all being over. These shifts are radical transformations of the social and legal environment simply change the game for those interested in technical solutions. Just because old solutions are no longer viable that doesn’t mean it is impossible to build new strategies and systems adapted to the current environment. It is true that this environment is much more overtly hostile to free expression and privacy online, but I anticipate that technical solutions built in this era will be far more resilient than ones of the past.

My goal has never been to put particular tools on a pedestal. If anything I’ve consistently tried to put the things I’ve been interested under a microscope and dissect their qualities. By carefully considering the pros and cons of particular tools and techniques, we can be more informed of what approaches are viable in an evolving and changing environment. I originally conceived of the Libre Solutions Network understanding that nothing is currently perfect and that far more work than I can imagine needs to be done to actually build a free and just cyberspace. It is by facing the problems head-on that I’ve chosen to spend so much time investigating what can be done. By learning from imperfections of the day we can refine approaches to bring about truly revolutionary change, and that is what I think is needed to overcome our present-day challenges.

I wholeheartedly understand the desire to want to retreat from it all. I don’t think anyone should focus all their energies in saving or engaging with cyberspace, but I definitely believe that it is a worthwhile pursuit. For example, there are many problems with the medical field, especially as it relates to ethics and the politicization of health. I would absolutely not want to discourage someone interested in becoming a doctors or medical expert. We as freedom-loving people are always going to want skilled and experienced people on our side. Ironically, doctors and academics are arguably more controlled than technical people given their dependence on professional networks, yet we wouldn’t tell anyone to give up on the concept of human health in a dystopian society. My mission, from the beginning has never been to just promote a few tools and leave it at that. I believe we need to recruit technical minds to a mindset that values human flourishing and equip them to make it a reality.

To answer your question: How do I get around a hostile ISP?

The reason why we need freedom-minded techies is that we need independent digital infrastructure. Governments and corporations are only able to control cyberspace because so much of it is reliant on their infrastructure, provided at our expense. Recognizing that much of the Internet as we know it is ‘hostile cyberspace’ we can begin to actually build up our own networks and tools to truly reshape our digital landscape from the ground up. This requires local action. I love the idea of community-run networks, and it is clear that where they are possible they should be explored. The beauty of many existing tools is that they are still very much compatible with a radically different internet. I think with a little bit of change, people would realize how little change is needed to make things much better, and that’s an exciting prospect.

Nobody is going to build any of this without hope. I have never meant to promote complacency, which is why I work to emphasize not just the dangers of our present digital experience, but also the opportunities in building a better digital future. There is so much to be excited for if we can work together to find the opportunities to overcome our technical and social challenges. Ironically, these days I feel that the darker things get, the lower the bar for meaningful progress actually is. Once you really begin to grapple with the big picture, you realize we haven’t even begun to make real change. As much as I am just as terrified as you for what lies ahead, I am also ignited by the hope that we can make the best of it.