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If youre not paying for the product, then youre the product...

The saying may be well-versed in the world of social networks, however many users arent aware of the true price they are paying while posting online.

Many of the major social networking websites of today are all free to use, so naturally users arent aware of any hidden costs. While at the other end, the sites themselves keep becoming more and more valuable based on the contributions and data provided by users.

According to Metcalfes law, the value of a social network is directly proportional to the square of number of users. This is evident in the recent sky-high valuations of companies like Snapchat, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Whatsapp which have billions of dollars in market cap, even though some are yet to make a profit.

There is a fundamental problem with existing social networks. Users are helping grow networks through content and interactions, and yet they are not the beneficiaries. They are side-lined as mere statistics and data points for the network to play social experiments with, like the case of Facebook manipulating users feeds in order to test their emotions. Furthermore, according to terms and conditions, the user hands all rights to their own data over to the platform operator, enabling them to sell the data to advertising and recruiting agencies, without any return to the users.

The open nature of blockchain can inherently help to solve this problem. The introduction of a public blockchain like Ethereum has the added incentive of financial rewards which allow users to earn while engaging on the platform. This model is a win-win situation for both the users and owners of the platform. Users ultimately become owners of their own data and privacy while also receiving revenue streams generated by the platform.

The advent of blockchain technology allows us to create a transparent, public and immutable record of transactions and activities performed by the users. While Bitcoin allows for transfer of monetary value, Ethereum gives us the ability to write Smart Contracts, and embed logic directly in the blockchain. This has opened up numerous possibilities to solve these previously unexplored or unsolved problems, including but not limited to privacy, ownership of the data, ability to earn from your contributions to the network, in completely new ways.

The Ethereum blockchain itself is not the ultimate solution to the common problems on popular social networks, but pairing it with other emerging technologies like Payment Channels and IPFS will lead the social network revolution.

Combining the Ethereum blockchain with Payment Channels opens up a gamut of features and autonomous abilities, aligned with financial incentives. Smart contracts paired with payment channels provide the computation and logic layer upon which the core engine of such a platform can be built. Platforms can now create unique cryptoassets which can be distributed to members of the platform as rewards for engaging on the platform. They can then exchange these cryptoassets for other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether. This creates real value for the members participating on the network while also helping the network itself grow.

IPFS can be used to store the data and content generated on such a network. In this case, this is the layer which gives back control of the data to the user. They can choose whether they want to store their data or not. Savvy users who are really concerned about their privacy can even maintain their own IPFS nodes which can be connected to this network, and possibly turn off the access to their data when they dont want to share it.

The question of why the Ethereum blockchain can be answered by looking at the community that surrounds Ethereum. There is a growing base of Ethereum developers, and it shows no signs of abating. There are several thousand developers working on Ethereum projects and applications, and thousands of apps are already deployed on the blockchain.

This entire ecosystem, and the ease of integration will give social networks on the blockchain a significant edge over the traditional way of doing things.

About Gaurang Torvekar, CTO & Co-founder Indorse.

Gaurang is cofounder and CTO of Indorse, the decentralized professional network which aims to build a social network where the user is in charge of their own data.

He is also the cofounder and CTO of Attores. Gaurang has been involved with several startups in FinTech and AI across India and Singapore as the tech guy. Gaurang graduated with a Masters in Information Systems from Singapore Management University.

He is the co-organizer of the Ethereum Singapore Meetup, and helped it grow from 23 members to 1300 members. He conducts courses on Ethereum hands-on coding and has also worked on a book on Building Ethereum Dapps.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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How Blockchain Will Shape the Future of Social Networks - Nasdaq

TEHRAN: Iran's new communications minister said Tuesday that negotiations were underway with Twitter to unblock the service, which has been banned for years despite being used even by the country's supreme leader.

"(Twitter) has announced that it is prepared to negotiate to resolve problems," Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi told the Iran daily newspaper.

"Considering the current situation there are grounds for such negotiation and interaction. Twitter is not an immoral environment needing to be blocked," he added.

The 36-year-old Jahromi became Iran's youngest-ever minister this week, and the first to be born after the 1979 Islamic revolution.

His selection has been criticised by rights groups over his involvement in surveillance during and after the mass anti-regime protests of 2009.

But Jahromi is also seen as a critic of online censorship in Iran, where sites such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter remain banned even if millions use them daily through easily available privacy software.

There was no immediate response from Twitter to his comments.

He said officials were also looking at ways to unblock YouTube while still censoring "immoral content" on the site, and that a pilot project was being run, allowing universities to access the site.

Jahromi added that the final decision on unblocking Twitter did not lie with his ministry, but with the Supreme Council for Cyberspace, which includes members of the hardline judiciary.

Twitter was banned at the time of mass anti-regime protests in 2009, that followed allegations of massive rigging in the re-election of president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

But despite the ban, the US messaging service is widely used by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has official accounts in several languages, as well as President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Even Ahmadinejad joined the service this year.

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Iran in talks with Twitter to unblock the social networking site - Economic Times

Menu Social Networking At Coworking Spaces 101

Published on August 22, 2017 - By Allwork.Space - Press

This article was written by Roxette Miranda, WUN Systems

Coworking creates opportunities. Looking around a coworking or shared workspace, youll realize that theres ample room to make new connections that can easily lead to collaboration, mentoring, and unique professional opportunities. This is due to the inherent nature of the space, specifically the diverse backgrounds of all members.

This type of workspace tends to bring together people in an authentic, organic way; its part of the reason why coworking spaces have grown in popularity and why members continue to come back. If youre a coworking member, then Im preaching the choir; if, however, youre new to coworking, finding the right way to network and bond with people can feel somewhat challenging.

Which is why weve made a short guide about how to get the best out of a networking experience.

To quote the book How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.

When walking through a coworking you have both feet set into a professional melting pot. Within the workspace youll find people of several different walks: freelancers, start-up entrepreneurs, entrepreneurs on their 2nd or 3rd successful startup, employees of a company, owners of a company, and heads of corporations themselves. So, make sure you get to know where everyone is coming from and listen to them and their own endeavors.

Dont sell yourself with a one-sided conversation, see their experiences through their own words and you might learn something useful down the road.

Some coworking spaces have management software that will let you easily communicate with other members. Better yet, some of these are organized to allow you to look up other members by skill or interests. Perhaps you can find others from your same industry or experience or you can bring other users together using your knowledge about them. Whether with you or through you, make yourself known as a professional matchmaker and youll become a go-to person for big projects and big ideas.

When it comes to getting your name and services out there, sure, you can start by handing out branded materials such as pens, mugs, mouse pads, coasters, etc. That sort of approach is fine, but you can make a much more significant impact if you become a needed fixture within the workspace.

This is especially important if you are a freelancer. Perhaps you can exchange your services in a quid pro quo manner, such as graphic design for media publication. You can best gauge the needs of other members by striking up casual conversations in an open space or at one of the many networking events these workspaces offer and host. Another idea is to offer special deals for your services exclusive to those in your space. If you put your passion on full display and gain a reputation for solving problems for your neighbors, you can gain a strong base of clientele without having to ask.

There are countless success stories of coworking and collaboration. It all boils down to genuine interest in those around you, their goals, and building meaningful relationships. Do this and youll experience first-hand the benefits of connecting and networking in a shared workspace.

Want to design a better workspace? Read our 'workplace design' articles here!

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2016 Flexible workspace news, information and directory of spaces globally. | Allwork.Space

Originally posted here:
Social Networking At Coworking Spaces 101 - Allwork.Space (press release)

In New Jersey, yet another bill amending the animal cruelty statute (S1640) was recently passed into law. The amendments [e]stablish . . . requirements concerning necessary care of dogs, domestic companion animals, and service animals, and for tethering of dogs.

Many of the other provisions requiring necessary care to a companion animal are reasonable if the laws are appropriately enforced by professional law officers, who have sought guidance from individuals with expertise in animal health, care, and handling. Unfortunately this is not the case in New Jersey, where the animal cruelty statute is improperly enforced.

This makes the following provision extremely problematic and of concern to companion animal owners and their attorneys in the State:

any humane law enforcement officer or agent of the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or county society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, certified animal control officer, or other State or local law enforcement officer may immediately enter onto private property where a dog, domestic companion animal, or service animal is located and take physical custody of the animal, if the officer or agent has reasonable suspicion to believe that the animal is at risk of imminent harm due to a violation of this act.

While an earlier provision requires a showing of probable cause before a court of competent jurisdiction could issue a subpoena permitting law enforcement to enter private property and seize an animal, this latter provision impermissibly violates the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution.

A district court case provides clarity of rights under the Fourth Amendment:

In Badillo v. Amato, Case No. 13-1553, slip op. (D.N.J. Jan. 28, 2014) the Court denied then Monmouth County SPCA Chief Amatos motion to dismiss, in relevant part, Badillos allegation that Amato violated his right to be free from illegal search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment. In this case, Badillo, a priest of the Santeria religion was issued nine municipal court summons for animal animal abuse and neglect after Amato went around to the back of . . . [Badillos house, opened the gate and let himself in the fenced backyard without permission or a warrant and began taking pictures . . . Case No. 13-1553, slip op., at p. 3 (D.N.J. Jan. 28, 2014).

As the Court explained, finding that the Complaint sufficiently pleaded Fourth Amendment violations by Amato to survive a motion to dismiss, the Fourth Amendment provides:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and persons or things to be seized. Id., at p. 8 (quoting U.S. Const. amend. IV.)

The Court reaffirmed that not only is the home sacrosanct but that protections afforded by the Fourth Amendment extend not only to a persons home, but also to the curtilage surrounding the property. Id., at p. 8-9 (citing Estate of Smith v. Maraso, 318 F.3d 497, 518-519 (3d Cir. 2003).

It appears that the foregoing provision of the newly amended animal cruelty statute, permitting entry to private property based on merely reasonable suspicion and in the absence of a court order would violate the Fourth Amendment.

Additional concerns about these amendments, previously discussed, remain included in the final adopted law.

For example, a person may not keep a dog (or other domestic companion animal) in an animal crate or carrier for transport, exhibition, show, contest, training or similar event if the top of the head of the dog touches the ceiling of the animal carrier or crate when the dog is in a normal standing position. There are many acceptable, safe dog carriers that permit dogs to stand, turn around and lie down comfortably, but the top of their head would touch the ceiling of the crate.

The public must be adequately informed about this new requirementthat does nothing to provide for the welfare of dogs transported in dog carriersso they are not victims of animal cruelty citations issued by over zealous agents and officers of the NJ or County SPCAs. As noted in the State of New Jersey Commission of Investigation 2000 report on Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, at least one County society (Warren) routinely stopped vehicles with horse trailers for proof that a Coggins test certificate was available as required by the NJ Department of Agriculture. As the report concluded:

Not only is the absence of a certificate not cruelty, but SPCA personnel lack the expertise to know whether the horse described in the certificate, such as a Bay or Chestnut [which are specific horse colors and patterns], is in fact the horse being transported.

It would not be unprecedented if humane officers decided to target people traveling with dogs throughout the state, and started pulling over and issuing summons related to the size the their dog carriers.

Dog owners beware!

[View source.]

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Violations Of The Fourth Amendment And Other Concerns About Amendments To New Jersey's Animal Cruelty Statute - JD Supra (press release)

Aug 22 FEATURE MAIN, Live Local, NEWS & VIEWS No Comments on LIVE LOCAL, LIVE SMALL: What freedoms and liberties do we stand to lose?

The Guardian reported:

The warrant covers the people who own and operate the site, but also seeks to get the IP addresses of 1.3 million people who visited it, as well as the date and time of their visit, and information about what browser or operating system they used.

There are a variety of concerning aspects to this set of events. First, and most obviously, are those related to the First Amendment (freedom of speech and assembly) and the Fourth Amendment (protection from unreasonable search and seizure). The Department of Justice wants the IP addresses of every visitor to the siteand from that information the physical location of each visitor can be ascertained. It makes identification not all that difficult. Besides freedom of speech, there are questions about the scope of the warrant. The Fourth Amendment makes it clear a warrant must specify locations to be searched and probable cause. Orin Kerr noted in the Washington Post:

Courts have allowed the government to get a suspects entire email account, which the government can then search through for evidence. But is the collective set of records concerning a website itself so extensive that it goes beyond what the Fourth Amendment allows? In the physical world, the government can search only one apartment in an apartment building with a single warrant; it cant search the entire apartment building.

Additionally, one has to be concerned that one branch of government would use their power to collect private information about citizens it feels threatened by. It looks like a personal score to settle. People who disagree with the executive branch are to be identifiedand to what end specifically? Over 200 people have already been charged with felony rioting at the inauguration. Why does the Department of Justice need to identify 1.3 million people who might disagree with the executive branch? It is frightening not only for civil liberties but for what it can mean on the slippery slope of settling political scores with citizens. Ask the Mothers of the Disappeared in Argentina: This is dangerous.

At the end of June, the executive branch asked the states to turn over voter registration information for the voter fraud commission. The information requested voter rolls, dates of birth and the last four digits of social security numbers. North Carolinas bipartisan State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement announced it would turn over publicly available information to the commission, but not social security numbers and dates of birth. Some states have refused to comply. I have to admit: The possibility of finding oneself purged from the voter rolls is a scary idea.

About 10 years ago, I found myself dropped from the voter registration rolls. It was a bit of a surprise; I showed up on election day and was informed I was not registered to vote in New Hanover County. The poll worker asked if I had registered to vote?

Yes, I answered. I have voted at this precinct location for the past six years. I usually come in with one of my parents and we would take turns standing with the dog outside, because a family that votes together stays together.

After much hemming and hawing with the poll workers, I was given a provisional ballot. I sorted out my registration and, thankfully (fingers crossed), have not had a problem since.

I come from a family that makes voting a priority. I am comfortable advocating for that right with people in positions of authority.

Recently, my household went through the citizenship process and one of the recurring themes in the process was voting is one of the most important ways to participate in a democracy and preform a civic duty. At the Naturalization Ceremony, the League of Women Voters were standing by with voter registration forms for each of the newly sworn-in citizens.

It doesnt take a giant leap of imagination to see those two lists overlap: Who visited a website the executive branch dislikes and who voted against the candidate in the last election? Where there is a match, how hard would it be to drop a name from the rolls? As far-fetched as this would have sounded 18 months ago, it is just not hard to imagine right now. If they control who can vote, they can control who wins an election. The timing of demanding these two sets of data is startling and frightening.

Dreamhost is challenging in the warrant and a hearing is scheduled on August 18. What is possibly more frightening than the above scenario is the possibility this is just a litmus test. If successful, where does it stop? What speech and assembly freedoms could we lose?

In the wake of the events at Charlottesville and escalating concern regarding North Koreawhich strike a primal and emotional chordit is hard to focus on something as dry as a justice department warrant. But that is exactly why it is important. The events surrounding the warrant and what happens with the information gathered will directly impact the publics ability to talk back to power and speak freely.

Allowing one branch of the government to target citizens who disagree is dangerous The possibilities of the internet are a fascinating double-edged sword. Never before in history have we had the ability to share information, opinions and ideas with such immediacy. Social media and web tools can allow for assemblies with short notice on a scale not previously imaginedand the documentation of the assemblies can be shared and made available around the world as they unfold. But the footprint and trackability of online activity is the other side of the coin. Potentially targeting someones voting rights based upon political opinions is not what the constitution intends.

Its important: protecting citizens rights to vote, speak and participate in democracy. It is essential to our future.

CharlottesvilleDepartment of Justiceencore magazineFourth AmendmentGwenyfar RohlerLeague of Women VotersMothers of the Disappeared in ArgentinaNaturalization Ceremonynew hanover countyNorth KoreaOrin KerrState Board of Elections and Ethics EnforcementUnited States ConstitutionWashington PostWilmington NC

FUZZY FOLK: Stray Owls pick up a drummer, drop a record and head to ILM NEWS OF THE WEIRD

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LIVE LOCAL, LIVE SMALL: What freedoms and liberties do we stand to lose? - encore Online