“Ok for those of you that haven't figured it out I got my wings clipped and they weren't gentle about it- so there's not going to be much posting on social media anymore and only on very specific subjects. I can leave but Kaidi can't so we're just going to follow the new rules and that's that. Nothing personal if I don't like and reply like I used to. I'll be focusing on the store and the occasional video. Thanks for understanding, it was fun while it lasted”
Naomi Wu mentions briefly on her silencing and how she is not nearly as safe as she was before now that it’s obvious to the Chinese government her disappearance won’t cause an uproar of bad press making China look bad.
She understands very well the fragility of her situation in regards to the CCP, and the Vice reporters going against her wishes was downright dangerous.
Her response was harsh and arguably too far, but giving the editor in cheif of vice a tiny taste of the fear and discomfort she and her partner would have felt after they refused to remove sensitive details from the article and video was in many ways justified.
Honestly it doesn't feel too far to me, and I generally detest doxxing as a tactic.
We trust and depend on journalists to expose and spread the truth and tell the stories people should see, but it's never supposed to be at the expense or exploitation of vulnerable people. It's one thing to expose the personal details of say, a hypocritical politician, but putting an individual's life at risk just to spice up a story seems to violate most journalistic ethics I'm familiar with.
I've been following Naomi for several years, and I'm convinced that she's the kind of functional genius that the world needs more of. I really don't understand why she hasn't had better reception and support from the US maker community and tech press. I think the way she's been treated is a combination of envy, sexism and racism/jingoism.
I think the 3D printing community should be more aware of her situation, so I've cross-posted this to !3dprinting@lemmy.ml and !3DPrinting@lemmy.world
She’s an amazing engineer and inventor and was one of the best Chinese voices in the global tech community, consistently brining her own perspectives without holding back or letting herself be bullied. What a massive loss.
I didn't know she was pointing out security vulnerabilities. Great to see Citizen Lab doing God's work as usual.
Wu herself had previously sent various public tweets obliquely warning about similar, privacy harming issues associated with the Sogou software in 2019, citing a 2015 report describing similar vulnerabilities. A particular concern she shared was that users of Sogou may decide to install Signal App to communicate, believing the app's safety profile to be broadly appropriate for many people. However, the eavesdropping and network fingerprinting risks associated with the use of a third party keyboard such as Sogou take precedence over Signal's security profile
It is possible that Wu's tweets about the issues in the Sogou software of which she was aware may have caught the attention of Chinese authorities who were searching for related information on Western networks.
I love Naomi wu / sexy cyborg. I've been watching her for years and she helped encourage me to setup my own 3d printer. It hurts to see someone who's been so inspirational to me be silenced like this. I hope she can stay safe and have a productive makerspace still