If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman is taking legal action against Roblox, arguing that the company has failed to protect children from exploitation on its platform. Filed in Madison County Circuit Court, the 68-page lawsuit accuses Roblox of ignoring safety concerns for years while continuing to profit from a platform heavily used by minors. We obtained a copy of the lawsuit for you here. At a Tuesday morning news conference, Coleman stated, “Roblox is the website of choice for child predators.” Coleman likely meant to refer to the game, rather than the website. He said the lawsuit seeks stronger safety standards and the introduction of age verification tools to ensure that both children and adults are accurately identified online. “What we’re seeking is for them to apply reasonable security. It’s not about limiting profits. We want to incentivize folks to do well. It’s about implementing common sense safety features,” he said. That proposal, however, would require new forms of digital identity verification, potentially forcing users to share government-issued identification or other personal data to access online platforms. Privacy supporters warn that such systems could mark a change toward mandatory digital ID programs, reducing online anonymity for both children and adults. Coleman said the goal is to make the internet safer for minors, not to restrict companies. “Here’s my message to parents,” he added. “Get your kids off Roblox. Do it today.” Roblox is one of the most popular gaming platforms in the world, with cartoon-like graphics and open-ended worlds created by users. But as its reach has grown, so have reports of inappropriate content and predatory behavior. The company maintains that it employs thousands of moderators to monitor its network for harmful material. Kentucky is the second state to file such a lawsuit. Louisiana’s attorney general brought a similar case in August, also alleging that Roblox has not taken adequate steps to verify users online. Digital rights groups are watching these cases closely, warning that if state-level age verification laws expand, they could lead to broader requirements for digital identification across social platforms and games. That could make it more difficult to participate online without revealing personal information, altering the very foundation of internet privacy. If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman Sues Roblox, Urges ID Age Verification appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

The self-hosting crowd has been waiting for this one. Immich, the open-source photo platform for people allergic to Google Photos and iCloud, just hit version 2.0 and declared itself “stable.” It’s finally ready for normal humans who don’t enjoy debugging YAML files at midnight, or for those who don’t even know what that means. Become a Member and Keep Reading… Reclaim your digital freedom. Get the latest on censorship, cancel culture, and surveillance, and learn how to fight back. Join Already a supporter? Sign In. (If you’re already logged in but still seeing this, refresh this page to show the post.) Having trouble logging in? Get help here. The post The Easiest Photo Self-Hosting Exit Ramp from Big Cloud appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. A Tunisian man sentenced to death over social media posts has been granted a presidential pardon, but the case has already laid bare the intensifying crackdown on dissent. Saber Ben Chouchane, arrested for allegedly insulting President Kais Saied and other state officials online, became a symbol of Tunisia’s ongoing collapse into speech policing, where voicing criticism can now come with a fatal price tag. Ben Chouchane, 51, was sentenced in early 2024 under Decree 54, a sweeping cybercrime law passed in 2022 that criminalizes the spread of “false news” and insults targeting public officials. Authorities accused him of offending the president, the justice minister, and the judiciary in Facebook posts. But the actual content of those posts was never made public. No evidence was presented suggesting that his words posed any threat to public safety or national security. The court’s decision to impose the death penalty shocked observers both inside and outside Tunisia. While executions remain on the books, none have been carried out in over three decades. The punishment marked an unprecedented leap in the use of legal tools to stifle dissent. The sentence drew immediate outrage online, with many voicing disbelief that nonviolent speech could lead to such a punishment. After months of mounting domestic and international pressure, Ben Chouchane withdrew his legal appeal, paving the way for a presidential pardon. Ben Chouchane’s case highlighted just how far this politicization has gone. Decree 54 has become a blunt instrument for targeting anyone who challenges state authority, from journalists and lawyers to ordinary citizens expressing frustration online. Trials increasingly resemble political statements rather than impartial proceedings. If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post Tunisian Man Pardoned After Death Sentence for Criticizing President Online appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Microsoft is once again tightening its grip on local account setups in Windows 11, eliminating several widely used methods that allowed users to bypass signing in with a Microsoft account during installation. A new update in the Windows Insider Preview program points to a future where setting up a PC without connecting it to Microsoft’s services could become almost impossible. In build 26220.6772, now available through the Dev channel, Microsoft has officially removed a handful of command-line workarounds from the out-of-box experience (OOBE). Microsoft justified the change by saying these methods “inadvertently skip critical setup screens” and could leave a device “not fully configured for use.” However, users who have relied on these workarounds typically still see the full local account creation interface, including options to set a username, password, and some core privacy settings. What gets removed are the additional screens that push Microsoft 365, Xbox Game Pass, and features like Windows Recall, which tracks user activity and behavior. At the time of writing, it’s uncertain whether another commonly used method in Windows 11 Pro still works. This one involves indicating that the machine will be joined to a corporate domain, which has so far allowed the creation of a local account. Microsoft has not confirmed if this path has been closed off as well. Microsoft began enforcing account sign-ins more aggressively with the release of Windows 11 22H2, expanding the requirement to include the Pro edition. Earlier builds, including Windows 10 and Windows 11 21H2, offered more flexibility, especially for users who chose to install without an internet connection. Microsoft’s stance remains consistent. Feedback has not deterred the company from pushing account integration further into the Windows setup process. Its approach assumes that personal-use PCs should be tied to Microsoft accounts by default, regardless of whether the user subscribes to Game Pass, OneDrive, or other services. The pressure is now extending beyond Windows 11. Users of Windows 10 who want to receive Extended Security Updates through October 2026 must sign in with a Microsoft account to enroll. In some countries, Microsoft has gone even further by cutting off these updates entirely if users are not actively signed in. For users who value privacy, prefer offline setups, or want to avoid syncing their devices with a corporate cloud ecosystem, Microsoft is continuing to remove its options. With each update, it becomes harder to install Windows without surrendering some degree of control. If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post Microsoft Makes It Harder to Set Up Windows 11 Without a Microsoft Account appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Germany has taken a decisive stand against the European Union’s proposed “chat control” regulation, blocking a plan that would have allowed the mass scanning of private messages in the name of child protection. The government’s rejection, announced on Wednesday, has effectively stalled the legislation. Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig made her position clear, stating that “unprovoked chat control must be taboo in a constitutional state.” She argued that personal conversations should not be treated as inherently suspicious and insisted that the state must never compel companies to pre-screen messages. “Germany will not agree to such proposals at EU level,” she said, confirming the stance of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s administration after weeks of speculation. The controversial EU plan, first proposed in 2022, would have granted authorities the ability to intercept and inspect messages and images shared through encrypted platforms like Signal and WhatsApp. More: X Urges EU to Reject “Chat Control 2.0” Surveillance Law Threatening End-to-End Encryption Talks among EU ambassadors continued this week, but Germany’s refusal to support the proposal has shifted the balance of votes within the bloc. Because of Germany’s population size and voting power, its opposition makes it nearly impossible for the regulation to pass in the Council. Concerns about privacy and freedom have united lawmakers across party lines. Irene Mihalic of the Greens described the proposed system as a direct threat to basic rights. “Even the planned AI systems, if you look at it, have extremely high error rates and would produce millions of false reports, which would also mean a massive burden for the investigating authorities,” she said. “And the actual cases would probably get lost in the data heap.” CDU/CSU parliamentary leader Jens Spahn voiced similar objections, calling the plan unacceptable. “We, the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, are opposed to the unwarranted monitoring of chats. That would be like opening all letters as a precautionary measure to see if there is anything illegal in them. That is not acceptable, and we will not allow it.” The government’s decision is being celebrated by privacy advocates across Europe. Dr. Patrick Breyer of the Pirate Party described the outcome as “a tremendous victory for freedom and proves that protest works! Facing a wave of calls and emails from the public, the Social Democrats are holding their ground, and for the first time, even the conservative leadership is voicing criticism. Without the tireless resistance from citizens, scientists, and organizations, EU governments would have passed a totalitarian mass surveillance law next week, spelling the end for digital privacy. That we stopped this—for now—is a moment to celebrate.” Dr. Breyer urged the European Commission to withdraw the legislation permanently. “EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen must now admit the failure of her dystopian Chat Control plan. The Commission must withdraw this irreparable bill for good, as it has failed to find a majority in the Council for years. Instead, it should embrace the European Parliament’s alternative, which delivers effective child protection without mass surveillance: safer apps through ‘Security by Design,’ proactive clearing of illegal content online, and swift takedown obligations.” He concluded with a warning that the struggle for privacy is not over: “Today proves that our protest has the power to stop a totalitarian surveillance system that has no equal in the free world. But the threat is not gone. The proponents of Chat Control will use every trick in the book and will not give up easily. We will keep fighting until this proposal is defeated once and for all, and the privacy of our digital lives is secure for everyone.” If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post Germany Rejects EU “Chat Control” Law, Effectively Halting Mass Surveillance Proposal appeared first on Reclaim The Net.