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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: June 1st, 2023

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  • Just tar and zstd. They’re probably installed by default for most distros anyway.

    I think this is what I used when I first tried out zstd https://linuxconfig.org/how-to-install-and-use-zstd-compression-tool-on-linux

    Tar supports input from zstd so I put everything on one line.

    tar -I 'zstd -v --ultra -22' -cvf YourFile.tar.zst -C /path/to/your/file YourFile
    

    -I takes the input from zstd which is in quotes.

    –ultra it should be redundant but for some reason its needed for higher levels of compression.

    -22 the highest level of compression offered by zstd.

    -c for compress.

    -v for verbose.

    -f for the file name.

    -C excludes the absolute path to the file/directory and just takes YourFile as the file/directory to compress. Its not needed if you’re in the same directory as YourFile.

    I would recommend leaving out

    --ultra -22
    

    and just test how much compression you get with the default level first because 22 is super slow and if it just can’t compress the file you won’t see any difference in file size compared to the default compression level.


  • For 3DS games I use NDSTokyoTrim to remove useless data from the game files to make them smaller.

    DreamCast, PS1 & PS2 games get compressed to chd with chdman.

    GameCube and Wii are compressed to rvz with Dolphin.

    PS3 I remove the PS3_UPDATE folder, 256MiB for each game adds up. I also use Gnarly Repacks for PS3 games since they have better compression than anything I’ve tried so far.

    Switch games, I use nsz.

    Then I use tar with zst on all of them, Nsz and rvz already use zst so theres no change but I just like to keep everything the same accross all of my roms and pc games.

    Everything else, GB, NDS, SNES etc all get archived and compressed with tar and zst. For these I’ll also use the --ultra -22 option since they’re small enough files anyway so they don’t take long to compress/decompress. If anyone knows any specific compression/trimming methods that are better than zst, I’d love to hear about them!

    Copies of all the tar archives are kept on 2 separate drives and a copy of the games are on my PC in whatever the smallest format is that is compatible with their emulator.


  • https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/genetics-firm-23andme-says-user-data-stolen-in-credential-stuffing-attack/

    The information that has been exposed from this incident includes full names, usernames, profile photos, sex, date of birth, genetic ancestry results, and geographical location.

    The threat actor accessed a small number of 23andMe accounts and then scraped the data of their DNA Relative matches, which shows how opting into a feature can have unexpected privacy consequences.

    • Usernames Profile Photos DoB

    They can be linked to other online accounts. This allows for phishing, potentially scamming or getting additonal information on them which can lead to more sophisticated/personalised scams. Older, less tech savvy users are better targets for scammers.

    • Username Sex DoB Genetic Ancestry Location data

    Data aggregators can sell this info to Health Insurance Companies or any other system who can then discriminate based on genes sex age or location

    • All of this information

    Can contribute to people committing fraud with their information if they collect enough information from different sources.

    • DNA relatives

    Having enough information about a user to use it to target their now known relatives in personalised scams.

    The people that did this probably didn’t know what information they were going to get, maybe they were hoping for payment info, and settled for trying to just sell what they got.

    Any information, no matter how useless it might seem, is better than no information and enough useless information in the wrong hands can be very valuable.

    Theres countless data breaches every year and people will collect it all and link different accounts from different breaches until they have enough information. Most people use the same email address for every website and a lot of people reuse the same passwords, which is how this data leak occurred. Knowing that these users reuse the same email/password combination here means theres a very good chance they’ve reused it elsewhere.

    You can check out what data breeches have occured and if your email or password has been posted in any of these dumps here https://haveibeenpwned.com/

    Once the information is out there, its out there for good and what might seem trivial now to you could be valuable tomorrow to someone else


  • I’d just like to interject for a moment. What you’re refering to as Manjaro, is in fact, Arch/Manjaro, or as I’ve recently taken to calling it, Arch plus Manjaro. Manjaro is not an operating system unto itself, but rather another free component of a fully functioning Arch system made useful by pacman, yay and vital system components comprising a full OS as defined by POSIX.





  • For me the issue here is, why put so much time and energy into basically rebranding an LLM. I’ve seen LLMs running on RPi and android phones. Why not write a blog post showing how to run LLMs locally with existing tools for the best privacy instead and put more focus on their existing services. It just seems like they’re jumping on the AI bandwagon and charging a premium for an already freely available LLM.

    I see some benefits of AI like quality tts when using OSM and stt when transcribing/translating audio but other things like Googles AI answers and Microsofts Copilot leave me scratching my head wondering why consumer would want this




  • Every few months I like to clear out my password manager of any accounts I don’t need anymore, usually just throwaway emails aliases.

    I’ll usually attempt to log into any services that I know I’ve deleted/requested to delete to make sure they’re not accessible anymore and so far I haven’t been able to log in to any of them so I can only assume my requests are working.

    I suppose if a service had a data breach, after my information was meant to be deleted, and I found my information there then I’d make a complaint to my regulator about not deleting my data. I would have proof of my request and their acknowledgement of the request so it’d be pretty silly of them not to delete it after saying they did

    I rarely use anything but email aliases and fake information anyway and I never let online retailers save my card information. And if my address in on my account I change it to P. Sherman 42 Wallabyway Sydney before I delete/request to delete my account.


  • I spend too much time reading emails so I try to keep mine short, especially when they’re going to a generic email like support or privacy.

    https://gdpr.eu/right-to-be-forgotten/

    The GDPR does not specify what a valid request to erasure entails. An individual can make a request for erasure verbally or in writing. This request can also be made to any member of your organization, not just to a designated contact. As long as a request meets the conditions above, it is valid, even if it does not refer to “Request for Erasure” the “Right to be Forgotten,” Article 17, or the GDPR.

    There’s no template to follow for a request. Once GDPR is mentioned, they usually just email back saying that they’re doing it or its done.

    I haven’t come across any difficult companies but I’ve heard some make it as hard as possible and follow the Erasure Request form template in the link above and ask for proof of I.D etc


  • I usually just write

    Hi,

    Please delete my account and all data associated with this email in accordance with Article 17 of GDPR, I’m an EU citizen

    Thanks x

    I just assume if they haven’t made it easy to delete your account by now then they never will but these are really good points that will hopefully make companies change their policies, especially since its all things that benefit them







  • The “media network” is https://kinectivemedia.com/ and they have a link for US customers to opt out that leads to here https://uniteddigital.iad1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_88OQmAbr20oeHn8 but of course you’re going to want to also read Qualtrics privacy policy before using their services https://www.qualtrics.com/privacy-statement/

    Clicking https://kinectivemedia.com/ privacy policy links to https://www.united.com/en/us/fly/customer-data-privacy-policy.html

    They collect the usual stuff you use for travel like name, address, payment details, biometrics, I.D etc and also

    Information collected in your use of our mobile application(s) includes, but is not limited to:

    • With your consent, your pinpointed physical location information from technologies like GPS, Wi-Fi, or cell tower proximity (geo-location tracking)
    • With your consent, while at or near certain airports in the U.S., your pinpointed physical location will be tracked continuously to provide you location-based offers, services and other information. For more information, see the Location Services FAQ located on the side menu of the United App;
    • Your domain name;
    • Device ID or alternative ID where required by the platform provider;
    • Electronic data concerning operating systems and computing devices/browser, including types;
    • Features you use and links you click;
    • Amount of time spent in the application;
    • Installs and uninstalls;
    • Transaction details and history.

    We may combine this information with information that we already have collected about you.

    We collect information about you from third parties. If you make a reservation through a travel agent, we will obtain your travel information from that agent. We may also obtain information about you from our marketing partners, advertisers and other third parties.

    We primarily use your information, including personal information, to provide our services to you and to fulfill your requests. In certain circumstances, such as for advertising purposes, we combine your information with other information that we have about you, that is publicly available and/or that we have obtained from third parties (either individually or in the aggregate)

    We also use your information for the following purposes:

    For marketing and advertising. United uses your information, consistent with applicable law, individually, in the aggregate, and/or combined with demographic information that we maintain or collect from third parties, for marketing and advertising purposes (via email, direct mail, telephone, web or other electronic advertising) and to send you news and newsletters. Specifically, information that we collect about you may be used to send you email, direct mail, or telephone communications about offers from United, its partners or other third parties, that might be of interest to you (please see the section on Disclosing your information below and the section on Changing your marketing preferences below). We also use your information to determine appropriate advertising channels and venues and to place ads on such channels and venues, including placing advertising on social networking sites.

    I’m sure the money they make from this will subsidies flight costs that will be passed on to the end user for cheaper flight!