#digital realm

This is my digital realm, where my pseudonym is the cloak under which unfolds a practical and fascinating journey of personal growth. I go by the name of Miss Adore, an intrepid navigator in search of wisdom in the ocean of life. As I navigate between 0s and 1s, I explore personal growth from a practical perspective, never losing sight of the playful essence that makes life an extraordinary…

IDs are of the slides of this Instagram post by peoplescitycouncil and seastersjones.

ID. Screenshot of this article by Joey Scot on November 27, 2023 for Knock LA.

Title: LAPD Is Using Israeli Surveillance Software That Can Track Your Phone and Social Media.

Deck: The software, built by Cobwebs Technologies, uses AI to track, surveil, and create profiles of people based on online and phone data.

The article is categorized as news and tagged with LAPD and surveillance. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of this article by Jules Roscoe on November 29, 2023 for Motherboard: Tech by VICE.

Title: The LAPD is Using Controversial Mass Surveillance Tracking Software.

Deck: Cobwebs Technologies' WebLoc software allows police to track individuals using geolocation signals displayed on a map interface. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of a slide from an Instagram post by Al Jazeera, with logo in top left corner. The dark background is of the seals of the LAPD and ICE, with the circles side by side and half of each in frame.

Black text with yellow highlighting: Police in Los Angeles are using Israeli surveillance software to identify and track people.

White text with some yellow underlining: Begin underline Cobwebs Technologies end underline produces AI-powered tools that let police access personal info without a warrant, using their phone and social media activity.

Its tech has been bought by U.S. agencies like begin underline ICE and the IRS. end underline. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of text from the Knock LA article: LAPD has bolstered its online surveillance operations by adding another piece of technology to its roster. LAPD’s newest surveillance partner, Cobwebs Technologies, gathers data from your phone and social media activity and turns it into intelligence. The Israeli company’s surveillance software, which outsources much of their surveillance work to AI and machine learning, gives police warrantless access to your personal information. 

Cobwebs Technologies was founded in 2015 by former IDF special operatives Omri Timianker, Shay Attias, and former Mossad official Udi Levy. The company is part of the controversial billion-dollar surveillance industry in Israel, where the technology is. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of text from the Knock LA article: official Udi Levy. The company is part of the controversial billion-dollar surveillance industry in Israel, where the technology is often tested on Palestinians before being implemented elsewhere in the world. During a 2014 trip to Israel, LAPD’s top brass saw firsthand how Israel used drones, social media surveillance software, and automatic license plate readers. Within five years of the trip, the department would be using all three. This year, Cobwebs was acquired by private equity firm Spire Capital, which owns the surveillance companies GeoTime and PenLink. The company currently has several contracts with local and federal agencies including the Texas Department of Public Safety (who use it to track migrants), the IRS. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of text from the Knock LA article: LAPD purchased the nearly $200,000-per-year subscription to the technology in 2022 with the help of a $600,000 DHS grant that focuses on terrorism prevention in urban areas. Part of the purchase was a suite of over 50 digital tools, including surveillance and investigative software built by other companies. In the grant proposal for the technology,  LAPD said it would make it easier to share intelligence with federal police agencies. 

Meta, the company behind Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, banned accounts used by Cobwebs and labeled it a surveillance-for-hire company. In a 2021 report, Meta found that Cobwebs was being used to target activists, opposition. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of this article by Rachel Levinson-Waldman and Mary Pat Dwyer on November 17, 2021 for the Brennan Center for Justice.

Title: LAPD Documents Show What One Social Media Surveillance Firm Promises Police

The article is categorized as analysis. Above the headline is a rectangular image of a black and white police sedan "driving" along a black ground, outlined in yellow and with its center shared with a semicircular grid overlaying blue map. Image credit: Brennan Center for Justice/epantha/werbeantrieb/Anatasiia Konko/Getty. Below the headline are logos of Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn that link to share the article. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of text from the Knock LA article: LAPD’s largest bulk purchase of surveillance technology happened right before the passage of the department’s Acquisition and Annual Reporting of Certain Information Systems and Technologies policy. The bulk purchase of $600,000 worth of surveillance and investigative technology included payment to Cobwebs Technologies. LAPD passed the policy on August 17, 2022, and promoted it to ensure the public is informed about the technology it uses. 

The department’s policy requires an application be filled out before acquiring new surveillance technology. That application must be submitted and discussed publicly at the Board of Police Commissioners meeting. The report outlines. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of text from the Knock LA article: While LAPD remains enamored with the capabilities of today’s surveillance software, its policies have not kept up with the speed of advancements in technology. For example, the department lacks a policy on accessing and tracking people’s phone data through a third party and/or data brokers. It also lacks a policy about using technology that uses AI or machine learning, including whether the algorithms in the software it uses are aligned with the department’s biased policing policies. 

LAPD defends using Cobwebs, saying the information it gathers is open-source and publicly available. But Cobwebs is not available for use by the general public, nor does the general public have access to the. End ID.

ID. Screenshot of text from the Knock LA article: LAPD defends using Cobwebs, saying the information it gathers is open-source and publicly available. But Cobwebs is not available for use by the general public, nor does the general public have access to the breadth of information gathered by Cobwebs. 

Dave Maass with EFF pushes back against LAPD’s claim:

“LAPD likes to play games and claims that if it’s public, there is no public interest in protecting it from police spying. … LAPD should learn from history and recognize that this kind of surveillance is damaging to everyone.” End ID.

for people in the u.s., y'all better not be talking shit about the surveillance state in other countries without also talking shit about the one in the u.s.

though I would like to say, I took a look at Cobwebs's website, and it's really not clear if they're using AI at all or if it's just as a buzzword. even their reports and white papers that might shed further light are behind information paywalls – which is to say, hell no am I handing my data on a silver platter to this murderous company just to get my hands on that information. I can live with not knowing exactly if Cobwebs is really AI. AI or not, it is still part of the surveillance state. nonetheless, it would be nice if journalists didn't fearmonger about AI without clarity. is anyone up to sacrificing their information to try and figure this out?

and even the white papers being behind information paywalls – this is really the least open-source thing ever, okay. what are you even open to. if you're not open to the general public you are literally not open-source. IDK what these mfs on (it's the fricking money and murder, but still, you get my point). what really gets me is that they also have a certification from GDPR??? like okay i mean i already knew GDPR was bullshit, but they're really not even trying to hide it.