Does this really work? I have a little windows miniPC that runs some home services. And I hate that it just updates and reboots (or sometimes just ends up shutting down) whenever it’s feels like it. I don’t have the energy at the moment to clear it down and rebuild from scratch with Linux so this update blocker sounds bloody amazing.

China committed genocide against Uyghurs, independent tribunal rules

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-59595952

UK is pretty far from perfect but to suggest we have “just as dubious morals” as China is categorically wrong.

Teenagers will. Young children though may accidentally stumble upon something nasty which is far from age appropriate and something they aren’t ready for.

Having good network controls can help with that, but so does good supervision and education about internet safety.

I’m talking about network filters at the home level. Like a pinhole or nextdns. Ones the network owner is control of and can log or not log as they choose to. Parents can set up their own safety net if they choose.

I was Responding to the comment “my parents had a porn blocker” etc

I do not want some dodgy website to be collecting personal IDs that would be an obvious target and/or just get leaked accidebtly.

Absolutely, that’s why I keep saying “accidentally” - anyone who thinks an internet filter will stop someone with any determination is kidding themselves.

Yeah definitely this is a big factor.

I have a small pot I save into for my phone upgrade each month. Waiting longer means I get a shiner new phone when I do finally decide to upgrade.

And once I have it I want it to last as long as possible!

When it used to be just part of your contract you wouldn’t think about, just get a new one when your contract said it was time.

A decent filter on a network (think pi-hole and next dns and the like) helps block adverts, trackers, scam sites, shady pop ups as well as bog standard porn sites etc

Internet is full of things that it’s easy to accidentally stumble on that you wouldn’t want a young kid to see and I think it’s a reasonable step to have some basic levels of controls on your own network

The onus is on the parents to manage internet access in a way the feel best and shouldn’t be forced or assumed. definitely not to porn sites (or any other site!) to collect entirely unnecessary personal data which would inevitably get leaked.

I just think of it as a safety net to prevent (or at least reduce the risk) of young children accidently stumbling upon something nasty or graphic that they didn’t mean to.

This should also be done by proper parenting and supervision but as technology and internet devices are friggin everywhere I don’t think it’s a bad idea for parents to also have some decent filters on their internet connection.

Doesn’t stop someone who even knows half way what they are doing, but by that point hopeful parents will have talked and educated their children about things before there’s a concern about intention seeking stuff out.

Not surprising. I used to update every 2 years but my last couple have had a 3 or 4 year gap.

As it should be really. These can be very expensive devices that only make sense if you get a decent life out of them.

It may not be “sworn on a bible true true true” but it could be used to help build up evidence along with other sources or identify people to target for further investigation.

Absolutely shouldn’t be enough on it’s own to be able to get warrants or forces companies like Reddit to give out private information… but there’s be a line somewhere between “someone said they downloaded a movie” and “someone has admitted to committing or planning a horrible violent crime” where law enforcement would be justified in getting warrants. It should follow strict oversight and justification like warrants for “real life” things (I say “should” as in the moral should… no idea how good US laws are around this stuff or how well they are followed”)

Edit: they would also need to justify that the comments seem to be actually true or are likely to be true… chasing down every idiot who says something stupid on the internet would bankrupt any police force and not help anyone.

Also… use a VPN! governments & police are overreaching and individual privacy is important to protect.