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mostlysignssomeportents · 2 years

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"Don't spy on a privacy lab" (and other career advice for university provosts)

This is a wild and hopeful story: grad students at Northeastern successfully pushed back against invasive digital surveillance in their workplace, through solidarity, fearlessness, and the bright light of publicity. It’s a tale of hand-to-hand, victorious combat with the “shitty technology adoption curve.”

What’s the “shitty tech adoption curve?” It’s the process by which oppressive technologies are normalized and spread. If you want to do something awful with tech — say, spy on people with a camera 24/7 — you need to start with the people who have the least social capital, the people whose objections are easily silenced or overridden.

That’s why all our worst technologies are first imposed on refugees -> prisoners -> kids -> mental patients -> poor people, etc. Then, these technologies climb the privilege gradient: blue collar workers -> white collar workers -> everyone. Following this pathway lets shitty tech peddlers knock the rough edges off their wares, inuring us all to their shock and offense.

https://pluralistic.net/2022/08/21/great-taylors-ghost/#solidarity-or-bust

20 years ago, if you ate dinner under the unblinking eye of a CCTV, it was because you were housed in a supermax prison. Today, it’s because you were unwise enough to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for “home automation” from Google, Apple, Amazon or another “luxury surveillance” vendor.

Northeastern’s Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex (ISEC) is home to the “Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute,” where grad students study the harms of surveillance and the means by which they may be reversed. If there’s one group of people who are prepared to stand athwart the shitty tech adoption curve, it is the CPI grad students.

Which makes it genuinely baffling that Northeastern’s Senior Vice Provost for Research decided to install under-desk heat sensors throughout ISEC, overnight, without notice or consultation. The provost signed the paperwork that brought the privacy institute into being.

Students throughout ISEC were alarmed by this move, but especially students on the sixth floor, home to the Privacy Institute. When they demanded an explanation, they were told that the university was conducting a study on “desk usage.” This rang hollow: students at the Privacy Institute have assigned desks, and they badge into each room when they enter it.

As Privacy Institute PhD candidate Max von Hippel wrote, “Reader, we have assigned desks, and we use a key-card to get into the room, so, they already know how and when we use our desks.”

https://twitter.com/maxvonhippel/status/1578048837746204672

So why was the university suddenly so interested in gathering fine-grained data on desk usage? I asked von Hippel and he told me: “They are proposing that grad students share desks, taking turns with a scheduling web-app, so administrators can take over some of the space currently used by grad students. Because as you know, research always works best when you have to schedule your thinking time.”

That’s von Hippel’s theory, and I’m going to go with it, because the provost didn’t offer a better one in the flurry of memos and “listening sessions” that took place after the ISEC students arrived at work one morning to discover sensors under their desks.

This is documented in often hilarious detail in von Hippel’s thread on the scandal, in which the university administrators commit a series of unforced errors and the grad students run circles around them, in a comedy of errors straight out of “Animal House.”

https://twitter.com/maxvonhippel/status/1578048652215431168

After the sensors were discovered, the students wrote to the administrators demanding their removal, on the grounds that there was no scientific purpose for them, that they intimidated students, that they were unnecessary, and that the university had failed to follow its own rules and ask the Institutional Review Board (IRB) to review the move as a human-subjects experiment.

The letter was delivered to the provost, who offered “an impromptu listening session” in which he alienated students by saying that if they trusted the university to “give” them a degree, they should trust it to surveil them. The students bristled at this characterization, noting that students deliver research (and grant money) to “make it tick.”

[Image ID: Sensors arrayed around a kitchen table at ISEC]

The students, believing the provost was not taking them seriously, unilaterally removed all the sensors, and stuck them to their kitchen table, annotating and decorating them with Sharpie. This prompted a second, scheduled “listening session” with the provost, but this session, while open to all students, was only announced to their professors (“Beware of the leopard”).

The students got wind of this, printed up fliers and made sure everyone knew about it. The meeting was packed. The provost explained to students that he didn’t need IRB approval for his sensors because they weren’t “monitoring people.” A student countered, what was being monitored, “if not people?” The provost replied that he was monitoring “heat sources.”

https://github.com/maxvonhippel/isec-sensors-scandal/blob/main/Oct_6_2022_Luzzi_town_hall.pdf

Remember, these are grad students. They asked the obvious question: which heat sources are under desks, if not humans (von Hippel: “rats or kangaroos?”). The provost fumbled for a while (“a service animal or something”) before admitting, “I guess, yeah, it’s a human.”

Having yielded the point, the provost pivoted, insisting that there was no privacy interest in the data, because “no individual data goes back to the server.” But these aren’t just grad students — they’re grad students who specialize in digital privacy. Few people on earth are better equipped to understand re-identification and de-aggregation attacks.

[Image ID: A window with a phrase written in marker, ‘We are not doing science here’ -Luzzi.]

A student told the provost, “This doesn’t matter. You are monitoring us, and collecting data for science.” The provost shot back, “we are not doing science here.” This ill-considered remark turned into an on-campus meme. I’m sure it was just blurted in the heat of the moment, but wow, was that the wrong thing to tell a bunch of angry scientists.

From the transcript, it’s clear that this is where the provost lost the crowd. He accused the students of “feeling emotion” and explaining that the data would be used for “different kinds of research. We want to see how students move around the lab.”

Now, as it happens, ISEC has an IoT lab where they take these kinds of measurements. When they do those experiments, students are required to go through IRB, get informed consent, all the stuff that the provost had bypassed. When this is pointed out, the provost says that they had been given an IRB waiver by the university’s Human Research Protection Program (HRPP).

Now a prof gets in on the action, asking, pointedly: “Is the only reason it doesn’t fall under IRB is that the data will not be published?” A student followed up by asking how the university could justify blowing $50,000 on surveillance gear when that money would have paid for a whole grad student stipend with money left over.

The provost’s answers veer into the surreal here. He points out that if he had to hire someone to monitor the students’ use of their desks, it would cost more than $50k, implying that the bill for the sensors represents a cost-savings. A student replies with the obvious rejoinder — just don’t monitor desk usage, then.

Finally, the provost started to hint at the underlying rationale for the sensors, discussing the cost of the facility to the university and dangling the possibility of improving utilization of “research assets.” A student replies, “If you want to understand how research is done, don’t piss off everyone in this building.”

Now that they have at least a vague explanation for what research question the provost is trying to answer, the students tear into his study design, explaining why he won’t learn what he’s hoping to learn. It’s really quite a good experimental design critique — these are good students! Within a few volleys, they’re pointing out how these sensors could be used to stalk researchers and put them in physical danger.

The provost turns the session over to an outside expert via a buggy Zoom connection that didn’t work. Finally, a student asks whether it’s possible that this meeting could lead to them having a desk without a sensor under it. The provost points out that their desk currently doesn’t have a sensor (remember, the students ripped them out). The student says, “I assume you’ll put one back.”

[Image ID: A ‘public art piece’ in the ISEC lobby — a table covered in sensors spelling out ‘NO!,’ surrounded by Sharpie annotations decrying the program.]

They run out of time and the meeting breaks up. Following this, the students arrange the sensors into a “public art piece” in the lobby — a table covered in sensors spelling out “NO!,” surrounded by Sharpie annotations decrying the program.

Meanwhile, students are still furious. It’s not just that the sensors are invasive, nor that they are scientifically incoherent, nor that they cost more than a year’s salary — they also emit lots of RF noise that interferes with the students’ own research. The discussion spills onto Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/NEU/comments/xx7d7p/northeastern_graduate_students_privacy_is_being/

Yesterday, the provost capitulated, circulating a memo saying they would pull “all the desk occupancy sensors from the building,” due to “concerns voiced by a population of graduate students.”

https://twitter.com/maxvonhippel/status/1578101964960776192

The shitty technology adoption curve is relentless, but you can’t skip a step! Jumping straight to grad students (in a privacy lab) without first normalizing them by sticking them on the desks of poor kids in underfunded schools (perhaps after first laying off a computer science teacher to free up the budget!) was a huge tactical error.

A more tactically sound version of this is currently unfolding at CMU Computer Science, where grad students have found their offices bugged with sensors that detect movement and collect sound:

https://twitter.com/davidthewid/status/1387909329710366721

The CMU administration has wisely blamed the presence of these devices on the need to discipline low-waged cleaning staff by checking whether they’re really vacuuming the offices.

https://twitter.com/davidthewid/status/1387426812972646403

While it’s easier to put cleaners under digital surveillance than computer scientists, trying to do both at once is definitely a boss-level challenge. You might run into a scholar like David Gray Widder, who, observing that “this seems like algorithmic management of lowly paid employees to me,” unplugged the sensor in his office.

https://twitter.com/davidthewid/status/1387909329710366721

This is the kind of full-stack Luddism this present moment needs. These researchers aren’t opposed to sensors — they’re challenging the social relations of sensors, who gets sensed and who does the sensing.

https://locusmag.com/2022/01/cory-doctorow-science-fiction-is-a-luddite-literature/

[Image ID: A flier inviting ISEC grad students to attend an unadvertised 'listening session' with the vice-provost. It is surmounted with a sensor that has been removed from beneath a desk and annotated in Sharpie to read: 'If found by David Luzzi suck it.']

#pluralistic

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fleshbeast · 2 years

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isec

#deltarune #susie deltarune #deltarune susie #Susie #kris dreemurr #kris deltarune #deltarune kris #ralsei #deltarune ralsei #ralsei deltarune #noelle #noelle holiday #noelle deltarune #deltarune noelle #the binding of isaac #tboi #i actually have gamplay ideas for some of them #anyway sorry for having brainworms

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go-bac · 7 months

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This is the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex (ISEC) Northeast University. As we can see in the sketch it is the Reflected ceiling plan of the building which has a skylight in the center of the structure. I like this because it is in a way connected to the nature. The skylight in a building can symbolize the relationship between the structure and nature in architecture by serving as a connection between the built environment and the natural world. This element allows natural light to penetrate the interior, blurring the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces. It can represent the harmony and integration of the building with its surroundings, emphasizing the importance of nature in architectural design. Also the skylights are aesthetically pleasing, contributing to the overall design and character of the building.

#Shrusti Navadia #artsincommunity #go bac #go irl

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exoticcrystal · 8 months

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Isec info sheet! Blind fluffy bois!

#furry #furry art #exoticverse #lore #art

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hanginghera · 11 months

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Mother: isaac kys‼️

isec: no

#hanginghera #tboi #no #insane

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fuffy2002 · 2 years

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i gatta play isec again but *Pain*

#bad at videgames

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horrorwebs · 2 years

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isec sos un vago. isec te vas a morir de hambre. en definitiva se hicieron decisiones de diseño gráfico en la presentación de hoy

#spikeposting

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wife-emailer · 2 years

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the ISEC lab sensor surveillance thing makes me think of my university’s new surveillance program: a “risk assessment” program where they collect faculty reports on “at risk students” and have a behavioral assessment team made of non-university staff assess the reports and determine if the student is a risk to themselves or others, or if their presence (read: tuition payments) to the uni are at risk. so faculty are being asked to make reports on students that come to them in confidence to discuss mental health, food/housing insecurity, financial struggles, bullying, physical health etc without requiring them to get the permission of the student, which is usually needed unless there is an IMMEDIATE physical threat to the student or another person, then the report is put in a database and looked at by a group of people who may or may not have any credentials in counseling or health assessment and who are beholden to the university, who then decide what the next step should be. and this data is kept where? there are just so many issues here and i graduated right before they rolled this out so i don’t know how the students feel but i would never want to talk to anyone about anything anymore

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jujyfru1t · 2 years

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More #LikeAHusky adventures. Selfie on library quad, one last nose rub to King Husky, and fancy water and a ginger-cranberry seltzer concoction at the senior donor reception at ISEC. https://www.instagram.com/p/CdcAJsxLDGn/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#likeahusky

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ace-burger-cafe · 1 year

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2023.01.26.Thu おはようございます。昨日はお休みご迷惑おかけしました。本日は通常営業です！ 10〜16時(15時30ラストオーダー) までよろしくお願いします。北の方はまだ雪の影響はあると思いますが、遠方の方はお気を付けてお越しください。 #aceburgercafe#三重#三重県#伊勢#伊勢市#三重カフェ#伊勢カフェ#mie#ise#mieprefecture #isecity#伊勢志摩#伊勢神宮#iseshima #iseshrine #hamburger#hamburgers#sandwich#ハンバーガー#サンドイッチ#ハンバーガーカフェ#カリフォルニアスタイル#東海カフェ#retrip_mie#cheeseburger#pancakes#パンケーキ#しんぷるぐらむ #コーヒーのある暮らし#バターミルクパンケーキ (Ace Burger Cafe) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn2sd4YBtDo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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euexplico · 3 months

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#explicações de ensino superior #euexplico.pt #explicações

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latestgovtjobnews · 4 months

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ISEC Bengaluru hiring two Assistant Professors in Economics, Decentralisation/Development; apply by January 10, 2024.

New Post has been published on https://www.jobsarkari.in/isec-bengaluru-hiring-two-assistant-professors-in-economics-decentralisation-development-apply-by-january-10-2024/

ISEC Bengaluru hiring two Assistant Professors in Economics, Decentralisation/Development; apply by January 10, 2024.

The Institute for Social and Economic Change in Bengaluru is recruiting two Assistant Professors in the fields of Economics and Decentralisation and Development. Interested candidates can download the application form from www.isec.ac.in. The deadline for submitting applications is January 10, 2024. (40 words)

Institute for Social and Economic Change is recruiting for Assistant Professor positions

There are 2 vacancies for Assistant Professor

The last date for receiving applications is January 10, 2024

Detailed advertisement and application form can be downloaded from www.isec.ac.in

The recruitment is for the Economics and Decentralisation and Development departments

Institute for Social and Economic Change is Hiring Assistant Professors

The Institute for Social and Economic Change in Bengaluru is seeking two Assistant Professors in Economics and Decentralisation and Development

There are 2 vacancies for Assistant Professor

The last date for receiving applications is January 10, 2024

Economics Department Position

One of the Assistant Professor positions is in the Economics department

Join a team of experts in the field of Economics

Contribute to research and teaching in Economics

Decentralisation and Development Department Position

The other Assistant Professor position is in the Decentralisation and Development department

Work in a dynamic and interdisciplinary environment

Explore the relationship between decentralization and development

Application Deadline

The last date for receiving applications is January 10, 2024

Make sure to submit your application before the deadline

Late applications will not be considered

Detailed Advertisement and Application Form

Detailed advertisement and the prescribed application form can be downloaded from www.isec.ac.in

Visit the website to access all the necessary information

Follow the instructions provided to complete your application

Join a Prestigious Institution

The Institute for Social and Economic Change is a renowned institution in Bengaluru

Work alongside esteemed researchers and academics

Contribute to the advancement of knowledge in social and economic sciences

Career Growth Opportunities

Joining ISEC opens up opportunities for career growth and advancement

Engage in cutting-edge research projects and collaborations

Expand your professional network within the academic community

Collaborative Environment

ISEC fosters a collaborative and supportive work environment

Interact with colleagues from diverse backgrounds and expertise

Benefit from interdisciplinary collaborations and knowledge sharing

Visual: Image of ISEC Campus

Insert image of the ISEC campus to showcase the environment

Visual: Graph showing growth in research publications

Include a graph showcasing the growth in research publications at ISEC

Join ISEC and Make an Impact

Join the Institute for Social and Economic Change and contribute to impactful research and teaching

Take the opportunity to shape the future of social and economic sciences

Remember, the deadline for applications is January 10, 2024

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#All Posts

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clydexel · 6 months

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Me Myself And I

Hello everyone my name is Clyde Dexel Morales I'm from Ana ros Village Mandurriao Iloilo city. Welcome to my first blog, so I am gonna talk all about myself. I was taught at the very young age that is important to grow in life and help make a difference. These past 20 years of existence has truly been unforgettable it was filled with adventures, surprises, challenges, growth, tears and smiles all of these awesome opportunities have formed all my perspectives in life. To my mom Claire Quisoy Morales and Dad June Adones Morales thank you for the unconditional love and support you have given me, my memories with them are my treasure that I would keep with me for a lifetime. I have a younger brother and we have a 12 years gap in our age, he is very jolly and sometimes naughty but I love him with all my life. At this current age of mine I already have a special someone who supports me with everything I was a what they call "one of the worst student" when I was in junior highschool and senior highschool but everything changed on the day I met Bethany Hesper Lee. We are currently living at Cubay Jaro Iloilo City. And we are proud to be a fur parents with our five adorable dogs our first dog's name is chippy he is a mixed Dachshund and Mini Pinscher we also have a two brave guard dogs Hayley and Klaus both of them are Belgian Malinois we got their name from our favorite show which is Vampire Diaries. Then we also have my dream dog since I was a kid his name is Elijah he is an Exotic Bully and last but not the least my girlfriend's dream dog her name in Elena and she is a Pomeranian. Dogs have always been a part of my life in short I am a dog lover. I am also a sporty person I was love to play basketball I was influenced by my uncles since I was a kid because they also love the game of basketball. I was a varsity when I was in my elementary and junior highschool years but wait there's more I have my second sport which is badminton I am also a varsity and really I really love the game of badminton, but unfortunately I stopped playing because I have to focus in my priorities in life. I also have a talent in dancing I joined the Pinoy Henyo Dance competition in Eat Bulaga when I was in grade school I was also a declaimer I represented Sped Isec in a declamation competition until regional level. I thank God for all my talents and I will not forget those experiences. I am also a very friendly person,I have many different group of friends and I treat them like my brothers and sisters. With all the blessing I have right now in my life, I couldn't ask for more.

Well to know more about me and if you have something to ask about me just pm me in my facebook account Clyde Dexel Morales.

Always remember everything that's happening in your life has a purpose. Love y'all

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