Technology

Add in:

• TikTok
• Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, and Threads
• Reddit :)

For antivirus, Microsoft's built-in one is fine. Ideally use an OS that has better security and lower default permissions like popular Linux distros (at the very least, it's a smaller target than Windows). I haven't checked recently, but using Malware Bytes for occasional runs (not as active protection though) was good and is probably still good.

But in general, use FOSS, at the very least they'll probably not pull a Reddit and screw over their users.

This just feels like a random hit list; how did you come up with it?

Why zoom? It's based out of San Francisco.

I also object to the Telegram inclusion. Unless you want to include Discord, and various other server side encrypted communication apps. The founders may be Russians by birth but they have Ukrainian roots, are no longer Russian citizens, had their first company stolen from them by the Kremlin, etc. Also I always like to note, Einstein was a German by birth but he was no Nazi.

What's the FileZilla connection? Tim Kosse (which as far as I can tell it's still the primary author) is a German.

Telegram is better than WhatsApp. At least it has a decent Linux client, and all clients are open source. WhatsApp has neither.

Ah fuck, what's the alternative to FileZilla?! I've been using that for like 17 years.

I'd say avoid AVG too then since it's basically Avast.

Does Escape from Tarkov make the list?

Out of curiosity, why Telegram? (Im out of the loop on this one)

As for uTorrent, I’ve got version 2.2.1 and have never allowed it to update in the last decade or however long it’s been. I think that was the last version that didn’t allow any ads or otherwise and was simply a solid p2p client at the time.

It’s news worthy enough for a technology sublemmy, I’d think.

It's news. That's all that matters.

Also this is actually a pretty unique and interesting scenario. You ever seen a digital embargo of software from a single country imposed on citizens? Not to mention the dignity and rights violations on both sides...

I'm not sure how that's relevant. People should be free to use whatever they want. I'm not interested in Russian software, but that doesn't mean banning it is okay. The same goes for Chinese software like TikTok (not touching that), Iranian software, or North Korean software, if that's even a thing. I don't care if literal Nazis made the software, people should be free to use what they want.

The only areas the government should get involved are:

• government owned devices
• public advisories
• prosecution of crimes where the software is involved

The software I choose to use is not the government's business. If I violate a law, charge me with a crime, but don't preemptively ban stuff.