Putin’s brutal aggression in Ukraine has put cyberwar back in headlines. Recently, Carey Parker, host of the Firewalls Don’t Stop Dragons podcast, reached out to us at Tech Learning Collective to talk through some of the issues the war in Ukraine has once again raised for laypeople who may be newly concerned about the reliance we’ve developed as a society on digital infrastructures. So, late last month, we sat down with him for another conversation about what anyone and, arguably, everyone could be doing not only to keep themselves safer online, but also prepared in the event of an escalation of hostilities in a cyber theater, rapid shifts in political climates, or even just natural disasters that affect telecommunication abilities.
Technology, taught collectively.
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Firewalls Don't Stop Dragons: Luck Favors the Prepared
The Enragés: Next Time the Pendulum Swings, Part 2
Earlier this month, we republished part 1 of our interview with The Enragés, where we discussed our blog post, Imagining an Optimistic Cyber-Future. In this post, you’ll find the conclusion of our conversation along with a (somewhat rushed) transcript of the same. Here, we touch on ways in which capitalism has constrained people’s telecommunication abilities, we describe some of our inspiration from earlier political thinkers, and we even answer a couple of listener questions.
Testimonials
“cogent, concise, and free of unnecessary technical jargon”
TLC’s workshop on securing email was very well organized and easy to follow. At every step of the way during demonstrations, actions taken were clearly explained along with their intended purpose. The instructor’s delivery was cogent, concise, and free of unnecessary technical jargon. The instructor facilitated an informative conversation with attendees about encryption and related issues. This workshop provided a convincing case for using encryption and demonstrated how easily it can be implemented. I look forward to setting up encryption for my personal communications and reaping the benefits.
“immensely valuable, and changed my core beliefs about my technological proficiency and potential.”
[I participated in] the “Tor: What is it Good For? (Absolutely Everything!)” workshop [and] I loved (LOVED!) the workshop.
The instructor was personable, friendly, and warm, with a keen vision of the change they want to see in the world and the ability to draw that vision into reality using self-direction and their unique and valuable gifts. They use analogies and examples to demystify complex subjects and connect, and anchor, abstract concepts to concrete understanding. They are kind, helpful, informative, and empowering to students.
The information was presented in an organized fashion, with step-by-step guidance that eliminated confusion in even the most inexperienced novice. The class is geared toward creating positive change in students’ lives by helping them better understand their use of internet security and privacy. Everything taught was highly applicable and useful to the common person. (These classes work to level the playing field between those with innate technological interest/skill and those without.)
The teaching methods used (analogies, examples, demonstration, verbal explanation, and hands-on practice) address the needs of all different kinds of learners in the classroom. The flow of the class was seamless. The incorporation of questions and answers was so helpful, and the progression of the material was logical and conducive to learning. There were frequent “comprehension checks” which made the material and instructor accessible to students throughout class.
I could go on, but TLDR: This class was immensely valuable, and changed my core beliefs about my technological proficiency and potential.
“a great resource”
The instructor was great. They made the workshop [I attended] a positive and open learning environment, offered clear explanations, useful graphics, and resources to put the subject into understandable context, and was super generous with their time and personable in fielding the range of questions. What a great resource TLC is! I look forward to my next workshop.
“simply so illuminating”
I knew that I have a lot to learn about digital security and online privacy, but I didn’t know exactly what I had to learn, or how to start. After I took Tech Learning Collective’s Signal and Surveillance workshop, though, the things I didn’t know that I didn’t know became a lot clearer. At the same time, the workshop got me jazzed to take other courses from them. It was simply so illuminating!