Online privacy isn’t just about your cookie settings. Corporations like Facebook have filed some truly creepy patents that reveal their ability to track everything from dust on your camera lens to who you talked to the most at a party. Target may even know you’re pregnant before you do… Kate and Larkin are joined by Ben Silver, who made them stutter, hide, and nearly walk away as he reveals all the information companies have about us. Grab your tinfoil hats and prepare to be unsettled. About Ben Silver: Ben holds an undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Math from the University of Hartford, a master’s degree in Instructional Technology and Media from Columbia University, and is currently at Columbia working on his second master’s in Data, Learning, and Society. His research has focused on technology, education, accessibility, culture, and ethics. As a creator, Ben rides the waves of his unreliable brain chemistry… it’s a fun ride, if you’d like to follow along. He lives in New York City with several dead houseplants, he loves the moon, and he wants you to drink more water. You can follow him on TikTok and Instagram. To take action against the proposed federal rule: Leave a public comment on the proposed rule attempting to erase trans and non-binary people: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/29/2026-10817/regulation-for-federal-financial-assistance Kate’s language, if you want to base your comment off hers: “This proposed rule is an insidious attempt to smuggle anti-trans and non-binary sentiment into government funding. It allows for a politically appointed reviewer to deny funding based on ‘denial by the recipient of the sex binary in humans or the notion that sex is a chosen or mutable characteristic.’ § 200.205(b)(ii). §200.205(b)(i) also allows for denial of funding if an organization uses ‘Racial preferences or other forms of racial discrimination by the recipient, including activities where race or intentional proxies for race will be used as a selection criterion for employment or program participation.’ This is incredibly broad and is clearly meant to penalize any organization that dares to focus on the issues faced by non-white communities. Denial of funding based on these parameters is atrocious. It will affect not only the communities it attempts to erase, but anyone who hopes to receive help from hospitals or other organizations that may be denied funding based on these sweeping standards. It is, in a word, fascism. If this rule is to move forward, it should eliminate the portions allowing for witholding of funding based on an organization's acknowledgement of trans and non-binary individuals, and support of non-white communities. As an attorney and as a citizen, I strongly condemn the language in this proposed rule. The attempted erasure of transgender, non-binary, and non-white individuals by this administration is abhorrent and downright un-American.” Erin in the Morning article about the above-mentioned proposed rule: https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/fascismnew-federal-rule-would-require References Patent: Inferring relationship statuses of users of a social networking system https://patents.google.com/patent/US20150356180A1/en Patent: Associating cameras with users and objects in a social networking system https://patents.google.com/patent/US20150124107A1/en Patent: Techniques for emotion detection and content delivery https://patents.google.com/patent/US20150242679A1/en Patent: Systems and methods for utilizing wireless communications to suggest connections for a user https://patents.justia.com/patent/10111059 Your phone isn’t secretly listening to you, but the truth is more disturbing https://newatlas.com/computers/smartphone-listening-conversations-ads-facebook/ Here’s the Pitch Deck for ‘Active Listening’ Ad Targeting https://www.404media.co/heres-the-pitch-deck-for-active-listening-ad-targeting How Target Figured Out A Teen Girl Was Pregnant Before Her Father Did https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-target-figured-out-a-teen-girl-was-pregnant-before-her-father-did/?sh=208c9bd76668 How Companies Learn Your Secrets http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/magazine/shopping-habits.html (Archived) https://archive.is/20120910190622/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/magazine/shopping-habits.html Facebook Now Suggesting Friends Found in Imported Contact Lists? https://www.adweek.com/performance-marketing/facebook-now-suggesting-friends-found-in-imported-contact-lists/ Social Media Patents & Privacy Data https://www.metaverselaw.com/facebook-patents-and-privacy-new-ways-to-mine-personal-information/ Facebook Knows How to Track You Using the Dust on Your Camera Lens https://gizmodo.com/facebook-knows-how-to-track-you-using-the-dust-on-your-1821030620 Uber State Interference https://www.nelp.org/insights-research/uber-state-interference/ If you know something we can ruin, send the topic and a brief hint at how it's ruined to nowitsruined@gmail.com. Let us know if you'd like us to credit you if we choose your topic! Follow us on Patreon for updates, video episodes, and lots of fun bonus content (even for unpaid members). You can also follow us on YouTube and Instagram. You can also follow Kate and Larkin! Kate is on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Larkin is on TikTok and Instagram. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
