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The new generation of reCAPTCHA has fundamentally changed how it verifies users on Android, and it's terrible news for anyone running a de-googled device.
Instead of showing the classic image puzzles when suspicious activity is detected, the system now requires you to scan a QR code. To do this, your device must have Google Play Services (version 25.41.30 or higher) running in the background and communicating with Google's servers.
If you are using GrapheneOS or any other custom ROM without Google Play Services, you automatically fail the verification.
Here are a few details that show exactly what Google is doing here:
• The iOS Asymmetry: This is clearly not about security. On iOS 16.4 and newer, this exact same verification passes perfectly fine natively, without requiring the user to install any Google software. Google is artificially restricting Android users while giving iOS a free pass.
• The Quiet Rollout: The service was officially presented on April 23 at Cloud Next as part of "Google Cloud Fraud Defense." However, the Play Services dependency was introduced silently. An archived copy of a Google support page from October 2025 already lists the requirement (for v25.39.30). This means the mechanism was baked in for at least seven months before Reddit users finally caught on.
Because reCAPTCHA acts as a gatekeeper for millions of websites, tying it to Play Services essentially turns access to regular web content into an ultimatum: either run Google's proprietary framework and send telemetry to their servers, or be locked out of the web.
I won't even use irony here. Everything is already perfectly clear about the "Don't Be Evil" corporation.
Link: https://reclaimthenet.org/google-broke-recaptcha-for-de-googled-android-users
*translated with AI(English is not my native language)
Have you noticed that we no longer share the same information environment? Social media algorithms have built a personalized, impenetrable filter bubble around each of us.
Smart feeds adapt to our clicks, interests, and even our hidden fears. As a result, two people living on the exact same floor can consume completely different news, believe in entirely different facts, and discuss completely different public figures. We might be physically next to each other, but mentally we are fractured into isolated micro-groups, each genuinely convinced that their worldview is the only valid one.
We are rapidly drifting apart simply because it's the easiest way for algorithms to hijack and hold our attention. Where will this total fragmentation of society lead us in the end?
Have you noticed that we no longer share the same information environment? Social media algorithms have built a personalized, impenetrable filter bubble around each of us.
Smart feeds adapt to our clicks, interests, and even our hidden fears. As a result, two people living on the exact same floor can consume completely different news, believe in entirely different facts, and discuss completely different public figures. We might be physically next to each other, but mentally we are fractured into isolated micro-groups, each genuinely convinced that their worldview is the only valid one.
We are rapidly drifting apart simply because it's the easiest way for algorithms to hijack and hold our attention. Where will this total fragmentation of society lead us in the end?
Заметили, что мы перестали жить в одном информационном пространстве? Алгоритмы соцсетей создали для каждого из нас персональный, непроницаемый инфопузырь.
Умные ленты подстраиваются под наши клики, интересы и скрытые страхи. В итоге два человека, живущие на одной лестничной клетке, могут потреблять абсолютно разные новости, верить в разные факты и обсуждать совершенно разных героев. Мы физически находимся рядом, но ментально разбиты на изолированные микрогруппы, каждая из которых искренне уверена, что именно её картина мира - единственно верная.
Мы стремительно отдаляемся друг от друга просто потому, что алгоритмам так проще удерживать наше внимание. К чему приведет такая тотальная фрагментация общества?
We all know the deal: Google Meet is “free” and convenient. In return, Google gets a front-row seat to your business strategy, family calls, and every scrap of metadata. And with Gemini AI being shoved deeper into Workspace, they’re no longer just hosting your meetings – they’re actively mining them.
Enter Proton Meet. On paper, it looks like a direct strike at the heart of the Google ecosystem.
Why de-Googlers should care:
· True E2EE, not just promises – Proton uses the MLS protocol (Messaging Layer Security) to encrypt video, audio, chat, and screen sharing end‑to‑end. Even if a government demands your meeting records, Proton has literally nothing to hand over.
· No CLOUD Act loophole – Google is a US company, so your data is subject to US surveillance laws regardless of where their servers sit. Proton is based in Switzerland, and their E2EE architecture is designed to block that legal overreach entirely.
· No account? No problem. You can host or join a meeting without signing up – which means Google can’t build a shadow profile on you.
The reality check (because this is r/degoogle, not a marketing echo chamber)
We’ve seen Proton blink before – the Swiss IP logging incident with Mail is a real stain. They claim their VPN and E2EE design protect against that repeating, but it’s fair to ask: are we just swapping Google for a “Swiss Google”?
The “evil” gap
Google’s business model is being the free default. Proton Meet’s pro features cost $7.99/month – and oddly, it’s not even included in the Unlimited plan right now. Privacy has a price tag, while “free” just costs our digital sovereignty.
So what do you think?
Does true E2EE + escaping US jurisdiction make Proton Meet worth the switch? Or is Proton turning into a walled garden of its own?
Source: https://proton.me/business/blog/introducing-proton-meet
European privacy is facing a massive new threat, and surprisingly, the risk is coming straight from the European Commission.
Under a recent Digital Markets Act (DMA) proposal, the EC wants to force Google to share its search data with third-party competitors. The problem is how they plan to do it: the proposal would effectively de-anonymize individual users, allowing third parties to track your search queries without asking for your permission and with almost zero oversight.
The Chamber of Progress has officially stepped in to sound the alarm, calling the move an unprecedented breach of trust. They point out that giving rivals unregulated access to the search histories of millions of Europeans is a massive privacy violation that puts corporate profits ahead of user safety.
This isn't an isolated incident. It is part of a growing trend under the DMA that is quietly degrading digital services and privacy across the continent - what the Chamber of Progress calls "Europe's Digital Curtain."
The incredibly short two-week consultation period for this proposal already closed on May 1st. Now, we have to wait and see if the Commission will push forward with exposing our data, or if they will revise the proposal to actually protect European users.
European privacy is facing a massive new threat, and surprisingly, the risk is coming straight from the European Commission.
Under a recent Digital Markets Act (DMA) proposal, the EC wants to force Google to share its search data with third-party competitors. The problem is how they plan to do it: the proposal would effectively de-anonymize individual users, allowing third parties to track your search queries without asking for your permission and with almost zero oversight.
The Chamber of Progress has officially stepped in to sound the alarm, calling the move an unprecedented breach of trust. They point out that giving rivals unregulated access to the search histories of millions of Europeans is a massive privacy violation that puts corporate profits ahead of user safety.
This isn't an isolated incident. It is part of a growing trend under the DMA that is quietly degrading digital services and privacy across the continent - what the Chamber of Progress calls "Europe's Digital Curtain."
The incredibly short two-week consultation period for this proposal already closed on May 1st. Now, we have to wait and see if the Commission will push forward with exposing our data, or if they will revise the proposal to actually protect European users.
Source: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip\_26\_825
Anthropic just dropped some breaking news that sounds straight out of a sci-fi novel. They secured a massive compute deal with SpaceX, and they are officially exploring putting AI compute capacity in orbit.
For developers and heavy users, the immediate impact is huge. Starting today, Claude usage limits are getting a massive bump:
• The 5-hour rate limits for Claude Code are doubling for Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise plans.
• Peak-hour limit reductions for Pro and Max accounts are completely gone.
• API rate limits for all Claude Opus models are being raised considerably.
This is powered by a new agreement giving Anthropic exclusive access to SpaceX’s Colossus 1 data center. That brings 300 megawatts of power and over 220,000 NVIDIA GPUs online within the next month.
The scale of their infrastructure expansion is hard to comprehend right now. This SpaceX deal joins a 5 GW deal with Amazon, 5 GW with Google and Broadcom, $30 billion in Azure capacity, and a $50 billion investment with Fluidstack. They are throwing unbelievable amounts of capital at solving the compute bottleneck.
One incredibly interesting side note on the energy front: Anthropic officially committed to covering any consumer electricity price increases caused by their US data centers. Setting that kind of financial precedent in the middle of a massive, multi-gigawatt global infrastructure build-out is a fascinating move.
Privacy researcher Alexander Hanff has discovered that Google Chrome silently downloads a 4GB file called weights.bin to users' hard drives without asking for consent. This file, stored in the OptGuideOnDeviceModel folder, contains the AI model weights for Gemini Nano.
Hanff proved this happens by checking macOS file event logs on a brand-new browser profile where not a single key had been pressed. It took exactly 14 minutes and 28 seconds from the moment the folder was created until the massive file finished downloading.
Simply deleting the file doesn't solve the problem. Chrome just downloads it again the next time you open the browser, unless you manually disable the AI features hidden inside the chrome://flags menu.
The environmental impact is huge. Hanff calculated that pushing this 4GB update to 500 million devices creates a carbon footprint of roughly 30,000 tons of CO2 per distribution cycle. Because of this, he argues the silent installation violates both the ePrivacy Directive and the GDPR.
The worst part about this behavior is that Chrome doesn't even use this local model to answer direct user prompts - those are still sent straight to Google's servers. Instead, this giant local file only exists to power minor background browser features.
We can only hope those features don't include making our devices part of a botnet. For now, anyway.