> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Monthly Mosh Pit (News Roundup) - Jan 26 - URL: https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/news-roundup-jan-26/ - Published: 2026-02-08T19:30:29.000Z - Updated: 2026-04-07T13:06:45.000Z - Description: Big Tech news is horrifying, but don't be angry about it every day. Instead focus your rage in the mosh pit once a month 🤘🏼 with our news roundup, then get back to your life! - Author: Patrick Leavy - Tags: News # The Big Tech cesspit ## WhatsApp encryption is a mirage Meta are being sued for being able to access peoples' message content. That's right - the encrypted content. "But it is E2EE!" you say. Yeah, and who holds your encryption keys? Meta. Do you think they, [an advertising company](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/know-your-enemy-pt-2-meta/), would look at your stuff to boost their profits? Of course they would. Move to Signal, they *can't* do that. ## Grok the porn assistant [Musk says outcry over X’s Grok service is ‘excuse for censorship’The government is urging Ofcom to use all its powers – up to and including an effective ban – against X.![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/apple-touch-icon-9.png)BBC News![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/80dd7630-edbb-11f0-b385-5f48925de19a.jpg)](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3kqzepp5zo) X's grok AI digitally undresses people without their consent. The UK gov is considering how to stop it. Musk says it is free speech. We don't want government censorship, but allowing an easy way to undress people and share the pictures is not free speech. The press attention lead to: EU investigating X under [DSA](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital%5FServices%5FAct) \- about Grok deepfakes. Malaysia and Indonesia governments banning grok due to its creepy undressing feature. ## Visualising the harms of AI This organisation has been tracking AI's harms - the site shows great visual ways to see what's going on behind the hype, e.g: ![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/2026/02/AI-incident-database.png) The rising number of cases in the AI harms database The key to the chart above is: Orange=hallucinations/bullshit, Red=autonomous vehicles, Purple=bias, Dark Blue=inappropriate content generation or algorithmic moderation, **Light Blue=fraud, Green=privacy violations and surveillance, LightGreen=Disinformation**, Grey=other. Notice how fraud, privacy/surveillance, and disinformation are rising sharply. AI might be able to do some cool stuff, but the dark side is brutal due to the speed, scope and scale it affords. ## Deathtech and facial wreck ### Palantir It is very important for people to know about [Palantir](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palantir%5FTechnologies) \- they are spreading like a cancer and need to be stopped. [Revealed: Palantir deals with UK government amount to at least £670m – including £15m contract with nuclear weapons agencyExclusive: Nerve investigation finds Trump ally Peter Thiel’s surveillance firm has won at least 34 contracts, including management services for Britain’s nuclear deterrent, with MPs warning of ‘gaping vulnerability’ as US president threatens Nato allies. Carole Cadwalladr reports![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/thumb_cyan_N_thumbnail.jpg)The NerveThe Nerve team![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/Palantir_main_v3.jpg)](https://www.thenerve.news/p/palantir-technologies-uk-government-contracts-size-nuclear-deterrent-atomic-peter-thiel-louis-mosley) 👆🏼 This article reveals the full extent to which Palantir has infiltrated the UK government. It is shocking, if you know how destructive Palantir are to democracy. **Please read this article** \- it contains excellent info on who Palantir are. [Warlords of Information: Palantir, Epstein, & The New York TimesICE brings the hybrid warfare and terror we brought to Gaza back home. It’s time to learn where it comes from, how it works, who enables it, and how to fight back.![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/https-3A-2F-2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com-2Fpublic-2Fimages-2Ffa96742b-c1d3-402a-973e-0e1d406b7279-2Fapple-touch-icon-180x180.png)ZigguratJuan Sebastián Pinto![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/https-3A-2F-2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com-2Fpublic-2Fimages-2F9caee01c-313c-4d12-af4d-ceed7fabf3d1_800x368.heic)](https://zigguratmag.substack.com/p/my-final-message-before-im-on-an) 👆🏼 A Palantir whistleblower tells all - revealing how Epstein was a connector between US politicians and deathtech companies and their Israeli counterparts. This is a great source of insider info on Palantir. [https://www.politico.eu/article/palantir-lands-biggest-ever-uk-defense-deal/#:\~:text=Under the partnership%2C the MoD,over the next five years.”](https://www.politico.eu/article/palantir-lands-biggest-ever-uk-defense-deal/#:~:text=Under%20the%20partnership%2C%20the%20MoD,over%20the%20next%20five%20years.%E2%80%9D) Palantir gets large UK defence contract *with no tender process*. Thankfully The Nerve have revealed the amount of backhand contract awards that has been happening (see above), but it's depressing to see another one go ahead. ICE are using Palantir tech to find deportees. Their tech draws from US Dept of Health data. Coupled with facial recognition software this is the foundation for a surveillance police state. another person is shot by ICE, following [Renee Good on 7th Jan](https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/01/07/shooting-south-minneapolis-ice-agents-federal-operation), and Palantir staff are waking up to the fact that they might be working for a shitty company. ## Paedotech The Epstein files are showing us that Big Tech leaders and top politicians were all in the tangled web weaved by Epstein. It's a thread that runs through the evolution of Big Tech as they now turn to children as their latest 'market'. X's Grok can make [CSAM](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child%5Fpornography) \- Big Tech will do anything for more "engagement". or Meta continue their 'pivot to paedophilia'. They are in the dock again for matching predators with children. If you take part in The Big Tech Walkout then the issues in these newsletters will not affect you so badly. Start now, it's fun and easy, and can be done at your own pace: [Big Tech Walkout ](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/the-big-tech-walkout-2026/) # Big Tech vs democracy ### Politechs Meta and Trump administration revolving door. This is no surprise but here's more proof that the Broligarchy runs all the way to the top. And that's just the latest. From this excellent site we see that in 2025 four tech execs went to work at the military: ![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/2026/02/authoritarian-stack-techtopolitics.png) Tech bros going to work for the US military OpenAI top exec Greg Brockman donates $25m to Trump. We knew that Big Tech paid big money to get Trump elected (and for the ballroom) but it doesn't stop there. More money more favours. Don't regulate me, bro! Learn about the Big Tech oligarchs behind Trump's move on Greenland. ### FBI and the police [EFF Condemns FBI Search of Washington Post Reporter’s HomeGovernment invasion of a reporter’s home, and seizure of journalistic materials, is exactly the kind of abuse of power the First Amendment is designed to prevent. It represents the most extreme form of press intimidation. Yet, that’s what happened on Wednesday morning to Washington Post reporter…![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/apple-touch-icon-precomposed-114x114-1.png)Electronic Frontier FoundationJoe Mullin![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/press_freedom_img_v3.png)](https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01/eff-condemns-fbi-search-washington-post-reporters-home) 👆🏼 The FBI are searching individual journalist's homes now. [Baton Rouge Acquires a Straight-Up Military Surveillance DroneThe Baton Rouge Police Department announced this week that it will begin using a drone designed by military equipment manufacturer Lockheed Martin and Edge Autonomy, making it one of the first local police departments to use an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a history of primary use in foreign…![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/apple-touch-icon-precomposed-114x114-2.png)Electronic Frontier FoundationBeryl Lipton![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/drone-spy-3.jpg)](https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01/baton-rouge-acquires-straight-military-surveillance-drone) 👆🏼 January saw the first US police force to deploy a military drone. The docu-film [2073](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/2073) is coming true more and more in the US. ## AI bubble A Munich regional court finds that OpenAI is stealing stuff - violating copyright - when training and operating its models. We have always suspected that, so its great that a court has set a precedent ruling that proves it. [TJLP Statement on OpenAI Retiring Dangerous ChatGPT 4o ModelFor Immediate Release: January 30, 2026 Contact: press@techjusticelaw.org Tech Justice Law Project Statement on OpenAI Retiring Dangerous ChatGPT 4o Model Tech Justice Law Project (TJLP) Exec…![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/cropped-Tech-Justice-Law-Project-2.png)Tech Justice Law Project![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/a-rising-tide-lifts-all-bots_rose-willis_kathryn-conrad_3000x1999-.png)](https://techjusticelaw.org/2026/01/30/tjlp-statement-on-openai-retiring-dangerous-chatgpt-4o-model/) 👆🏼 OpenAI pulls 4o model after lawsuits prove it deceives and helps kill people. The 4'o' model was rushed to market and is characteristic for its overly sycophantic responses. This is the model implicated in cases where people have been drawn down conspiracy or self harm rabbit holes. [Instagram AI Influencers Are Defaming Celebrities With Sex ScandalsFake images of LeBron James, iShowSpeed, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and even Nicolás Maduro show them in bed with AI-generated influencers.![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/favicon-3.svg)404 MediaEmanuel Maiberg![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/Screenshot-as-Lede-Image.png)](https://www.404media.co/instagram-ai-influencers-are-defaming-celebrities-with-sex-scandals/) 👆🏼 The combination of Instagram - a cesspit of influencer idiots - and AI is never going to end well. This article reveals that 'porn image' influencers use AI to show themselves with fake bodies, fake sleeping with real celebrities. Click bait for porn sites, juicing the Instagram algorithm. Billionaire planning an *18 million sq foot* data center in Texas. That's the size of a very large town and it will consume about as much energy and water as one. To make matters worse it is linked to Palantir, the US's most aggressive deathtech and surveillance company. If you take part in The Big Tech Walkout then the issues in these newsletters will not affect you so badly. Start now, it's fun and easy, and can be done at your own pace: [Big Tech Walkout ](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/the-big-tech-walkout-2026/) # It's not all bad! ![Calming image of a man standing as a silhouette with a sunrise ahead of him](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/2026/01/silhouette-sky-sun.jpg) And.... breathe.... [Court Approves Challenge To Mega-Scale London Data CentreHigh Court says campaigners’ challenge to large-scale data project west of London can go ahead, after government acknowledges ‘error’![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/apple-icon-180x180-1.png)Silicon UKMatthew Broersma![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/high-court-02.jpg)](https://www.silicon.co.uk/e-regulation/legal/court-data-centre-628473) 👆🏼 Foxglove's campaign to challenge the UK government's fast-track rollout of data centers worked! This German company is building a sovereign cloud - great news for less reliance on US Big Tech cloud services. This Dutch university stops buying Big Tech smart phones for staff, and switches to [Fairphone](https://www.fairphone.com/). Everyone could make this switch, and it's great to see some public examples. [Pluralistic: How the Light Gets In (15 Jan 2026) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/icon/cropped-guillotine-French-Revolution.jpg)Cory Doctorow![](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/content/images/thumbnail/15Jan2026.jpg)](https://pluralistic.net/2026/01/15/how-the-light-gets-in/) 👆🏼 In the "Post-American internet" tariffs mean we can circumvent anti-circumvention laws. This is a point made in perhaps a better way in this Brazilian article by the same author: It's an interesting theory and, if countries pick up on it, great news for #RightToRepair because we can un-enshittify US tech products to make them work for us, not them. The medical profession (and one politician) in the UK are waking up to the threat of Palantir. Better late than never. NOYB win: Microsoft's M365 Education edtech is caught tracking children. It illegally installs cookies on the student's device, which track their behaviour to be monetised via advertising. When will schools wake up to the fact that monetising children was supposed to have been phased out in the 20th Century! If you take part in The Big Tech Walkout then the issues in these newsletters will not affect you so badly. Start now, it's fun and easy, and can be done at your own pace: [Big Tech Walkout ](https://blog.rebeltechalliance.org/the-big-tech-walkout-2026/) --- # Summary In January we saw that WhatsApp's encryption is weak, Grok and Musk are pushing porn and CSAM on the public, and those tracking the harms of AI can demonstrate a huge uptick of incidents since 2024\. Both X and Meta continue their 'pivot-to-porn' and 'pivot-to-paedo' trajectory, joining OpenAI in that endeavour. Palantir have been in the news a LOT and the articles we've picked out give you a great overview of their corrosive reach. We've seen how the Big Tech-Government revolving door continues to infect politics with tech bros, and how law enforcement are becoming more distopian, fueled with Palantir's surveillance tech. The AI hype bubble continues to spew out reports of copyright theft, unsafe models and porn influencers. And vast data center projects, of course. But we've also seen that some campaigns are listened to by governments, and some pockets of the world are seeing sense by moving away from Big Tech products. --- # Tech tip of the month Your mobile keyboard is snitching on you - sending what you type to Big Tech. Cut that out by installing one that respects your privacy. We recommend [FUTO keyboard](https://keyboard.futo.org/), especially as it has an excellent local speech-to-text function. We also recommend [Heliboard](https://github.com/Helium314/HeliBoard). Check out our site for other Big Tech alternatives: # Book recommendation [The Circle](https://www.awesomebooks.com/book/9780241146507/the-circle/used) (Dave Eggers, 2014) - this book brilliantly captures the absurdity of the Silicon Valley approach. Very funny, but you'll find the dystopian undertones all too familiar, as many of them have played out in the years since this was written. # Blog recommendation For a full on take-down of the AI hype, and a great explanation of why it's a bubble, follow Ed Zitron's blog [Where's Your Ed At](https://www.wheresyoured.at). # Film recommendation [Don't Look Up](https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/646380-don-t-look-up) (2021) - watch (or re-watch) this via the lens of Big Tech and the broligarchy for a funny take on the current state of AI hype. The way a bunch of non-serious muppets in the White House try to spin things is very well depicted. --- [Rebel Tech Alliance](https://www.rebeltechalliance.org/) is a non-profit dedicated to getting as many people off big tech products as possible. Why? Because that reduces the surveillance economy, and reducing *that* is good for individuals and society.