Jekyll2024-01-09T17:41:38+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/feed/discreet-log.xmlOpen Privacy Research Society | Discreet-logThe Open Privacy Research Society (Open Privacy for short) is a non-profit Canadian group based in Vancouver, British Columbia.Discreet Log: July 2023!2023-07-14T00:00:00+00:002023-07-14T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/40_july-2023<p>Welcome to Discreet Log for July 2023!</p>
<p>Discreet Log is our regular digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy.</p>
<p>In this edition we want to tell you about the release of Cwtch Beta 1.12, new updates to Repliqate, and an update on our 2023 fundraising goal.</p>
<!--more-->
<h2 id="help-us-reach-our-2023-fundraising-goal">Help us reach our 2023 Fundraising Goal!</h2>
<p>Our 2023 fundraising goal reflects <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/reports/2021-eoy-report/#changes-in-staffing-and-compensation">the reductions</a> we made to staff and operations last year. This year we are only looking to raise <strong>$60,000</strong> to support active research and development in projects like <a href="https://cwtch.im">Cwtch</a>, as well as maintain our <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/work/">existing projects and infrastructure</a>. We could not do our work without you.</p>
<p>One of the most effective ways you can support us is by setting up a recurring donation on <a href="https://patreon.com/openprivacy">Patreon</a> or <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate/">Paypal</a>.</p>
<p>Thanks to recurring support and individual donations we are already expecting to reach 66% of the target! We would like to extend a <strong>huge thank you</strong> to everyone who has helped support Open Privacy over the years.</p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>
<h2 id="cwtch-beta-112-and-cwtch-stable-roadmap-update">Cwtch Beta 1.12 and Cwtch Stable Roadmap Update</h2>
<p>The Cwtch Dev Team ended June with two big releases. The first was <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-nightly-1-12">Cwtch Beta 1.12</a>. Cwtch 1.12 is the culmination of the last few months of effort by the Cwtch team, and includes many foundational changes that pave the way for Cwtch Stable including new features like profile attributes, support for new platforms <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/platforms/tails">like Tails</a>, and multiple improvements to performance and stability.</p>
<p>Last week, the team also released the latest <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-stable-roadmap-update-june">Cwtch Stable Roadmap Update</a> looking back on the goals set out in January and March, and plotting a course towards a full Cwtch Stable candidate release later this summer!</p>
<h2 id="reproducible-builds">Reproducible Builds</h2>
<p>In <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-ui-reproducible-builds-linux">their latest devlog</a> the Cwtch team discuss how the Cwtch UI is currently built, the changes they have made to Cwtch UI to make future distributions verifiable, and the next steps they will be taking to make all Cwtch builds reproducible.</p>
<h2 id="repliqate-updates">Repliqate Updates</h2>
<p>As part of our ongoing effort towards making all parts of Cwtch reproducible and verifiable, we have also improved <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/openprivacy/repliqate">Repliqate</a>, an Open Privacy tool that makes it easy to construct isolated build environments, powered by Qemu and a standard cloud image distribution.</p>
<p>The latest version of Reqpliate now allows for optional KVM acceleration, and features several fixes designed to speed up building and analysis.</p>
<h2 id="new-social-media">New Social Media</h2>
<p>As we announced in the January Discreet Log, you can now follow both Open Privacy and Cwtch on Mastodon!</p>
<ul>
<li>Open Privacy: <a href="https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy">https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy</a></li>
<li>Cwtch: <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch">https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch</a></li>
</ul>
<p>In addition, we have recently launched a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/">Cwtch.im Instagram</a> for some of the more visual aspects of Cwtch development.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/"><img class="giftimage" src="/images/discreet-log/jan2023-marcia1.png" /></a>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log for July 2023! Discreet Log is our regular digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. In this edition we want to tell you about the release of Cwtch Beta 1.12, new updates to Repliqate, and an update on our 2023 fundraising goal.Discreet Log: April 2023!2023-05-04T00:00:00+00:002023-05-04T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/39-april-2023<p>Welcome to Discreet Log for April 2023!</p>
<p>Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy.</p>
<p>In this edition we want to tell you about how to test new features in Cwtch Nightlies, and introduce you to the new Cwtch developer documentation!</p>
<!--more-->
<h2 id="help-us-reach-our-2023-fundraising-goal">Help us reach our 2023 Fundraising Goal!</h2>
<p>Our 2023 fundraising goal reflects <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/reports/2021-eoy-report/#changes-in-staffing-and-compensation">the reductions</a> we made to staff and operations last year. This year we are only looking to raise <strong>$60,000</strong> to support active research and development in projects like <a href="https://cwtch.im">Cwtch</a>, as well as maintain our <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/work/">existing projects and infrastructure</a>. We could not do our work without you.</p>
<p>One of the most effective ways you can support us is by setting up a recurring donation on <a href="https://patreon.com/openprivacy">Patreon</a> or <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate/">Paypal</a>.</p>
<p>Thanks to recurring support we are already expecting to reach 58% of the target! We would like to extend a <strong>huge thank you</strong> to everyone who has helped support Open Privacy over the years.</p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>
<h2 id="cwtch-developer-documentation">Cwtch Developer Documentation</h2>
<p>Are you interested in contributing to Cwtch, or building an alternative Cwtch client?</p>
<p>Or, Have you ever wanted to build a Cwtch chat bot?</p>
<p>There is now a <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/developing/intro/">new section on the Cwtch documentation site</a> to cover these kinds of topics.</p>
<p>More information on how to download Cwtch nightlies, and give feedback, can be found in the latest <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-developer-documentation">Cwtch Development log</a></p>
<h2 id="new-cwtch-nightlies">New Cwtch Nightlies</h2>
<p>Two new Cwtch features are now available to test in nightly: <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/availability-status/">Availability Status</a> and <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/profile-info/">Profile Information</a>!</p>
<p>The Cwtch team have also published draft guidance for <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/platforms/tails">running Cwtch on Tails</a> that they would like people to test out and provide feedback on.</p>
<h2 id="new-social-media">New Social Media</h2>
<p>As we announced in the January Discreet Log, you can now follow both Open Privacy and Cwtch on Mastodon!</p>
<ul>
<li>Open Privacy: <a href="https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy">https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy</a></li>
<li>Cwtch: <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch">https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch</a></li>
</ul>
<p>In addition, we have recently launched a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/">Cwtch.im Instagram</a> for some of the more visual aspects of Cwtch development.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/"><img class="giftimage" src="/images/discreet-log/jan2023-marcia1.png" /></a>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log for April 2023! Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. In this edition we want to tell you about how to test new features in Cwtch Nightlies, and introduce you to the new Cwtch developer documentation!Discreet Log: March 2023!2023-04-04T00:00:00+00:002023-04-04T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/38-march-2023<p>Welcome to Discreet Log for March 2023!</p>
<p>Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy.</p>
<p>In this edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new Cwtch Development Logs that have been released this month - including the <strong>Cwtch Beta 1.11 release</strong>, and updates on the <strong>Cwtch Stable roadmap</strong>, new volunteer documentation, and more!</p>
<!--more-->
<h2 id="help-us-reach-our-2023-fundraising-goal">Help us reach our 2023 Fundraising Goal!</h2>
<p>Our 2023 fundraising goal reflects <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/reports/2021-eoy-report/#changes-in-staffing-and-compensation">the reductions</a> we made to staff and operations last year. This year we are only looking to raise <strong>$60,000</strong> to support active research and development in projects like <a href="https://cwtch.im">Cwtch</a>, as well as maintain our <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/work/">existing projects and infrastructure</a>. We could not do our work without you.</p>
<p>One of the most effective ways you can support us is by setting up a recurring donation on <a href="https://patreon.com/openprivacy">Patreon</a> or <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate/">Paypal</a>.</p>
<p>Thanks to recurring support we are already expecting to reach 58% of the target! We would like to extend a <strong>huge thank you</strong> to everyone who has helped support Open Privacy over the years.</p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>
<h2 id="cwtch-beta-111-and-cwtch-stable-roadmap-update">Cwtch Beta 1.11 and Cwtch Stable Roadmap Update</h2>
<p>The Cwtch Dev Team ended March with two big releases. The first was <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-nightly-1-11">Cwtch Beta 1.11</a>. Cwtch 1.11 is the culmination of the last few months of effort by the Cwtch team, and includes many foundational changes that pave the way for Cwtch Stable including new reproducible and automatically generated bindings, as well as support for two new languages (Slovak and Korean), in addition to several performance improvements and bug fixes.</p>
<p>On March 31st the team also released the latest <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-stable-roadmap-update">Cwtch Stable Roadmap Update</a> looking back on the goals set out in January, and plotting a course towards a full Cwtch Stable candidate release this summer!</p>
<h2 id="new-cwtch-volunteer-documentation">New Cwtch Volunteer Documentation</h2>
<p>In order to help people get acclimated to Cwtch development, the Cwtch team created a new section on the Cwtch documentation site called <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/contribute/developing">Developing Cwtch</a> - there you will find a collection of useful links and information about how to get started with Cwtch development, what libraries and tools to use, how pull requests are validated and verified, and how to choose an issue to work on.</p>
<p>The Cwtch team also also updated guides on <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/contribute/translate">Translating Cwtch</a> and <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/contribute/testing">Testing Cwtch</a>.</p>
<p>If you are interested in getting started with Cwtch development then please check it out, and feel free to reach out to <code class="highlighter-rouge">team@cwtch.im</code> (or open an issue) with any questions. All types of contributions <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/contribute/stickers">are eligible for stickers</a>.</p>
<h2 id="new-social-media">New Social Media</h2>
<p>As we announced in the January Discreet Log, you can now follow both Open Privacy and Cwtch on Mastodon!</p>
<ul>
<li>Open Privacy: <a href="https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy">https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy</a></li>
<li>Cwtch: <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch">https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch</a></li>
</ul>
<p>In addition, we have recently launched a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/">Cwtch.im Instagram</a> for some of the more visual aspects of Cwtch development.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/"><img class="giftimage" src="/images/discreet-log/jan2023-marcia1.png" /></a>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log for March 2023! Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. In this edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new Cwtch Development Logs that have been released this month - including the Cwtch Beta 1.11 release, and updates on the Cwtch Stable roadmap, new volunteer documentation, and more!Discreet Log: February 2023!2023-02-28T00:00:00+00:002023-02-28T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/37-february-2023<p>Welcome to Discreet Log for February 2023!</p>
<p>Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy.</p>
<p>In this edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new Cwtch Development Logs that have been released this month - including news of UI Testings, and updates on reproducibility, and automation, of Cwtch bindings!</p>
<!--more-->
<h2 id="cwtch-ui-testing">Cwtch UI Testing</h2>
<p>One of the main threads of work that needed to be complete early in the Cwtch Stable roadmap was integrating UI tests into our build pipelines, in addition to expanding their scope.</p>
<p>Because this work is ongoing we have taken to releasing periodic updates:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-testing-i">Notes on Cwtch UI Testing</a></li>
<li><a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-testing-ii">Notes on Cwtch UI Testing II</a></li>
</ul>
<p>This effort has already started to pay off, <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-testing-i#catching-bugs">catching bugs</a> that would have been difficult to find any other way - and we expect this work to continue through March.</p>
<h2 id="making-cwtch-android-bindings-reproducible">Making Cwtch Android Bindings Reproducible</h2>
<p>In mid-February, we continued our previous work on <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-bindings-reproducible">reproducible Cwtch bindings</a>, uncovering the final few sources of variation between our <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/openprivacy/repliqate">Repliqate</a> scripts and our docker/drone builds, leading to fully <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-android-reproducibility">reproducible builds for Cwtch Android bindings!</a></p>
<h2 id="autogenerating-cwtch-bindings">Autogenerating Cwtch Bindings</h2>
<p>The C-bindings for Cwtch evolved as part of Cwtch UI development. After two years of prototyping, development, new features, and revisiting first implementations we have reached the point where we have a good understanding of what the bindings need to do, and how they should do it.</p>
<p>At the end of February we released a first cut of a workflow to <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/autobindings">automatically generate these bindings</a>: <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/cwtch.im/autobindings">cwtch-autobindings</a>.</p>
<h2 id="new-social-media">New Social Media</h2>
<p>As we announced in the January Discreet Log, you can now follow both Open Privacy and Cwtch on Mastodon!</p>
<ul>
<li>Open Privacy: <a href="https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy">https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy</a></li>
<li>Cwtch: <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch">https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch</a></li>
</ul>
<p>In addition, we have recently launched a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/">Cwtch.im Instagram</a> for some of the more visual aspects of Cwtch development.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/"><img class="giftimage" src="/images/discreet-log/jan2023-marcia1.png" /></a>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log for February 2023! Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. In this edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new Cwtch Development Logs that have been released this month - including news of UI Testings, and updates on reproducibility, and automation, of Cwtch bindings!Discreet Log: January 2023!2023-01-31T00:00:00+00:002023-01-31T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/36-january-2023<p>Welcome to Discreet Log for January 2023!</p>
<p>Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy.</p>
<p>In this edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new Cwtch Development Logs that have been released this month - including news of Cwtch Stable and Reproducible Builds! -and how to follow Cwtch updates across social media.</p>
<!--more-->
<h2 id="path-to-cwtch-stable">Path to Cwtch Stable</h2>
<p>The Cwtch Dev Team started January <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/path-to-cwtch-stable">by releasing a development log that outlined the general principles that are guiding the development of Cwtch Stable</a>, the obstacles that prevent a stable Cwtch release, and a roadmap that they are following to tackle them.</p>
<p>As Cwtch moves out of Beta and towards Stable it is time to revisit previous design decisions with both the benefit of hindsight, and years of real-world testing. Following the roadmap post was another that <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-stable-api-design">set out upcoming changes to the core Cwtch API</a> in preparation for Cwtch Stable.</p>
<h2 id="cwtch-reproducible-builds-and-repliqate">Cwtch Reproducible Builds and Repliqate</h2>
<p>Open source code is only one defense against malicious actors who might seek to undermine your privacy and security. The Cwtch team are working towards making all parts of Cwtch reproducible and verifiable.</p>
<p>As part of that effort, on January 20th the Cwtch Team <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-bindings-reproducible">announced that they had reached the milestone of reproducible builds for Linux and Windows Cwtch bindings</a> with additional work carried out in preparation for reproducible Android bindings.</p>
<p>In the same post they announced a new Open Privacy project: <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/openprivacy/repliqate">Repliqate</a>, a tool that makes it easy to construct isolated build environments, powered by Qemu and a standard Debian Cloud Image distribution.</p>
<p>The Cwtch Team now provides <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/cwtch.im/repliqate-scripts">Repliqate build-scripts</a> for reproducible both <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/cwtch.im/repliqate-scripts/src/branch/main/libcwtch.v1.10.2-linux.script">Linux libCwtch.so builds</a>, and <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/cwtch.im/repliqate-scripts/src/branch/main/libcwtch.v1.10.2-windows.script">Windows libCwtch.dll builds</a>!</p>
<h2 id="cwtch-ui-platform-support">Cwtch UI Platform Support</h2>
<p>To close out the month the team <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/blog/cwtch-platform-support">published a Cwtch development log detailing the current state of Cwtch platform support</a>, and how the Cwtch team plans to make platform support decisions for Cwtch Stable.</p>
<h2 id="new-social-media">New Social Media</h2>
<p>As we announced in the last Discreet Log, you can now follow both Open Privacy and Cwtch on Mastodon!</p>
<ul>
<li>Open Privacy: <a href="https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy">https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy</a></li>
<li>Cwtch: <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch">https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch</a></li>
</ul>
<p>In addition, we have recently launched a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/">Cwtch.im Instagram</a> for some of the more visual aspects of Cwtch development.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/cwtch.im/"><img class="giftimage" src="/images/discreet-log/jan2023-marcia1.png" /></a>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log for January 2023! Discreet Log is our monthly digest providing a summary of the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. In this edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new Cwtch Development Logs that have been released this month - including news of Cwtch Stable and Reproducible Builds! -and how to follow Cwtch updates across social media.Discreet Log #35: Cwtch 1.10 Released!2022-12-16T00:00:00+00:002022-12-16T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/35-cwtch-1.10-released<p>Welcome to Discreet Log 35! A regular update providing a look into the research,
projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. This edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new features in Cwtch 1.10.</p>
<!--more-->
<h2 id="releasing-cwtch-110">Releasing Cwtch 1.10!</h2>
<p>Today we are launching the <a href="https://cwtch.im/download/">1.10 release of Cwtch Beta</a>.</p>
<p>The core of this release is the new <strong>Connection Backend</strong>, we have completely reworked connection management in Cwtch to minimize contention inside the Tor process (as we talked about in the last Discreet Log), and to prioritize regular contacts. This results in faster peering times, and more stable connections.</p>
<p>The connection work has also allowed us to start building out <strong>Fine-grained Profile Management</strong> - starting with a switch for controlling if a profile is automatically enabled at start up.
<br /></p>
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<div class="col-md-12 center text-center">
<img class="" src="/images/discreet-log/cwtch1.10.png" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>We have also spent much of our time this cycle resolving many annoying bugs that
might be showstoppers for some newcomers, these include getting <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/exporting-profile">Profile Exporting</a> to work across all Android devices.</p>
<p>Ensuring <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/change-profile-image">Profile Image Shares</a> are now re-initialized every start up to ensure that profile images are available to new contacts. (Previously profile image shares expired after 30-days like all other file shares).</p>
<p>Improved UX for <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/unlock-profile">unlocking profiles</a>, and a fix for a bug that prevented the <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/delete-profile">deletion of profiles</a>.</p>
<p>This release also includes many <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/cwtch.im/cwtch-ui/pulls/590">colorscheme improvements</a> to packaged themes, and a new <strong>Juniper</strong> theme.
<br /></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-4 center text-center">
<img class="" src="/images/discreet-log/1.10.midnight.png" />
</div>
<div class="col-md-4 center text-center">
<img class="" src="/images/discreet-log/1.10.ghost.png" />
</div>
<div class="col-md-4 center text-center">
<img class="" src="/images/discreet-log/1.10.mermaid.png" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>Thanks to our amazing volunteer translators this release is available in two new languages: <strong>Brazilian Portuguese</strong>, <strong>Dutch</strong> in addition to full support for <strong>French</strong>, <strong>German</strong>, <strong>Italian</strong>, <strong>Russian</strong>, <strong>Polish</strong>, <strong>Spanish</strong>, <strong>Turkish</strong>, and <strong>Welsh</strong> (with core translations for <strong>Danish</strong> (85%), <strong>Norwegian</strong> (85%), and <strong>Romanian</strong> (85%))</p>
<p>For a full list of all changes in this new release please see the <a href="https://cwtch.im/changelog/">Changelog</a>.</p>
<p>A special thanks to the amazing volunteer translators and testers who made this release possible.</p>
<p>If you like Cwtch and would like to support continued development please consider <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate">donating</a>.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="we-are-now-on-mastodon">We Are Now On Mastodon</h2>
<p>You can now follow both Open Privacy and Cwtch on Mastodon!</p>
<ul>
<li>Open Privacy: <a href="https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy">https://hachyderm.io/@openprivacy</a></li>
<li>Cwtch: <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch">https://fosstodon.org/@cwtch</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong> To celebrate our 4th anniversary, we’ll even count cumulative pledges since November 2021 to our Patreon.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log 35! A regular update providing a look into the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. This edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new features in Cwtch 1.10.Discreet Log #34: Scaling Cwtch Connections2022-11-15T00:00:00+00:002022-11-15T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/34-cwtch-updates<p>Welcome to Discreet Log 34! A regular update providing a look into the research,
projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. This edition we want to tell you about
some upcoming changes to connection management for Cwtch 1.10, the ongoing Cwtch Bug Bash list, updated build
containers, and a new article about P2P communications featuring Cwtch!</p>
<!--more-->
<hr />
<h2 id="improving-cwtch-connection-management-for-scalability">Improving Cwtch Connection Management for Scalability</h2>
<p>If you have a large number of Cwtch contacts you may have run into problems connecting to them when you first open Cwtch. We have discovered that this issue is related to how the Tor process itself implements DDoS protection/throttling.</p>
<p>To protect the Tor network, Tor processes only allow 32 circuits to be under construction at any given time, internally queuing additional requests. In order for Cwtch to perform better with larger contacts lists we are planning several changes to the underlying connection logic.</p>
<p>First, we plan to sort connection attempts on start up. Instead of attempting to connect to the entire contact list at start up, we will start with the most likely to succeed connections i.e. connections that have succeeded before, and most recently. The longer ago a successful connection attempt happened, the less priority (at start up) it will have.</p>
<p>Secondly, we will be adjusting out current retry policy to take into account connection attempt ordering, and reducing the number of active connection attempts.</p>
<p>Finally, for groups, we are introducing antispam token caching. Cwtch 1.10 will store previously fetched anti-spam tokens to limit the number of group-related connections on start up - this should both speed up time-to-post for group messages, as well as reduce the overall connection burden on Tor for profiles that make use of the group experiment.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="cwtch-bug-bash">Cwtch Bug Bash</h2>
<p>With the goal of making Cwtch has usable as possible, Cwtch 1.10 is going to be focused on fixing many of the small UI/UX issues that have been reported over the last few months.</p>
<p>If you have come across any UI/UX issues recently that aren’t captured in the <a href="https://git.openprivacy.ca/cwtch.im/cwtch-ui/issues?q=&type=all&state=open&labels=170&milestone=0&assignee=0">bugbash list</a> then please reach out to Sarah on Cwtch, or open an issue.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="updated-containers-for-flutter-desktop-builds">Updated Containers for Flutter Desktop Builds</h2>
<p>For people using dockerized build pipelines with Flutter for desktop apps (e.g. to build Cwtch), Dan updated the <a href="https://hub.docker.com/r/openpriv/flutter-desktop/tags">Open Privacy containers</a> to Flutter 3.3.8 (from 3.0.2).</p>
<ul>
<li>Linux: <a href="https://hub.docker.com/layers/openpriv/flutter-desktop/linux-fstable-3.3.8/images/sha256-2874f15ad79ace465d4a7c954c30f81c9e0bfae3f5b74f23fe1f86511a827e8d?context=explore">openpriv/flutter-desktop:linux-fstable-3.3.8</a></li>
<li>Windows: <a href="https://hub.docker.com/layers/openpriv/flutter-desktop/windows-sdk30-fstable-3.3.8/images/sha256-f21036e123eacf4eef02a6eb1442f417544da719752b6fa33c8d5f6eb57b0b81?context=explore">openpriv/flutter-desktop:windows-sdk30-fstable-3.3.8</a></li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2 id="cwtch-mentions">Cwtch Mentions</h2>
<p>From time to time people talk about Cwtch on the Internet, and we like to feature them here!</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://itsgoingdown.org/the-guide-to-peer-to-peer-encryption-and-tor-new-communication-infrastructure-for-anarchists/">The Guide to Peer-to-Peer, Encryption, and Tor: New Communication Infrastructure for Anarchists (It’s Going Down)</a> - Discusses Cwtch in the context of up and coming peer-to-peer communication tools.</li>
</ul>
<hr />
<h2 id="privacy-is-consent-t-shirts-have-shipped">Privacy is Consent T-Shirts have Shipped!</h2>
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<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/tshirtpreview.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>All preorder claims for the new Privacy is Consent T-shirts have now been fulfilled, you should expect your t-shirt to have arrived / arriving very soon.</p>
<p>If you have any questions regarding the status of your t-shirt shipping please reach out!.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong> To celebrate our 4th anniversary, we’ll even count cumulative pledges since November 2021 to our Patreon.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log 34! A regular update providing a look into the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. This edition we want to tell you about some upcoming changes to connection management for Cwtch 1.10, the ongoing Cwtch Bug Bash list, updated build containers, and a new article about P2P communications featuring Cwtch!Discreet Log #33: Cwtch 1.9 Released! Privacy is Consent T-shirts have been shipped!2022-09-16T00:00:00+00:002022-09-16T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/33-cwtch-1.9-released<p>Welcome to Discreet Log 33! A regular update providing a look into the research,
projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. This edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new features in Cwtch 1.9, Privacy is Consent
t-shirts, and some recent reporting of vulnerabilities in the email client Thunderbird.</p>
<!--more-->
<h3 id="a-quick-note-about-the-future-of-discreet-log">A Quick Note about the future of Discreet Log</h3>
<p>Back in August we released our <a href="/reports/2021-eoy-report/">End of Year Report for 2021</a> where we reflect on the success of the Cwtch beta launch, provide an update
to organizational fundraising efforts, and discuss staffing changes we have made to ensure the continued success of Open Privacy.</p>
<p>Due to those staffing changes we have taken the decision to scale back the publishing of Discreet Log from once every 2 weeks, to once a month.</p>
<p>We want to extend another big thank you to everyone who has supported us over the last few years through donations, translations, development, testing, and advocacy.</p>
<p>We, and the work that we do, could not exist without you.</p>
<p>Please consider <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate">donating</a> or volunteering to help us continue our research and development
of surveillance resistant software.</p>
<hr />
<h1 id="releasing-cwtch-19">Releasing Cwtch 1.9!</h1>
<p>Today we are launching the <a href="https://cwtch.im/download/">1.9 release of Cwtch Beta</a>, this release contains
many new features including:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>View Replies</strong> - quickly find all replies to a given message</li>
<li><strong>Manage Shared Files</strong> - allows pausing or restart sharing of files to specific conversations</li>
<li><strong>Pinned Conversations</strong> - important conversations can now be pinned to the top of the conversations list
<br /></li>
</ul>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-6 center text-center">
<img class="" src="/images/discreet-log/cwtch1.9viewreplies.png" />
</div>
<div class="col-md-6 center text-center">
<img class="" src="/images/discreet-log/cwtch1.9pin.png" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>In addition, Cwtch 1.9 is packed with a number of bug fixes and performance improvements to the File Sharing
experiment, a new bundled Tor version, and two new translations: Turkish and Dutch!</p>
<p>For a full list of all changes in this new release please see the <a href="https://cwtch.im/changelog/">Changelog</a>.</p>
<p>A special thanks to the amazing volunteer translators and testers who made this release possible.</p>
<p>If you like Cwtch and would like to support continued development please consider <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate">donating</a>.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="privacy-is-consent-t-shirts-have-shipped">Privacy is Consent T-Shirts have Shipped!</h2>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/tshirtpreview.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>All preorder claims for the new Privacy is Consent T-shirts have now been fulfilled, you should expect your t-shirt to arrive some time in the next
few weeks.</p>
<p>If you have any questions regarding the status of your t-shirt shipping please reach out!.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="reporting-security-and-privacy-issues-in-thunderbird">Reporting Security and Privacy issues in Thunderbird</h2>
<p>Open Privacy Researcher Sarah Jamie Lewis recently <a href="https://twitter.com/SarahJamieLewis/status/1565156799627800578">reported several security and privacy vulnerabilities</a> in the
email client Thunderbird.</p>
<p>As described in the <a href="https://mozilla.org/en-US/security/advisories/mfsa2022-38/#CVE-2022-3033">advisory</a> the highest impact vulnerability (denoted CVE-2022-3033) could be used to execute malicious javascript when replying to an email.</p>
<p>Due to how Thunderbird handles encrypted email this could be used to force, and leak, decryptions of ciphertexts encrypted to the user. Users of Thunderbird are encouraged to
upgrade to the latest version of Thunderbird as soon as possible.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong> To celebrate our 4th anniversary, we’ll even count cumulative pledges since November 2021 to our Patreon.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log 33! A regular update providing a look into the research, projects and tools that we work on at Open Privacy. This edition we want to tell you about all the exciting new features in Cwtch 1.9, Privacy is Consent t-shirts, and some recent reporting of vulnerabilities in the email client Thunderbird.Discreet Log #32: Cwtch Documentation2022-06-03T00:00:00+00:002022-06-03T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/32-cwtch-documentation<p>Welcome to Discreet Log 32!</p>
<p>This week we want to tell you exciting information about the new Cwtch Handbook; and a video and comments from a recent panel on Privacy and Human Rights featuring Dan Ballard, our Director of Engineering.</p>
<p>Please consider <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate">donating</a> or volunteering to help us continue our research and development
of surveillance resistant software.</p>
<!--more-->
<hr />
<h2 id="cwtch-handbook-alpha">Cwtch Handbook (Alpha)</h2>
<p>Today we are launching an alpha version of the Cwtch Handbook: <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/intro">docs.cwtch.im</a> - a single place for all Cwtch related documentation, from <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/profiles/introduction">how multiple profiles work</a> and <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/chat/share-file">how to share files</a>, all the way to <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/groups/leave-group">how to delete conversations</a> and <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/contribute/translate">how to contribute translations</a>.</p>
<p>We have seeded the handbook with information taken from previous Discreet Log posts, gitea wiki pages, and issue
discussions. We have also ported content from the <a href="https://docs.openprivacy.ca/cwtch-security-handbook/">Security Handbook</a> where it may be relevant to general use.</p>
<h3 id="video-walkthroughs-and-experiments-cautions">Video Walkthroughs and Experiments Cautions</h3>
<p>The first alpha release also contains several new pieces of documentation. Many of the pages of the handbook that
describe individual features also contain a small video that demonstrates how each feature works.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-4"></div>
<div class="col-md-4 center text-center">
<figure>
<video playsInline="" autoPlay="" muted="" loop="" width="100%">
<source src="/images/discreet-log/Group_Invite.mp4" />
</video>
<figcaption>A video demonstration on how to invite someone to a group using the Cwtch app</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>Sections are also tagged with warnings indicating when a feature is locked behind an <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/settings/introduction#experiments">Experiment</a> in addition to explicit warnings for features that result in irreversible
changes (like profile or group deletion).</p>
<p><br /></p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-12 center text-center">
<figure>
<img class="screenshot" src="/images/discreet-log/32_docs_warnings.png" />
<figcaption>Documentation now captures what features are linked to witch experiments, in addition to which
features result in irreversible deletion of data.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>This project has only just started, and is far from complete. Over the next few weeks, and months, we plan to add more
sections and videos, in addition to expanding the number of languages the handbook is available in.</p>
<p>Please <a href="https://docs.cwtch.im/docs/intro">take a look around the handbook</a> and if you have thoughts,
comments, ideas or would like to help translate the handbook into other languages then please send them to us (<a href="mailto:team@cwtch.im">team@cwtch.im</a>) or via <a href="cwtch:vcdayosqjmn7zm3oi2s2an5s724zg2dvwdafhdop67rssyedgzxfmoqd">cwtch:vcdayosqjmn7zm3oi2s2an5s724zg2dvwdafhdop67rssyedgzxfmoqd</a>!</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="recorded-panel-privacy-in-the-next-gen-internet---thursday-may-26-at-10am-pt">Recorded Panel: “Privacy in the Next Gen Internet” - Thursday, May 26 at 10am PT</h2>
<p>Our Director of Engineer, Dan Ballard, was recently on a panel about <strong>Privacy in the Next Gen Internet</strong> as part of the <strong>Human Rights & Web3 for Activists</strong> Salon series.</p>
<p>You can find the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKIoTNlgMaA">full recording of the panel on Youtube</a> and Dan’s
opening and other notes for the talk can be found at: <a href="https://www.danballard.com/2022/06/02/ai-fftf-decentralization-and-privacy-for-web3/">https://www.danballard.com/2022/06/02/ai-fftf-decentralization-and-privacy-for-web3/</a></p>
<hr />
<h2 id="stickers">Stickers!</h2>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong> To celebrate our 4th anniversary, we’ll even count cumulative pledges since November 2021 to our Patreon.</p>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log 32! This week we want to tell you exciting information about the new Cwtch Handbook; and a video and comments from a recent panel on Privacy and Human Rights featuring Dan Ballard, our Director of Engineering. Please consider donating or volunteering to help us continue our research and development of surveillance resistant software.Discreet Log #31: Privacy is Consent2022-05-20T00:00:00+00:002022-05-20T00:00:00+00:00https://openprivacy.ca/discreet-log/31-Privacy-is-Consent<p>Welcome to Discreet Log 31!</p>
<p>We are well into Open Privacy’s 2022 fundraising drive! We’ve gotten some wonderful new supporters, but currently not enough to support all our staff continuing on through the year. We’re still looking at how we can keep pursuing our goals with reduced capacity.</p>
<p>Please consider <a href="https://openprivacy.ca/donate">donating</a> or volunteering to help us continue our research and development
of surveillance resistant software.</p>
<!--more-->
<hr />
<h2 id="only-1-week-left-to-claim-a-limited-edition-privacy-is-consent-t-shirt">Only 1 Week Left to Claim a Limited Edition Privacy is Consent T-Shirt!</h2>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-2"></div>
<div class="col-md-8 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/tshirtpreview.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>Donations of <strong>$50 or more can claim a limited edition Privacy is Consent t-shirt</strong> as a thank-you gift! By popular request,
these black tshirts use high quality screen-printing done locally in Vancouver. Available in both unisex and fitted sizes.</p>
<p>We will be sending the order to the printers at the end of the month and shipping out the t-shirts later this Summer!</p>
<p>Don’t miss out! Get your <a href="/donate/#claim-tshirts">donation and pre-order</a> in by <strong>27th May</strong> to reserve your t-shirt!</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="upcoming-talk-from-consentful-design-to-decentralization">Upcoming Talk: From Consentful Design to Decentralization</h2>
<p>Our Director of Engineering, Dan Ballard, is giving a talk at the upcoming <a href="https://privacyengineercon.com/">Privacy Engineer Conference</a> on the 8th June.</p>
<h3 id="abstract">Abstract:</h3>
<p>Privacy is consent. Humans have basic and inalienable rights including to privacy which should not be infringed upon without consent and understanding. Relying on laws to protect your data presents some risks as laws can be changed and in this currently very cloud-centric world, data travels through a lot of jurisdictions, some of which may be less respectful than users would wish. To protect user data in a way we can have long term trust in, data must be protected by IT systems themselves, by design, unbreakably. This is a tall order that has many complexities and is often at odds with other design principals. In this talk we will walk through some of the design principals we at Open Privacy rely on and that you should consider incorporating into your software design practices from the start to ensure and protect user privacy. These include Consentful Design, Trustless Archtecture, Local First Design, and Distributed/Decentralized Design.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="upcoming-panel-privacy-in-the-next-gen-internet---thursday-may-26-at-10am-pt">Upcoming Panel: “Privacy in the Next Gen Internet” - Thursday, May 26 at 10am PT</h2>
<p>Dan will also be on an upcoming panel about <strong>Privacy in the Next Gen Internet</strong> as part of the <strong>Human Rights & Web3 for Activists</strong> Salon series.</p>
<hr />
<h2 id="stickers-and-t-shirts">Stickers and T-shirts!</h2>
<div class="row">
<div class="col-md-6 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/stickers-new.jpg" />
</div>
<div class="col-md-6 center text-center">
<img class="giftimage" src="/images/tshirtpreview.jpg" />
</div>
</div>
<p><br /></p>
<p>Donations of <strong>$5 or more receive stickers</strong> as a thank-you gift, and <strong>$25 or more gets you one of our new sticker sheets!</strong> To celebrate our 4th anniversary, we’ll even count cumulative pledges since November 2021 to our Patreon.</p>
<p>Donations of <strong>$50 or more can claim a limited edition Privacy is Consent t-shirt</strong> as a thank-you gift! By popular request,
these black tshirts use high quality screen-printing done locally in Vancouver. Available in both unisex and fitted sizes.</p>
<p>For more information about donating to Open Privacy and claiming a thank you gift <a href="/donate/">please visit our Donate page</a>.</p>Welcome to Discreet Log 31! We are well into Open Privacy’s 2022 fundraising drive! We’ve gotten some wonderful new supporters, but currently not enough to support all our staff continuing on through the year. We’re still looking at how we can keep pursuing our goals with reduced capacity. Please consider donating or volunteering to help us continue our research and development of surveillance resistant software.