Benjamin Powers

Powers is a tech reporter at Grid. Previously, he was privacy reporter at CoinDesk where he focused on data and financial privacy, information security, and digital identity. His work has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Daily Beast, Rolling Stone, and the New Republic, among others. He owns bitcoin.

Benjamin Powers

Dernières de Benjamin Powers


Juridique

EU Privacy Shield Ruling Is an Opportunity and Conundrum for Decentralized Tech

A judgment striking down an EU-U.S. data sharing agreement may pose compliance issues for U.S. startups. But privacy tech could offer a post-law solution.

(Guillaume Périgois/Unsplash)

Juridique

In the Aftermath of Hack, Lawmakers Blame Twitter, Not Bitcoin

Lawmakers are calling on Twitter to answer for a hack that shook the platform, focusing on cybersecurity rather than scapegoating cryptocurrencies.

Wyden_Shutterstock

Finance

Twitter Breach Reactions: Security Professionals Offer an Early Assessment

OpSec pros had a wide array of opinions on Wednesday's Twitter breach, but they all agreed the fault did not lie with each hacked account's owner.

(Tiraya Adam/Unsplash)

Juridique

Cryptocurrencies Have 'No Way' to Comply With US Anti-Encryption Bills

U.S. Senate bills meant to crack down on encryption could have negative effects for privacy-oriented tech, including cryptocurrencies, entrepreneurs and critics say.

Sen. Lindsey Graham is one of three sponsors  of the LAED Act and the main sponsor of the EARN IT Act. (Sen. Graham's website/Youtube)

Technologies

Start9 Labs Pitches a Private At-Home Server. And It Works

Start9 Labs’ Embassy server sets up its own private internet network and comes with its own operating system. We tried it.

(Harrison Broadbent/Unsplash)

Juridique

Social Media Bans 'Highlight the Profound Censorship on Web 2.0'

Recent moves by social media companies to outlaw certain types of content raise big questions about the future of free speech in the modern internet era.

(Morning Brew/Unsplash)

Marchés

'I Failed Terribly at Keeping My Identity Secret': Scott Alexander on the Value of Pseudonymity

A New York Times decision to name Scott Alexander, the author of Slate Star Codex, raises questions about who deserves pseudonyms, journalism in 2020 and where we place value when it comes to news stories.

(Sasha Freemind/Unsplash)

Finance

Facebook, IoTeX, R3 Among New Members of Confidential Computing Consortium

The Confidential Computing Consortium aims to create systems that sequester sensitive data so it can't be exploited by nefarious actors.

identity, privacy

Technologies

Jack Dorsey Has Floated Decentralized Fact-Checking at Twitter. Here's What That Could Look Like

Twitter's CEO has endorsed the idea of decentralized fact-checking. We looked at some prototypes to see what that might look like.

(Unsplash)

Technologies

AI Startup Pilots Digital Masks That Counter Facial Recognition

A Los Angeles startup has created “privacy-preserving face skins” – digital masks or avatars that counter facial recognition software.

(Alethea AI)