Democratic Participation

Tool Review: Vibe Messaging

Vibe burst onto the scene following reports that protesters were using it to coordinate with each other at the recent Occupy Wall Street demonstrations and camps.

As a smartphone app for anonymous broadcast messaging, Vibe is going after an important idea. In fact, it’s been promoted as an anonymous version of Twitter. Anyone with the app can post - there are no accounts - and users are able to limit the lifetime of the messages (from a few minutes to a few days) and the location to which they are broadcast (from a few meters to anywhere).

Vibe is clearly a useful tool. Some of the ways it has apparently been used include asking anonymous questions at a conference, and communicating with neighbours about local events. The ‘anonymity’ of not having to create an account may be perfectly adequate for these situations. However, when it comes to its use by activists - where it is being promoted as an appropriate tool for people with serious security implications should their identify be revealed - we need to delve deeper into promises of anonymity.

In the case of Vibe, our analysis revealed some serious concerns. Some of these have come up in other reviews as well.

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12.22.11 MelissaLoudon Democratic Participation

uReport: Citizen Feedback via SMS in Uganda

For aid organizations, knowing what local communities and beneficiaries want and need is the key to running successful, sustainable programs. In Uganda, UNICEF is using mobile phones and broadcast media to get direct feedback from Ugandans on everything from medication access to water sanitation. The project, called uReport, allows users to sign up via a toll-free shortcode for regular SMS-based polls and messages. Citizen responses are used both in weekly radio talk shows to create discussion on community issues, and shared among UNICEF and other aid organizations to provide a better picture of how services work across Uganda.
 
Sean Blaschke, a Technology for Development specialist at UNICEF Uganda, explains that uReport gathers information from participants and informs citizens of their rights and available services. Recent polls have included questions about school dropouts, water point availability, mosquito net usage, and youth employment, all collected via SMS polls.

The use of SMS makes the program available to all literate mobile users regardless of handset; says Blaschke,

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08.28.11 AnneryanHeatwole Advocacy Citizen Media Democratic Participation

Securing your Mobile Email

Email wasn’t designed with security in mind. Unless you take steps to protect your communication, emails are sent in plain text - and so are your email account username and password.

At the same time, if you and your recipient are taking the appropriate security precautions, mobile email can be a secure and reliable alternative to other forms of mobile communication. If you have data service for your mobile, encrypted email can replace text messaging, and if you aren’t able to access a website securely to upload content - photos or videos for example - getting it to a trusted contact as an email attachment can be a safer alternative.

This article suggests the following tactics for improving the security of your mobile email:

Email security basics

Even if you’re not using encrypted email, you can take some basic precautions to improve your email security. For example

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10.14.11 MelissaLoudon Advocacy Democratic Participation