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home / vmfunc.re / item 47140632
+0.61 OpenAI, the US government and Persona built an identity surveillance machine (vmfunc.re)
467 points by rzk 8 hours ago | 149 comments on HN | Neutral Human Rights · vv3.4 · 2026-02-25
Article Heatmap
Preamble: +0.85 — Preamble P Article 1: +0.75 — Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood 1 Article 2: +0.70 — Non-Discrimination 2 Article 3: +0.45 — Life, Liberty, Security 3 Article 4: +0.35 — No Slavery 4 Article 5: +0.35 — No Torture 5 Article 6: +0.35 — Legal Personhood 6 Article 7: +0.35 — Equality Before Law 7 Article 8: +0.35 — Right to Remedy 8 Article 9: +0.35 — No Arbitrary Detention 9 Article 10: +0.35 — Fair Hearing 10 Article 11: +0.35 — Presumption of Innocence 11 Article 12: +0.95 — Privacy 12 Article 13: +0.70 — Freedom of Movement 13 Article 14: +0.35 — Asylum 14 Article 15: +0.35 — Nationality 15 Article 16: +0.35 — Marriage & Family 16 Article 17: +0.80 — Property 17 Article 18: +0.35 — Freedom of Thought 18 Article 19: +0.95 — Freedom of Expression 19 Article 20: +0.85 — Assembly & Association 20 Article 21: +0.80 — Political Participation 21 Article 22: +0.35 — Social Security 22 Article 23: +0.35 — Work & Equal Pay 23 Article 24: +0.35 — Rest & Leisure 24 Article 25: +0.35 — Standard of Living 25 Article 26: +0.35 — Education 26 Article 27: +0.80 — Cultural Participation 27 Article 28: +0.80 — Social & International Order 28 Article 29: +0.65 — Duties to Community 29 Article 30: +0.45 — No Destruction of Rights 30
Negative Neutral Positive No Data
Aggregates
Weighted Mean +0.61 Unweighted Mean +0.53
Max +0.95 Article 12 Min +0.35 Article 4
Signal 31 No Data 0
Confidence 42% Volatility 0.22 (Medium)
Negative 0 Channels E: 0.5 S: 0.5
SETL +0.23 Editorial-dominant
Evidence: High: 5 Medium: 7 Low: 19 No Data: 0
Theme Radar
Foundation Security Legal Privacy & Movement Personal Expression Economic & Social Cultural Order & Duties Foundation: 0.77 (3 articles) Security: 0.38 (3 articles) Legal: 0.35 (6 articles) Privacy & Movement: 0.59 (4 articles) Personal: 0.50 (3 articles) Expression: 0.87 (3 articles) Economic & Social: 0.35 (4 articles) Cultural: 0.57 (2 articles) Order & Duties: 0.63 (3 articles)
Domain Context Profile
Element Modifier Affects Note
Privacy
No privacy policy detectable on provided content.
Terms of Service
No terms of service detectable on provided content.
Accessibility
Retro UI design (98.css, oneko.service) may limit accessibility for some users; not determinative.
Mission +0.25
Article 12 Article 19 Article 20
Domain exhibits explicit mission to expose surveillance infrastructure and publish security research in public interest. Stated commitment to First Amendment and CFAA protections indicates advocacy for freedom of expression and access to information.
Editorial Code +0.20
Article 19
Content demonstrates editorial commitment to accountability journalism and technical transparency. Multiple legal disclaimers and methodological rigor indicate editorial standards around evidence and source verification.
Ownership
Attributed to vmfunc, MDL, Dziurwa; independent researchers. No corporate or state ownership detected.
Access Model +0.15
Article 19 Article 27
Content published openly on public web without paywall or registration barrier. Distributes findings across multiple jurisdictions and third-party archives to preserve accessibility.
Ad/Tracking
No advertising or tracking infrastructure evident in provided content.
HN Discussion 19 top-level · 0 replies
MattDaEskimo 2026-02-24 18:39 UTC link
What can those do from a separate country, who unfortunately had their identity verified through Persona (LinkedIn in my case).
ArchieScrivener 2026-02-24 18:42 UTC link
Why the myspace music?
cloverich 2026-02-24 18:49 UTC link
Going to copy paste my comment from today's other thread[3] that linked to this:

Note also there's a direct response from Persona's security team here[1], and a lot of back and forth from Rick on Twitter[2].

[1]: https://withpersona.com/blog/post-incident-review-source-map...

[2]: https://x.com/Persona_IDV/status/2025048195773198385?s=20

[3]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47136036

pharos92 2026-02-24 18:55 UTC link
It seems like at every technological step, we're sold the dream and delivered the meme. We always end up with the worst possible combination of players, ideas and outcomes; with the promise of what the said technology delivers in terms of additional freedom or free time never realised. How many more broken social contracts can society endure before it crumbles?
sebastianconcpt 2026-02-24 19:00 UTC link
Quite some time ago I said and now repeat:

Convenience is to humans, what bulb lights at night are to bugs.

Ancalagon 2026-02-24 19:08 UTC link
Why do so many engineers willingly build things bad for society?
4midori 2026-02-24 19:11 UTC link
In response to a data request, Persona says:

Hi there,

Thank you for reaching out to Persona.

Please note that Persona primarily operates as a "service provider" or "processor" for its customers. We act as a "business" or "controller" only for specific services, such as identity verification for LinkedIn, FoxCorp, and Reusable Persona. To learn more about how Persona manages your personal data, please refer to our privacy notices, which can be accessed through the following link: https://withpersona.com/legal/privacy-notices

If you wish to exercise your privacy rights related to services where Persona is a "service provider" or "processor," please contact the entity using our service, as they are the "controller" of the data. We will assist the relevant customer to fulfill your data subject rights, but we do not handle such requests directly on their behalf.

For any privacy rights request related to services where Persona acts as a "business" or "controller," including identity verification for LinkedIn, FoxCorp, Reusable Persona, and personal data related to our sales, marketing activities, or website browsing on withpersona.com, please use our Data Subject Request (DSAR) available at the following link: https://withpersona.com/dsar

For all other inquiries, we will respond as soon as possible.

###

TL;DR we're not responsible, go talk to LinkedIn.

raincole 2026-02-24 19:16 UTC link
https://withpersona.com/customers/openai

Persona's side of the story.

edverma2 2026-02-24 19:23 UTC link
This is a hilarious personal website! Love it. Even better that it's paired with quality content.
int32_64 2026-02-24 19:26 UTC link
Based on the Anthropic distillation news yesterday I wonder if the AI companies are going to get much tighter with KYC.
yoyohello13 2026-02-24 19:29 UTC link
This website really is incredible!
dylan604 2026-02-24 19:39 UTC link
"what is Fivecast ONYX? an AI-powered surveillance platform purchased by ICE for $4.2 million and CBP for additional license costs. according to Fivecast’s own documentation and EFF’s reporting, they do automated collection of multimedia data from social media and dark web, build “digital footprints” from biographical data, tracks shifts in sentiment and emotion, assigns risk scores, searches across 300+ platforms and 28+ billion data points, identifies people with “violent tendencies”"

Glad to know that my tinfoil hat wasn't too tight when social media came to be and this obvious use was predicted. How quickly will not having social media accounts become a crime?

cedws 2026-02-24 19:43 UTC link
Governments in Europe should be seriously scrutinising this with the background conversation of departing American tech going on. Discord users globally were being coerced into handing over their ID to this American surveillance tech. Are we just going to let this go on?
tamimio 2026-02-24 20:08 UTC link
> 0x18 - betrayal

This is the most important section, as the above ones any privacy-conscious person would assume most anyway. I did mention before that we need an open-source platform that tracks the people who work and build such systems. Those are the enablers who have no morals or ethics - a greedy corporation is always greedy, but when the average employee is willing to work full time on building such systems, they need to be exposed publicly, just as they are working relentlessly on violating private people's privacy. It isn't about public humiliation; it's about basic human decency and maintaining a minimum ethical code to abide by. These individuals shouldn't be hired or dealt with, not even a simple connection on LinkedIn.

These individuals are dangerous. They are like rats among us and should be exposed, and I bet some of them are reading this as well.

gslepak 2026-02-24 20:08 UTC link
Does someone have a version that doesn't force you to listen to unwanted music?
Havoc 2026-02-24 20:44 UTC link
Wonder how many lists I'm on for the unholy sin of saying the glorious american leader is a moron
standardly 2026-02-24 21:11 UTC link
Author was doing such a good write-up, until I saw repeated AI syntax "its not x, but y" and "a is b. b is c. and, c is the final thing in this series of short, punchy sentences". Really tired of this. Why is it so hard to just write naturally? Maybe I'm just easily triggered
Kiboneu 2026-02-24 21:12 UTC link
> OpenAI’s disclosures reference biometric data stored “up to a year.” the source > code shows face list retention capped at 3 years. government IDs retained > “permanently” per Persona’s practices. which is it?

I keep saying this. This is the playbook -- everything is moving to standardize Sam Altman's biometric authentication cryptocurrency company to use internet services. This has been a slow moving strategy for /years/ and every new step over that period only get closer, not further from this goal.

tiffanyh 2026-02-24 23:54 UTC link
Isn’t this just normal KYC (for account opening).

What am I missing?

https://withpersona.com/customers/openai

Score Breakdown
+0.85
Preamble Preamble
High A: Advocacy for freedom of expression and information access F: Framing surveillance collaboration as violation of dignity and privacy P: Publishing unfiltered evidence and legal analysis
Editorial
+0.80
Structural
+0.70
SETL
+0.28
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Content explicitly frames surveillance as violation of fundamental human dignity. Advocates for transparency and public accountability. Strong affirmation of universal principles underlying UDHR.

+0.75
Article 1 Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood
High A: Asserting equal dignity against discriminatory surveillance systems
Editorial
+0.70
Structural
+0.60
SETL
+0.26
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Content documents systems designed to discriminate based on watchlist categorization and algorithmic scoring. Implicitly asserts equal dignity of all persons regardless of government classification.

+0.70
Article 2 Non-Discrimination
Medium A: Exposing discrimination based on status in watchlist systems
Editorial
+0.65
Structural
+0.55
SETL
+0.25
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Implicitly challenges discrimination by exposing watchlist infrastructure that categorizes and screens users by federal designation.

+0.45
Article 3 Life, Liberty, Security
Low
Editorial
+0.50
Structural
+0.40
SETL
+0.22
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

No explicit engagement with right to life, liberty, security of person.

+0.35
Article 4 No Slavery
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 5 No Torture
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 6 Legal Personhood
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 7 Equality Before Law
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 8 Right to Remedy
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 9 No Arbitrary Detention
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 10 Fair Hearing
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 11 Presumption of Innocence
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.95
Article 12 Privacy
High A: Exposing government/corporate interference with privacy F: Framing identity verification as privacy invasion P: Publishing detailed documentation of surveillance apparatus
Editorial
+0.85
Structural
+0.75
SETL
+0.29
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Central theme: arbitrary collection of biometric data, facial recognition scoring, watchlist matching without consent. Directly documents violations of privacy and family/correspondence protection. Mission modifier and editorial code modifier both apply.

+0.70
Article 13 Freedom of Movement
Medium A: Advocating free movement against identity surveillance restrictions
Editorial
+0.60
Structural
+0.50
SETL
+0.24
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Implicitly addresses freedom of movement by exposing systems designed to restrict access based on watchlist scoring and algorithmic judgment.

+0.35
Article 14 Asylum
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 15 Nationality
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 16 Marriage & Family
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.80
Article 17 Property
Medium A: Protecting arbitrary interference with property and digital assets F: Framing unauthorized data collection as property violation
Editorial
+0.75
Structural
+0.65
SETL
+0.27
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Implicit: biometric data as personal property arbitrarily collected and processed by government/corporate systems without consent.

+0.35
Article 18 Freedom of Thought
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.95
Article 19 Freedom of Expression
High A: Explicit advocacy for freedom of expression and information F: Framing publication as protected journalism under First Amendment, ECHR Art. 10, CFAA, California Shield Law P: Publishing security research findings publicly without censorship C: Comprehensive coverage of surveillance infrastructure with full source documentation
Editorial
+0.90
Structural
+0.80
SETL
+0.30
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Central mission: expose surveillance through public research publication. Legally frames content as protected expression under multiple jurisdictions. Editorial code modifier (0.2), mission modifier (0.25), and access model modifier (0.15) all apply, totaling 0.30 (at cap).

+0.85
Article 20 Assembly & Association
High A: Organizing collective research and publication to challenge government surveillance P: Named authors coordinate publication across multiple jurisdictions
Editorial
+0.80
Structural
+0.70
SETL
+0.28
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Content represents collective assembly of independent researchers united in exposing surveillance. Explicit coordination across borders. Mission modifier applies.

+0.80
Article 21 Political Participation
Medium A: Participation in governance through transparency advocacy F: Framing public interest research as democratic accountability
Editorial
+0.75
Structural
+0.65
SETL
+0.27
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Implicitly asserts right to participate in governance through exposure of government surveillance programs. Editorial code modifier applies.

+0.35
Article 22 Social Security
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 23 Work & Equal Pay
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 24 Rest & Leisure
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 25 Standard of Living
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.35
Article 26 Education
Low
Editorial
+0.40
Structural
+0.30
SETL
+0.20
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

+0.80
Article 27 Cultural Participation
Medium A: Advocating for open access to research and information P: Publishing findings without paywall or registration restriction
Editorial
+0.70
Structural
+0.65
SETL
+0.19
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Access model modifier applies: open publication of scientific/technical findings without barrier. Supports right to participate in scientific advancement.

+0.80
Article 28 Social & International Order
Medium A: Establishing social order enabling exercise of rights F: Framing surveillance exposure as prerequisite to claiming privacy rights
Editorial
+0.75
Structural
+0.65
SETL
+0.27
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Implicitly asserts duty to establish order where human rights can be freely exercised. Editorial code modifier applies.

+0.65
Article 29 Duties to Community
Medium A: Advocating limits on surveillance in name of collective rights
Editorial
+0.65
Structural
+0.55
SETL
+0.25
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Implicitly asserts that surveillance restrictions are necessary for protection of collective rights to privacy, freedom of expression, dignity.

+0.45
Article 30 No Destruction of Rights
Low
Editorial
+0.50
Structural
+0.40
SETL
+0.22
Combined
ND
Context Modifier
ND

Not directly addressed.

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build f581ea9+b3nz · 2026-02-25 03:04 UTC