Bonum Certa Men Certa

Microsoft 'Pulls a Russia' in Brazil

Brazilian flag



Summary: Microsoft Latin America takes additional steps to crack down on adoption of GNU/Linux in the region (e.g. in all Brazilian schools), using old FUD and indoctrination/brainwashing of journalists

A FEW days ago we shared transcripts of an audiocast explaining how Microsoft overcomes Free software policies in Brazil. We also have this wiki page about Microsoft's dirty dealings in Brazil.



"Microsoft criticizes Brazilian government's position about free software" teaches us this new page which highlights new FUD and contains responses in there:

Microsoft criticizes Brazilian government's position about free software



The president of Microsoft Latin America, Hernán Rincón, sent word to Brazilian government: "innovation software does not happen in the hands of governments but the private sector."

The statement came after he was questioned about the government's position of supporting programs with open source like Linux.

In a meeting with journalists from Latin America in Bellevue, Wash., he said this morning: "Governments have to ask: what business is to serve their citizens and develop software? Innovation is at private sector. "

According to Rincon, free programs require more work and investment from the government to keep them running and updated - which does not happen when companies take care of that for the government.


Brazil is already on Microsoft's hit/hot/heat list/map because of high GNU/Linux adoption over there, and the same goes for Russia (see this discussion and Microsoft table from a very recent post). A few days ago we explained how shameless damage control after the Russia case/blunder actually helps Microsoft stifle GNU/Linux adoption in Russia. OpenBytes called it what it is.

Which I believe shows that this is now an exercise in damage control as Microsoft did not envisage a situation where the story would become so big.

Too little too late Microsoft, these new licenses should have been in place years ago if you really are pro-NGO.


Even Human Rights First slammed Microsoft over it.

Public Knowledge from Washington had this to say:

This week, the New York Times reported that Russian authorities were searching the offices and seizing the computers of public interest non-governmental organizations (NGOs) disfavored by the government, under the guise of enforcing Microsoft copyrights. Microsoft itself seemed to have some role in this enforcement practice as well, with its lawyers in these cases apparently pressing for criminal charges and refusing to pass on to authorities evidence that the software was legitimately purchased.

One of the first things Microsoft said in its defense was that it was required to obey Russian laws when it operates there—certainly true of any company operating overseas. But the unique situation here is that, since the charges against the organizations stem from ostensible infringements of Microsoft’s copyrights, Microsoft holds the ultimate key to preventing these particular abuses of the law.


Now that proprietary software EULAs are upheld in US courts (covered just days ago), it is abundantly clear that no 'donation' of proprietary software is worthwhile. It's a rent and it's also a lock-in. Jos Poortvliet, the OpenSUSE Community Manager, recommends "another way for Freedom" in Russia:

This past weekend the New York Times ran a story on how the Russian government has used software licensing to squelch dissent protests and prevent environmentalists and other activists from organizing. The article explains how Russian police stop or stymie dissent activities, by seizing the activist's computers with the excuse that they were using pirated software. With the data obtained from those computers, the activist's plans become known to the government leading to several arrests.

Though Microsoft has responded by issuing a blanket license for NGOs, reading this article made me think there is another, better way to prevent the police from using this high-tech tactic without the entanglements of licensing. While it won't stop an authoritarian government from crushing dissenters, using Free and Open Source Software can make it harder for police operating in suppressive regimes to legitimize this type of action.

First, the philosophy of Freedom deeply permeates the men and women in the community who develop Open Source Software and has resulted in many freedom-protecting innovations. Things like GPG encyption and the TOR technology, which make anonymous communication possible for millions of users in countries like China and Iran. Not to mention the fact, that in the open source world we have a strong focus on security and protection from threats like viruses or potential 'backdoors' put into commercial software through pressure from governments.


Brazil has understood the importance of freedom (liberty) for quite some time and hopefully its schools will successfully resist Microsoft's Russia-like attacks on GNU/Linux in Brazilian schools. See the posts below for background.



Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

How We Process Screenshots of Slop to Suitably Tag Them as Slop
everything is a single command
Seductive Mirage or Allure of Complex, Proprietary Coffee Machines (or Similar White Elephants)
Software is a lot like those things
 
Team GNOME Has Libeled Me for Nearly 20 Years
we are not dealing with sane people
Experience With Airlines in 'Web Sites' and in 'Apps'
In a lot of ways, Stallman Was Right about what JavaScript would turn out to be
Open Does Not Mean Free
wiser to ask if some program is freedom-respecting
The Register MS Takes Money From Companies Banned by the Biden and Trump Administrations (National Security Risk)
today's sponsor
Sabotaging GNU/Linux PCs (and Users) is Not a 'Joke'
maybe cruelty is the very objective
Links 11/08/2025: Data Breaches, Politics, and Climate
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, August 10, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, August 10, 2025
Gemini Links 11/08/2025: Tea Caffeine Hot and Super ZZ Zero
Links for the day
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, Brian Fagioli, and Other Serial Sloppers
Maybe Microsoft wants to dub this "Web5"
Gemini Links 10/08/2025: Residents Management Company, Automation, and Politics
Links for the day
Links 10/08/2025: AOL Ending Dial-up
Links for the day
Links 10/08/2025: Webrings, “AI Sunglasses” and “AI Eyeglasses”, US Administration Intensifies Attacks on Science and Research
Links for the day
Sometimes Newer is Worse
We generally need to reject this dumb notion that "old" means bad
The Code Used to Make Techrights Fits on a Seventh of a Floppy Disk (or 100KB When Compressed)
For the sake of comparison I've just downloaded the latest version of WordPress. The ZIP file is 27.2MB in size, or ~27,200KB.
What They Tell Young Programmers
Coding in 2025
Simpler is Better When Simple is Enough
Over-complicating things to "sell" new versions is so 1990s
Links 10/08/2025: From Social Control Media to Prison, New Examples of Windows TCO
Links for the day
Sloppy Reporting About Slop, or How The Register MS Lowers Its Standards
Maybe the management isn't even aware of this
IBM's Strategy: Cull 'Expensive' Workers, Replace Them With Cheaper Ones
So far we saw not even one rebuttal or challenge to the claim of Red Hat layoffs scheduled for tomorrow
If You Attack Somebody Too Much You Legitimise and Strengthen That Somebody
at the end those attacks add up to a "martyr" status
The Man Who Helped Microsoft Kill Linux is Trying to Delay Our Lawsuits Against Him
By conservative estimates, and based on court documents submitted by them, they're prepared to spend over a million dollars on lawyers, fighting against me and my wife
Gemini Links 10/08/2025: Gen Con 2025 and Framework Laptop
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, August 09, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, August 09, 2025
The Register MS (Microsoft) or The Register AI (Slop)?
What a slopfest!
Is Red Hat About to Give the Boot to GNOME People Who Helped Microsoft 'Secure' (Monopolised) Boot?
It was always a dumb idea to play along with Microsoft's hardware mischief
Sales of Windows on PCs (Windows Licences) Go Down
Microsoft has a big problem in its hands
The Hype That Microsoft and The Register MS (Among Others) Promote Helps Stage DDoS Attacks on Free Software Sites
Microsoft is, to put it bluntly, pure evil
The Goal of Coopetition Assumes You're Friends
it will never work with Microsoft
Links 09/08/2025: Putin Allegedly to Visit Alaska (Which He Deems Part of Russia), Mike Tyson Sued for Copyright Infringement
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Linux Journal, LinuxSecurity, and Google News With Its Slopfarms of Choice
SEO spam, made with LLMs
Follow the Money: The Register MS Gets Paid to Promote "Hey Hi" Ponzi Scheme/Hype, Some Fake 'Articles' Might Be Composed by LLMs Already
paid to promote slop
Gemini Links 09/08/2025: Rethinking Aliases and Posting on Gopher vs. the Web
Links for the day
Links 09/08/2025: Apollo 13 Astronaut Jim Lovell Dies, Slop Future Bleak
Links for the day
After Shutting Down Studios, Divisions, Applications (e.g. Skype) Microsoft is Also Shutting Down 'Apps'
Cuts all around as layoffs persist this month, Microsoft tries to get many people to resign, and debt skyrockets
Most of Geminispace Can Probably Fit on a CD-ROM or a DVD (the Textual Part)
If one excludes very large capsules and ones that contain non-textual contenty
Eventually UEFI 'Secure Boot' Will be Dropped (Users Will Demand Its Removal and Boycott Its Pushers)
we expect OEMs will just listen to users
The Register MS: We Know Slop is a Bubble and Mindless Hype, But We Get Paid to Participate
Call out the culprits
Hate Mail From Anonymous Cowards
if this persists, we'll need to escalate
There Are Probably Over a Million Pages in Geminispace
there are two many limitations which merit a mention when it comes to assessing magnitude
Informal Open Letter to the Lawyer of the Microsofters (on Who's Funding the SLAPPs Against Techrights)
Whenever I ask about the funding they try to change the subject and act all aggressive
Microsoft Lunduke is Just Provoking People for Provocation's Sake
Be forewarned and remember where this guy came from: Microsoft
Besieged by Plagiarists Who Play With LLMs and Image Fusions
We really need to exercise or use our collective voice to oppose Serial Sloppers
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, August 08, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, August 08, 2025
Gemini Links 09/08/2025: Water Painting and Political Violence
Links for the day