projects are left without maintainers [LWN.net]

projects are left without maintainers

Posted Oct 24, 2024 18:04 UTC (Thu) by MarcB (subscriber, #101804)
In reply to: projects are left without maintainers by bluca
Parent article: Several Russian developers lose kernel maintainership status

Note that I even mentioned "harassed online" as the most harmless possible outcome. Worse is possible.

Russian, domestic propaganda is very much based on a "true patriots versus corrupted individuals" narrative, where "corrupted" can get defined *very* broadly and arbitrarily. It utilizes thugs, online and offline, as helpers. Police and prosecutors look away when those thugs cross the line of acceptable - and even legal - behaviour.

You can be absolutely certain that a bunch "of true Russian patriots" is now watching the maintainers file and will challenge anyone who gets re-added. This might even escalate offline, by contacting employers, neighbors and so on.

showing proof of employment ≠ disavowing Russia

Posted Oct 26, 2024 1:32 UTC (Sat) by hackerb9 (guest, #21928) [Link]

MarcB, are you thinking that the sanctions are by nationality? I do not think that is the case as it looks like the US sanctions actually target 500 specific entities[1] in Russia. A maintainer doesn't need to show that they work for a foreign corporation, which I could imagine might appear to some like disavowing Russia, they can show they work for some other Russian business.

[1]: https://sanctionslist.ofac.treas.gov/Home/static/sdn.html