Privacy Guides – Tools and Resources for Protecting Your Data

Are Automatic Updates Basically Backdoors? What are people's thoughts on privacy and automatic updates? I know when it comes to security in general, it is always best to have the latest version of everything installed. But at the same time, when you have a system, whether a phone, PC, whatever, that may be automatically updating dozens or even hundreds of apps/packages every month, every single one of those has the potential to include a backdoor. Now it could be a malicious developer, it could be a supply chain attack, it could be government pressure on a developer, all kinds of things. Personally, I think there is a balance between the two, and that doing updates with about a 3 month lag is ideal, except when there is a very serious exploit found (in which case anyone paying attention will hear about it anyway). Unfortunately, very few systems allow for automatic updates for everything, 3 months after release. For example no custom Android ROM I am aware of lets you always update 3 months late, same with Aurora store and F-Droid AFAIK. And Linux software managers don't offer it by default, though obviously it's easy to write a script for that. Many let you put off updates, but when you do them, they are the latest updates, not the older ones. What are others' thoughts on it? https://redd.it/13sc1gq @PrivacyGuides

Lockdown 2.0 So the iOS Lockdown app released their 2.0 version now. Any idea if one should add it to once arsenal of security now, or is NextDNS still enough for what one would need? I’m not extremely techy so be kind in your answers 😊 https://redd.it/13savm3 @PrivacyGuides

Switching back to CalyxOS After a month in GrapheneOS, I realized I valued CalyxOS's networking features over GOS's security hardening. Not to say that CalyxOS isn't secure, it is a secure OS, but damn their special sauce is networking. Being able to turn my phone into a hotspot router and allow my laptop to use my phone's VPN is just so nice. Not only that, but being able to encase my entire device (all user profiles) through my main profile's VPN (or all traffic over Orbot) is just----so----nice! CalyxOS' special sauce = Networking. GOS's special sauce = Security Hardening. ​ It really comes down on which one you value more. Really wish these two projects could combine forces. GOS's security hardening and CalyxOS's networking features all in a single ROM?? Damn! That'd be spicy. I had a lot of fun on GOS. https://redd.it/13s0krf @PrivacyGuides

How different "secure" messaging apps handle deleted messages. A news article I thought the fine folks in this Reddit might find interesting. A deleted message can sometimes still be readable if, for instance, someone quoted your message in a reply and such. So the EFF tested several secure messengers to see exactly how they handled Deleted messages. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/05/how-do-different-encrypted-messaging-apps-treat-deleted-messages https://redd.it/13s926z @PrivacyGuides

Widespread FBI abuse of foreign spy law sets off “alarm bells,” tech group says https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/05/fbi-misused-foreign-surveillance-law-280k-times-to-snoop-on-people-in-the-us/ https://redd.it/13sf0i5 @PrivacyGuides

Replace Cryptomator + Google Drive setup with self-hosted Nextcloud + Cryptomator? Hi everyone, I've been using Cryptomator with Google Drive for quite some time and was generally quite satisfied with this combination. However, recent changes have made me consider alternatives. Google used to offer unlimited storage, but they've now capped it at 2TB, which is not sufficient for my needs. As a possible solution, I have a Linux PC running at home, primarily used as a Plex Media Server. I also have a 10TB hard drive that I'm considering utilizing for a new cloud storage setup. But here's where I need your advice. I'm unsure about how to achieve the same (or at least comparable) level of convenience and security as my previous Cryptomator + Google Drive setup. One option that I have considered is Nextcloud. I've heard mixed things about its end-to-end encryption, so I'm a bit hesitant. As I understand it, Nextcloud uses WebDAV and Cryptomator can connect to WebDAV servers. So theoretically, I could set up Nextcloud and put my Cryptomator vault on it. But is this a practical or advisable solution? Are there potential pitfalls I should be aware of, or better alternatives I should consider? I'm fairly tech-savvy, but I'm not an expert on this topic. Any help, suggestions, or insights from those of you who are more knowledgeable in this area would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance! TL;DR: Need alternative to Google Drive + Cryptomator. Have 10TB HDD and Linux PC. Considering using Nextcloud + Cryptomator but unsure about security and convenience. Looking for suggestions and advice. https://redd.it/13sg4ka @PrivacyGuides

What are some neat/helpful security gadgets or hardware or electronics? obviously most security is done through software, but what about the hardware side? I can think of some stuff such as Yubikeys, those rfid scanning blockings you put in your wallet, I can across this really cool skimmer finder where you slide this card in any card reader and it tells you if it has a skimmer or not. really neat stuff. any other neat tools to add to the tool box? https://redd.it/13sqkgi @PrivacyGuides

Worried About Sending Your Data to a Chatbot? 'PrivateGPT' Is Here https://www.vice.com/en/article/3akd7y/worried-about-sending-your-data-to-a-chatbot-privategpt-is-here https://redd.it/13t05fs @PrivacyGuides

Is there such thing as tech ecosystems which still respect privacy? I'm in a weird position. For the last year I have been trying all different things to become more private including Linux & custom roms, no social media, FOSS software wherever possible and more. However, I decided to do an experiment this week and abandon that all to see what I was missing out on. Wow, I really did come to realise just how much I have missed the comforts of the ecosystems that google & apple have created. Most of all, I really just loved how interconnected all of their services were and how good and reliable they were (looking at you OpenStreet Maps, still love you tho). However, the entire time I have not been able to shake off this constant fear of the data tracking taking place and have been forced to log onto my linux PC just to get around them.So long story short, how do you all feel about this and what would you all say is a good middle ground between strong privacy and the comfort of the ecosystems (or even better, are there any similar ecosystems which still respect privacy) (and yes, I know my privacy is already stuffed just by being Australian -_- ). Thanks all ​ (edit: I have done a full threat analysis and know that I am okay with google and love their Advanced protection program, but I still cant get over that fear of their still constant data collection) https://redd.it/13sysbg @PrivacyGuides

Why I deleted GrapheneOS - Louis Rossmann https://invidious.snopyta.org/watch?v=Dl1x1Dy-ej4 https://redd.it/13s7mv3 @PrivacyGuides

Is there a way to remove a suspension from a facebook account? I deleted fb profile a long time ago, but recently I came across a nice group, which is unfortunately on fb, so I created a fake profile. Used mullvad to register and to connect every time, added a fake ai generated profile picture and nothing else. This morning I see a suspension notification and that I have 180days to disagree. First they asked for a mobile number, so I gave them a temp one and that passed, but now they are asking for a selfie. Unfortunately, there's no way to generate the same guy's photo once again, so wanted to ask, did someone manage to remove the suspension and how? Or if there's some suggestion what to try? I know I can create a new profile, but that one can get a suspension too. https://redd.it/13tv1a8 @PrivacyGuides

What are THE top security and privacy adjustments for a home computing system? there's so much out there and it either is over my head or it's corporate based. I find the documentation to be lacking and overdone at the same time. there's not a good structure of flow to it, so its hard to figure out where to start, etc. What are some must have programs preferably linux wise on my Dell xp13 9310 laptop? https://redd.it/13t2djz @PrivacyGuides

[News]: NewPipe is planning a huge rewrite and needs developers /r/androidapps/comments/13s8ysg/newpipe_is_planning_a_huge_rewrite_and_needs/ https://redd.it/13sunlq @PrivacyGuides

Daniel Micay steps down as lead developer of GrapheneOS https://github.com/thestinger/daniel.micay.dev/commit/79e44b41190cd5c64c4ccd9fec4301ee6008da53 https://redd.it/13spm4d @PrivacyGuides

Email domain security & Cloud So if i use my own domain as my main email, my email account security will be as secure as my domain provider AND lets say for example Tutanota? + With this this you rely on 1 more company? Also why do people choose to selfhost Bitwarden because of privacy, then they host it on a VPS which also is the cloud? Never understood this. You basically just change the cloud where you store your database. OR I’m i wrong? https://redd.it/13tdlkg @PrivacyGuides

fsearch on linux updates daily - is that a concern? Question is in the title. https://redd.it/13u1kgh @PrivacyGuides

Sneaky installation Hi, Something weird happened to me and I would appreciate any thoughts: I was at the ITV website (itv.com) to watch a movie using Brave. As I’ve logged in from a new computer for the first time and when I’ve tried to watch the movie a dialog pops up asking me to install a weird application (I don’t remember the name but it was long and included Google) I accidentally press yes and then the movie starts. When I check the Brave extensions there is nothing installed and when I check my Mac applications also nothing installed, what could this possibly be? https://redd.it/13u1pna @PrivacyGuides

Using password manager on computers you don't own This is more of a security question than a privacy one. You can use a cloud managed password manager are traveling and you can create a portable password manager using something like Keepass. What are the people's opinon or guideline for doing this? My thoughts are: A public computer at a cafe and library - no because I have no idea what's on the machine. A relative or friend's computer - maybe if the person I know is good with security. With smartphone being so common these days, I am thinking maybe the best way is to just use your smartphone even if it's a pain to access stuff through a tiny screen with no keyboard. https://redd.it/13u1l1v @PrivacyGuides

What Are the Risks of Public WiFi? Whenever the topic of public WiFi comes up the conversation usually begins and ends with VPN. Are there other risks to using public WiFi that are not protected by a VPN? https://redd.it/13u3ieh @PrivacyGuides

How can I totally isolate two different operating systems (Linux / Windows 10) from each other? I would like to run a computer with two operating systems (Linux alongside a Windows 10 OS). Each system will be set on a different SSD \- The Windows OS will be used for work, while the Linux OS is for personal use. I'm moving my personal usage to Linux [mainly\] due to privacy concerns since Windows is pretty intrusive as you already know. My question is: can there be an interaction between the Linux "environment" and the Windows "environment" in a way that could compromise either one of them? (provided that each OS will be installed on a totally separate drive). In other words: how much isolation can be achieved with two separate operating systems on two different drives? Thank You https://redd.it/13tuwjc @PrivacyGuides