Get big tech, big government, and randos out of your business

Privacy Nowadays


## Who are you hiding from?

* manipulative advertisers
* nosy ex's
* nosy neighbors
* coworkers with an axe to grind
* rando zealots from the internet
* unscrupulous content outlets
* local and state governments infringing on rights
* world governments looking for a pawn

## Examples of creepy behavior



"I'm boring. Nobody cares what I do." That changed. Here's a sampling of creeps doing creepy things.

Why bother?

A lot of privacy guides go into a lot of detail and it can be overwhelming covering all of the caveats and considerations when you want a Day 1 action plan. This is an opinionated guide to get started quickly. I link to additional resources later. Let's start with free and easy changes you can make today.

## A Good Password Manager

If you're reusing passwords across sites or using a weak password that's easy for you to remember, that would undermine most of what we're working to solve here.

### Personal recommendation

Choose a long, good password for your password manager account, then use the browser plugin and mobile app for that password manager to keep the strong, random passwords for your other accounts.

### Good

[Bitwarden](https://bitwarden.com/) or [1Password](https://1password.com/).

### Avoid

LastPass and password managers bundled with a browser.

## Get Better Browsers

Chrome and Edge are full of tracking to enrich Google and Microsoft at the expense of your privacy. Google is an advertising and surveillance company dressed as a tech gadget and software company. Microsoft is legendary for similar behavior.

Apple? No. Safari is a subpar browser that doesn't even have the source code open to public scrutiny. Apple touts it as being good for privacy but every feature it has is available in other browsers. Other browsers which get patched faster and have a better user experience.

Firefox is the best mainstream browser choice but Mozilla is starting to go down that data collection path out of desperation.

Browsers built on the core open source parts of Chrome and Firefox are available though.

### Good

#### Desktop

[Librewolf](https://librewolf.net/) and [Mullvad Browser](https://mullvad.net/en/browser) are Firefox-based and reputable.

[Chromium](https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/download-chromium/#chromium) is Chrome-based and reputable. Sometimes it's needed for web apps and sites that were designed specifically for Chrome instead of being standards compliant. Flashbacks to Internet Explorer days. I would use it sparingly and favor Librewolf and Mullvad Browser.

#### Android

Librewolf and Mullvad Browser are not available on mobile. The next best thing is [Waterfox](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.waterfox.android.release). Add the icon to open in private mode, change the setting to open links in private mode by default, and make it the default browser.

GrapheneOS, a degoogled android phone distribution mentioned later, bundles a very good Chromium-based browser named [Vanadium](https://grapheneos.org/usage#web-browsing). It is a good option if you have it but does not have an option to default to private tabs.

#### iOS

In the US all iOS browsers still have Safari's rendering at their core even if they are Chrome, Firefox, etc on the outside. Waterfox is not available on iOS so the best case scenario is [Firefox Focus](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/firefox-focus-privacy-browser/id1055677337).

### Avoid

In my opinion, avoid Brave or any similar browser claiming to solve too many problems and bundle too many features.

Avoid browsers directly from Google, Apple, Microsoft, Samsung.

## Segment Use Cases

In other words, split up what you do into different browsers.

Think about how you use the web when you're logged into an account with your name attached. Then think about websites you visit without logging in. Keep those in separate browsers as a habit.

Later we'll use VPNs or proxies to keep them in separate locations.

## Keep A Clean Desk

Keeping more browser tabs open than you can recall off the top of your head is not privacy-friendly. Many browsers even mark tabs stale to save memory, leading to a tab management headache.

If it's important but you're not going to use it in the next 20 minutes and you don't need to log in again to open it, then **just bookmark it and close it**.

Set your browser to delete all history and site data when you close the browser. Anything important is bookmarked. **Anything that requires a login that you want to open quickly** (maybe Bluesky, YouTube, Reddit), **add that to the exception list**.

Some people choose to put all of their exceptions in one browser and leave the other exception free where it will always delete all site data and history from disk. Other people will sandbox some websites in one browser and other websites in another depending how they think the cookies may interact.

## Use Privacy-friendly Frontends for Common Sites

If you're just browsing content without being logged in, might as well use a content proxy frontend.

https://libredirect.github.io/ lists a number of pieces of software that act as intermediaries to make the content available without being exposed to the privacy concerns of connecting to the website directly.

An example of this would be software named Invidious. A site running that software https://inv.nadeko.net acts as a youtube proxy.

Another example of this would be software named Nitter. A site running that software named https://xcancel.com allows you to search tweets.

Sometimes those websites get blocked. To find new ones look through their wiki page for a section listing "instances" of them.

https://libredirect.github.io/ is a good list of the software names but it is not necessary to use the plugin it offers.



Get started now. Free, simple things you can do to better safeguard your privacy.

Start Here


## Signal

## VPN

## Email

## VOIP phone


Now that you're serious about it, add these changes to enhance your security.

Ramp up the effort


## Windows

No. Treat it like a game console but turn it off when you're not using it. Only use it for gaming. No banking, no conversations, no shopping.

## Mac

macOS can be locked down pretty far but it removes most of what makes a Mac a Mac, the invasive and connected ecosystem. It's still an option though for Mac buyers with hardware that is not fully supported in Linux yet.

[Extreme Privacy](https://inteltechniques.com/book7.html) goes into it much better with step by step instructions but the gist is:

1. After wiping the machine, do not sign in to iCloud.
2. Install a software firewall (Lulu or Little Snitch) before connecting it to the network for the first time. Bring the installer on a thumb drive.
3. Turn off all invasive system features, including connectivity and syncing related features.
4. Be sure to encrypt the disk with FileVault.

## Linux

The best desktop platform for privacy is a good Linux distro.

### Good

[Linux Mint](https://www.linuxmint.com/) or [Pop OS](https://system76.com/pop/).

Qubes OS is very useful but it is elaborate excess for someone needing to just leave 

### Avoid

Installation and operation has gotten easier, but if you're new to Linux you don't need to use Arch for basic privacy. The same goes for Fedora.

Kali Linux and Parrot OS are predominantly for professional work. They are not a daily driver for someone focused on privacy (even the one labeled as a daily driver).

## iOS

Leave the iPhone ecosystem as soon as you can. Smartphones in general are a privacy nightmare. iPhones reach back to Apple regularly for a number of reasons. They even do it when you're connected to a VPN, sending that traffic outside of the VPN and informing Apple about where you are despite the VPN.

The operating system is closed source, has not been audited by third parties, and regularly sees outrageous security flaws. One example that's top of mind was the ability to remotely execute code by sending a text message or facetiming, even if the recipient doesn't pick up or interact with the message.

In recent years Apple has made great progress protecting the contents of locked phones. They even automatically reboot after 72 hours of being locked to reset them to Before First Unlock mode in case they are stolen.

Regardless, forensic software companies are able to unlock a number of iPhones even when reset to the Before First Unlock state. Being a popular platform also means they're a high priority for those forensics companies.

**Rooting an iPhone does not improve the situation.** While it may give you greater access over the processes running on the phone and allow you to wreak havoc among them in the search for more privacy, jailbreaking also fundamentally breaks the security of the phone since it depends on a software exploit to accomplish.

## Stock Android phones

The versions of android shipped from mainstream vendors have the same kind of privacy concerns that iPhones do:

* system services that report back to the manufacturer, around VPN connections
* system services that report back to Google for functionality related to the Play Store, around VPN connections
* shown to be unlockable with forensic software and popular enough research is always high priority for cracking the newest phones
* likely unpatched vulnerabilities that remain to aid intelligence community backdoors

**As mentioned above for iPhones, jailbreaking the stock operating system of an android phone would compromise the security and create a larger problem.**

## Degoogled phones

GrapheneOS, CalyxOS, LineageOS...

Improve your privacy and security with a solid foundation.

Secure Platforms


This is an opinionated quickstart guide built on the shoulders of experts.

Here are the experts.

Where YouTube content is mentioned I included an Invidious (privacy-friendly alternate frontend) link instead though they are easily findable via search.

## Anonymous Planet Hitchhiker's Guide

https://anonymousplanet.org/guide/

Or download the guide [from the Kiwix library](https://library.kiwix.org/#lang=eng&q=anon) and view it offline with the Kiwix viewer app.

## Surveillance Report

Weekly video podcast covering privacy-related news.

https://inv.nadeko.net/channel/UC0W_BIuwk8D0Bv4THbVZZOQ

## Techlore Go Incognito

Thorough, free course covering security and privacy topics beyond the scope of this guide.

https://inv.nadeko.net/playlist?list=PL3KeV6Ui_4CayDGHw64OFXEPHgXLkrtJO

## Extreme Privacy What It Takes to Disappear - 5th Edition (2024)

The book for privacy. It goes well beyond even the Go Incognito course.

https://inteltechniques.com/book7.html

## Introduction to OSINT

A quick, free course on investigations to see what kind of data might be findable on you.

https://www.myosint.training/courses/introduction-to-osint


## Means of Control

A book illustrating the vast surveillance industry tied to smart phones and web traffic and tracking movement through the world.

https://www.byrontau.com/means-of-control

Discover in much more depth where this guide's recommendations come from.

Get big tech, big government, and randos out of your business

Why bother?

Start Here

Ramp up the effort

Secure Platforms

Resources to learn more