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Other => Beginners & Help => Topic started by: bitmover on March 28, 2018, 11:05:46 AM



Title: Let's talk about Privacy
Post by: bitmover on March 28, 2018, 11:05:46 AM
      I discovered bitcoin while studying about how to protect my privacy on the internet.

      Crytpocurrencies and privacy and closely related. This way many people here care about privacy, however I still see many users in this forum who are not using basic privacy tools, like an ad block.

      This simple guide is for those people.

      Usually people who think they don't care about privacy say: "I don't worry about  privacy because I have nothing to hide."
      When you go to the bathroom you close the door, even if you have nothing to hide.

      While surfing on the internet here are a few tools that will help you protect yourself against tracking and privacy invasion.

    • Avoid any Google product. They are not to be trusted as Google will track your data to ad services.

    • Browser recommendation:
      Firefox / Brave browser / Tor Browser

    • Browser Extensions: (works even on Firefox Mobile)
       UBlock (https://www​.ublock.org/) (an adblocker) - An AdBlock is also an important method to avoid phishing sites.
      Decentraleyes (https://addons.mozilla.org/pt-BR/firefox/addon/decentraleyes/) (blocks content delivery)
       HTTPS Everywhere (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/https-everywhere/)

    • E-mail provider:
      Consider changing to a encrypted e-mail service, not U.S based
       ProtonMail  (https://www.protonmail.com) /  Tutanota  (https://www.tutanota.com)

    • Search engines:
      I know how it's hard to not use Google. The best private alternative is  Duckduckgo  (https://www.duckduckgo.com).
      If you find very hard to stop using Google, consider using  Encrypted Google (https://encrypted.google.com)  (I really don't know if it is truly encrypted)

    • Encrypt your Android Device (https://www.androidauthority.com/how-to-encrypt-android-device-326700/) - Protect your music, photos, personal data that can only be read with a password.

    • Fix Windows 10 privacy configuration (https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/08/windows-10-doesnt-offer-much-privacy-by-default-heres-how-to-fix-it/), to avoid Microsoft data collection.

    • Some good VPN (protects your traffic data and enables geo-restricted content):
       Proton VPN (https://protonvpn.com/) - Free version available.
      Tunnel Bear (https://www.tunnelbear.com/) Free version available.
       Nord VPN  (https://nordvpn.com) - Free version available.
      To use full time you will need a paid plan on a good VPN service.

    • Private cryptocurrencies:
      Monero (the most popular), PIVX, Dash, Zcash, Particl, among many others.


    • Open Source and privacy focused Operation Systems (OS) based on Android mobile.
      LineageOS (https://lineageos.org), Replicant  (https://replicant.us/)and Copperhead (https://copperhead.co/android/).


    • Privacy focused notes manager.
      Standard Notes. (https://www.standardnotes.org/)
      This application allows you to sync notes in web, android app, windows, mac and linux. Very nice. Simple and respect your privacy.


    - Drive alternative
    • ownCloud (https://owncloud.org/features/): Open source, self-hosted cloud platform, available for enterprise
    • Syncthing (https://github.com/syncthing/syncthing/tree/master): Open source, P2P
    • Nextcloud (https://nextcloud.com/): Open source, self-hosted

    - Calendar alternative
    • Etar (https://github.com/Etar-Group/Etar-Calendar): Open source
    • Fruux (https://fruux.com): Open source


    - Google Docs / Sheets / Slides alternative
    • CryptPad (https://cryptpad.fr/): Zero Knowledge Cloud
    • Etherpad (https://etherpad.org/): Open source


    - Domain Registration
      Njalla (https://njal.la/)
    They do not want to know who you are. No questions about  who you are. No need for Whois Guard.


    Important note: Privacy is a never ending task, as you can always do something more. Start doing what is easier for you. There are also many other useful add-ons, programs, etc. This is just a very basic guide, as I see many people who don't even use an adblocker

    If you want more information about privacy, go to https://www.privacytools.io/ (https://www.privacytools.io/)


    Edit: Added Https everywhere extension and encrypt mobile device.
    Edit2: Added VPNs and private cryptocurrencies.

    Edit3: An AdBlock is also an important method to avoid phishing sites. So you really should be using one, as it will increase your security.
    Many phishing sites promote their scams through paid ads. If you can't see them, you can't click them.[/list]

    Edit4: Added  Standard Notes, drive, calendar and docs.[/list]

    German translation: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5455921.msg62383812#msg62383812


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: MintDiceSupport on March 28, 2018, 11:45:25 PM
    Yes, adblockers are really important because some of those ads spread viruses or malware. Adblock Plus supports more platforms but Ublock has definitely gained a lot of popularity and trust.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: jseverson on March 29, 2018, 01:10:24 AM
    If you're suggesting Tor anyway, why not suggest its built-in add-ons for Firefox? There are only two after all, and neither is particularly invasive:

    • HTTPS Everywhere - Forces sites to use https when available
    • NoScript - Blocks javascript from untrusted domains (you have to trust them manually)

    VPNs are also great for making sure your ISP doesn't snoop on you, though routing all of your traffic through Tor achieves mostly the same thing.

    Either way, excellent write-up :)


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: braindeadgenius on March 29, 2018, 02:23:07 AM
    I'm definitely going to keep this thread as a favorite for follow up for myself, especially when I go to build a new computer one day. Privacy things are one thing I haven't taken too seriously and probably should be, as we all should be. I agree, Google is definitely a shady company and worth staying away from, even though I use all of their services.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bananapeelfeed on March 29, 2018, 04:58:30 AM
    I can vouch for the brave browser. It's very fast and for the most part works like Google Chrome.

    Thanks for the tip about duckduckgo, I'll check it out.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on April 01, 2018, 10:25:01 PM
    If you're suggesting Tor anyway, why not suggest its built-in add-ons for Firefox? There are only two after all, and neither is particularly invasive:

    • HTTPS Everywhere - Forces sites to use https when available
    • NoScript - Blocks javascript from untrusted domains (you have to trust them manually)

    VPNs are also great for making sure your ISP doesn't snoop on you, though routing all of your traffic through Tor achieves mostly the same thing.

    Either way, excellent write-up :)

    Yeah these are good add-ons.
    As I said, privacy is an never ending task, there are many other good add-ons, programs, vpn, encrypt devices...

    I will add https everywhere to the post, as it's very easy to use, thank you.
    Added how to encrypt your mobile device too.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: mattcode on April 02, 2018, 09:13:26 PM
    You might want to look at a privacy oriented cryptocurrency too, like Monero (or Zcash). Tracing Bitcoin transactions is trivial.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on April 07, 2018, 05:33:45 AM
    Added VPNs and Privacy currencies.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: mk4 on April 07, 2018, 06:51:24 AM
    Added VPNs and Privacy currencies.

    Might not be used THAT much, but probably add privacy-focused operating systems like Tails[1] and QubesOS[2]?


    [1] https://tails.boum.org/
    [2] https://www.qubes-os.org/


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: rama666 on April 07, 2018, 10:57:54 AM
    There is an excellent browser for privacy. There the company is engaged in confidentiality and there are a lot of paid development. But the site is free.
    Called Browser AntiDetect by VektorT13
    Another good is  Epic Privacy Browser
    Well, many people talk about Brave, but I do not like that there are not many plug-ins


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Kakmakr on April 07, 2018, 11:50:39 AM
    I think privacy comes apart, when money is involved. I saw this happening on this forum when Ripple was introduced. People only had to link with their Facebook account to get some FREE Ripple in the beginning. This immediately compromised most of these people and their account was linked to their real identity. <if they used their real account, they DOXed themselves>

    After Ripple, we saw a host of Bounties and Coin drops and services where they require your social media accounts and some ICOs even implemented some AML requirements to participate.

    Is the few dollars really worth your privacy? Your greed might cost you more, when people use this information to track you or even to link you to your main coin hoard.  ::)

      


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: audaciousbeing on April 07, 2018, 01:09:15 PM
    I think privacy comes apart, when money is involved. I saw this happening on this forum when Ripple was introduced. People only had to link with their Facebook account to get some FREE Ripple in the beginning. This immediately compromised most of these people and their account was linked to their real identity. <if they used their real account, they DOXed themselves>

    After Ripple, we saw a host of Bounties and Coin drops and services where they require your social media accounts and some ICOs even implemented some AML requirements to participate.

    Is the few dollars really worth your privacy? Your greed might cost you more, when people use this information to track you or even to link you to your main coin hoard.  ::)

      

    Your observation is spot on and aside from what you see there, a whole lot of ICO will hide under whitelist to gather information about prospective applicants, while others that are bounty or airdrop defined will gladly gave their information away because of what will come out of it. But this post is surely not referring to them as they willingly gave them out either ignorantly or as a result of greed.

    I am of the opinion of online privacy is not really applicable to me because I feel the sites I visits are mostly normal sites without anything to hide but this post is something more enlightening and would start implementing some of the recommendations there. Thanks Op.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: zavodil on April 07, 2018, 09:22:40 PM
    TOR is quite slow. Just use VPN


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: HabBear on April 08, 2018, 04:14:42 AM
    Usually people who think they don't care about privacy say: "I don't worry about  privacy because I have nothing to hide."
    When you go to the bathroom you close the door, even if you have nothing to hide.

    This is an interesting statement. People will use locks on their doors, or not disclose to friends how much money they make but when it comes to the internet people don't seem to care much about security - it's because they don't understand it...or don't have the time to learn.

    So, in the interest of...

    This simple guide is for those people.

    For the people that are new to really privacy protection, what should they consider the first risk to their privacy. Presume that those that engage in a lot of crypto transactions or other dealings have embraced privacy...because they know they have to...what about the rest of us? Where are we likely to get hit first? Easiest?


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Kakmakr on April 08, 2018, 06:33:07 AM
    I think privacy comes apart, when money is involved. I saw this happening on this forum when Ripple was introduced. People only had to link with their Facebook account to get some FREE Ripple in the beginning. This immediately compromised most of these people and their account was linked to their real identity. <if they used their real account, they DOXed themselves>

    After Ripple, we saw a host of Bounties and Coin drops and services where they require your social media accounts and some ICOs even implemented some AML requirements to participate.

    Is the few dollars really worth your privacy? Your greed might cost you more, when people use this information to track you or even to link you to your main coin hoard.  ::)

      

    Your observation is spot on and aside from what you see there, a whole lot of ICO will hide under whitelist to gather information about prospective applicants, while others that are bounty or airdrop defined will gladly gave their information away because of what will come out of it. But this post is surely not referring to them as they willingly gave them out either ignorantly or as a result of greed.

    I am of the opinion of online privacy is not really applicable to me because I feel the sites I visits are mostly normal sites without anything to hide but this post is something more enlightening and would start implementing some of the recommendations there. Thanks Op.

    The thing is, what is normal sites without anything to hide? A lot of these sites looks normal, but they hide a lot of nasty agendas. Most people think Google is a normal site, but behind that money and power is a lot of information gathering and reporting to government agencies.

    Just look at what is happening at Facebook now and how they handle our sensitive information. These government agencies will stop at nothing to gather information on innocent citizens and hackers will create sites to try and steal your coins. <Site Spoofing>


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: mattcode on April 08, 2018, 08:05:46 AM
    TOR is quite slow. Just use VPN

    You have to place a lot of trust in a VPN provider (there is no way to verify a no-logging policy), and in the VPN provider's ISP.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: lizardbtc on April 08, 2018, 08:23:33 AM
    TOR is quite slow. Just use VPN

    You have to place a lot of trust in a VPN provider (there is no way to verify a no-logging policy), and in the VPN provider's ISP.

    You have to put trust into Tor exit nodes as well. Tor is great tool for anonymity but yet it is not perfect. I know that in some countries if you try to run a node goverment agencies will knock on your dor, others will start to track your activity (like the case with my country). Which lets many goverments agencies to host their own exit nodes. If you use Tor long enough higher chance is that you will go through "compromied" node and thus they can reveal your identity. Tor is good tool, but it is far from perfect, you still have to know what you are doing to keep yourself private.

    From OP post, he is saying tor browser - yes it could help but it is not recommended to use it on your ordinary computer (OS), that's why tails exist or whonix whit snapshots of your VM.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on April 13, 2018, 07:41:48 PM

    I am of the opinion of online privacy is not really applicable to me because I feel the sites I visits are mostly normal sites without anything to hide but this post is something more enlightening and would start implementing some of the recommendations there. Thanks Op.

    The thing is, what is normal sites without anything to hide? A lot of these sites looks normal, but they hide a lot of nasty agendas. Most people think Google is a normal site, but behind that money and power is a lot of information gathering and reporting to government agencies.

    Just look at what is happening at Facebook now and how they handle our sensitive information. These government agencies will stop at nothing to gather information on innocent citizens and hackers will create sites to try and steal your coins. <Site Spoofing>

    yes, the most problem with privacy are these normal sites that are sneaky collecting your personal information. Most people let them collect this information for free just because they are not really aware of it.

    For the people that are new to really privacy protection, what should they consider the first risk to their privacy. Presume that those that engage in a lot of crypto transactions or other dealings have embraced privacy...because they know they have to...what about the rest of us? Where are we likely to get hit first? Easiest?

    I didn´t understand your question. What should we protect first? Well, in my opinion the I can´t surf on the web without an Adblock. When you get used to see the websites as they should be, as they were designed, ads are going to hurt your eyes when you spot them.

    I do not feel comfortable using Chrome anymore too. I feel Google is sneaking all the time, stealing my data. I think this is a good start.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Rath_ on April 19, 2018, 06:08:43 PM
    Wasn't TunnelBear bought by McAfee recently? I don't think that it will have a positive impact on it. I would recommend TorGuard (https://torguard.net/) instead. Their service is fairly good, they even sell pre-flashed routers with software designed for security of your network traffic. Also, it is worth mentioning that they support Lightning Network payments. If someone wants to try Lightning Network then their service is a good choice. Not only you get chance to test Lightning Network, but also you can improve your privacy.

    Don't you think that you should mention something about Bitcoin mixers? They are a good choice if someone doesn't want to use any other cryptocurrency.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: beuvtiled on April 19, 2018, 07:40:20 PM
    Does it really help if I use incognito mode in my browser?


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Rath_ on April 19, 2018, 07:51:08 PM
    Does it really help if I use incognito mode in my browser?

    Not really. The only thing that incognito mode does is forcing browser not to save anything that you are doing at the moment (cookies, history etc.) beside downloaded files, of course. Your ISP can still identify you and see what you are browsing. Try Tor browser, it might be slow but that's because of how it works.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: beuvtiled on April 19, 2018, 08:35:09 PM
    Does it really help if I use incognito mode in my browser?

    Not really. The only thing that incognito mode does is forcing browser not to save anything that you are doing at the moment (cookies, history etc.) beside downloaded files, of course. Your ISP can still identify you and see what you are browsing. Try Tor browser, it might be slow but that's because of how it works.

    Ok, thank you!

    I would also recommend all to delete their Facebook accounts. This company is irresponsible, and we can't count on them in the matter of privacy.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Dewin Ayuu on April 20, 2018, 04:29:17 PM
    Am using chrome and am not having any problems. But for your own good don't allowed any website to save your password for you so that you can easily open your account when you want to. Is not safe someone may get access to your phone or computer. In order to be safe keep your password to yourself because is your privacy not publicly.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on May 08, 2018, 07:01:09 PM
    Wasn't TunnelBear bought by McAfee recently? I don't think that it will have a positive impact on it. I would recommend TorGuard (https://torguard.net/) instead. Their service is fairly good, they even sell pre-flashed routers with software designed for security of your network traffic. Also, it is worth mentioning that they support Lightning Network payments. If someone wants to try Lightning Network then their service is a good choice. Not only you get chance to test Lightning Network, but also you can improve your privacy.

    I wasn't aware of that, that TunnelBear was both by mcafee company.
    But it's important to know that John Mcafee sold this company, which holds only his name.


    Don't you think that you should mention something about Bitcoin mixers? They are a good choice if someone doesn't want to use any other cryptocurrency.

    I like the idea of Bitcoin mixers. I need to study about them. This is probably become another post.

    Am using chrome and am not having any problems. But for your own good don't allowed any website to save your password for you so that you can easily open your account when you want to. Is not safe someone may get access to your phone or computer. In order to be safe keep your password to yourself because is your privacy not publicly.

    THe problem with google products is privacy related, not security related. Your passwords are somehow safe.
    They will collect your personal data (like e-mail content, searches) and sell to another companies. If you don't have a problem with that, you can use any google product.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: CryptoEnthused on May 15, 2018, 03:40:38 PM
    Does it really help if I use incognito mode in my browser?

    Not really. The only thing that incognito mode does is forcing browser not to save anything that you are doing at the moment (cookies, history etc.) beside downloaded files, of course. Your ISP can still identify you and see what you are browsing. Try Tor browser, it might be slow but that's because of how it works.

    I think VPN with no logs should work better. Either way, ISP will know that you are using VPN or Tor browser. Well, if you use bridge in Tor then it will be hard for ISP to know that you are using Tor. The reason VPN is better most of the times is that VPN is faster. Or if you need total anonymity, you can use Tor via VPN.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: LoyceV on May 20, 2018, 08:58:08 PM
    I think privacy comes apart, when money is involved. I saw this happening on this forum when Ripple was introduced. People only had to link with their Facebook account to get some FREE Ripple in the beginning. This immediately compromised most of these people and their account was linked to their real identity. <if they used their real account, they DOXed themselves>
    I missed out on the Ripple giveaway, but I got some Stellar Lumens last year. The trick is to be conscious about your privacy all the time: it was very easy to create a fake Facebook account, you can even use Tor (on the beautiful address facebookcorewwwi.onion). I've tested it, and it worked.
    Once you neglect your privacy, it's gone forever. That's why it doesn't hurt to have some accounts without your real name ready, and a spare prepaid phone number for verifications.

    Quote
    After Ripple, we saw a host of Bounties and Coin drops and services where they require your social media accounts and some ICOs even implemented some AML requirements to participate.
    KYC and AML kinda comes with running a legit money service (or a fake service pretending to be legit). It's good for crypto to mature, but it's crucial to be critical which companies you want to show your real identity.

    Quote
    Is the few dollars really worth your privacy? Your greed might cost you more, when people use this information to track you or even to link you to your main coin hoard.  ::)
    That will largely depend on the country you live in. Byteball for instance still offers $20 if you register a KYC wallet (link (https://medium.com/byteball/bringing-identity-to-crypto-b35964feee8e)). They use Jumio for verification, which is also used by Bittrex. The beauty of this system is (assuming all involved parties are honest about it!) that only Jumio knows your complete data, and only an encrypted hash is stored in the DAG. That allows you to later on select which private data you want to supply to someone (it could be only your Country, but it can also be your full ID information), after which the receiving party knows for a fact that it's legit, without seeing more than you supplied. I get excited about the possibilities, as it's an ingenious system to verify your identity only once and store a decentralized hash, and I'm blabbering on about it, but my point is: $20 isn't worth it for most people in first world countries. If, however, you live in a country where $20 is a week's salary, it can be very interesting to sell your privacy for money.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Extrago on May 27, 2018, 07:25:59 PM
    In this age of modern advancements and technology, privacy has become scarced. You can not hide your self from the world. But you can minimize that chance by browsing safely. Don't allow Google to tracj your location and also don't post wherever you go.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on June 04, 2018, 01:00:07 PM
    I think privacy comes apart, when money is involved. I saw this happening on this forum when Ripple was introduced. People only had to link with their Facebook account to get some FREE Ripple in the beginning. This immediately compromised most of these people and their account was linked to their real identity. <if they used their real account, they DOXed themselves>
    I missed out on the Ripple giveaway, but I got some Stellar Lumens last year. The trick is to be conscious about your privacy all the time: it was very easy to create a fake Facebook account, you can even use Tor (on the beautiful address facebookcorewwwi.onion). I've tested it, and it worked.
    Once you neglect your privacy, it's gone forever. That's why it doesn't hurt to have some accounts without your real name ready, and a spare prepaid phone number for verifications.

    Having a fake Facebook account ready is a good idea.
    Exposing your real Facebook account to a giveaway and linking it to cryptocurrencies may even be dangerous, as you can become a target online.



    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on June 15, 2018, 06:17:39 PM
    I was having a chat about security and phishing sites some other day.

    An AdBlock is also an important method to avoid phishing sites. So you really should be using one, as it will increase your security.
    Many phishing sites promote their scams through paid ads. If you can't see them, you can't click them.

    Updated the OP with this information, which can be quite valuable.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: siagh357 on June 15, 2018, 07:03:43 PM
    Privacy on internet is absolutely not possible. Google alone account for almost all the features that make surfing enjoyable and trying to avoid google products not only seems locking yourself up but missing the essential things on the web.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: BanishedDemon on June 26, 2018, 07:10:10 PM
    Does it really help if I use incognito mode in my browser?

    First off, not one of the private modes provided through the major browsers can defend your online records from being viewed by internet service companies or authorities businesses, block third-party agencies from monitoring your interest or figuring out your geographical place, nor save you viruses and malware from infecting your laptop. rather, the modes are designed to genuinely prevent cookies and autofill information from being stored at the user’s local device.

    And secondly, while those barriers are not actually newsworthy in and of themselves – they have been reported a couple of times in current years – how poorly the browser companies’ keeps your personal identity.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on July 18, 2018, 02:00:09 PM
    Updating:

    If you use Ledger nano, you do not need to use Google Chrome anymore. That´s good for privacy.
    You can download Ledger Live (https://www.ledgerwallet.com/live)


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: mattcode on November 24, 2018, 11:05:15 AM
    Updating:

    If you use Ledger nano, you do not need to use Google Chrome anymore. That´s good for privacy.
    You can download Ledger Live (https://www.ledgerwallet.com/live)


    You can use it with Electrum too.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: PrivacyIsImportant on November 24, 2018, 03:54:55 PM
    It's recommended to use Android Open Source Project (AOSP) ROMs to be sure there are no spyware on your phone, good ROM's are:

    Since AOSP comes without Google Apps by default, it means it has no Play store. https://f-droid.org is a great alternative as an app store for fully open source software. It includes applications such as
    Shelter to isolate untrusted apps from your personal data
    Firefox Klar for privacy browsing
    K-9 mail client
    Linphone for SIP communications
    OpenVPN client
    Revolution IRC client
    ownCloud,Nextcloud clients
    NewPipe a YouTube client
    Yalp store, Aurora store for downloading apps from Play Store without Google account
    MaterialFBook for accessing Facebook without its official app, Tinfoil for Twitter
    Telegram FOSS build,
    Silence for encrypted SMS chats
    Delta Chat for encrypted secure instant messaging over email (has a Telegram-like interface and group chats)
    orBot as a Tor client ( thanks to https://guardianproject.info )
    among a big variety of other privacy-oriented apps.

    Open GApps (https://opengapps.org) is a fully open source Google Apps alternative.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Kakmakr on November 24, 2018, 04:05:37 PM
    Another thing to add would be to avoid using all these centralized payment processors and also centralized online wallet providers. They require you to divulge a lot of personal information that links you to your Bitcoin and they also report to their respective governments.

    The KYC/AML requirements is just another way for them to infringe on your financial privacy. If you have to use them, make sure you deposit the bitcoins to those services, via some reputable mixer service. <This way, they will not be able to track the origin and content of your main hoard.>  ::)


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Jet Cash on December 19, 2018, 11:23:13 AM
    Thank you for mentioning the Brave browser. I'm using this as a content producer as well as for privacy and safety. It includes a Tor + Duckduckgo window as well.

    You can support the Fit to Talk project by donating the Basic Attention Token that you receive just for browsing. It's a great way to help sites you like at no cost to you.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on December 19, 2018, 02:59:44 PM
    Thank you for mentioning the Brave browser. I'm using this as a content producer as well as for privacy and safety. It includes a Tor + Duckduckgo window as well.

    You can support the Fit to Talk project by donating the Basic Attention Token that you receive just for browsing. It's a great way to help sites you like at no cost to you.

    In my opinion BAT/brave is one of most promising projects in the cryptocurrency market.

    Online publicity is problematic now. Highly centralized on Google/Facebook, and the costs of this publicity is on the internet service provider (a significant amount of the total bandwidth is used by Google/Facebook ads). In Brazil for example you pay to the isp for your bandwidth usage.

    Adblocks are not as widespread as they should be, and browsers with native adblocks are an elegant solution.

    Bat token solves this 2 problems, blocking centralized ads reducing bandwidth costs.

    Unfortunately brave browser is not as good as Firefox, and nobody knows if bat is overpriced or not...


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: jeromix on December 20, 2018, 09:38:23 AM
    There is another thread for this in this section and was being stated over the add on for the browser to get rid from phishing activities. Yes, indeed it is good to be secure especially in accessing web wallets where it could lead one to a phishing site and disclose all important details to access your accounts and transfers all the crypto in your web wallet.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on January 07, 2019, 09:57:41 AM
    I don't know why you said we should avoid google chrome but it has an inbuild adblock. you just need to upgrade your chrome to enjoy this feature. i get no popups using google chrome

    The idea to avoid Google chrome is to protect your personal data.

    Google is collecting everything you do online and selling to companies.

    Google and chrome are free to use , because you are the product.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Agnatez on January 20, 2019, 08:29:03 AM
    Nowadays, there is no such thing as confidentiality. Our computer and our phone collects absolutely all the information about us and you can’t fight it.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on January 20, 2019, 10:32:50 AM
    Nowadays, there is no such thing as confidentiality. Our computer and our phone collects absolutely all the information about us and you can’t fight it.

    Of course you can fight it. Read the topic for a few tips.

    Stop using Google and it's products for example is a great step.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: IeSua on May 09, 2019, 12:51:37 AM
    Great site with detailed VPN/Email comparison - https://thatoneprivacysite.net/

    https://s18.directupload.net/images/190509/ro7auwtd.jpg


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: jademaxsuy on May 09, 2019, 02:05:12 AM
    well visiting website also matter like there are websites that are not secured like the HTTP link for HTTPS is one considered as website.verified and has the SSL certificate.

    Yes, I agree also to the browser which being mention. Actually it will automatically block you in proceeding a website that is not secured or could be a phishing site. This is a goos thing about good browsers which OP has stated.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Ray55 on May 09, 2019, 05:03:36 AM
    I recommend to everyone that before going to any web site, the URL is well-researched. In VPN, my Nord VPN is more like it. However, I did not use ad-blocker before. For a while, I started to use it


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: naska21 on June 07, 2019, 01:13:41 PM
    Great site with detailed VPN/Email comparison - https://thatoneprivacysite.net/



    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Pmalek on June 08, 2019, 10:59:35 AM
    IP may leak via browser's RTCPeerConnection known as  WebRTC  (or various adds-on installed)  even if you use VPN services.  Land on ipleak (https://ipleak.net/) to check whether your browser suffers from that form of IP leakage and, if it does,   learn there  how to stop it.
    A good VPN service should have a firewall option that disables your connection if you are not connected to the servers of that VPN. In that way you are preventing IP leaks.
    Whenever you get disconnected from the VPN server the firewall kicks in and prevents you from accessing the Internet until you re-establish connection to the VPN server or turn off the VPN altogether.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Jet Cash on June 08, 2019, 11:17:37 AM
    I'm using the Brave browser, and that has an optional Tor window.

    What I'm really looking forward to is the Huawei mobile with an open source OS and privacy browser. Trump seems to be pushing for the creation of this, and it will free me from Google control.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: ABCbits on June 08, 2019, 06:17:59 PM
    I'm using the Brave browser, and that has an optional Tor window.

    What I'm really looking forward to is the Huawei mobile with an open source OS and privacy browser. Trump seems to be pushing for the creation of this, and it will free me from Google control.

    Android OS already completely open-source & there are even some privacy-focused Android distribution (such as LineageOS, Replicant and Copperhead).
    You should have acceptable privacy if you don't install any Google application (Gapps) or any closed-source application.

    The downside it's not user-friendly like Brave since you might need to root or/and unlock bootloader before install the OS.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on June 09, 2019, 12:56:59 AM
    Android OS already completely open-source & there are even some privacy-focused Android distribution (such as LineageOS, Replicant and Copperhead).

    This is good to know. I didn´t know those privacy focused androids. I will update the OP with them and probably install one of them.
    My old phone is not updating to the newest android, so I might try those. Unfortunately, as you said, you need to root your phone....
     Thanks


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on June 09, 2019, 01:59:11 PM
    Take note those Android distribution usually have bug/problem such as :
    1. Camera service often crashed or you can't even use camera
    2. Can't turn on Wi-Fi
    3. Few application can't run properly
    4. Can't use FM radio
    There are few solution such as restart the services or apply different firmware, but it doesn't always works.
    Those bugs are terrible, just gave up installing lol
    Maybe installing a different camera application?

    Quote
    Don't forget F-Droid (https://f-droid.org/en/) application marketplace/repository if you seriously have privacy.
    But there aren't many choice of application and game almost not exist, especially because most game depends on Google Play Store or Google Play Games.

    I thought that the choice applications could be more restrict. However, you can always install any APK file and install any application, can´t you? Can´t you install some store like APKpure (https://apkpure.com/)?

    APK pure is a very interesting store which lets you install basically any app, even if Google doens´t wants you to use that app with an older android version (sometimes).


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: masulum on June 20, 2019, 12:32:41 AM
    All our activity like browsing and purchasing with gmail account will be track. Google always say "your data is private" but no for system LOL. Even what you buy from online store are tracked by Google  ;D

    Maybe someone don't know where to see tracked activity by Google with gmail user can check from here

    https://myactivity.google.com/myactivity
    https://myaccount.google.com/purchases

    How to stop system monitoring for Google user

    1. https://myactivity.google.com/
    2. Activity controls
    3. Turn off all activity monitoring like
    * Web & App Activity
    * Location History
    * Device Information
    * Voice & Audio Activity
    * YouTube Search History
    * YouTube Watch History

    this is not guarantee to secure your gmail privacy data, but at least we can try. DYOR

    CMIIW


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: Jwick83 on June 20, 2019, 06:13:03 AM
    It is scary that every thing is tracked and stuff.

    But all this information. Only a machine uses it. A computer processes it. Yes it poses a threat, but sometimes I think how things would be without Google.

    Apple is coming down big time on privacy. With iOS 13 and their new Apple ID sign in feature. That's good.

    I really want to support Apple for this, but their prices and business practices. It's like they are good and also very bad at the same time. If you guys get what I mean


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: masulum on July 01, 2019, 04:41:48 AM
    Another Alternative to avoid Google Products

    - Drive alternative
    • ownCloud (https://owncloud.org/features/): Open source, self-hosted cloud platform, available for enterprise
    • Syncthing (https://github.com/syncthing/syncthing/tree/master): Open source, P2P
    • Nextcloud (https://nextcloud.com/): Open source, self-hosted

    - Calendar alternative
    • Etar (https://github.com/Etar-Group/Etar-Calendar): Open source
    • Fruux (https://fruux.com): Open source

    - Keep alternative
    • QOwnNotes (https://www.qownnotes.org/): Open source
    • Joplin  (https://joplinapp.org/): Open source

    - Google Docs / Sheets / Slides alternative
    • CryptPad (https://cryptpad.fr/): Zero Knowledge Cloud
    • Etherpad (https://etherpad.org/): Open source

    Quote
    source/read full articles: https://www.techspot.com/news/80729-complete-list-alternatives-all-google-products.html


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on July 01, 2019, 09:49:19 PM
    Another Alternative to avoid Google Products

    - Drive alternative
    • ownCloud (https://owncloud.org/features/): Open source, self-hosted cloud platform, available for enterprise
    • Syncthing (https://github.com/syncthing/syncthing/tree/master): Open source, P2P
    • Nextcloud (https://nextcloud.com/): Open source, self-hosted

    - Calendar alternative
    • Etar (https://github.com/Etar-Group/Etar-Calendar): Open source
    • Fruux (https://fruux.com): Open source

    - Keep alternative
    • QOwnNotes (https://www.qownnotes.org/): Open source
    • Joplin  (https://joplinapp.org/): Open source

    - Google Docs / Sheets / Slides alternative
    • CryptPad (https://cryptpad.fr/): Zero Knowledge Cloud
    • Etherpad (https://etherpad.org/): Open source

    Quote
    source/read full articles: https://www.techspot.com/news/80729-complete-list-alternatives-all-google-products.html


    Yeah, this website is interesting, I saw it rtoday in reddit. I added your suggestions to the OP.

    There is one service which I didn`t include in the OP but I will now, and I use it for over 2 years already, is Standard Notes.
    https://www.standardnotes.org/

    This application allows you to sync notes in web, android app, windows, mac and linux. Very nice. Simple and respect your privacy.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: nakamura12 on July 02, 2019, 02:35:48 AM
    This is really great thank you for breaking all this down. I really hope more conversations like this happen to get everyone on board about privacy especially when using their computer
    Yes it is great as you said but even if there are more conversations like this or no more conversations doesn't mean it's not needed or important. Privacy is what will help you feel that you really have privacy and also your cryptocurrency that you have is also safe at the same time.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: whotookmycrypto on July 02, 2019, 03:25:41 AM
    Duckduckgo has a great article on living without Google: https://spreadprivacy.com/how-to-remove-google/

    Also, for those concerned about privacy when using Bitcoin, this is a very good read: https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Privacy


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bitmover on September 16, 2019, 02:11:06 PM
    Recently, I discovered this article while reading about privacy.

    It is about a guy who was very paranoid about privacy, what was destroying his internet experience. He gave up and changed his habits to a total non-privacy.

    This is a good example for us to do not over react about privacy, and do only a few things so we do not ruin our internet experience.


    https://slate.com/technology/2014/02/how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-a-less-private-internet.html

    Quote
    I used to play a little game called “Let’s See How Completely I Can Ruin My Internet Experience.” I used a Firefox browser with about 50 privacy-related plugins. Any website I visited had large chunks missing due to blocked JavaScript (thanks, NoScript). Once I’d allowed the barest number of scripts necessary, I had to talk my zealous cookie managers into allowing me to log in. That is, of course, after I closed the alerts of analytics packages tracking me, since they typically covered up login forms. Browsing the Internet was, frankly, a chore.

     I treated myself like a criminal, obsessed with keeping a very low online profile. I deactivated my Facebook and ran a Diaspora node instead (no one ever friended me), I left Twitter for Identi.ca (you wouldn’t know her; she’s from Canada), and I ran an unstable build of CyanogenMod on my Android phone that let me remove permissions from applications. I was a ghost in the shell, communicating only in dark alleyways of the Internet like a nerdy drug dealer.

     Regular Internet users rolled their eyes at me when I said, “I don’t use Facebook,” or “I won’t see your tweets; just find me on identi.ca.” In my righteous stand against being tracked online, I became an Internet hipster. And like a hipster, I was pretty smug about it.

    I was fighting the good fight, ready at the drop of a hat to offer my cool, insidery 2 cents. “Oh, you’re using Google Chrome? You know, Google knows everything about you now.” “You allow scripts? You’re letting Facebook know every site you’ve visited.” “Do you know how many ad networks you’re plugged into when you visit the Wall Street Journal online?” I felt that if everyone did what I was doing, the big companies would learn their lesson. They’d change, and the Internet of the mid-2000s would come back. We’d have our privacy.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: LoyceV on September 16, 2019, 05:09:08 PM
    I do not feel comfortable using Chrome anymore too. I feel Google is sneaking all the time, stealing my data. I think this is a good start.
    Not so long ago, people couldn't believe Facebook was listening to them (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0SOxb_Lfps). Now, almost everybody I talk to about it just instantly confirms Google is listening to everything they say. On my phone, typing 2 characters into Youtube is often enough to find what I was just talking about! It's strangely convenient but at the same time very frightening.


    Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
    Post by: bob123 on September 16, 2019, 08:18:13 PM
      • Private cryptocurrencies:
        Monero (the most popular), PIVX, Dash, Zcash, Particl, among many others.

      I am only aware of one cryptocurrency which truly protects your privacy: Monero.
      Anything else (especially PIVX, Dash and Zcash) are just promoting to be privacy orientated, while in fact it is trivial to de-anonymize the transactions. I never heard of Partricl, so i can't talk about that.

      But if there is any other crypto which is truly(!) private, i'd be glad to hear about that. Especially about the technology used. But the mentioned ones (except Monero) are definitely not privacy-orientated.

      If someone is really interested in protecting his privacy, he should either use coinjoin, a proper mixing service or Monero. [/list]


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: masulum on October 09, 2019, 01:29:23 AM
      Another tracking doing by Google. Today I am on travel, when i open Google.com, I found new menu under Keywords form, "find travel information....", I never see this options before. I think Google tracking device from Google maps navigation to detect our position and give that menu. Or, anyone have this option too on your Google pages?

      https://imgpile.com/images/1SNCQR.jpg

      CMIIW.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: febriyana on October 09, 2019, 04:18:47 AM
      Another tracking doing by Google. Today I am on travel, when i open Google.com, I found new menu under Keywords form, "find travel information....", I never see this options before. I think Google tracking device from Google maps navigation to detect our position and give that menu. Or, anyone have this option too on your Google pages?

      https://imgpile.com/images/1SNCQR.jpg

      CMIIW.

      I think hat is new menu in Google, maybe yesterday added. I am on Japan also get it.
      To detect our position is easy, other website can also track you. The easy way is checking your ip, to get more accuration they can also use location feature on your Android. Outside there is bunch of method to tracking.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: dkbit98 on November 15, 2019, 01:25:26 AM
      I would add and suggest everyone to try using Qwant search engine.
      I tried all possible alternatives, but Qwant is most complete solution so far, with Qwant Maps included:
      https://www.qwant.com/

      Bitcoin privacy wallets like Samurai and Wasabi are also good option for privacy.

      PS
      You should remove Encrypted Google as it is not active anymore.
      It is now integrated in normal google website


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: desticy on November 15, 2019, 09:29:46 AM
      I would add and suggest everyone to try using Qwant search engine.
      I tried all possible alternatives, but Qwant is most complete solution so far, with Qwant Maps included:
      https://www.qwant.com/

      Bitcoin privacy wallets like Samurai and Wasabi are also good option for privacy.

      PS
      You should remove Encrypted Google as it is not active anymore.
      It is now integrated in normal google website

      Thank. I have long wanted to try this search engine, but there was no convenient opportunity. I think the time has come.
      It seems that this search engine is really very careful about the user's privacy, this is very rare in our time. In any case, now I have many ways to maintain your privacy, even in regular search engines.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bob123 on June 12, 2020, 03:59:30 PM
      i am use vpn.I've heard that using vpn is a security risk. But can it be true?

      It depends.

      There are several things to consider. The most important thing is.. why do you use a vpn?
      A vpn itself does not secure you.

      With a vpn, you are basically moving the required trust towards your ISP, to the VPN provider.
      Depending on the country, this definitely can make sense. But in the western world, an ISP is usually more trustworthy than a VPN provider.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bitmover on November 30, 2020, 03:37:22 PM
      New addition:
      Added   Njalla (https://njal.la/) domain registar.

      Suggestion by nullius from this topic
      https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5265498.msg55286564#msg55286564

      Njalla doesn't want to know you are are. No need to use Whois Guard. No questions asked.

      If they don't know who you are, tell can't tell anyone


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bitp@d on December 02, 2020, 09:05:41 PM
      Thank you very mutch bitmover to share and bring us many privacy tools.
      It's very important.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Lucasgabd on December 03, 2020, 09:39:00 AM
      i am use vpn.I've heard that using vpn is a security risk. But can it be true?
      <...>

      With a vpn, you are basically moving the required trust towards your ISP, to the VPN provider.
      Depending on the country, this definitely can make sense. But in the western world, an ISP is usually more trustworthy than a VPN provider.


      interesting, why do you think an ISP is more trustworthy than a VPN provider?

      usually a main thing to look for on VPNs is if they keep logs or not, checking their terms and policies is important too.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: lovesmayfamilis on December 03, 2020, 12:14:21 PM
      Today I came across a very interesting article site, which contains a lot of information on how to remain anonymous on the Internet.

      I think this information will be useful to many, maybe not all information in a row, but everyone will be able to extract something useful from there.

      https://paranoidsbible.tumblr.com/post/160173700334/the-paranoids-bible-20

      Quote
      The Paranoid’s Bible project is a series of guides meant to help the average internet user learn the rudimentary knowledge needed to prevent dox attempts and lessen their digital footprint through the use of information security (INFOSEC). Through this and other guides, the average user should be able to have not only a safer and more secure internet experience but also a more private one.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bob123 on December 03, 2020, 02:14:05 PM
      interesting, why do you think an ISP is more trustworthy than a VPN provider?

      Because the VPN provider do make money with your data.
      If you truly found some which doesn't, it definitely won't be free or a 5$ per month VPN.


      usually a main thing to look for on VPNs is if they keep logs or not, checking their terms and policies is important too.

      All VPN provider do keep logs. They are required to do so to not get shut down.
      Multiple cases have been made public where the logs of VPN provider, who allegedly don't keep logs, got exposed.

      You shouldn't blindly trust a VPN provider that they don't keep logs.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Lucasgabd on December 06, 2020, 07:40:24 PM


      who talked about free VPNs?
      these are definitely not worth it and probably more risky than going directly with the ISPs (even ISPs on South America, that are probably more corruptible than in north america)
      but there are trustable VPNs that keeps no logs and have their companies based out of the US or Europe.

      I'd say NordVPN and Express VPN are probably the ones with more recommendations.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Latviand on December 07, 2020, 03:00:03 PM
      Yes, adblockers are really important because some of those ads spread viruses or malware. Adblock Plus supports more platforms but Ublock has definitely gained a lot of popularity and trust.

      That's why I always use Adblocker in any devices that I'm going to use because it is better to be safe than never.

      Phishing scams will really attack you if you are not aware and you are not responsible with your actions.

      This thread is really a huge help so that all of us can be enlightened how important privacy is when circulating the internet.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Stedsm on December 07, 2020, 04:25:59 PM
      interesting, why do you think an ISP is more trustworthy than a VPN provider?

      Because the VPN provider do make money with your data.
      If you truly found some which doesn't, it definitely won't be free or a 5$ per month VPN.


      You mean that they clearly keep a track of almost everything we do on the internet while using their "masked" IP?
      Then even if paid (or highly paid ones), I believe all of them will be able to have all the data whatever you utilize through their services? What about VPS like Amazon AWS?

      Do they also keep track of everything that's being done inside their remote area? Even if they don't keep any track of it, will my ISP be able to track what I'm doing in there?


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bob123 on December 08, 2020, 09:42:51 AM
      You mean that they clearly keep a track of almost everything we do on the internet while using their "masked" IP?

      Most (if not all of them), yes.


      Then even if paid (or highly paid ones), I believe all of them will be able to have all the data whatever you utilize through their services? What about VPS like Amazon AWS?

      Even if paid, this does not guarantee that they don't keep any logs which might help to identify you.
      You definitely shouldn't rely on this.

      Using a VPS, of course the network activity gets logged. How else would it be able to easily proof how people abuse their service to do illegal stuff?



      Do they also keep track of everything that's being done inside their remote area? Even if they don't keep any track of it, will my ISP be able to track what I'm doing in there?

      Probably, they do.
      Without any logs, considering you are using encrypted communication properly (e.g. no root certificates from an ISP installed on your computer like in some countries) then no, the ISP won't be able to track anything you do there.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Baskeyairdrop on December 13, 2020, 01:39:20 PM
      In summary, using Google services removes our privacy. It is really hard to avoid all using Google products but thanks for listing alternatives to solving this issue. I would learn to adjust to keep my activity online more private.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Lucasgabd on December 15, 2020, 08:02:14 PM
      interesting, why do you think an ISP is more trustworthy than a VPN provider?

      Because the VPN provider do make money with your data.
      If you truly found some which doesn't, it definitely won't be free or a 5$ per month VPN.


      You mean that they clearly keep a track of almost everything we do on the internet while using their "masked" IP?
      Then even if paid (or highly paid ones), I believe all of them will be able to have all the data whatever you utilize through their services? What about VPS like Amazon AWS?

      Do they also keep track of everything that's being done inside their remote area? Even if they don't keep any track of it, will my ISP be able to track what I'm doing in there?

      interesting.
      thanks for sharing that xenon131

      still if people want full privacy they could opt for a VPN + tor
      would that be the best options?



      opting out of all google services may be hard but is not impossible.
      there are several alternatives around for browsers (brave/tor), email (protonmail), video (ifps/vimeo/lbry) and so it goes.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bob123 on December 17, 2020, 07:10:36 PM
      still if people want full privacy they could opt for a VPN + tor
      would that be the best options?

      When using tor properly, there is no real need for a vpn.
      You could just use tor and wouldn't compromise your privacy if done correctly.

      A vpn doesn't really add anything to it.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Lucasgabd on December 22, 2020, 10:02:34 PM

      <...>


      <...> Key to your privacy is in the  combined  ID/fingerprint of your hardware+OS+ browser. Spoof it every time your are online or make it indistinguishable from thousands of others ID and you will be both private and anonymous.

      this is quite interesting, haven't heard a lot about it before
      where can I learn more on the techniques used to spoof ID/fingerprint and improve anonimization?

      are these acessible and learnable or too advanced?


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: notblox1 on December 22, 2020, 10:59:37 PM
      Tor is not some magical thing that if done right makes your privacy perfect because there are many bad actors using Tor.
      Privacy is more complex than just IP and browser and it includes your social media profiles, cookies and everything you ever done online, and it is good to reduce your footprint on web because we never know what may happen in few years.
      There are some news saying that your browsing history may be used for your credit score so think about it:
      https://gizmodo.com/your-credit-score-should-be-based-on-your-web-history-1845912592


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: 20kevin20 on December 22, 2020, 11:19:59 PM
      this is quite interesting, haven't heard a lot about it before
      where can I learn more on the techniques used to spoof ID/fingerprint and improve anonimization?

      are these acessible and learnable or too advanced?
      I think it's quite easy to learn as a beginner, as long as you read the documentations carefully. I'd advise you to start off by reading the docs from Qubes (https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/), Whonix (https://www.whonix.org/wiki/Documentation) and Tor (https://www.torproject.org/docs/documentation.html.en). If you're interested in BTC anonymity, read Wasabi's (https://docs.wasabiwallet.io/) documentations as well. These should be more than enough to start off with the privacy & anonymity studying.

      If you have hardware you can somewhat trust (RYF-certified (https://ryf.fsf.org/) hardware should be the best as today we do not have open-source components commercially available yet) running either a free Linux distro (see this list (https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html) for fully free distros or install a clean Debian which comes without non-free repos) or Qubes, you should be more private than probably >98% of today's PC users.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: lovesmayfamilis on December 23, 2020, 02:38:23 PM

      <...>


      <...> Key to your privacy is in the  combined  ID/fingerprint of your hardware+OS+ browser. Spoof it every time your are online or make it indistinguishable from thousands of others ID and you will be both private and anonymous.

      this is quite interesting, haven't heard a lot about it before
      where can I learn more on the techniques used to spoof ID/fingerprint and improve anonimization?

      are these acessible and learnable or too advanced?

      If you are interested in anonymity, then as xenon131 said, in addition to VPN, you must use antidetects.
      I can advise you on one of the easiest to understand, but very high quality, and of course not free.
      There is information about it on the Internet, I think it will not be difficult for anyone who is interested to find it.

      https://i.ibb.co/prfzZ7s/Screenshot-1.png (https://ibb.co/rfx6MjL)

      Quote
             
      The browser is equipped with systems of protection and substitution of prints (GPU, Audio, Canvas, Plugins, Fonts, ClientRects, Ubercookies). No one will be able to recognize the configuration of your hardware, if you work with Linken Sphere - it will protect you from any attempt of identification. The browser does not just prohibit their acquisition - it gives the corrected information, forming a unique user portrait, used by you as much as necessary.

      https://ls.tenebris.cc/


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bitmover on February 19, 2021, 04:43:47 PM
      I saw this meme today, which sadly represents the way companies handles our personal data and our privacy.

      https://i.imgur.com/PXYavSo.png

      I believe this image represent very well an answer to "I have nothing to hide, so I don't need privacy" argument.

      Sadly even in bitcoin related companies like ledger  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5317910.msg56370821#msg56370821)we have repetitive personal customers data leaks.

      The best we can do is to follow privacy guidelines. I am often asked for my documents, addresses... I tried to dodge those requirements as often as possible, but we are all living in a picture like that when we talk about data privacy.


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: lovesmayfamilis on February 20, 2021, 12:11:32 PM
      Avoid from Google Chrome ads I am using brave browser this browser blocked the ads and 2nd mostly users get hacked because they advertise their private accounts on social media by this way we also get hack because if we have good amount in our wallet then why we advertise it and when we advertise it number of users try their best for reaching at us and our private keys so keep your secrets in secret.

      Aha, and again the Brave browser.
      Do you work with him through Tor? And do you one hundred percent trust everything that they write to you about his safety? Then I think you will be interested in reading the recent facts about how this browser leaks information about users who visit onion URLs.
      https://ramble.pw/f/privacy/2387
      https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/brave-browser-leaks-onion-addresses-in-dns-traffic/ar-BB1dPSnS


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: Nrcewker on February 21, 2021, 09:51:26 AM
      Just some tips from my side .

      1- Setup your browser to not remember history (fine in browser setting)
      2- Do not sync your history with browser
      3- Always keep changing your MAc address
      4- clear logs on Linux & Windows
      5- Don't Share your personal info on social media
      6- use portable OS like TailOS
      7- on Windows & MacOS  use keyscrambler to encrypt your keystrokes
      8- Avoid using Pirated softwares they always included miners and other trojens and malwares 
      9- Do not store your coins on third-party servers everything is hackable today or tomorrow
      10- Don't share your mobile number or email which is attached with crypto
      12- Do not set remember password in any website because its can be recovered via keylogger  always make own algorithm of passwords and remember it


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: lovesmayfamilis on February 21, 2021, 10:11:42 AM
      Avoid from Google Chrome ads I am using brave browser this browser blocked the ads and 2nd mostly users get hacked because they advertise their private accounts on social media by this way we also get hack because if we have good amount in our wallet then why we advertise it and when we advertise it number of users try their best for reaching at us and our private keys so keep your secrets in secret.

      Aha, and again the Brave browser.

      At least it's not as bad as Chrome in terms of privacy.

      Do you work with him through Tor? And do you one hundred percent trust everything that they write to you about his safety? Then I think you will be interested in reading the recent facts about how this browser leaks information about users who visit onion URLs.
      https://ramble.pw/f/privacy/2387
      https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/brave-browser-leaks-onion-addresses-in-dns-traffic/ar-BB1dPSnS

      Even without this vulnerability, Brave doesn't solve fingerprint problem.

      Did I say something good about the Chrome browser? Brave browser is the same garbage.
      https://aspenuwu.me/blog/dont-use-brave/

      Configure your browser yourself, you will know exactly what it does.
      And yes, it does not solve the problem with prints. I gave a good browser that does a great job of fingerprinting. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3210982.msg55911331#msg55911331


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bitmover on November 18, 2022, 01:32:58 PM
      Black friday is here. It is  a good opportunity to get a complete Privacy bundle.

      ProtonMail, ProtonVPN and ProtonDrive are for sale. 40% OFF.

      https://proton.me/mail/black-friday

      AFAIK, Proton suite is one of the best companies regarding privacy


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bitmover on June 10, 2023, 01:25:47 PM
      I saw something interesting that I think is nice to share here.

      Mozilla (privacy focused company) is offering a new VPN service. They state that "We never log, track, or share your network data. " (https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/products/vpn)

      You can join the waiting list here:

      https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/products/vpn/invite/


      Title: Re: Let's talk about Privacy
      Post by: bitmover on July 05, 2023, 03:48:44 PM
      Proton, probably the most privacy focused company out there, is having a sale now.

      40% off for email, storage, vpn and a few more from Proton Suite.

      https://proton.me/mail/anniversary-sale