Please allow me to share my situation here. I’m aware that this subreddit is primarily focused on privacy to protect against mass surveillance. I have been living with an older landlord on the same floor. I moved into the house on December 31st and will be moving out at the end of this month. Here’s a summary of my post.

1. She has been watching, monitoring, and stalking me.
2. She has knocked on or entered my room without my permission.
3. She has checked my window to see if I’m in my room while outside the house.
4. She has asked about the location of my vehicle twice and my workplace, even after I told her that these matters were not her business.
5. I requested that her not come to the kitchen while I’m cooking, but she continues to enter. Before I wash my dishes after breakfast, she takes her dog outside, and then I start washing dishes. She often comes to the kitchen to bring the dog back in and checks my face up close.
6. She sits at the table all day, spying on me.
7. I have concluded that she will never change. do not believe someone is friendly or kind based solely on appearances.
8. I am refusing to speak to her.

Do not live with jobless landlords on the same floor unless the living spaces are completely separate, such as being upstairs and downstairs

I am not giving her my private story lol. She is not my family and grandma. She failed to recognize that I am a paying tenant, not a guest.

She can monitor me as she wishes. After I move out, I ll never see her again. I will block her email address immediately. It is great that we did nott share our phone numbers

Yeah It is my fault that I live my unaffordable life

There has been a lot of swirl around various pieces of age verification legislation and how different platforms and operating system developers are responding. I believe strongly in privacy and that the responsibility for the online activities of children is that of the parents. That said, as a parent, I think we need better tools available, especially for those who are less technically inclined. Here are my ideas:

• A standard needs to be established that is open source and cross platform.
• It should run at the OS level.
• It should be controlled by someone with administrator access to the device / OS (a parent in the case of devices used by children).
• It should be completely optional for that administrator whether they want to turn it on or not.
• The only input should be birth year of the child whose account is being set up. No other personally identifiable info should be included.
• All relevant sites/apps/platforms such as social media and NSFW sites should be required to honor the age indicator.

It needs to be assumed that at some point, any kid who really wants to learn will find a way to circumvent any controls but parents do need better tools.

Github has made it impossible to create an account when using a VPN and a privacy browser with fully spoofed hardware identifiers. (Use Firefox or Firefox-based Privacy Browser, VPN, install Canvasblocker to test this.) I create an account with Google or Apple (both requiring hardware identifiers and numbers and birthdates) or I can use an email. When I use an email, it comes back with this horrible test, and even if I do it completely correctly, it tells me after I didn't do the test right, gaslighting me with a picture of what I chose (which I didn't choose) and showing me the correct picture (which I did choose and it claims I didn't select).

It's fucking bullshit and it's more corporate control of open source software. For people who have their discussion or issue tracker, I can't even participate without hardware identifiers likely linked to me some other way and phone numbers. It's fucking bullshit. If anyone from Microsoft is reading this, FUCK YOU!!!!!!!!!!

I am so tired of this bullshit. I just want to post an issue about a piece of software. You don't need my fingerprint, hardware or personal, or biometric shit. This is a slippery slope. Fuck them.

I really hope more developers just get the fuck off Github. Honestly, if you are developing privacy-oriented software and using github, there's a mistmatch and it's bullshit, and I know it's time consuming and annoying to move, but please do. This is fucking bullshit and it's not like it's going to become LESS annoying over time. FUCK THIS.

“Telegram is not a private messenger. There’s nothing private about it. It’s the opposite. It’s a cloud messenger where every message you’ve ever sent or received is in plain text in a database that Telegram the organization controls and has access to it”

“It’s like a Russian oligarch starting an unencrypted version of WhatsApp, a pixel for pixel clone of WhatsApp. That should be kind of a difficult brand to operate. Somehow, they’ve done a really amazing job of convincing the whole world that this is an encrypted messaging app and that the founder is some kind of Russian dissident, even though he goes there once a month, the whole team lives in Russia, and their families are there.”

" What happened in France is they just chose not to respond to the subpoena. So that’s in violation of the law. And, he gets arrested in France, right? And everyone’s like, oh, France. But I think the key point is they have the data, like they can respond to the subpoenas where as Signal, for instance, doesn’t have access to the data and couldn’t respond to that same request.  To me it’s very obvious that Russia would’ve had a much less polite version of that conversation with Pavel Durov and the telegram team before this moment"

As the saying goes if it seems to be good to be true it is. But I wanted to be hopeful maybe just once more that maybe something could be great. Encrypted email with an unlimited sized inbox ?!!? Yes please !!!

Welp sadly it seems it’s once again to good to be true.

I made an account just to see how it was. I was immediately greeted with link to buy their premium for a year, using my initial email I selected. When I finally figured out how to say no I was able to use my “backup option” for free. I found this all too off putting. But no matter I wanted to keep going, maybe it’s just bad UI.

Moved onto my tracker test using a standard browser. And sadly it failed immediately. On the main info site atomic mail tries to use 6 trackers. Within the login / inbox they try to throw on another 3, one of their own scripts (maybe innocuous) and two from cloud flare. Those trackers are Google related !

For the privacy email they claim had no tracking I found this sinister.

I immediately deleted my account.

Unless someone can speak up to what those trackers are and why I shouldn’t worry I’ll recommend everyone avoid it.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/61071136

Apparently this will include Linux...

When the privacy laws in the US are so weak, it seems like maintaining the effect of data removal requires paying for the data removal service indefinitely. Is it worth it regardless? Are there any cases and criteria where one should pay for data removal, more so than the average person? Interested to hear if anyone here has seen noticeable benefits, beyond the mere fact that their PII have been scrubbed from data brokers and search sites.

I have WhatsApp for work now. I asked my boss to re-invite me to the chat this Monday.

I'm watching the tutorial now. Is Rumble an alternative to YouTube?

I've been trying out a lot of different applications lately and wanted to see what there was in store for open source cloud storage solutions. I'm aware of Proton Drive, MEGA, NextCloud, and TrueNAS; though right now just using the first two. What services have y'all been using to fight against Big Brother?

Hi everyone. I'm making my first post to Lemmy now. I bought a Pixel 9A last month and have been on stock android.

I should have installed GrapheneOS without setting up a Google account, but I'm still not familiar with Linux or other systems, even though I know GrapheneOS is based on the Android system. I've been using an iPhone for almost 12 years now. I know how to protect my data/privacy from massive surveillance.

Now I now want to take full control of my pixel phone without Google Play store/service.

My concern is lack of phone screening feature on Graphene OS but I don't want to have any Google service on Graphene OS. How do you deal without it?

Thank you for your response in advance

Hey folks! I’ve been on a quest to degoogle and get more privacy in my life. I want to strike a good balance between privacy and usability, so while the most hardened apps out there might be best for privacy, maybe they are not great for usability.

My first step is a good mail and calendar provider with a good iOS experience. I’m using proton right now, but I’ve had issues with mail and calendar on mobile. Calendar has been slow and just not great to use. Mail is mostly okay but often I will delete mail and it will take ages for it to actually leave my inbox and it just feels unresponsive.

In the calendar app I need to be able to view a Google calendar. My work schedule is all in a Google workspace for my job and I need to at least see it for when I’m scheduling my personal stuff. I understand I most likely cannot create or edit events on it from a private app, but seeing it is a must.

Any good recommendations out there, or am I already just ok at Proton and I need to overlook what feels to me a subpar mobile experience?

Looking for a robot vacuum and mop to either root and put Valetudo on it or one that prioritizes privacy (offline modes.)

bObsweep UltraVision claims:

Make no mistake: UltraVision fully respects your privacy, UltraVision never sends images anywhere - servers, cloud, or otherwise - be it of your room layout or your cleaning habits. Furthermore, any info you personally insert into the app, such as your name and email address, is stored on US-based servers. Nothing gets exported to foreign servers (unlike your neighbor's expensive vacuum).

Narwhal claims it keeps information stored locally as well and encrypts data on the phone app.

Is there an advantage to rooting a vacuum and using Valetudo if the vendor doesn't store information on cloud? Would using the vendor app be a security risk?

Thanks!

A question as old as time, I know.

I'm getting away from Google and I've done the easy stuff: CoMaps, Proton mail (I know, not the best move), aveslibre, etc. I currently don't have the time (or the knowledge base) to learn how to self host, but hopefully that will replace Drive and such in the future.

But I digress. I'm looking at a new OS for my phone. I'm currently in a contract with a phone that is incompatible with alternative OSs. Graphene needs a Pixel. Used, they're $150-400. /e/OS will run on a Motorola or whatever and those are like $80.

There's also the option of going full Fairphone with /e/os and I like that idea in the future.

The internet people tell me that Graphene is the best due to ease of installation, privacy, and security.

I don't need a lot of security. I just want Google to stop suckling all that sweet, sweet data from my teat.

What are your thoughts?

In order to curb dissatisfaction the Discord CTO released a blog post. In it a lot of c-suite speak and empty words. They claim 90 percent of users won’t be affected. And with caveats I believe them. Most people’s experience probably won’t change. And they will carry on with their spied on lives.

Where I get upset is this claim that these age verification steps won’t at all infringe on privacy or identity. That Discord won’t read messages and won’t track things. I know this is a flat out lie. They already do all of this. It’s their whole fucking business model! I think it’s sickening in attempt to save face they just further lie. It’s like they pretend oh money just magically appears for us. And we offer this free service with no strings attached.

I fear most people will take that post at face value. They will move on and take a blatant lie and accept it. Further reinforcing they can do whatever they want and you’ll comply.

Discord arguably just doubled down on what they are doing hoping you will calm down and forget by launch. While I know the majority of people simply don’t care enough about this stuff. I still fully and emphatically advise everyone get off Discord asap.

cross-posted from: https://piefed.social/c/technology/p/1812149/this-app-warns-you-if-someone-is-wearing-smart-glasses-nearby-404media

The creator of Nearby Glasses made the app after reading 404 Media's coverage of how people are using Meta's Ray-Bans smartglasses to film people without their knowledge or consent. “I consider it to be a tiny part of resistance against surveillance tech.”

more at: @feed@404media.co

Hi people.

I suspect my office might be bugged. How should I detect hidden cams and mics?

A while back I posted about recommendations for privacy focused apps for medication tracking on iOS and it didn't seem like the community had any solid apps to vouch for. So, after spending some time scrolling the App Store and reading lots of privacy policies, here are some of my recommendations.

I will admit, it was not easy finding free, entirely local, and analytic free apps like MedTimer. So, I will warn you that some apps may collect anonymous crash logs or are paid. I will use *ACL for apps that collect anonymous crash reports, *$ for paid apps, and *$∞ if they offer a subscription. Also keep in mind that I round each price to the nearest dollar.

These are also in no particular order btw.

1. Pillbug.app *ACL, Freemium This is an app that uses a Pillbug as your cute little medication accountability mascot. It has paid features for customizing the app theme and how your Pillbug looks but it's completely free otherwise.

Features: *Persistent medication reminders *Widgets *Scan to log feature *Medication sharing

Privacy Policy: https://pillbugapp.com/privacy-policy/index.html

2. Pilik *$ *May require iOS 26 or later

   This is probably the only app I've found that's fully privacy focused; completely offline, no crash reporting, and only uses minimal permissions. However, it is paid but it's only a one time fee of $7USD. You can use the app for free with only one medication to track.

Features: *Critical alerts-get notified for your medication even if your phone is on silent or DND *Apple watch support *Family sharing via iCloud

Privacy Policy: https://pilitracker.github.io/privacy-policy/?lang=en

3. [DoseKeeper ] (https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/medicine-tracker-dosekeeper/id6474628157) *$∞ *Requires iOS 26 or later This app is very similar to the app I listed above but its UI is more sleek and modern. It also uses your devices AI for certain features which is why it requires iOS 26 or later.

Just like Pilik you are able to use the app for free with limited features. However, this app is subscription based with prices listed at $1 USD a month, $4 USD every three months or $13 USD a year.

Features: *Use your phones camera or gallery to scan medication labels and autofill its name, dose, and type (this is the features that requires AI)

*Log several medications at once

*You are able to define how long to wait after taking medication.

*Export your medication logs as a PDF

Privacy Policy: https://www.dosekeeper.com/privacy

Thanks for reading. ^_^