“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"

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?

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?

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?

Hi people.

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

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

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. ^_^

Using GrapheneOS, my main profile has a handful of apps from PlayStore(Aurora): 1password, ProtonVPN, ProtonMail, etc.

I think I read somewhere that, for an app to appear in PlayStore, it must be compiled with linked libraries that implement check-ins with Google infrastructure... or something like that.

Obviously I'd expect apps like 1password and Proton to be "less evil," but am curious whether everything from playstore leaks telemetry, or if it's just "up to the developer".

(in my case, I don't have Google services or apps in the main profile at all)

This is a list for facilitate donations at creators/sites/apps which promote privacy, anonymity and opensource (or just interesting thing on internet) who accept monero (or bitcoin)

If you have any suggest, you are welcome!

Israeli companies have developed and are selling advanced cyber tools that can hack into the tech of your car and use it to collect intelligence on you.

These tools can also assist in a cross-referencing of data to identify an intelligence target among tens of thousands of cars on the road. This technology can track the vehicle's movements in real time and potentially eavesdrop on the people inside.

archive: https://archive.is/tDOFi

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/59613920

Mullvad also pointed to other instances of alleged attempts to “escalate censorship and mass surveillance” in the UK, citing efforts to force Apple to install backdoors in its end-to-end encrypted cloud service, proposals that could introduce “client-side scanning and government spyware on all UK phones”, and government plans to fast-track legislation requiring identity verification for VPN use.

• Mullvad;
• Mastodon.

I feel like everyone I know has been lookin for cryptpad alternatives (upon ditching google) as it's incredibly slow, clunky, and inconsistantly mobile-friendly. this ... seems good??

anyone tried it? what are yr experiences? other decent, private form builders you would recommend?

tysm!!