Privacy is something we haven’t given much thought to in the past. iPhone, yes! Google, yes! A free app that provides us with so much convenience and features? Yes, of course! Why not?
Why not? Well, because that convenience and those features usually come at the cost of our privacy.
So, when beginning the long journey of becoming private while using a phone, here’s my first two essential steps:
1. Install Session private messenger on your current phone
Session private messenger is a fork of the Signal messenging protocol. Unlike Signal, Session does not require a telephone number. Since Signal has your telephone number, you are not being private at all, in my mind.
While Session private messenger may have its criticisms by those in the cryptography field, I think Session is the go to private messenger for the average joe who is not being targeted by the government. And even if you were targeted by the government, then Session would still be a viable private messaging protocol.
Right now, Session offers texting, sending attachments and short voice messages, and sending very short video files. Just wait for 2022, and I think the developers will introduce audio calling. Then that will be a game changer.
Get on Session and get as many friends as possible on Session. Free yourself from cellphone service and become private.
And for anonymity in Session, don’t use your name that you use in the 3D world. Pick an alter-ego name and we can all test our memories of who’s who.
2. Get a degoogled privacy phone within your budget and your priorities of features
The strength of a privacy phone is privacy. But not all privacy phones are created equal as aside from the degoogled operating system, there are lots of technical details that have to be attended to in order to be private.
For example, if a company advertises their phones to be private but they use Gboard as their keyboard, then I think that is playing with fire. Gboard is Google. Ask yourself: “Is there a possibility that everything I type is being sent to Google when I use Gboard?” Some techie folks would say “Well, just disable network access in Permissions.” Yes, that’s possible. But why play with fire in the first place when there are alternatives that are much safer? Why make such a privacy opposing operational decision?
So, don’t be complacent by saying “Well, I bought this phone that the company says is a privacy phone.” There’s much more to privacy than the operating system in a phone.
What else? Well, as I’ve written above, the keyboard used in a phone is crucial to privacy. Then the apps which are selected are also part of the privacy formula. And how the phone is setup.
I have a secret sauce that I apply to the phones I offer to maintain maximum privacy. When you get a phone from me, then I orient you to how to use that secret sauce.
Decide what your basic essential features are: screen size, dual/single SIM, SD card slot. CPU speed, camera quality, new and improved, etc- these features may be icing on the cake. Privacy is the priority.
Finding a phone with the privacy and the features within your budget is something worth looking into. Finding the right company that makes privacy minded decisions is not a simple matter.
Once you have a privacy phone, then you will probably need to change your habits on how you access the Internet so that your privacy is maintained.