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lolapolooza

Member

Registered: 2021-01-11

Posts: 66

How can i improve security and privacy? O.S, Cloud Storage, Apps, etc.

Hi everyone! I am an Illustrator and  I got really interested on improving my privacy. Not only to better understand whats happening with my data, but also to see if I could help other people, after I’ve successfully helped myself first, and learned the how to.

I use several devices and digital services to consume and create content:

- 1 Desktop PC (Windows + MacOS Hackintosh) --> Apps (Final Cut Pro, Adobe Photoshop, Clip Studio Paint, Safari, Qbtorrent, Handbrake, VLC, Microsoft Office Apps . --> Digital Services (DropBox, Gmail, Drive)
- 1 Smartphone (Iphone 8) --> Apps (FB, IG, Whatsapp, Telegram, Youtube, Safari, Banking App) --> Digital Services (DropBox, Gmail, Drive)
- 1 Tablet (iPad Pro 12.9 2020) --> Apps (Procreate, Clip Studio Paint, Safari, Youtube) --> Digital Services (DropBox, Gmail, Drive)

To use, the app I do use, I need sometimes MacOS, and sometimes Windows OS. Added to it, I do often use my phone to see other artists works and get inspiration (Mostly Instagram, Tumblr, Deviantart, Pixiv… I do only use them in Safari, I dont have the app installed on my device). Could you help me understand my privacy flaws, where I could improve to the highest point of privacy, based on the app I do use for my work? I mean… I could go 100% Privacy, and not use any of thoose OS’s, but then How do I get my work done?

Thanks!

Drassen

Member

Registered: 2021-01-11

Posts: 71

Re: How can i improve security and privacy? O.S, Cloud Storage, Apps, etc.

You want to use stuff that you need to use and still be private. This is quite a challenge because Microsoft, Adobe and to an extent, Apple does not care about your privacy. It is still quite doable.

First, do consider a Linux host system for your desktop to virtualize the Windows and Hackintosh. The reason to do this is to do image backups (via something like ZFS or maybe BTRFS). Windows has this tendency to commit suicide so having the capability to completely rollback changes to the OS at the VM level is good to have. You need a computer with lots of cores to achieve similar enough speed in your renders. You can offload the Handbrake, VLC and torrent software to the host Linux OS itself.

For the iphone, I would suggest:

Use a VPN software (that uses the IKEv2 protocol)
Install Lockdown 9 to block the tracking and telemetry.
Use Firefox for browsing instead of Safari and use it to browse the FB, Whatsapp and Youtube instead of using the app version.
Install cryptomator to encrypt contents in DropBox and Google Drive/Google One. Consider using something like Nextcloud 2 as replacement especially if you do not have a lot of online storage requirements. Maybe check out the enterprise version if it is worth it for you.
Your banking app stays because it might trigger some weird fraud protection scheme if you do something weird with it.
Consider moving on to a better email providers instead of remaining on GMail. Just transfer all your online accounts to whatever you choose. There is no need to totally delete Google for now (Google already has your personal data and there is no verifiable way for you to know if you they can actually delete your personal data).
Consider making an Android VM to your pc (via Androidx86) to access Instagram (which cannot be accessed via a desktop computer).
The iPad should probably stay as is and also install Firefox, Lockdown and another VPN provider as well. Also remove the Youtube app and just watch straight from the browser.

Finally, also consider using the following devices:

A new smartphone instead of iPhone. Google Pixel with Graphene OS 1. I havent used this myself though but I will try to remigrate my device once my old Lineage phone dies.
Raspberry Pi 4 + PiHole 1 - Use these to provide local network-wide DNS blocking for trackers and telemetry in all your devices. This is like what lockdown is, but for desktop. Previously you could edit the host file in microsoft but they have since then blocked modifications to it that pertains to telemetry.

HanBaoCinch

Member

Registered: 2021-01-11

Posts: 93

Re: How can i improve security and privacy? O.S, Cloud Storage, Apps, etc.

Man thats a lot okay my recommendation would maybe look dumb but here its:

why use all of this? maybe try GIMP? (inside linux of course) and i know it going to take learning curve but i’m sure you going to like it (thats the dumb recommendation i said about, because most of people dont want to learn new apps)
About “digital services” you can use something like nextcloud or at least encrypt your stuff before upload and give a try to protonmail or tutanota for your email address
You can use Instagram, Tumblr, Deviantart, Pixiv inside harden browser like firefox or so
about the apps on your devices you can use it’s web version or instead of youtube use invidious or newpipe like try to use the alts and if there is none then try use its web app (inside harden browser)
at the end, nothing is 100% nothing is perfect

Ollester

Member

Registered: 2021-01-11

Posts: 64

Re: How can i improve security and privacy? O.S, Cloud Storage, Apps, etc.

or just use pihole on your linux itself (as what i was doing) if you cant get Raspberry Pi 4

Drassen

Member

Registered: 2021-01-11

Posts: 71

Re: How can i improve security and privacy? O.S, Cloud Storage, Apps, etc.

If you don’t need to be logged in on Twitter and Instagram, you can use Nitter(Twitter) and Bibliogram(Instagram), which are two frontend services which allows you to browse the whole content on these 2 websites without their tracking, there’s only a few things you won’t be able to use like Instagram stories (and possibly twitter’s too).

lolapolooza

Member

Registered: 2021-01-11

Posts: 66

Re: How can i improve security and privacy? O.S, Cloud Storage, Apps, etc.

Thanks everyone here
I need to do professional illustration work on Photoshop, Clip Studio Paint, use Final Cut Pro x, File Management, Browsing the internet, and I currently have bought a NUC8i5BEK (i5-8259u), to do this 3build thing, where I could use Linux, Mac and Win, in the most secure way. It would be just amazing if I have to install only Linux, and then use Mac and Win as VM’s, if they work as native. (or even better)
Anyway thoose below are my main concerns right now

Would I be able to run VM, MacOS and Windows, from Linux Host, at the same speed they would run with H4ck1nt0sh and Native? It would be cool to switch, back and forth, from Linux and Macos at the same time.

I need a cloud service that could share my files with unknown people, because I do need to send them thoose files as a rewards for their Patreon Pledge, so I normally use Dropbox as a service, and I do normally zip my reward file of the month, and then I apply a password to It, and sync it in Dropbox, dragging it into a synced folder on my Mac. Is this a correct way of doing this, or there is a better one? Yes you may ask if they would pirate my files after they download from my dropbox, uploading them to other websites for free. They could, but what could I do? Could I stop them to doing so?

Regarding the mobile device I need, The iPad and the iPhone, I could ditch the iPhone, but right now, I use Icloud Keychain as my main password manager, and I found it good, because it sync accroos all my iCloud Devices (Mac, iPad, iPhone). iF I could find any alternative that could sync between my Desktop (Linux, Mac, Win), iPad, Smartphone (android or ios), that would be amazing! Maybe better if it has a feature that could change every saved password, for each different account, every 30 or 60 days from the latest change. Would that be possible?
For the smartphone, I am sensitive to PWM and I would not use any OLED device, so if there is any iPS smarpthone option, better than the actual iPhone 8 I do have right now, that would allow me to use the password manager, and have a better privacy than ios, I would buy it. Any advice on this particular one?

I have done the first step in password management. What about the second step? How do I manage emails for each individual account I have for social media, digital services, apps, and others? How could I just remember one email address, to rule them all? (like the password manager does), and also How do I receive my emails, from different aliases, to only one Inbox, without the need to check every different inbox, every time?

There would be also a correct and privacy focused way to manage all social media account, schedule post on them, use them all togheter, automatize some stuff, without the fear to have the account been stolen? How would you manage social media accounts?

Thanks again

Last edited by lolapolooza (2021-02-08 15:55:50)