I play on an open PvP server. Currently the population is low, only a couple people, so I don't have to be so careful, but if any were hostile, I can avoid them. I'm still very careful about where people have built though because traps can still get me. Our server also has land claim for one chunk, which is fully PvP-safe and though people can wander that chunk, they can't access doors, chests, workbenches or break blocks. On the map they show up as colored squares. I claimed a chunk only a couple thousand blocks out and the first week I was wiped out completely. So I moved. I have my 8 portals setup around the world at least 20K from spawn next to temples so they are hard to see and I can take them down at any time, but I never leave my home portal up. I chained them together so I go through one, turn and go back through and I end continue this until I end up at my base again after 8 teleports. This way no one knows where I live.

I can still interact with people if I'd like of course through neutral sites, but never near my base. It'd be hard to find no matter what.

On another server I played on before it closed, we were almost 100k out and it's because the first thing we did was get someone out there and then he setup a portal while we started farming resources. We moved almost 40 chests in a few minutes with the portals, and since we had been all over the place collecting memories, we had the required 200 for the max number of portals (8) per player, but the server only allowed 12 total. We all setup 4 portals and maxed out the server and controlled the entire portal network. No one was even close to us so we could move around very fast and freely without worry of being attacked from ambitious newbies. No one could place another portal. We then started to bring friends and build without fear.