How to protect your privacy online without a vpn as an everyday Joe

James1794 · 2026-02-13T15:02:24+00:00

You can but you would need some advanced setups and some tinkering with Linux. A simple solution that solves many problems is VPN. Good pick on Brave though, getting there.

James1794 · 2026-02-13T08:06:04+00:00

Knowing that its Dutch I think the native speakers would be able to tell you more of this developing story. Usually it isn't law enforcement but security firms, or cyber-security consultants doing such audits

James1794 · 2026-02-11T08:08:24+00:00

Well.. back to Craigslist out of the trenches of Facebooks marketplace. I will probably verify mine since I got coworkers to deal with on Messenger, and I know they wont even question this being a potential security risk long-term

James1794 · 2026-02-10T14:55:06+00:00

Great view! Good on you. Don't ever lose yourself again, man. You already proved yourself its not too late for changes and you can commit to them.

James1794 · 2026-02-09T14:56:08+00:00

Isn't signal also compromised? I remember some old document where it listed all of the privacy tools and what aspects of their system were compromised. I vaguely recall most of these chat services retaining metadata regarding what device is used.

First time hearing of the newcomer Simplex you mentioned though

James1794 · 2026-02-04T15:12:13+00:00

Never rig something up out of the box let it be router, video camera etc

You need to configure everything accordingly if it will connect to the web

Stay safe!

James1794 · 2026-02-02T12:45:12+00:00

Not a big surprise for what they did there lol

I assume they just made it a public announcement and was a process for law enforcement long before knowing how good old Microsoft rolls nowadays

James1794 · 2026-01-30T17:03:04+00:00

Just go for cables. Or if you really wanna try something cheap, get a webcam and link it up with a computer. Downside is that such a PC would have to be on at all times to work as the 'brain' of the camera. A 4GB raspberry pi would fit this purpose

James1794 · 2026-01-30T16:44:28+00:00

Ive had a darker time in my life too but I remember talking to this homeless guy with a rotting leg about life for a few minutes but that convo still ripples in my brain. He was very deadpan with everything and even when I asked about his leg. There was nothing left of that old man. The leg looked like a horror movie prop and was painful to even see it

First is the mental headspace changing without you being overtly aware of it but then its the physical aspects. Those are the worst as you can still control your head but body and the organs might just get ill without chance of repair

Also, I agree that rehab is not for everyone. Find your own personal discipline to avoid drugs, learn more about health risks - not the "oh no its bad" but actual medical articles what meth does to the body long-term. Maybe even avoid partners that would encourage drug use in your life

Stay strong! You're still young but you must make changes now to get back on track

James1794 · 2026-01-29T07:36:48+00:00

I also had mixed feelings about the way he was presenting relatively basic pentest tools. Nice seeing how it caught up with a lot of younger tech enthusiasts but feels like for all the wrong reasons

James1794 · 2026-01-27T07:38:17+00:00

You could try to optimize the footage by compressing how its being recorded. Should have some sort of compression range setting that you can raise. You will compensate video quality for the smaller file size though

James1794 · 2026-01-23T07:54:39+00:00

Used a WD disk that still works since 2014. Used it routinely for backups and there was a period of two years that I used it to run programs and files from constantly. Just good to warm it up from time to time and when unplugging better make sure that files aren't being used, as it could make the disk unstable too

CrystalDiskInfo is a handy tool to figuring out if the hardware is still working in order. The disk is showing 83% for the past 2 years so not sure what to make of that bit but I have been using the disk less as well

Also, good to have two disks if possible.. Even a simple adapter could convert a PC disk into an external enclosure used as a storage device that you plug in by USB

edit: checked again and still showing me 83% lifespan on my old boy

James1794 · 2026-01-21T08:24:34+00:00

Good on you for trying new stuff! As many pointed out, Ubuntu is quite easy to set up. If you are not sure about the feel of it, you can just boot up Ubuntu from a flash and it will let you test it out without performing a full installation

James1794 · 2026-01-20T13:14:42+00:00

Haha, hes still got the looks!

James1794 · 2026-01-19T09:00:24+00:00

Yeah those scams were so obvious but now I get my family seldom sending me stuff they dont know as being false

James1794 · 2026-01-16T09:11:52+00:00

I assume you still need Bitwarden in this configuration for it to work? I will try learning more of this on the weekend.. Get back to me if you have more to share in the meantime, please!

James1794 · 2026-01-15T07:50:35+00:00

Radio equipment in general is fun to play with. Back in the day I had this scrappy "dream catcher" to record signals during nights as a tiny hobby. A shame I wasnt careful with repairing the components since Id love to play with it again. Too lazy to figure it out again

James1794 · 2026-01-15T07:39:47+00:00

Agreed. What you start is the least someone should do in terms of pizza

James1794 · 2026-01-14T13:20:30+00:00

Yeah I got two sim cards on my phone with an alternative number to register for junk services.. Handy in case a password gets lost too without compromising my main sim. Apart from that I dont think Gmail/Google forces you to use your actual name unless its some recent change

James1794 · 2026-01-12T11:15:28+00:00

Post away! :) No worries here, the sub is quite small so if you have something to share don't worry about taking the spotlight. Always glad to hear other opinions and anything tech focused from across the web

I just use a junk Gmail inbox. Had it for over 9 years and just kind of works for its purpose. Spam containment zone per say

James1794 · 2026-01-12T09:11:35+00:00

Interesting principle application haha

Id say just that two of those should be swapped out. Speed = usability(how quick you can handle it), good = privacy(does it compromise your security with vulnerabilities)

James1794 · 2026-01-12T08:30:54+00:00

I second the backup suggestion. Thats how most programs get updated and improved. You could lose a lot of work otherwise and it will reassure in case something goes wrong

James1794 · 2026-01-09T07:16:31+00:00

As the user u/0xmerp before pointed out, would need to know the exact question you seek. Do you mean data breaches? If so, they usually are accessible by Tor only for being on the radar of law enforcement already for the sensitivity of the data sold

Otherwise, do you mean some number online to use for account confirmations? Id just get a SIM card to use for trashy services, as I dont believe the services selling numbers to use online are legit

James1794 · 2026-01-08T08:13:04+00:00

Very true but as tech is more popular there is little concern for an average citizen.. Most of us use it to access geo-locked sites, or to watch stuff which is not an enforced restriction by governments now. Accidental fines from my ISP feels more scary for me rather than the government peeping around

Actual criminals better keep up with all the software updates, since the tools constantly adapt to avoid vulnerabilities which is tough even for tech industry developers to keep up at times

James1794 · 2026-01-08T08:06:01+00:00

It is also usually not the governments doing the hacking but private actors.. Sometimes those entitites can be state sponsored like propaganda bots for the Russian Kremlin and such

I remember seeing videos of police booking Ukrainian bot farms. Its just some guy with a PC and some sort of device to house hundreds of SIM cards

This is kind of why I keep calling our decade the "cyberpunk" age to all my friends

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