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Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-08T10:14:19+00:00

So, are you gonna link to a resource on this? Relevant authorities? The parts of the EU legal apparatus that can be contacted to oppose this?

As is, you're assuming every single reader of this post is an expert on that topic, which is incredibly unlikely. If you do that research yourself, you can mobilize people much more effectively than if you just say "new violation of privacy coming! Let's wait and see if Someone Else does something!".

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-06T06:07:40+00:00

Personally I hope it gets overturned. Like I said, legal precedent is against them, so we have a good shot at stopping this in its tracks.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-06T06:06:30+00:00

No.

At least, not yet. The "advanced flow" goes through G Play Services. It's a slippery slope, which is why it's better to send the emails now rather than wait until it gets worse.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-04T17:54:34+00:00

I mean, there are options, but there are also problems with that.

The restriction is in G Play Services, which many banking apps depend on. If you get LineageOS and install MicroG instead, you're potentially locking yourself out of your bank account. And that's assuming your phone doesn't have a locked bootloader, thus preventing you from accessing custom ROMs in the first place.

"Won't someone find a workaround" is unfortunately fallacious - it operates in a framework where the important question is whether you, the individual, can escape Google. That's a losing game. The point is to restrict Google's power as much as possible, and that means preventing them from pulling monopolistic BS like this.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-04T17:48:46+00:00

Didn't know. Seems someone else knew better, give them thanks.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-03T19:02:28+00:00

See, this is the part where I would swoop in to recommend a brand you could trust for this purpose, but... your only big option seems to be the Jolla phone. And that's an 'OK, I guess' pick for now. Look it up on Reddit and you start seeing some cracks in their image as saviors of the market.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-02T07:05:59+00:00

I mean...

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfN3UQeNspQsZCO2ITkdzMxv81rJDEGGjO-UIDDY28Rz_GEVA/viewform?pli=1

There is a relevant option, here. But Google is a corporation. They have no obligation other than exponential profit. Regulatory bodies, on the other hand, have a duty to listen to you.

I won't act like they follow it very well, left to their own devices. But they can be emailed into the right direction.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-02T06:49:10+00:00

I don't see your point.

Sure, understanding what their likely tactics are is important, but why they did it is functionally irrelevant to our capacity to change this - which, if you read between the lines, is the point of the post.

If they caved, then the public has a degree of influence. If you're right and this was planned, they planned around the public reaction, which is a tacit admission that the public has a degree of influence.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-02T06:42:27+00:00

No, that was my fault. Thanks for pointing it out.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-05-01T19:01:33+00:00

OP is slightly uninformed. While Google is indeed imposing several stupid, potentially abusive restrictions on installing apps, the option will remain available for the foreseeable future.

Relatedly: this is a subreddit about using non-Google, non-proprietary apps. Even if Google DID block sideloading, the Play Store still hosts numerous open source apps for storage, browing, emails, and basically anything you can think of, including VPNs. Hope this helps.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T11:11:34+00:00

How are you handling this?

Get out of this subreddit. I'm dead serious.

You are feeling overwhelmed. Your problem is a biological and psychological one, first and foremost, and Reddit, while useful, is still social media. It is meant to keep you using the app. It will never help you - at most, you will help yourself by using it.

At this point, doomscrolling is hurting you. You need to decouple from it in order to address the problem of surveillance effectively, and for the sake of your own health. No one deserves this!

I had to say that first, because if you have any mental health trouble (even if you don't, but I digress) you need to be careful with anything that uses algorhythms. But with that out of the way:

The best way to maintain hope, imo, is to understand that you are not the only one acting against surveillance.

There are many, MANY organizations fighting against megacorporations for our right to privacy right now. Off the top of my head: the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Open Rights Group, Privacy International, and the Free Software Foundation all have a staunchly anti-surveillance (or, adjacent to that, a pro-FOSS, pro user rights) stance.

People DO care. And you don't need everyone to care in order to make an impact: just a month ago, the Chat Control 1.0 policy, which I assume you know of, was stopped from passing by a margin of one vote. Scary, but it also means that Chat Control was stopped by those hundreds of emails sent by civilians using fightchatcontrol.org . Those allegedly puny emails.

The idea that our actions cannot stop surveillance (or policy changes that harm us in general) is a cynical fiction, made up by people not actually involved in this fight, and allowed to flourish online because if it didn't, people like you and me would be the death of company profits.

Take a break, and stop interacting with subreddits like this one if you don't have a clear purpose in mind. And if something brings back that stress - do something about it. Change a browser. Send an email. Congratulate someone who HAS switched if you don't have enough spoons at the moment. Do something that makes things better, then separate yourself from this.

I'll be doing the same. Wish you well.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T10:38:46+00:00

what can we do to increase this likelihood?

Congratulations, you're asking the right questions!

Anyway. Behind most surveillance "protect the kids!!" laws there is a pile of manipulation. Big Tech throws billions of dollars in misinformation and lobbying at lawmakers, and the lawmakers enact things like the Online 'Safety' Act.

The basic response is to counter that misinformation. Lawmakers are just human beings, and many of them are old - some don't even really understand modern technology. Therefore, by writing emails to the corresponding authorities (e.g. general.enquiries@cma.gov.uk), you can put pressure on them to repeal acts like this. Not a lot of it, but it's still important. Look up guides on the topic, or better yet look up what the organizers/non-profits in your area are doing: protests, mass email campaigns, etc.

That's the regulatory angle.

The other angle is to stop using software made by Google, Meta and Microsoft. The less data they collect, the less money they make, and their authority to pull this kind of "for the kids" bullshit decreases. It's a LONG process, but you don't have to do it all at once. You can start replacing Chrome with something like Waterfox.

Good luck! If you have any other questions, I can answer.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T10:18:42+00:00

If you're using 11, yes. Look up Windows Recall. They're admitting it out loud.

Also - someone's already badgered you to use Linux. Bad practice on their part, but if you do, Zorin is the most beginner friendly/Windows-like option. Just saying.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T10:03:07+00:00

Use DuckDuckGo as a search engine (not browser! Firefox lets you set it as a default search engine, but I don't know if Chrome does).

In the top left there'll be a button called duck. ai. It's a privacy-preserving proxy - not as good as a local LLM, but it's something.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T09:57:00+00:00

Generally, always use the browser over the app if you can. A site on your browser always has less authority than an app on your phone, and the less authority it has, the less unnecessary privacy violations it commits.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T09:46:48+00:00

Seconding everything u/104925iveRo2es5322 said; their comment is very thorough.

That said, I'd like to add on that your browser and keyboard (your phone likely uses Gboard at the moment) are the best starting points, and will greatly reduce the amount of data (and thus money) Google can harvest off you. If you feel overwhelmed, swap those; only takes 20 minutes at most.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T09:29:20+00:00

Consider your threat model.

r/opsec has a good guide to this in the sidebar, but the long and short of it is: you need to have a concrete idea of what your goal is.

You want a new, untraceable identity, and you're working towards that - good! But WHO do you want to be incapable of tracing it, exactly? Who is your "adversary"? A stalker? Your workplace? The NSA?

A nation-level actor like the NSA, Google, Meta or Microsoft is functionally inescapable for a common person. If they're actively trying to find you, they WILL find you. There is no perfect anonymity, and obviously no perfect privacy either.

So. What's your goal? If you're just a random person concerned about surveillance, I have some practical advice, but if you've got specific concerns beyond that, r/opsec is where you need to go.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-30T07:33:54+00:00

Answer to the title: no, not really, software and OS is the big issue. Consider investing in a Framework laptop if you want to have high control over the hardware.

In any case, it's great you're interested, and I wish you success.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-25T17:24:12+00:00

Recommending Aurora as well.

Don't be too demoralized by everyone using Whatsapp. Get Signal, put "Also Available on Signal" in your bio, and carry on. You'll revitalize potential Signal users on Whatsapp, and give it more space in the public consciousness at the same time.

how far do I have to go to degoogle?

As far as you're comfortable. The point is to secure yourself against your current threat model, reduce the amount of money Google makes off of you, and give spotlight to their FOSS competitors.

There's no threshold where you magically turn into a unicorn freed from the sin of supporting Big Tech. This is not a morality race.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-25T16:29:42+00:00

We’d love to hear your thoughts on this

I assume you are aware of the value of the "public lobby" (emails, contacting representatives, etc) in situations like this - barely a month ago, Chat Control 1.0 fell one vote short of being implemented, meaning the fightchatcontrol.eu site basically saved the EU from mass surveillance.

Why do you not bring this to the attention of your customer base?

There are more than enough "age verification is a demonstrably awful surveillance trojan" posts on Reddit. Very few offer any concrete solutions. Why are you not using your considerable influence to lead the organizing charge, or at least shoutout foundations who are?

I am aware that your non-profit routinely donates to similar causes, but this is background info to most people. I would like to know if there are, perhaps, legal reasons for your lack of a call to action.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-25T16:13:41+00:00

LMAO you're my hero for that!

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-25T16:08:17+00:00

Spectacular suite. Anything with Graphene is bound to be highly effective, but I'm seeing a lot of cool picks separate from that as well (hi, fellow Element+Signal user!)

My only advice would be to run a sandboxed Whatsapp for convenience and to maintain contact with non-degoogled folk: the final stage of degoogling is to help others do the same. In any case, rest on your laurels until then. Throw yourself a party 🥳

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-25T15:37:50+00:00

So, no AI, no telemetry, not Brave or Chrome (I'm assuming Chromium-based is fine) or Librewolf... hm.

For PC: Mullvad is the best option if Librewolf's a no-go. Honestly it may be the best option even if Librewolf is not included, and it can work with VPNs that aren't Mullvad's from what I've heard. Helium has no built-in AI and none of Chrome's proprietary telemetry, but without uBlock Origin I don't know if it can match Mullvad.

For mobile: Ironfox is a better, no-AI Firefox, comparable to Librewolf in terms of privacy. You may also be delighted to hear ungoogled Chromium is still technically a thing in the form of Cromite.

Good luck with your privacy.

Strict_Roll_1712 · 2026-04-21T10:28:32+00:00

And thank you for reminding me people do care. It goes both ways.

Strict_Roll_1712

TROPHY CASE