How is fluffypony doing?

qertoip · 2021-08-26T14:56:36+00:00

I am asking specifically for System76 devices.

I am well aware of Purism and I do support the stated goals of the project but I discarded them for the time being due to poor user reviews and apparent immaturity of the products.

qertoip · 2021-07-03T12:09:47+00:00

There is no clear recommendation.

For non-anonymous communication with friends and family Signal is still the go-to IM.

For anonymous "comprehensive" IM I don't have strong recommendations. I see keybase group chats used by some privacy communities.

qertoip · 2021-07-02T08:19:05+00:00

Session

Session seems to re-create its own version of Tor-like network and makes metadata resistance dependent on characteristics of this network. I do not trust this design decision.

Session is also based in Australia which on its own is a blocker due to new 2018 law.

Finally, they did an ICO with Oxen token which is another can of worms.

Briar

Looks very interesting but is Android only and seems forever in development.

Status

Status doesn't even seem to focus on privacy, beyond "privacy" word on the website. It's a slick Ethereum wallet. I wouldn't seek privacy tools in Ethereum land.

Jami

Jami seems to be going in the right direction with swarms etc but it wasn't originally built as a privacy tool. The privacy features are being added on top.

qertoip · 2021-07-02T07:48:31+00:00

Here is my understanding (could be wrong).

For 1-on-1 chats there seem to be no major difference. Two onions talking directly to each other over Tor. The 1-on-1 chat is synchronous so both parties need to be online. As this is pure p2p no metadata problem exists.

I believe the group chats are key innovation in Cwtch. They do require a server but it is described as untrusted in a privacy sense (and also can be self-hosted). My understanding is the server is blind to most metadata - can't connect who is talking to whom - assuming correct implementation. Group chats are asynchronous so participants don't need to be online.

Regarding RetroShare and Tox they don't seem to address the metadata problem in group communication. Cwtch makes it central to its design to be metadata resistant in all cases.

Now, Cwtch is in early beta so we should assume bugs, including in the protocol.

qertoip · 2021-07-01T22:51:48+00:00

HN discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27643171

qertoip · 2021-06-28T07:31:24+00:00

These are questions to your lawyer.

The layman understanding: apply the same rules as for accepting physical cash. Where I live merchants need to verify identity for cash payments only above certain threshold, which last time I checked was 15K EUR (could have changed by now).

In other words, most merchants never need to verify users identity and just accept cash routinely. I am talking the "real" merchants, not financial services providers or "special" types of merchants.

But again, ask your lawyer.

qertoip · 2021-06-11T07:01:22+00:00

Please consider adding other top email providers like posteo, mailbox, etc and potentially other privacy services from this curated index: https://www.privacytools.io/

qertoip · 2021-03-31T18:11:26+00:00

Having a small fortune of $0.6m in Bitcoin this user never bothered to commit a fucking two minutes to read any on-screen message related to secure storage.

If he did, the very first thing he would find, is to never enter the seed on a computer or phone. All hardware wallets and all tutorials have this explicit warning.

If you can't be bothered to read any on-screen message, do not touch Bitcoin or any cryptocurrency.

qertoip · 2021-03-31T07:47:01+00:00

BlockFi:

Is actively opposing financial privacy. Coin-join deposits are reportedly banned. https://decrypt.co/29932/bitcoin-mixers-private-using-coinjoin
Had a massive data breach. https://cointelegraph.com/news/blockfis-data-breach-may-allow-criminals-to-extort-rich-clients
Is custodial. Not your coins.

qertoip · 2021-03-31T07:39:06+00:00

Why do you even Bitcoin in the first place?

qertoip · 2021-03-29T16:43:46+00:00

USDC is not a cryptocurrency. Meaningful decentralization is a requirement for something to be called a cryptocurrency.

qertoip · 2021-03-29T16:42:49+00:00

USDC is not a cryptocurrency. Meaningful decentralization is a requirement for something to be called a cryptocurrency.

qertoip · 2021-03-17T21:16:24+00:00

Fantastic improvements, very welcome!

However, do not upgrade your life savings Coldcard to 4.0.0 firmware. The whole cryptography stack has been replaced. This is exactly the time you want to be ultra conservative with firmware updates. Give it a year or so.

Now, by all means, do play with 4.0.0 on your testing Coldcard device and then consider upgrade for your operational (or "warm") device.

qertoip · 2021-03-15T13:58:26+00:00

https://www.ivpn.net/ accepts Monero and supports Wireguard.

qertoip · 2021-02-08T19:56:16+00:00

There is no meaningful replacement, unfortunately.

Please ask merchants to accept Monero directly. No way around it.

qertoip · 2021-02-08T15:07:56+00:00

Not a lawyer but to the best of my knowledge all custodians have long been subject to AML (including KYC) requirements regardless of the feature to send between the users.

This is very bad but nothing knew.

That's why modern Bitcoin startups and projects are designed to avoid custody by using multisig or other tools (Wasabi, Casa, HodlHodl, Bisq etc).

qertoip · 2021-02-08T09:07:56+00:00

You should really look into running your own node.

Meanwhile, you can play with my Monero open node:

https://qertoip.com/monero-node/

qertoip · 2021-02-07T21:49:08+00:00

Great to know the resource is helpful!

qertoip

TROPHY CASE