Is it ok to be cautious? Yes!
But mostly when you want to setup your own system and record or monitor your own premises. In which case you can select systems or cameras that have features and functionality, as well as connectivity, in ways you decide.
You want to use the ring app to be notified someone is at your door? You're gonna have to give their system access to the video.
But, you can also setup your own system without ring, and use self hosted tools to do essentially the same thing.
As for being cautious that cameras on the street are tracking you? Hard to really do anything about that (even though the effort required would be prohibitively immense to track an individual through all the various systems).
If only there was what to install. It's crazy that I have to essentially throw away a perfectly capable device because the manufacturer doesn't provide updates anymore. That if I want security updates.
Not sure why this is getting downvoted, because it's actually true. Google is the only Android phone manufacturer at the moment, that delivers 7 years of OS security updates + firmware updates, allows the user to unlock the bootloader and re-lock it with custom signing keys to retain full Android Verified Boot. And the ARMv9 MTE is the cherry on top.
A modern Pixel with GrapheneOS is the best thing you can get right now for privacy, security and longevity.
I completely agree with you. I think people downvoting me because "fuck Google" when in fact, hardware wise, is the best available to achieve privacy and security.
My guess? Probably a mix of Google Evil (true), and not understanding you are talking about Pixels.
I switched to Pixels after the whole Note 7 debacle. I even have the Note 7 t-shirt Best Buy gave out for those of us with pre-orders. It was really really shitty timing as I was traveling a lot for work and I am trying to remember if I even had a backup phone to use. I may have already traded my old phone in at the time, but had something in a drawer I could use.
Evil Corp be damned, my phone just works. It doesn't lag. The pictures are awesome. Screen is nice. I just need all of this AI assistant shit to go away. I got it to STFU about it at least and my phone can go back to being a phone. Gemini can rot.
That's the thing. I use Google Pay for 90% of the places I go and that isn't something I am willing to give up. Also, it looks like Amex isn't supported either. Google does 7 years of updates now.
From my understanding my phone should be unlockable, but I have no expertise when it comes to custom Android builds. Like, how do I know they are safe and don't come with some malware?
It's so stupid. All the phones newer than mine have less hardware features so if I replace it I'll have to find new ways of doing a bunch of things. I'm just accepting the risk at this point until manufacturers get their heads out of their asses and make something decent or my carrier stops supporting my phone. I'd have probably bought two more phones since I got this one if everything wasn't a downgrade from what I have currently.
I wish security patches would be separated from "look at this new animation while closing the app1!1!1!" update honestly. Why is it so hard to do that?
You have been deducted two social credits and this post saved to your file for additional examination. Please do better comrade, or find yourself in reeducation camp.
People have commented that it's crazy that I have completely disabled all updates on my win10 machine. This sort of thing is why.
Edit: I haven't had a virus or malware since... I was a teenager. It seems like if you use an adblocker, don't click links from unknown sources, and are aware of your network activity, you are pretty safe. The writing is on the wall, I am aware that I will need to switch to Linux soon, but I am also aware that Linux has compatibility issues with my particular machine and doesn't work with certain activities I like to do. I am hoping these issues will be mostly sorted by the time I make the leap.
All the hassle I had to go through to tweak, fix and constantly maintain Windows was one of the major reasons why I ultimately switched to Linux on my desktop. At some point it all just becomes way too much of a hassle, much more than the tinkering I might have to do on Linux every now and then.
People constantly shit on Linux for not being as user friendly, but are completely blind to all the garbage they have to do to keep their Windows system running.
I was almost convinced when I set up my kid’s new gaming pc and had to spend an hour updating and then debloating the installation and turning off all the advertising and telemetry. Then, a week later I saw an ad for Tik Tok in my own Start Menu. That was what made me finally move over to Linux completely.
That said, I cannot imagine being on Windows by choice at this point. In 2024 Id rather be on macOS than Windows if forced to choose between the two.
Disabling updates is not a good choice. If you use Windows, update Windows. Having an insecure and not up to date version of windows makes you more vulnerable
Wouldn't be so bad if onedrive backup didn't completely restructure your folders so it can back shit up. I hate that it moves your main folders to the OneDrive folder.
It creates so many issues.
You should try moving the OneDrive folder after setup for a complete shitshow. Even Microsoft products fail to read and write to the right places. If I save from word to my documents folder it never appears in OneDrive but in a separate documents folder under my user profile.
Luckily OneDrive hides this from normal explorer so you can’t find that file using that
Isn't the whole point of those to take private information, cross-reference it with other stolen private data and give you results based on that? Doesn't seem so compatible with privacy.
DO NOT USE FINGERPRINT unless you absolutely have to for, say, disability reasons.
if you use facial recognition, don’t. Same as above.
If you find yourselves in a situation with the police, tap the lock button 5 times. This forces a passcode to open the phone and they cannot (yet) force you to enter a passcode.
Anytime I am filming a protest or anywhere near police, I just tap the lock button a bunch of times in my pocket and I can rest easy.
Samsung users (not sure if it also applies to other android flavors):
Go to settings>lock screen>secure lock>show lockdown option and turn it on.
Now if you hold the power button for over a second, a menu pops up withban option to turn on lockdown mode. This disables all biometric unlock methods until the next time you unlock it.
Anytime I am filming a protest or anywhere near police, I just tap the lock button a bunch of times in my pocket and I can rest easy.
How does that help if the police are the ones that alert you to their presence? I highly recommend against quickly shoving your hand in your pocket to tap a button 5 times.
I do it in anticipation. It’s not like they sneak up on you like a ninja. They are very clearly around.
Plus it takes like 2 seconds. Unless they got you at gunpoint you’re probably going to have an opportunity to accomplish this. Most people interact with police in the US being pulled over - you’re telling me you can’t lock your phone before they come to your window?
I learned something from my (quite activists) daughters recently: they delete the Signal app each time they cross a border.
It's the main coordination and information tool in their circles, and the recommended behavior is just to not have the app when at risk.
Good luck finding incriminating evidence stifling through zillions of Pouting Selfies and Gossip-Sharing Screenshots of Idiot Boyfriend' text messages.
Holy crap this is a great tip I did not know! I haven't had a run in with the police in like a decade, but better safe than sorry. Hopefully I never need to use it, but I just tried it on my iphone and works like a charm, so thanks mate!
It's not, technically, but if I have sensitive documents on my phone and a law officer is trying to get me to unlock my phone, I will be entering and/or putting the duress code into my phone. GrapheneOS has 'lockdown' button by 'restart' and 'shutdown' all of which will require a passphrase to unlock, even if you normally have fingerprint enabled for X hours each time of use.
So it's semi-related in that GrapheneOS protects against this type of attack.
I think the moral of the story here is more along the lines of "don't install weird off-brand versions of apps from dodgy places" (F-Droid excepted, obviously)
there are some modded Whatsapp versions that add features that don't exist in the official version, like hiding typing indicator for you while still being able to see the other person's, same with read markers, and so on. while I've never tried any myself, some of them seem to be legitimate.
Ratel RAT is spread via various means, but threat actors are typically seen abusing known brands like Instagram, WhatsApp, e-commerce platforms, or antivirus apps to trick people into downloading malicious APKs.
During installation, it requests access to risky permissions, including exemption from battery optimization, to be allowed to run in the background.
Yeah, that's a weird thing to do and then blame on a lack of updates.
"Make sure to extend your car's warranty! I mean, just look at what happened to this drunk driver's car."
I personally really dislike forced updates and how some people try and justify them with examples of people doing dumb shit like this where they literally side load a sketchy APK and grant it all permissions. Why not promote tech literacy instead of blind confidence into updates that are almost never explained in any significant detail? It's honestly just so weird how superstitious it all seems
So you mean to say the device made by the company known for harvesting userdata for advertising purposes... puts you at risk of being served more ads? Gee... who'd have seen that coming. Malicious or not, it's not really all that surprising.
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