This is something that sneaks up on you as well. And all that started a few years ago when I finally decided to get myself my first smartphone and tried to optimize data usage and battery life. I then realized that not only some apps and “system processes” were using battery and data when not in use, but that there wasn’t even given a way for me to stop it from happening. I also got creeped out when I moved to work in another building and Facebook started giving me friend suggestions of people who worked there. Location wasn’t even enabled on my phone.
And now today I have no mainstream social media account, run GrapheneOS on my phone, Linux on my computer and have migrated to almost entirely FOSS software and apps. I have become the crazy privacy obsessed weirdo.
Not a weirdo. It is the only reasonable thing to do. Unfortunately, many people lack education about the true extent of mass surveillance / profiling and the potential massive repercussions that it can have for society à la Nineteen Eighty-Four.
Facebook started giving me friend suggestions of people who worked there. Location wasn’t even enabled on my phone.
Some devices will still passively check SSIDs, even with WiFi “off”, then they just look for users who have similar nearby wireless networks.
Bluetooth?
Maybe even ultrasound to detect nearby devices?
I don’t think you can have privacy online anymore. The best thing you can do is make a lot of noise, so it’s hard to determine what data is real, and who it belongs to.
This is something that sneaks up on you as well. And all that started a few years ago when I finally decided to get myself my first smartphone and tried to optimize data usage and battery life. I then realized that not only some apps and “system processes” were using battery and data when not in use, but that there wasn’t even given a way for me to stop it from happening. I also got creeped out when I moved to work in another building and Facebook started giving me friend suggestions of people who worked there. Location wasn’t even enabled on my phone.
And now today I have no mainstream social media account, run GrapheneOS on my phone, Linux on my computer and have migrated to almost entirely FOSS software and apps. I have become the crazy privacy obsessed weirdo.
Not a weirdo. It is the only reasonable thing to do. Unfortunately, many people lack education about the true extent of mass surveillance / profiling and the potential massive repercussions that it can have for society à la Nineteen Eighty-Four.
Some devices will still passively check SSIDs, even with WiFi “off”, then they just look for users who have similar nearby wireless networks.
Bluetooth? Maybe even ultrasound to detect nearby devices?
I don’t think you can have privacy online anymore. The best thing you can do is make a lot of noise, so it’s hard to determine what data is real, and who it belongs to.