Oddbean

It can be challenging to convince people to abandon tyranny technology One of our readers wrote the following about why should he bother switching from Google products. We will try to convince him otherwise. He said: “I keep thinking, to what extent does it matter that Google will know my interests to show me targeted ads? I don’t care, I actually prefer to see relevant ads if I have to see ads” First of all, you don't have to see ads. If you use uBlock Origin browser extension or Brave Browser for example you won’t see them. Another option is a DNS block on Google. Even with a regular stock android any of these options work. Second, you assume that the advertiser will charge you a fair price regardless. Our previous article on browser fingerprints, demonstrated from numerous academic sources that many retailers will abuse their knowledge about you to charge a higher price. For example Target charged a higher price on the mobile app when shoppers were physically closer to a store, because alternatives were much less convenient. Other examples include airlines knowing you will buy tickets because you checked the flight multiple times, and then jacking it up for you. You can find this article here: https://simplifiedprivacy.com/browser-fingerprints-lead-to-price-discrimination/ He continues: “That Google will delete my account one day because they dislike something I said online? That would be bad, but by far less likely and, I can protect myself from this, I think, simply by having backups of my data and an email address in my own domain, using proton mail or alike, right?” Yes, that’s exactly what we’re saying. Google can and will ban you for speech they dislike and by heavily using their services, you’ve become dependent on their will. This isn’t just about privacy, but it’s about power and self-sovereignty. Now you might say, “oh well I’m not speaking out, and I’m not a controversial public influencer”. But what today may be normal speech or actions, may change in the future. For example, 10 years ago, would you have thought you might be forced to take a vaccine to enter a restaurant? Who knows what drugs future Google will require for accounts you’ve become dependent on. He continues: “What else can Google do to me? Denounce me to a dystopian government for being interested in Bitcoin, do that they can try to confiscate it? Sure but, first of all, hopefully extremely unlikely, and secondly, it’s “too late” already. I’m signed up in Gmail to many Bitcoin newsletters. They already know.” If your Bitcoin can be taken, what is even the purpose of it? That sounds like a bank account, and Google can see all private keys kept on Android. So you never really own self-custody Bitcoin with Google, you only have temporary access. It’s not unrealistic to think the government will confiscate your Bitcoin or try to do ridiculous tax hikes such as unrealized capital gains. Not only are people such as Elizabeth Warren actively pushing for this in Congress, but past precedent has shown the steps governments will take when their currency experiences heavy devaluation. For example, in 1933 FDR confiscated Americans gold . Another example is India literally going door-to-door to confiscate cash, to force people in digital surveillance. Yet another recent example is in Nigeria, the forced CBDC program, which tried to end physical cash. The idea that they “already know” and therefore you should never change is ridiculous. The knowledge about your past activity becomes less and less relevant, the sooner you stop surrendering all future data to a malicious surveillance firm such as Google. Bitcoin can be sent to an empty wallet on a Linux computer or DeGoogled phone and now you “don’t have it anymore” in the eyes of the empire. There’s the old expression of the boiling frogs. That if you turn up the heat suddenly, they hop out. But if you slowly dial it up, they boil to death, not realizing there’s a way out. Then again, you may not know about this example if Google AI is deciding everything you see.

Are you saying that Google can see my nsec if I run Amethyst on Android? Are you saying that Google can see the private key of any online wallet app I run on Android? I mean, I guess, indeed, if they own the operating system, then technically this is not impossible... But...

Thank you. You made me think. OK, Google has never seen my private keys. I use a cold wallet on a device that has never been online, and never will be. So, they cannot confiscate it "just like that". However, I have just realized, or rather, you have made me realize, the Bitcoin I buy every week , I'm sending it, every few months, from my hot wallet, a Blue Wallet app on Android, to my cold wallet. Is there a possibility that Google knows the addresses I'm sending my Bitcoin to? By somehow monitoring, via Android, what the Blue Wallet app is doing? Or by monitoring my traffic? If true, what can I do? If I use a Linux PC with a Sparrow wallet on it, sign a transaction offline, to send my Bitcoin to myself, from my cold wallet to the next address in the same wallet, and send my utxos to it, perhaps in a few transactions, not to consolidate them all in one go - would that work? Then, when they come for my Bitcoin, I can say, plausible deniability, that I sent it to someone or lost my key and someone took it. And nobody will know that the address I sent it to was my own address, right? Unless they know my private key, which they cannot know. Right? Damn, maybe I'm paranoid, but the wallet online app on Android knows my cold wallet xpub. I added a watch-only wallet to it. Does that mean that theoretically Google may know all my future addresses? And so the only way is to create a new wallet with a new private key? Overall, thanks again and, yes, I think you can add me to the list of people you convinced :-) And scared a bit.

I think there is something to be said about google and big techs goals of manipulating public opinion by manipulating your personal opinion. They do this in part by creating a profile of each user based on their data and metadata (email, chats, location, search history, device tracking, third party data, purchase history, social media, etc.) so the more data you give them by using their products the more accurate their model of you is and that makes their propaganda campaigns more effective. They manipulate people by subtle algorithmic changes, sorting search results, promoting content that triggers or deflates, shadow banning and limiting reach, and probably way more frightening ways in the future now that they have AI doing the heavy lifting. Social engineering on a mass scale.

The movie The Social Dilemma is a good start but also with the context of when it was filmed and released in mind, it was released January 2020. Those people (ex big tech whistleblowers) were exposing the tools that were obviously utilized in mass during the last few years. They were doing that type of social engineering before with whatever machine learning they had at the time and ML/AI has made massive leaps in progress since then so imagine how good their ML models are now. It’s probably how they get a lot of the NPCs to support the current thing or get triggered by the current outrage. https://youtu.be/uaaC57tcci0?si=nOmXwG1TYy_8XQZ6

One thing is true. Google can disable your account but you can keep all data locally using POP3/IMAP for free. You can use GPG with Gmail with your private keys stored locally. You can encrypt Subject with GPG in your Gmail. Yoy can use your Gmail account with Delta Chat. You can forward your e-mails and so on Users of ProtonMail can only dream about it. Thr bottom line is. Gmail is better than most of "privacy and security" oriented providers like Protonmail, Tutanota etc.

First off, even with PGP, Google can see the metadata. Second, they are so malicious there’s no reason to trust them with that info. Third, Delta chat is retarded. If the other person is willing to end-to-end encryption, why even bother with email? Fourth, you are so dumb, I am not going to reply for free again

There's no private-private e-mail service. There never can be. You think your little tricks, enabled by google to sell you a fake sense of security and convenience are somehow effective - it's just cope for complacency. E-mail has been entirely captured by big providers, Lopp's post about it a few years ago is spot on. Never, ever use e-mail for important, private stuff. Plenty of decent msging solutions are available. Proton and tuta are most likely honeypots, too.

If someone has skills a little more than average computer eater and claims that they use Protonmail for more sensitive things then they admit that ... ProtonMail officially admits that they scan all unencrypted e-mails.

You have to chose between being certain the biggest data harvest op globally will know your mails, or proton, who might(!) not share them unless required. That's why Proton is "better" for more sensitive email needs above normie stuff.

No. If you have only Gmail and Protonmail to choose for sensitive stuff it's better to use Gmail + GPG or just Delta Chat with Gmail. Let me explain you. The mentioned solutions give you among others encrypted Subject, attachments (haven't tested with DC yet). Everything encrypted with your private keys stored locally. On which basis you're so confident that ProtonMail shares your data only "unless required" because their marketing team said so?

I see, you mean if you setup gmail with a local client. It's probably better this way, still I wouldn't use any of those for really sensitive stuff. Having to use gpg means it's not for email, imo. You have to also be 100% sure your contact uses a local client, else your efforts are for nought. I would chose proton over goolag for everyday online services where bank/card payments are involved, for example. Nothing more sensitive, though.