Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

General discussion and chat (archived)
PalleP
Fanatic
Fanatic
Posts: 167
Joined: 2018-02-14, 17:36

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by PalleP » 2018-09-26, 16:06

They push it further and further out in the distasteful universe, just like M$.
I must now replace my Gmail with something serious, although I know that I will have to keep my gmail account for quite some time after the switch.
There was a thread here about Protonmail and other privacy oriented email providers, but I can't find it. Can anyone please give me a hint?

User avatar
badnick
Astronaut
Astronaut
Posts: 670
Joined: 2017-03-23, 19:56

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by badnick » 2018-09-26, 17:05

If you still want to search with google but you don't want to be tracked maybe this is a solution:
https://www.startpage.com/
Windows 10 pro /64 (version 1809)
PM last/64

User avatar
loxodont
Astronaut
Astronaut
Posts: 725
Joined: 2014-07-26, 23:03
Location: Mare Serenitatis

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by loxodont » 2018-09-27, 19:41

Night Wing wrote: I'm guessing Google knows more about you than it does about me.
...
Now, can you make the same claim?
No, you're right Google surely knows more about me, as I have an account and sometimes have a look on those activities, they have tracked down in my history and it's sure they track more than that. My excuses, if it came up too personal, - it wasn't meant like that. This thread, your post and details just triggered my general thoughts about mainstream complaining about Google (fb,...) on the one side and being quite careless with personal information given only into the rest of the "internet" (in reviews, discussions, forums...) and not directly to evil Google/Chrome and their competitors, on the other side.

I personally don't care too much about their stupid 'more data' collection and even less about their idiotic suggestions and recommendations in the result - if I get some. Sometimes I rather wonder, why I don't get so many (personalized) ads in Google services as others. Maybe they're just blocked by uBO?... I don't know

I agree that Googles hidden mobile location scan and hundreds of other spying, marketing methods are unwanted, annoying shit for most users, but when I actually read privacy self-defense recommendations on a net activists site, like "use firefox with privacy 'enhancing' add-ons, or better Tor, use encryption everywhere, install all updates quick, etc..., they are like stone old standards, sometimes even questionable (see Win10 updates, intrusive extensions for some antivirus programs,etc.), they sound like a 2nd job for people with much time and finally they raise the question, is "privacy" not already a big illusion anyway and worth all the effort with dozens of tips what to avoid and to configure with privacy promising tools.

I use a few of them too and I really don't want to discourage people to use programs, as good as possible, to protect themselves, avoid online banking, Google and other "services", but even what you avoid or "do not" is a positive information to create their profiles. So, with avoiding Google you can reduce giving personal information - directly to Google, yes, but I sometimes wonder what many people tell about their life, health and whatnot and do still think it's rather private and safe, if they don't use blacksheep Google. Rather a light and idealistic misconception about privacy, hyped by popular media reports in my view. That's all ... just a reminder to take care outside Google, too.

User avatar
Isengrim
Board Warrior
Board Warrior
Posts: 1325
Joined: 2015-09-08, 22:54
Location: 127.0.0.1
Contact:

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by Isengrim » 2018-09-28, 03:12

Unfortunately, you as an individual can only do so much. No matter what you do, your efforts will be undermined by others who will share your data without hesitation. Many organizations that have information on you have either sold it or have had it taken from them. Individuals who have you as a contact have likely had their contacts scraped or they have voluntarily been uploaded to the likes of Google. Anyone who carries a smartphone near you has a device that is potentially transmitting video, audio, or location data on you. Anyone you have communicated with is likely using a service provider who has no obligation towards user privacy.

Honestly, the best thing you can do for your privacy is cut yourself off from the people who don't value your privacy, becaise privacy is a collective effort. And we as a society have collectively sacrificed it for short-term benefits.
a.k.a. Ascrod
Linux Mint 19.3 Cinnamon (64-bit), Debian Bullseye (64-bit), Windows 7 (64-bit)
"As long as there is someone who will appreciate the work involved in the creation, the effort is time well spent." ~ Tetsuzou Kamadani, Cave Story

User avatar
TwoTankAmin
Keeps coming back
Keeps coming back
Posts: 777
Joined: 2014-07-23, 13:56
Location: New York

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by TwoTankAmin » 2018-09-28, 17:11

Re Proton Mail- I made the switch.

For me as a non-tech savvy person it was a major PITA. I store my emails on my system and have used Outlook Express and the older versions of Outlook Since my earliest days with email. I do not text and only use email for digital communication. I am retired so I have no business needs for a lot of today's digital technology. But I also am an avid fsh keeper and I breed some rare catfish which i sell, I use emails to manage this.

Proton offers to paid users an app called The Bridge. This allows one to use Outlook or a Linux program in concert with the Proton service. This was where i had huge issues. I was happily using office 2007 and had no desire to change that. However, Proton only supports Outlook 2010 and higher. The higher one goes, versionwise, the more telemetry and data mining is being done by Microsoft. So I went to 2010. It took me close to 8 weeks to get Proton and Outlook working properly. There are also some design issues i have with proton which are not deal breakers. One is their Spam filter, like evey spam filter i have tried, actually sucks as bad as the rest. The downside is with other providers I had the option to turn off the Spam filter. Proton does not offer that option. Therefore, in order for me to know what the spam filter might have caught, I need to sync that proton filter with Outlook. So far the 4 so-called spams proton has caught were from three long time friends and my local medical group.

However, from a security and privacy point of view i could not be happier with Proton. Once i got it all working right, it has been fairly smooth. The one downside has been that i was not able to access my emails for a few hours because proton is the target of regular attacks trying to shut it down. The dos attacks took it offline twice so far but only briefly. This has been a minor inconvenience compared to having Verizon read my emails.

One piece of advice. Here is how I approach this issue. If a company tells me they intend to spy on me and collect my data and then tries to explain how they will use that data and that I can opt put, I do not believe them. One needs to assume that there is no such thing as an opt out. The company is almost always lying to us. That old saying trust but verify cannot apply in such situations as close to 100% of us online in any way have not got the knowledge/skills to verify.
“No one has ever become poor by giving.” Anonymous
“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.”" Daniel Patrick Moynihan
"The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it." Neil DeGrasse Tyson

PalleP
Fanatic
Fanatic
Posts: 167
Joined: 2018-02-14, 17:36

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by PalleP » 2018-09-28, 19:22

For me the Outlook pita will be no problem since I don't use any M$ programs besides Win7 anymore, and I wouldn't dream of keeping my huge amount of e-mails locally.
I don't understand the reason for using a serious email provider, and then at the same time use newer M$ telemetry and spyware filled programs.
I have also been looking at Posteo.de which seems to offer the same as Proton at a lower price. Posteo also seems to be totally free of U.S.A servers/ownership and this is ofcourse a must.
Both run without a spam folder, and at first I thought it was a bad idea, but after some thinking it may not be a bad idea. Posteo simply blocks detected spam and sends the sender a notice that it was blocked.
If the sender is a human being it will be possible to react on the block message, while bot's ect. will ignore them.
Posteo also offer a service to migrate all Gmail emails to the new adress(es) and a service to transfer or copy new Gmails to the new adress.
If this works it would be very handy, since I then don't have to login to Gmail anymore. But previous experiences tells me that Google blocks this kind of things as soon as they discover them :problem:
Can anyone here give some info about experiences with Posteo.de? Or maybe other similar services?

User avatar
Tomaso
Board Warrior
Board Warrior
Posts: 1622
Joined: 2015-07-23, 16:09
Location: Norway

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by Tomaso » 2018-10-25, 19:07

Preview of the new Startpage.com:
https://www.ghacks.net/2018/10/25/previ ... tpage-com/
Startpage.com plans to release an updated version of its search engine in November 2018 that promises faster searches and better functionality.
The company revealed a preview of the upcoming interface and functionality today that is publicly available.
Try it out here:
https://new.startpage.com/

User avatar
Moonchild
Pale Moon guru
Pale Moon guru
Posts: 35474
Joined: 2011-08-28, 17:27
Location: Motala, SE
Contact:

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by Moonchild » 2018-10-28, 10:31

If you use startpage, you're still using Google search, with all its inherent filtering, bias and bubbling (because behind the startpage screen it's still Google Search, and you're still financially supporting exactly what you want to avoid)-- the difference is that you're in a shared bubble instead of a personal one, which is potentially even worse from a search results point of view.

Want to avoid Google search? Use DuckDuckGo. Bonus: your searches will help fund our project!
"Sometimes, the best way to get what you want is to be a good person." -- Louis Rossmann
"Seek wisdom, not knowledge. Knowledge is of the past; wisdom is of the future." -- Native American proverb
"Linux makes everything difficult." -- Lyceus Anubite

User avatar
loxodont
Astronaut
Astronaut
Posts: 725
Joined: 2014-07-26, 23:03
Location: Mare Serenitatis

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by loxodont » 2018-10-28, 12:51

Moonchild wrote: ...
Want to avoid Google search? Use DuckDuckGo. Bonus: your searches will help fund our project!
Good to know. Are ecosia searches (or others) helping, too?


Ragnite_Powered

Re: Another reminder of why I avoid (as possible) all things Google

Unread post by Ragnite_Powered » 2018-11-19, 16:16

We're talking about Google controlling data, just as I ran into this article : https://tranio.com/articles/how-self-driving-cars-will-change-the-property-market_5386/: if self driving cars are to become the norm and be important enough to change, here, the real estate market, but other things as well, imagine the field day Google, Amazon etc will have with all of that data!
But well, if we're lucky, we'll get things like Protonmail and Telegram until then so that we'll be able to keep some privacy.

Locked