I summarize the confusing landscape of TV streaming services:
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The Best VPN Service Providers Of 2020
There are now over a hundred VPN providers located across the world. To create this list of the best VPN service providers, I test customer service, the reliability of their network, and commitment to privacy.
Streisand Makes Installing Your Own VPN Easier
One of the easiest way to install your own VPN is to use a piece of free software called Streisand. It is a remarkable open-source project that allows you to set-up and deploy your own VPN server with the minimum possible fuss.
How To Install Free Ad-Blocking Using AdGuard DNS
AdGuard DNS is a free Domain Name System service provided the AdGuard company. You can use this DNS service to block advertising and trackers. It works like this: when a website sends a request to an ad network, the DNS sends back a “null” response. For example, when a web page looks up the domain name “ads.facebook.com” the DNS will …
Major Releases From ElementaryOS and AdGuard
This week, there were a couple of exciting releases from companies I track closely…
The Five Essential Privacy Extensions For Firefox
These are the five essential extensions for the Firefox web browser. They complement each other well, and work silently in the background:
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A Guide To Avoiding Ransomware (Part 1)
Ransomware is malicious software that allows a hacker to access an individual or company computer, encrypt your data resident on it and then demand some form of payment to decrypt it. This lets hackers hold your data hostage – and hence the term “ransom”. Victims can regain access to their files only by paying the ransom, or by restoring from a backup that was hopefully not on a network that was accessible to the compromised computer.
How North Korea’s “Red Star OS” Implements Censorship
Security researchers have revealed new details about the censorship features in North Korea’s homegrown operating system, Red Star OS, which monitors the files people store on their computer and traces them back to their source. Red Star OS is an operating developed by the North Korean government for use by the country’s citizens. It is based on Fedora Linux but …
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Tor Unveils Hardened Browser for Extra Security
The Tor project recently released the first version of its “hardened” Tor browser package. This release comes with extra security features designed to provide more privacy and protection against attacks. The Tor browser is a special Web browser package that makes it easy to connect to the Tor network. It is designed to be portable and self-contained, meaning you can …
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Three Free Anti-Keylogging Apps For Windows
Keyloggers are one of the most effective ways for hackers to steal private information. Here are some solutions for preventing keyloggers from compromising your Windows system. Keyloggers come in two forms — those that are software-based and those that are embedded in hardware. The latter can only be installed by someone who has physical access to your computer, but the …
Firefox is Now Available on iOS
Firefox for iOS is now finally available in the App Store worldwide. Previously, Mozilla held back on offering an iOS version of Firefox due to Apple’s restrictive policies. Firefox for iOS allows for Private Browsing — giving you the ability to browse the web without saving history or sharing existing cookies with the sites you visit. Firefox also allows you …
Microsoft Adds Small Privacy Improvement to Windows 10
Microsoft may be improving privacy in Windows 10, but only very slightly. The company has added a feature that prompts users for permission before collecting certain information about them. A few days ago, a Twitter user reported that build 10568 of Windows 10, which has leaked for download on the Internet, gave him the option to review files that Windows …
TPP Trade Agreement Could Spur Internet Censorship in Asia, Americas
Could the Trans Pacific Partnership, or TPP, mean more Internet censorship in Asia and the Americas? That’s what some online privacy advocates are saying as the new trade agreement moves closer to approval. The countries involved in the TPP approved a final version of the trade agreement on Monday, Oct. 5. Now, the document needs approval by the legislatures and …
The Blackphone: A Pro-Privacy Phone
The Blackphone is a pro-privacy phone being developed by Spanish startup Geeksphone, in partnership with Silent Circle using an Android build called PrivatOS. The phone features Silent Phone and Silent Text for secure, encrypted telephony and messaging — using Silent Circle’s secure network — so that only you and someone also using a Blackphone or using Silent Circle’s service on …
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Chromium: An Open-Source Chrome Browser
Chromium is an open-source version of the Chrome Browser by Google. While I recommend Firefox as the most reliable browser for privacy enthusiasts, Chromium is probably a reasonable alternative for everyday web browsing. Chromium does have the advantage of being a speedier than Firefox in certain areas. Here is a comparison chart and a technical discussion assessing the speed and …
Decentralized & Transparent Tools
I’m currently researching technologies that are decentralized and/or transparent. They are not prone to censorship, and mostly free of the whims of profit. Some or all of these tools may be flawed, but what is important for me, is that they are working examples of decentralization and transparency. These tools are decentralized: Bitcoin (digital cash) Bittorrent (file transfers) Bittorrent Sync …