Speaker 1: You know that feeling right when your phone seems just
Speaker 1: a little too smart.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like you mentioned something out loud.
Speaker 1: Exactly like needing new running shoes, and bam, suddenly every
Speaker 1: ad you see is for sneakers.
Speaker 2: It makes you really stop and think.
Speaker 1: It really does. Just how much of these things tracking us?
Speaker 2: It's a totally legitimate concern. I mean, our phones, they're
Speaker 2: basically pocket sized data collection machines, always sending out info
Speaker 2: about where we are, what apps.
Speaker 1: We use, our web activity, all of it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and the big tech companies they use this stuff extensively.
Speaker 1: Which brings us right to today's deep dive. We're talking
Speaker 1: extreme privacy for mobile devices. We're going to really get
Speaker 1: into the strategies to lock down your phone, drawing heavily
Speaker 1: on Michael Bizell's work, specifically a document he put together on.
Speaker 2: This, and Bizell, well, he knows his stuff comes from
Speaker 2: years working cybercrime with the FBI. Plus he's huge in
Speaker 2: the ocent world, open source intelligence and just you know,
Speaker 2: building really solid privacy plans.
Speaker 1: You might know his book Extreme Privacy, which is like
Speaker 1: the bible for this stuff, or maybe even from mister Robot.
Speaker 1: He was a tech advisor for the first season.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he helped make that show feel really authentic about
Speaker 2: tech anxiety.
Speaker 1: So this document we're looking at today, it's kind of
Speaker 1: a focused add on to his main work, just for
Speaker 1: phones exactly.
Speaker 2: So our goal here is to pull out Bizell's key
Speaker 2: advice for setting up a mobile device that's well truly
Speaker 2: private and secure.
Speaker 1: We'll look at cutting down location tracking, limiting what Apple
Speaker 1: and Google scoop.
Speaker 2: Up, and just generally reducing how exposed you might be.
Speaker 1: Okay, but let's set the stage here. Bizell is super
Speaker 1: clear this level of privacy it's not about convenience.
Speaker 2: Oh, definitely not. There are trade offs. This is for
Speaker 2: people who are really serious about shrinking their digital footprint
Speaker 2: on mobile.
Speaker 1: So it's not your average user setup.
Speaker 2: Not at all. Yeah. But even if you don't think
Speaker 2: you're like a high risk target or anything, understanding these methods,
Speaker 2: it gives you incredible insight into just how much data
Speaker 2: these devices.
Speaker 1: Handle and what's actually possible if you want to take
Speaker 1: back some control exactly.
Speaker 2: It's valuable knowledge either way.
Speaker 1: Okay, let's dive in then, extreme mobile privacy. Where does
Speaker 1: Bizell say we start? It feels like it has to
Speaker 1: begin with the phone itself right, getting it privately.
Speaker 2: That's precisely it. The absolute foundation is breaking any link
Speaker 2: between the new device and you right from the get go.
Speaker 1: So how do we do that?
Speaker 2: Bezell's main recommendation buy it new, pay with cash at
Speaker 2: an actual store, a physical retail store, ah okay.
Speaker 1: Avoids the credit card trail, the online order history.
Speaker 2: Exactly, no digital breadcrumbs.
Speaker 1: He even talks about using a nominee someone else to
Speaker 1: buy it for you. That sounds intense.
Speaker 2: It really does show the level some people might need
Speaker 2: to go to, you know, if they're in a really
Speaker 2: high risk situation.
Speaker 1: But for most people, just trying to up their privacy game,
Speaker 1: cash in person is a huge first step, the huge step.
Speaker 2: And Bazill also warns pretty strongly against buying used phones.
Speaker 2: What's the thinking there.
Speaker 1: Well, I guess the obvious stuff could be stolen, could
Speaker 1: be locked to an old account, or.
Speaker 2: Still have data from the last person on there. Yeah,
Speaker 2: Plus that phone already has a history tied to someone.
Speaker 1: Else, right, Factory reset doesn't just wipe its.
Speaker 2: Past life, not entirely, And Bazill points out even if
Speaker 2: you try buying online with like fake names.
Speaker 1: Or whatever, still leaves cracks.
Speaker 2: Yeah, there's still a shipping address, some kind of payment,
Speaker 2: unique device ideas the seller locks a face to face
Speaker 2: cash purchase. That's the cleanest break you can get.
Speaker 1: All right, So we've got our anonymously bought brand new phone.
Speaker 1: That's the next big layer for privacy. It's got to
Speaker 1: be the operating.
Speaker 2: System, absolutely critical. And the key thing to grasp here
Speaker 2: is that both major players iOS and standard Android, they
Speaker 2: collect a ton of user data.
Speaker 1: People often say iOS is more private out of the box.
Speaker 2: And in some ways maybe it's default security settings are
Speaker 2: tighter than some Android versions. But bizeld point is when
Speaker 2: it comes to data collection, both Apple and Google are
Speaker 2: doing it a lot.
Speaker 1: It. He actually says he thinks Apple's constant data transmissions
Speaker 1: are just as bad as Google's.
Speaker 2: That's quite a statement, it is, and it's why he
Speaker 2: pushes hard for using a custom ungoogled Android version as
Speaker 2: the way to go for serious privacy.
Speaker 1: And his top pick is Graffinios.
Speaker 2: Raffinius.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, So for people maybe not familiar, what is Graphenios?
Speaker 1: What makes it different?
Speaker 2: Okay, so the main idea behind Graphenius is just stripping
Speaker 2: things down, cutting out potential ways it could be attacked or.
Speaker 1: Leak your data, minimizing the attack surface and data leakage.
Speaker 1: Got it.
Speaker 2: It's open source, built on Android, but really redesigned with
Speaker 2: privacy and security baked in from the start. Bizelle flags
Speaker 2: a few key things like what well it enforces a
Speaker 2: locked bootloader. That's a big security win. Stops people messing
Speaker 2: with the core system easily.
Speaker 1: Okay, that makes sense.
Speaker 2: And it gives you the option. It's optional to run
Speaker 2: Google Play services, but.
Speaker 1: Sandboxed sandboxed, what does that mean? In practice?
Speaker 2: It means they're walled off. They have very limited access
Speaker 2: to the to your phone in data.
Speaker 1: Ah. Okay, so you could still get notifications maybe from
Speaker 1: apps that need Google stuff exactly, but.
Speaker 2: It's contained and crucially, Graphenios doesn't need things like MicroG
Speaker 2: to handle those notifications.
Speaker 1: That sandbox Google Services thing sounds like a pretty big
Speaker 1: deal for usability.
Speaker 2: It's a major feature. It dramatically cuts down what data
Speaker 2: Google Services can actually see and Phone Home about.
Speaker 1: So it limits Google's view right.
Speaker 2: And Bazell also notes, look, while he focuses on Graphenios,
Speaker 2: a lot of these privacy ideas apply to other custom
Speaker 2: de googled Android ROMs to and he.
Speaker 1: Mentions buying unlocked phones. Why is that so crucial here?
Speaker 2: Freedom? Simple as that an unlocked phone means you can
Speaker 2: use any cell carrier you want, all right, And as
Speaker 2: we'll get into later, Bizell's strategies for private cell service
Speaker 2: often involve switching carriers or using specific plan types. You
Speaker 2: need an unlocked phone for that flexibility.
Speaker 1: Okay, unlocked new phone acquired privately. Now the slightly skilled
Speaker 1: part for some Yeah, installing Graphenios. This isn't like just
Speaker 1: downloading an app.
Speaker 2: No, definitely not. You're basically replacing the phone's entire original
Speaker 2: brain with Graphenio.
Speaker 1: As to how's it done, Bizell walks through it for
Speaker 1: Pixel phones.
Speaker 2: Yeah, He focuses on compatible Google Pixel devices. First, you
Speaker 2: have to prep the phone, unlock the OEM setting, and
Speaker 2: turn on USB debugging. He mentions he's covered this before elsewhere.
Speaker 1: And he gives a couple of ways to do the
Speaker 1: actual install starting with a web based method.
Speaker 2: Right, the web installer that's designed to make it easier,
Speaker 2: more accessible.
Speaker 1: How does that work?
Speaker 2: You use a web browser? He suggests a chromium based
Speaker 2: one like Brave, which is more private than chrome itself,
Speaker 2: connect the phone to your computer, and the Graphenis website
Speaker 2: basically walks you through it.
Speaker 1: Okay, what are the steps?
Speaker 2: Roughly, you boot the phone into what's called bootloader mode,
Speaker 2: plug it into the computer. On the website, there's a
Speaker 2: button click that it unlocks the bootloader. Temporarily confirm it
Speaker 2: on the phone. Right Then the installer downloads graphingios, flashes
Speaker 2: it onto the phone. That's the install part, and then
Speaker 2: crucially use the web tool again to relock the bootloader.
Speaker 1: Relocking is important for security.
Speaker 2: Absolutely essential. Then the phone reboots and boom, you're running
Speaker 2: Graphy in THEOS.
Speaker 1: He also mentions doing it via command line Yeah.
Speaker 2: For the more technically adventurous, yeah, gives you more control,
Speaker 2: but you need to be comfortable with Android command line
Speaker 2: tools like fast boots. The web installer is way easier
Speaker 2: for most people.
Speaker 1: And once Graphius is up and running, any immediate next
Speaker 1: steps for security?
Speaker 2: Yes, definitely go straight into settings and turn off OEM
Speaker 2: unlocking and developer options. You needed them for the install,
Speaker 2: but leaving them on is a security risk.
Speaker 1: Got it Okay? Fresh GRAFANIOS install. He says it's private
Speaker 1: by default, but are there things we should tweak right away.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a great starting point, but Bizell does point
Speaker 2: out some useful adjustments. One really neat feature is the
Speaker 2: quick settings toggles for the microphone and camera.
Speaker 1: Oh like quick kill switches exactly.
Speaker 2: Software kill switches lets you instantly block access.
Speaker 1: Super handy day to day, but it's software, not a
Speaker 1: physical block.
Speaker 2: Right, important distinction. Good for everyday use, but maybe not
Speaker 2: fool proof if you need absolute certainty. He also suggests
Speaker 2: doing the initial device setup while you're on Wi Fi.
Speaker 1: Wi Fi not cellular data.
Speaker 2: Why well, during setup, the phone's doing a lot of
Speaker 2: initial communication checking for updates. Connecting to servers using a
Speaker 2: trusted Wi Fi network is just a more controlled environment.
Speaker 1: And ideally behind a VPN, even.
Speaker 2: On Wi Fi, that's the extreme measure. Yeah, it masks
Speaker 2: your IP and encrypts everything during that sensitive phase, but
Speaker 2: he concedes for some just using your home Wi Fi
Speaker 2: might be okay.
Speaker 1: He also mentions a couple of other optional things.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like setting the screen to grayscale if you want
Speaker 2: fewer distractions, or switching back to the old three button
Speaker 2: navigation if you prefer it. A little usability tweaks.
Speaker 1: Okay, Browsing that's a big one for privacy. Graffinios comes
Speaker 1: with its own browser, Vanadium.
Speaker 2: Right, Vanadium, it's built on chromium but hardened for privacy.
Speaker 1: What do we need to know about using it privately?
Speaker 2: The main thing Bazell points out is, unlike some other
Speaker 2: privacy browsers, Vanadium doesn't automatically wipe your history in cookies
Speaker 2: when you close it.
Speaker 1: Ah, so you need to clean up after yourself manually exactly.
Speaker 2: He advises going into settings periodically and clearing browsing data
Speaker 2: to help minimize what it keeps. You can turn on
Speaker 2: settings like closed tabs on exit and maybe open external
Speaker 2: links in incognito mode.
Speaker 1: Okay, makes sense, Keep it tidy.
Speaker 2: Yeah. He also gives a quick nod to checking the
Speaker 2: camera app settings, just making sure they're figured how you want.
Speaker 1: Contacts another big data source usually sync straight to Google
Speaker 1: or Apple. What's the Bizell way to handle contacts on
Speaker 1: Grafinios without the cloud?
Speaker 2: The whole idea is just keep your contacts off those
Speaker 2: big cloud servers, completely under your control.
Speaker 1: So no sinking. How does it work?
Speaker 2: Then it's a manual process. He suggests keeping your master
Speaker 2: contact list on an encrypted computer, ideally Linux. Then you
Speaker 2: export them as a VCF file.
Speaker 1: VCF like a standard contact file format exactly.
Speaker 2: You export from your computer, copy the VCF file to
Speaker 2: your pixel using a USB cable, and then import it
Speaker 2: into the basic contact app that comes with Grafiniosh sounds a.
Speaker 1: Bit more involved than automatic sinco.
Speaker 2: It definitely has. It requires delibered action. He suggests maybe
Speaker 2: doing it monthly. But the payoff is your contact list
Speaker 2: never touches Googles or Apple servers.
Speaker 1: And you could get that vcfile from other places too,
Speaker 1: like proton mail.
Speaker 2: Yeah, if you manage contacts there, you can export a
Speaker 2: VCF from services like that as well.
Speaker 1: Okay, device is set up, contacts are handled locally. Let's
Speaker 1: talk network level stuff. Zell recommends next DNS. What is
Speaker 1: that and how does it boost privacy?
Speaker 2: So think of DNS as the Internet's phone book. It
Speaker 2: turns website names like Google dot Com into IP addresses
Speaker 2: your device can connect to. Right Normally, your internet provider
Speaker 2: or mobile carrier handles those lookups and they can log everything.
Speaker 2: Next dns is a private DNS service you can tell
Speaker 2: grafenios to use instead.
Speaker 1: So you bypass your ISPSDNS. What's the advantage to.
Speaker 2: Ones First, next DNS can log all the connections your
Speaker 2: phone tries to make you get.
Speaker 1: Visibility, see where your data's going exactly.
Speaker 2: And second, even better, you can set up blocklists. Tell
Speaker 2: NEXTDNS don't let my phone connect to these known ad servers,
Speaker 2: these tracking domains, these malware sites.
Speaker 1: Whoh okay. So it's like a filter for the whole
Speaker 1: phone's Internet access at the DNS level.
Speaker 2: Precisely, he specifically suggests enabling the main next DNS ads
Speaker 2: and trackers blocklist. It stops a lot of unwonded stuff
Speaker 2: before the connection even happens.
Speaker 1: What if it blocks something I actually need, like a
Speaker 1: banking app stops working.
Speaker 2: Good question. It can happen occasionally. Bazell's advice is simple,
Speaker 2: temporarily switch the phone's private DNS setting back to automatic.
Speaker 2: If the app works again, you know next DNS was
Speaker 2: blocking something, and you check the logs. Yep, go into
Speaker 2: your next DS logs, figure out which domain got blocked,
Speaker 2: and you can add it to an allow list if needed.
Speaker 2: Or if you see an app constantly calling home to
Speaker 2: some sketchy domain, you can add that domain to your denialist.
Speaker 2: Very granular control.
Speaker 1: And you can turn off a logging in next DNS
Speaker 1: itself eventually for max privacy.
Speaker 2: Right, once you get your blockless dialed, and you can
Speaker 2: disable logging entirely in your next DNS account settings or
Speaker 2: just clear the logs whenever you want. He also shows
Speaker 2: how to double check that your phone is actually routing through.
Speaker 1: Next DNS notifications. They seem harmless, but they mean constant
Speaker 1: pings back to app servers. Right. What's the extreme privacy
Speaker 1: take here.
Speaker 2: It's that classic privacy versus convenience trade off turning off
Speaker 2: push notifications. Definitely more private apps aren't constantly checking in.
Speaker 2: You only get updates when you actively open the app.
Speaker 1: Plus better battery life probably often.
Speaker 2: Yeah, but you lose the instant alerts. You have to
Speaker 2: be more intentional about checking things.
Speaker 1: He mentioned. Some apps like Totonota and Signal have their
Speaker 1: own notification methods.
Speaker 2: Right. Some privacy focus apps try to handle notifications themselves,
Speaker 2: avoiding Google system to to Noda Signal do this, but
Speaker 2: as Bazell notes, sometimes that can actually drain more battery
Speaker 2: because the app has to keep its own connection.
Speaker 1: Open, and some VIP apps only work when they're open.
Speaker 2: Yeah, things like Sypnetic or my Pseudo might only ring
Speaker 2: for incoming calls that the app is actually running in
Speaker 2: the foreground. So a totally Google free setup might mean
Speaker 2: you miss stuff unless you're checking actively.
Speaker 1: It seems like you really have to want that level
Speaker 1: of disconnect.
Speaker 2: You do, which leads to the compromise. Bizelle discusses Graffinius
Speaker 2: is sandboxed Google Play services for push.
Speaker 1: Ah, the sandboxed option again, how does that help with notifications?
Speaker 2: It lets you get notifications from apps that depend on
Speaker 2: Google system, but without needing a full Google account logged
Speaker 2: in on your phone, and it restricts what Google can see.
Speaker 1: How restricted?
Speaker 2: Well, Google might know that an app is sending a
Speaker 2: notification via their service, but they shouldn't see the content
Speaker 2: of the notification. It's encrypted, and since you're not logged in,
Speaker 2: it's harder for them to tie that activity directly back
Speaker 2: to you.
Speaker 1: Okay, so it's a middle ground exactly.
Speaker 2: Bazel himself prefers no Push services for ultimate privacy, but
Speaker 2: he admits most Graphinios users enable the sandboxed version because frankly,
Speaker 2: it makes the phone much more practical for daily use.
Speaker 1: If you do want to use it, should you install
Speaker 1: it before your apps?
Speaker 2: Yes, that's the recommendation install the sandbox play services first,
Speaker 2: then install the apps that need it. He walks through
Speaker 2: how to install the necessary components and importantly, how you
Speaker 2: can always uninstall them later if you change your mind,
Speaker 2: Plus how to manage notification permissions per app?
Speaker 1: Of course, right, Okay, os is set up, network is filtered,
Speaker 1: notifications handled. We need apps. The regular Google play store
Speaker 1: is out. If we're avoiding Google, how do we install
Speaker 1: apps privately on graphinios.
Speaker 2: Yeah, this is a key challenge. The goal is to
Speaker 2: get apps without feeding data directly back to Google via
Speaker 2: the playstore. Bizell mentions Aurora Store first.
Speaker 1: Aurorer Store. That's like an anonymous front end for the
Speaker 1: playstore exactly.
Speaker 2: It tries to fetch you apps anonymously, but he notes
Speaker 2: it can be buggy sometimes have connection issues. So he
Speaker 2: lays out a kind of highhierarchy of methods from best
Speaker 2: to worst privacy wise. What's the order best option? First?
Speaker 2: F droid that's a repository specifically for free and open
Speaker 2: source software FOSS. If the app you want is on
Speaker 2: f droid, get.
Speaker 1: It there, Okay, f droid first.
Speaker 2: If it's not there, then try Aurora Store first. Attempt
Speaker 2: to use its built in anonymous log in.
Speaker 1: See if that works, and if the anonymous login fails.
Speaker 2: Then reluctantly you might need to log into Aurora Store
Speaker 2: using a burner Google account when you created just for
Speaker 2: this with no real info tide to it and saw
Speaker 2: the apps you need, then log out of the burner
Speaker 2: account and Aurora immediately.
Speaker 1: Still better than using your main Google account.
Speaker 2: Much better, And the absolute last resort if none of
Speaker 2: that works is manually finding and downloading the APK file
Speaker 2: for the app from a trusted third party source like
Speaker 2: APK miror or APK Pure, but that requires careful vetting
Speaker 2: of the source.
Speaker 1: So the preference is clearly f Droid, then Aurora anonymous,
Speaker 1: then Aurora Burner, then manual APKs.
Speaker 2: That's the flow, and he stresses keep froid and Aurora
Speaker 2: store themselves updated, preferably manually checking for updates rather than
Speaker 2: letting them auto update, just for more control.
Speaker 1: He acknowledges there's some debate about fdroid and Aurora.
Speaker 2: Yeah, within the privacy community. There are always discussions about
Speaker 2: trust and potential risks, but Bizell's take is basically they're flawed,
Speaker 2: but still vastly better privacy wise than using the official
Speaker 2: Google Play Store logged in with your real account. His
Speaker 2: advice is simple, only install apps you really need and trust.
Speaker 1: Okay apps are installed. We talked about next DNS blocking domains.
Speaker 1: Can we use that to block trackers within specific apps?
Speaker 1: He mentioned Blockingbrais dot com.
Speaker 2: Yes. Absolutely, This is where next DNS becomes really powerful
Speaker 2: for app privacy. You use the next DNS logs to
Speaker 2: watch what connections your apps are making in the.
Speaker 1: Background, like spying on your own apps kind of.
Speaker 2: Yeah. So you install an app, use it a bit,
Speaker 2: then check your next DNS logs if you see it
Speaker 2: constantly talking to domains like Braise dot com or appash
Speaker 2: analytics dot com.
Speaker 1: Or whatever, which are known tracker domains.
Speaker 2: Right, you can just copy that domain name and added
Speaker 2: straight to your next DNS denihilist blocked.
Speaker 1: He gave another example with the privacy dot Com app.
Speaker 2: Yeah, showing that you might see connections from a legitimate
Speaker 2: app you do want to use, but maybe you don't
Speaker 2: want it talking to certain third party services it uses.
Speaker 2: You can review those connections in the logs and decide, Okay,
Speaker 2: I'll allow the main app function, but I'll block this
Speaker 2: specific analytics domain it's trying to reach super granular.
Speaker 1: That's powerful. Okay, navigation. Google Maps is obviously the default
Speaker 1: for most, but it's a privacy nightmare. What are the
Speaker 1: alternatives Bazelle likes?
Speaker 2: He points to a few solid privacy respecting options, mostly
Speaker 2: based on openstreet map data, Organic Maps, os Man plus
Speaker 2: often written osman, and Magic Earth.
Speaker 1: What's the big advantage of these offline maps?
Speaker 2: All of them let you download map data for entire
Speaker 2: regions or countries directly to your phone, so you.
Speaker 1: Don't need a data connection while navigating, and you're not
Speaker 1: constantly pinging your location back to Google.
Speaker 2: Exactly, huge privacy win. Magic Earth also tries to do
Speaker 2: live traffic, but Bizill finds it less reliable than Google's.
Speaker 1: Which one does he lean towards currently.
Speaker 2: He mentions preferring Magic Earth finds it a good balance
Speaker 2: of features and usability. He downloads maps for whole country,
Speaker 2: so he's covered offline, and if.
Speaker 1: You absolutely positively need Google Maps for something specific.
Speaker 2: His suggestion is maybe install it in a secondary user
Speaker 2: profile on graffinios. Keep it totally separate from your main stuff.
Speaker 2: We'll touch on profiles later, gotcha.
Speaker 1: He also brings up adding extra pins to specific apps.
Speaker 2: Yeah, another layer of security. Some apps lete you set
Speaker 2: their own separate PI in or password beyond just your
Speaker 2: main phone lock screen PI.
Speaker 1: In, so even if someone gets past your phone lock,
Speaker 1: they hit another wall trying to open that specific app.
Speaker 2: Precisely. He lists examples like standard notes, my pseudo privacy
Speaker 2: dot Com wire off for this. Unfortunately, some big ones
Speaker 2: like Signal and tooted Noda don't. They just rely on
Speaker 2: your device lock.
Speaker 1: Okay, devices locked down apps are chosen carefully. Now connecting
Speaker 1: to the outside world cellular service, this feels like a
Speaker 1: major tracking point. What's the approach, especially thinking about the
Speaker 1: US market.
Speaker 2: The absolute core principle here is break the link between
Speaker 2: your real identity and your cell service. The Zell's blunt
Speaker 2: all cell phones track location period. You can't stop that entirely.
Speaker 2: The goal is to make the service account pseudonymous.
Speaker 1: Not tied to your real name and address.
Speaker 2: Right. He briefly mentions the hard core option just don't
Speaker 2: have cellular service at all, relying only on Wi Fi
Speaker 2: rare but.
Speaker 1: Possible for most people needing cellular. What's the plan?
Speaker 2: Prepaid SIM cards bought with cash using alias information for
Speaker 2: any activation details required here you get them retail stores. Ideally,
Speaker 2: if you have to order online like ver An e SIM,
Speaker 2: sometimes use alias info and maybe shift to something like
Speaker 2: an Amazon locker using a temporary address like a hotel
Speaker 2: you're not actually staying at. Always pay with cash or
Speaker 2: a mask payment method if possible.
Speaker 1: Physical SIM versus AESIM any privacy difference.
Speaker 2: Physical sims are maybe slightly more anonymous to acquire with
Speaker 2: cash and easier to swap between phones. eSIMs are convenient
Speaker 2: for activation, often done online. He gives a detailed example
Speaker 2: of activating a Mint Mobile free trial eSIM using alias
Speaker 2: info over public Wi Fi, notes that renewing those trials
Speaker 2: anonymously is tricky.
Speaker 1: Though what about Tello, He mentions them too.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Tello's another T mobile reseller, often has more flexible plans,
Speaker 2: maybe cheaper data only options. Crucially, he says, you can
Speaker 2: often buy a plan and get the ESIMQR code right
Speaker 2: from their website, making the anonymous set up potentially easier
Speaker 2: if done carefully with alias info and masked payment.
Speaker 1: What if you use Wi Fi calling, does that hide
Speaker 1: you from the carrier?
Speaker 2: Not really, Bizell says, even over Wi Fi, your calls
Speaker 2: and texts using the carrier number are still logged by
Speaker 2: the provider. Minimal privacy gain there. Maybe useful for making
Speaker 2: a quick call in your carrier number while you're on
Speaker 2: secure WiFi, but that's about it.
Speaker 1: He advises not disabling SMS entirely right.
Speaker 2: Because carriers sometimes send important alerts via SMS, like warning
Speaker 2: about potential simswaps. Better to leave it functional, just don't
Speaker 2: use it for personal communication. His own setup, he mentioned
Speaker 2: using a Mint physical sim for testing some data only
Speaker 2: e sims, and then heavily relying on.
Speaker 1: VoIP Okay VoIP Voice over Internet protocol. This seems key
Speaker 1: to his strategy for calls and texts. Why move away
Speaker 1: from the regular cell number.
Speaker 2: Several big reasons. One, your carrier logs all calls and
Speaker 2: texts on that number permanently. That cell number is a
Speaker 2: huge identifier links back to you, used for data breaches boxing. Three,
Speaker 2: simswapping is a massive threat tied directly to your carrier number. Four,
Speaker 2: you just don't control who gets where shares your main
Speaker 2: cell number, so.
Speaker 1: VoIP offers more anonymity and control.
Speaker 2: Exactly the goal Bezelle lays out is setting up your
Speaker 2: own personal VoIP system on your secure Graphenios phone, making
Speaker 2: and receiving calls without needing Google services or exposing your
Speaker 2: real cell number.
Speaker 1: Before picking a VoIP provider, he recommends getting your own
Speaker 1: domain name. Why.
Speaker 2: It's about having a stable, controllable identity for signing up
Speaker 2: for services. Lots of free or anonymous email services get
Speaker 2: blocked these days. If you own my dash private dash
Speaker 2: domain dot com, you can create unlimited email addresses like
Speaker 2: voipe sign up at my dashprivate dash domain dot com
Speaker 2: or whatever.
Speaker 1: Makes you less dependent on throwaway emails that might get flagged, right.
Speaker 2: And it looks more legitimate to services like VoIP providers,
Speaker 2: potentially helping bypass their fraud filters.
Speaker 1: He suggests cloud Flare for this. How does that work?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Create a free cloud Flare account using maybe a
Speaker 2: proton mail address, register a domain name through them. Costs
Speaker 2: about nine dollars a year. Pay with the masked card
Speaker 2: like privacy dot com, and then set of cloud Flares
Speaker 2: free email forwarding. You can forward emails send to any
Speaker 2: address at your domain to your secure proton mail inbox.
Speaker 1: Super flexible, so not strictly required, but a good foundation.
Speaker 2: Recommend it, Yeah, especially for dealing with telephony providers.
Speaker 1: Okay, domain ready, let's set up a VoIP number. He
Speaker 1: uses Twilio as the main example. How do you set
Speaker 1: up Twilio privately?
Speaker 2: Key is avoiding your real identity. He suggests creating the
Speaker 2: account without a VPN if possible. They sometimes block vpn ips.
Speaker 2: Use an existing VoIP or maybe even a landline number
Speaker 2: for verification if you have one separate from your main
Speaker 2: mobile And when Twilio inaffably asks what are you using
Speaker 2: this for give a plausible, maybe slightly business sounding reason,
Speaker 2: don't you say anonymous calls?
Speaker 1: Okay? Account created? Then you buy a number yep.
Speaker 2: Purchase a phone number from Twilio and the area code
Speaker 2: you want. Then comes the slightly tricky part. Configuring twmml
Speaker 2: bins sounds technical, it's Twilia's simple code language. You create
Speaker 2: little snippets of code called twmlbins that tell Twilio what
Speaker 2: to do with incoming calls, like connect them to your
Speaker 2: LSIP client, and outgoing calls roll them through Twilio. You
Speaker 2: link your purchase number to these bins.
Speaker 1: He mentions nine one one calls.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Twilio warns about emergency call fees and reliability. Bezell's
Speaker 2: advice for nine to one one always use your phone's
Speaker 2: native cellular dialer, not the VoIP app.
Speaker 1: Got it. So Twilio handles the number and the routing logic.
Speaker 1: How do you actually make or receive a call on
Speaker 1: the Graphinus phone.
Speaker 2: That's where a sepubowl client app comes in. He recommends Sypnetic.
Speaker 1: Sypnetic.
Speaker 2: You install Sypnetic from f troid or aroor store granted permissions,
Speaker 2: and then manually add an account. You'll put in your
Speaker 2: Twiliophone number the Torio server address, your number dot SIP
Speaker 2: dot us one, dot Twilio dot com or similar, and
Speaker 2: then use your main Twilio account SID as the user
Speaker 2: name and your off token as the password within sypnetic.
Speaker 1: Okay, so sybnetic connects to Twilio using those credentials exactly.
Speaker 2: Then Sybnetic acts like your phone dialer for that Twilio number.
Speaker 2: He notes, you can pour numbers into Twilio two and
Speaker 2: make international calls. Just remember standard VoIP calls usually aren't
Speaker 2: end to end encrypted. The win here is control and
Speaker 2: anonymity of the number itself on your ungoogled phone.
Speaker 1: What about SMS texts? Can we get those on the
Speaker 1: Twilio number?
Speaker 2: Yep, similar process, create another twemlbin, this one specifically for
Speaker 2: incoming SA. The code basically says, when a text comes in,
Speaker 2: forward the message body and the sender's number to this
Speaker 2: other phone number I specify. Then you can figure your
Speaker 2: Twilio number to use that twinm mail bin for messaging.
Speaker 1: Okay, so texts get forwarded somewhere else. What about voicemail?
Speaker 2: Same idea. Another twemmel bin, This one tells Twilio, if
Speaker 2: a call isn't answered, play a greading record a message,
Speaker 2: and then email a link to the recording to this
Speaker 2: email address.
Speaker 1: So voicemails end up as audio links in your email.
Speaker 2: Right. You then set your Twilio number to use that
Speaker 2: voicemail bin when calls timeout or are busy. Big caveat.
Speaker 2: Though those voicemail recordings are stored on Twilio servers, not.
Speaker 1: Private ah, so you need to manage that definitely.
Speaker 2: Bizell advises going into your Twilio dashboard regularly and deleting
Speaker 2: the recordings and transcripts. He also suggests disabling a setting
Speaker 2: in Twilio called Daily Calls log Archives for better hygiene,
Speaker 2: and remember each extra Twilio number costs extra money per month.
Speaker 1: He also gives tel Nix as a Twilio alternative. Quicker
Speaker 1: setup maybe ye, and.
Speaker 2: It mentions Telnickx briefly says monthly number costs might be
Speaker 2: slightly lower. Set up maybe a bit easier, but big drawbacks.
Speaker 2: No built in voicemail. You apparently can't delete call text
Speaker 2: logs from their system, and their fraud detection might be stricter,
Speaker 2: potentially leading to account freezes.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: He gives a referral link if people want to try it.
Speaker 2: Set up with Sypnetic is similar, but uses Tellnik's credentials
Speaker 2: and servers, and they don't have native SMS forwarding. You'd
Speaker 2: have to build your own forwarder.
Speaker 1: And my Pseudo that's another VIP option he uses, right.
Speaker 2: My Pseudo is different. It's an app that gives you
Speaker 2: multiple pseudos, basically profiles, each with its own private phone number, email,
Speaker 2: and contacts, all managed within the app.
Speaker 1: Can it run on Graphenius, Yes.
Speaker 2: He says. It installs via Aurora Store. He personally uses it,
Speaker 2: finds outgoing calls texts reliable, but because he disables push notifications,
Speaker 2: he often misses incoming calls texts unless the app is open.
Speaker 1: But for someone who enables the sandboxed push notifications.
Speaker 2: Then my pseudo should work normally for incoming alerts too.
Speaker 2: He does. He's an advisor and shareholder for a nonimal labs,
Speaker 2: the company behind my pseudo.
Speaker 1: Okay, lots of yp options, but what about the phone number?
Speaker 1: Most of us already have our main cell number. We
Speaker 1: can't just ditch it. Usually, how do we handle that?
Speaker 2: Good question? He lays out the options. One, cancel it,
Speaker 2: lose the number forever. Two, keep the old plan on
Speaker 2: an old phone inconvenient expensive. Three port the number to
Speaker 2: a VoIP service usually the best option if.
Speaker 1: You want to keep it porting like moving the number.
Speaker 2: Exactly, and the crucial thing, do not cancel your old
Speaker 2: cell service before the port is complete. The porting process
Speaker 2: itself cancels the old service automatically once it succeeds.
Speaker 1: Where should you port it to? He mentions Google Voice.
Speaker 2: Yeah. He gives detailed steps for porting your old cell
Speaker 2: number to Google Voice recommends using a VPN. For setup.
Speaker 2: You basically sign up to Google Voice, get a temporary
Speaker 2: gv number, then initiate the porting process for your old
Speaker 2: cell number, which replaces the temporary one, pay the porting fee,
Speaker 2: wait for it to finish.
Speaker 1: How do you use the number. Once it's on Google Voice.
Speaker 2: You can make receive calls and texts via the Google
Speaker 2: Voice website or app. But the goal here isn't necessarily
Speaker 2: to use Google Voice daily, but to park the number securely.
Speaker 1: He also mentioned porting to Twilio as an example.
Speaker 2: Right shared his own experience porting a Mint Mobile number
Speaker 2: to Twilio took a few days. An interesting side effect
Speaker 2: was that, at least initially, many online services still saw
Speaker 2: the number as a regular mobile number, not VoIP, which
Speaker 2: helped for things like bank verification codes. But that might
Speaker 2: not last forever as databases update.
Speaker 1: What about that weird idea of LINKINGIP back to Google
Speaker 1: Voice forwarding calls.
Speaker 2: It sounds counterintuitive, yeah, but it's a strategy. If you
Speaker 2: want to receive communications set to your old number now
Speaker 2: parked on Google Voice without actively using Google services. You
Speaker 2: could say, forward calls from your Twilio number to your
Speaker 2: Google Voice number, then say Google Voice to forward voicemails
Speaker 2: and texts to your encrypted email like proton mail, so.
Speaker 1: You get notified via email about stuff sent to your
Speaker 1: old number without needing the Google Voice app installed or
Speaker 1: constantly checking the website exactly.
Speaker 2: It's an indirect way to keep tabs on the old
Speaker 2: number while minimizing direct interaction with Google. He details steff
Speaker 2: to further disconnect Google Voice from other devices too.
Speaker 1: Data only cellular plans. Why would someone want just data
Speaker 1: no voice text plan?
Speaker 2: Primarily to dodge risks associated with a traditional phone number
Speaker 2: like simswapping and tracking link to that number. It's for
Speaker 2: people who mostly communicate oversecure encrypted data apps like signal
Speaker 2: Wire or VoIP and just need the Internet connection that
Speaker 2: it benefits often shorter commitments. Sometimes you can access multiple
Speaker 2: carriers via resellers, potentially more anonymity from the carrier itself
Speaker 2: since there's no voice number tied to you in the
Speaker 2: same way.
Speaker 1: What providers offer this He.
Speaker 2: Mentions basic options from Tello and US Mobile. Again also
Speaker 2: touches on international data sims often run out of places
Speaker 2: like Hong Kong. They offer global coverage but can have
Speaker 2: issue is like data expiring quickly or limited private payment options.
Speaker 2: Keep Go's mention is maybe more flexible, bit pricier.
Speaker 1: So data only is maybe a niche thing.
Speaker 2: Yeah, valuable, Maybe is a secondary SIM for travel or
Speaker 2: for really high target folks who manage all their comms
Speaker 2: over data and are good at managing data usage less
Speaker 2: practical for the average person.
Speaker 1: Okay, we have secure devices, private numbers, careful app installs.
Speaker 1: Now the actual communication, end to end encryption is paramount, he.
Speaker 2: Says, absolutely critical. E two E ensures only you and
Speaker 2: the person you're talking to can see the message here
Speaker 2: the call, etc. Not the provider, not anyone in the middle.
Speaker 2: Applies to email, voice, video messaging standard SMS.
Speaker 1: Text messages are out.
Speaker 2: Then definitely not encrypted. Carriers can see content. Metadata is
Speaker 2: logged risky. You want apps that offer E to EE
Speaker 2: ideally zero knowledge, meaning the provider can't decrypt even if
Speaker 2: they wanted to, and ephemeral messages.
Speaker 1: Auto deleting signal comes up first, widely used. What's the
Speaker 1: privacy A.
Speaker 2: Signals encryption is top notch. The main privacy wrinkle, Basil
Speaker 2: points out, is needing a phone number to register.
Speaker 1: Ah, so don't use your real cell number.
Speaker 2: Never use one of your VoIP numbers, Twilio, my pseudo,
Speaker 2: maybe the number you ported to Google Voice register's signal.
Speaker 2: With that, he walks through installing signal via Aurora, verifying
Speaker 2: with the VoIP number, and basic privacy settings inside signal,
Speaker 2: like hiding the typing indicator, deciding if anyone can contact you.
Speaker 2: He admits Signal isn't perfect, but its wide adoption is
Speaker 2: a huge plus for actually communicating securely with people.
Speaker 1: Wire is the second option he likes.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Wire big advantage. You can sign up with just
Speaker 2: an email.
Speaker 1: Address, no phone number needed, right use a.
Speaker 2: Proton mail address. It does E two EE for text, audio,
Speaker 2: video works, cross platform free for personal use. You can
Speaker 2: even have multiple wire accounts easily. He notes a minor
Speaker 2: occasional glitch where messages might not sink instantly across all
Speaker 2: your devices, but still recommends it highly.
Speaker 1: VPNs virtual private networks? How do they fit into the
Speaker 1: mobile picture?
Speaker 2: Main benefits on mobile? According to the zell hiding your
Speaker 2: activity from your cell carrier they see you connecting to
Speaker 2: the VPN server or not the final websites, and masking
Speaker 2: your phone's IP address from the websites and services you visit.
Speaker 1: Which VPN does he recommend.
Speaker 2: His primary recommendation is Proton VPN. He also uses PIA
Speaker 2: Private Internet Access, sometimes specifically for their dedicated IP address feature,
Speaker 2: which can help get around sites or services that block
Speaker 2: known VPN ips. He explicitly says he doesn't use or
Speaker 2: recommend MOLVAD due to bad experiences.
Speaker 1: Does he keep the VPN on all the time on mobile?
Speaker 2: Not necessarily always on for his computers. Yes, on mobile,
Speaker 2: he uses it when he feels it's needed. He's realistic.
Speaker 2: Your carrier and email provider can still often see which
Speaker 2: domains or IPS you connect to, even with a VPN.
Speaker 2: Depends on your threat model.
Speaker 1: So Proton for general, use PIA for dedicated IPS if
Speaker 1: needed for tricky sites like.
Speaker 2: Banks, that's his setup. Yeah, he trusts Proton's business model
Speaker 2: and Swiss jurisdiction.
Speaker 1: Custom Simizing the look and feel launchers, he mentions lawn
Speaker 1: Chair two.
Speaker 2: Yeah, launchers change how your home screen looks and functions.
Speaker 2: Nova is popular, but Bizell prefers lawn Chair two, the
Speaker 2: version on Aurora Store, not the old Defroid one simple customizable.
Speaker 2: He walks through setting it as default, changing icon grids,
Speaker 2: hiding docs, et cetera.
Speaker 1: Isn't Launcher two kind of old, not updated anymore?
Speaker 2: It is. Yeah. He acknowledges that, but still likes its
Speaker 2: stability and simplicity for his needs. His workaround for potential
Speaker 2: security concerns is to install it, configure it, and then
Speaker 2: immediately block its network access in the graffinios settings.
Speaker 1: Okay, what about other essential apps? Notes, music, podcasts.
Speaker 2: For notes, standard notes, encrypted sinks or simple notes local
Speaker 2: good for widgets music, simple music player, froid, basic MP
Speaker 2: three's or power ramp or features Equalizer podcasts and tenepod
Speaker 2: f droid. If you need to track stocks, maybe stock widget,
Speaker 2: Arora store. All privacy focused alternatives.
Speaker 1: Managing all these different phone numbers, YP, signal etc. Gets
Speaker 1: confus using. He suggested a widget.
Speaker 2: Yeah, a cheat cheat widget. Simple idea. Create a note
Speaker 2: in simple notes pro afteroid version listing all your different
Speaker 2: numbers example Twoliot five FI five one two three four signal.
Speaker 2: Then put the simple notes widget displaying that note right
Speaker 2: on your home screen for quick reference.
Speaker 1: Handy. Now, Graphenemus has multiple user profiles, how can we
Speaker 1: use that for privacy isolation.
Speaker 2: That's the key benefit. You can create a completely separate
Speaker 2: space in your phone for certain apps or activities.
Speaker 1: Like as Google Maps.
Speaker 2: Example, exactly, create a secondary profile called travel or whatever.
Speaker 2: Install only Google Maps and maybe Sandbox play services if
Speaker 2: needed for Maps features. Inside that profile, your main profile
Speaker 2: stays completely Google free.
Speaker 1: Are these profiles totally separate, like anonymous from each other?
Speaker 2: Not completely. Bazell is clear. They share the same hardware,
Speaker 2: same Wi Fi connection, same cellular radio, same GPS, so
Speaker 2: it's not true anonymity between profiles and apps running at
Speaker 2: a background profile can still use RAM and battery, so.
Speaker 1: Good for isolating apps, but not a magic bullet for anonymity, right.
Speaker 2: He recommends rebooting the phone after using a secondary profile,
Speaker 2: or at least using the n session feature for that profile,
Speaker 2: and probably don't create more than one extra profile due
Speaker 2: to storage and hassle.
Speaker 1: Two factor authentication two FA crucial for security. What's the
Speaker 1: best approach here?
Speaker 2: Software authenticator apps? First? If starting fresh, he suggests paid
Speaker 2: standard Notes, which has a built in authenticator, or free Bitwarden,
Speaker 2: which also does. Hardware keys like ubikey are even better
Speaker 2: if the service supports them. Standard notes does.
Speaker 1: What about sites that only allow SMS two FA.
Speaker 2: Ugh Yeah, annoying but common. Try the Google Voice number first,
Speaker 2: the one you ported. It's generally more reliable for SMS
Speaker 2: verification than PUREVOIP and can sometimes work with hardware keys
Speaker 2: linked to your Google account for extra security. If that
Speaker 2: fails and you must use a real cellular number like
Speaker 2: for some banks, you'd have to fall back to the
Speaker 2: strategies for getting a private prepaid SIM we discussed earlier.
Speaker 1: Keeping this all running smoothly maintenance.
Speaker 2: What's key updates and backups? Graphinios is great with frequent
Speaker 2: direct security updates. Keep those installed for backups, especially photos doo.
Speaker 2: Not rely on Google Photos.
Speaker 1: Or iCloud manual backups.
Speaker 2: Then, yes, weekly routine. He suggests. Plug in the USBC
Speaker 2: drive format at FA thirty two. Use the files app
Speaker 2: on the phone to move not copy photos from the
Speaker 2: camera folder bcim camera to the USB drive. Eject the drive,
Speaker 2: plug it into your secure encrypted computer, copy the photos there,
Speaker 2: then erase the photos from the USB drive. Long term
Speaker 2: storage is only on the encrypted computer, which itself should
Speaker 2: have backups.
Speaker 1: Okay, daily use, How do we live with this thing?
Speaker 1: Day to day? Home strategies Faraday bags, blocking mics, cameras right.
Speaker 2: Big consideration risk of the phone constantly connecting to cell
Speaker 2: towers near your home, revealing patterns. Some extreme users never
Speaker 2: bring their primary phone home or connect near home.
Speaker 1: Wow, what's a more moderate approach?
Speaker 2: Maybe use a secondary Wi Fi only device at home
Speaker 2: for secure comms Those signal only allows one mobile device.
Speaker 2: Bezel's current strategy one Graphios phone Wi Fi only at home,
Speaker 2: airplane mode plus my camera blocked went away. Maybe even
Speaker 2: remove the SIM disabled eSIM when at home for extra paranoia.
Speaker 1: Faraday bags for blocking all signals YEP.
Speaker 2: Essential if you need total radio silence. He recommends the
Speaker 2: output bag from Silent Pocket, gives a discount. Link stresses
Speaker 2: you must test your bag thoroughly. Try calling it, check
Speaker 2: Wi Fi, Bluetooth while it's inside, don't just assume it works.
Speaker 1: And blocking mics and cameras software toggles plus physical.
Speaker 2: Both use a graphin US quick settings toggles daily, but
Speaker 2: also use physical blockers for the camera, simple tape or
Speaker 2: a slider for the microphone. He recommends USBC microphone plugs.
Speaker 1: How do those plugs work?
Speaker 2: They trick the phone into thinking and external microphone. Like
Speaker 2: on headphones, it's plugged in, so it disables the internal mics.
Speaker 2: He warns against the tiny flush mount plugs, easy to lose,
Speaker 2: might accidentally trigger voice assistance. Get ones with a little tab.
Speaker 2: Physical blockers prevent accidental hot mic situations.
Speaker 1: Headphones and transferring files. Anything special there.
Speaker 2: Since most phones lack headphone jack, now use wired earbuds
Speaker 2: with an inline mic for calls. Don't use speaker phone.
Speaker 2: Get a USBC to three point five millimeters dapter if needed.
Speaker 2: Apples is cheap maybe low volume for transferring files like
Speaker 2: those VCF contacts or photos. Use a dedicated USBC flash
Speaker 2: drive like the sand Dis Ultra duel drive he likes
Speaker 2: instead of plugging phone directly into a computer. More liable,
Speaker 2: less potential driver hassle or emergencies.
Speaker 1: Calling nine one one that.
Speaker 2: Will reveal your true cellular number if you have an
Speaker 2: active SIMSIM no way around it. So I have a plan.
Speaker 2: Bizell keeps an old deactivated flip phone in his car,
Speaker 2: the nine to one one phone. Any cell phone even
Speaker 2: without service can call nine one one in the US.
Speaker 1: Just in case you need to revert all this flashing
Speaker 1: back to stock Android.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he briefly covers using the command line fastboot tool
Speaker 2: to flash the original Google Pixel firmware back onto the device.
Speaker 2: Useful if you need to return it, sell it, or
Speaker 2: just go back to stock for some reason.
Speaker 1: Okay, last big section Apple iOS. He prefers Graphenios. But
Speaker 1: some people want or need an I phone. What's the
Speaker 1: advice for them?
Speaker 2: Right? Acknowledging reality first, same purchase advice, buy new with
Speaker 2: cash in person at an Apple Store if possible. Then
Speaker 2: it's all about tweaking iOS settings, meticulous kinds of settings
Speaker 2: a ton of them, turning off Wi Fi Bluetooth when
Speaker 2: not needed, limiting cellular data for specific apps, disabling tons
Speaker 2: of notification options, previews, lockscreen access, turning off location services
Speaker 2: entirely or per app, disabling motion, fitness tracking, analytics, sharing,
Speaker 2: personalized ads, appstore AutoPlay readings prompts, password security alerts, turning
Speaker 2: off imssage FaceTime if not used, disabling Safari suggestions, pre
Speaker 2: load autofill, enabling website tracking prevention, disabling fraudulent website warnings,
Speaker 2: privacy trade off there disabling privacy preserving ad measurement, Apple paychecks,
Speaker 2: limiting safaris, access to camera and up the location, tweaking
Speaker 2: map settings, checking shortcuts, music, camera defaults, removing unused stock
Speaker 2: apps and widgets. It's a long list.
Speaker 1: Wow, go through every single setting and turn off anything
Speaker 1: related to tracking, syncing, or phoning home.
Speaker 2: Pretty much. The goal is to neuter iOS's default data
Speaker 2: collection as much as possible.
Speaker 1: What about the Apple ID? Can you make that anonymous?
Speaker 2: That's crucial too. His method get a new prepaid cellular
Speaker 2: number first activate it carefully, maybe needing carrier support initially,
Speaker 2: like with Mint. Then create a new Apple ID using
Speaker 2: that prepaid number for verification. Don't use your real name
Speaker 2: or primary email.
Speaker 1: Use the burner phone number for the Apple ID right.
Speaker 2: Then lockdown settings within the Apple ID itself, disable recommendations iCloud,
Speaker 2: find my sharing, and configure privacy settings within apps like
Speaker 2: my Pseudo proton Mail Signal and iOS. Keep password manager
Speaker 2: apps read only on the.
Speaker 1: Phone backups for iPhone iCloud is out.
Speaker 2: Absolutely no iCloud for backups. If you're serious about privacy,
Speaker 2: use a USB cable to back up to a computer.
Speaker 2: On newer macOS, use Finder, or even better for just
Speaker 2: photos videos, use the built in image capture app. He
Speaker 2: prefers that it's less likely to pay Apple servers. Imazing
Speaker 2: is a paid tool that can help transfer music code
Speaker 2: or data without iTunes Finder hassles.
Speaker 1: So the key is manual backups zero iCloud sync.
Speaker 2: That's the mantra for extreme privacy on iOS, disable iCloud completely.
Speaker 1: What's his final take on iOS privacy?
Speaker 2: Then, basically Apple collects a lot by default, but you
Speaker 2: can make it significantly more private by changing all those settings.
Speaker 2: Disabling iCloud, using an anonymous Apple ID tied to a
Speaker 2: prepaid number, and being careful. It takes effort, but improvement
Speaker 2: is possible.
Speaker 1: Man, that was comprehensive. We've gone from buying the phone
Speaker 1: with cash to configuring VoIP Twimmel bins and navigating the
Speaker 1: labyrinth of iOS settings.
Speaker 2: It really covers the spectrum of extreme mobile privacy, as
Speaker 2: Mozille lays it out, and like he says, it's definitely
Speaker 2: a journey. You don't have to do everything at.
Speaker 1: Once, absolutely pick and choose what makes sense for your situation,
Speaker 1: but even just understanding what's possible what goes into this
Speaker 1: level of privacy is really valuable.
Speaker 2: I think definitely. It makes you much more aware of
Speaker 2: the defaults and the dataflow on any device you use.
Speaker 2: Maybe you start with NEXDNAS, or try a privacy browser,
Speaker 2: or get a voy a p number for signups. Small
Speaker 2: steps add up.
Speaker 1: So the thought to leave everyone with in this world
Speaker 1: where we're always connected, always tracked in some way, what
Speaker 1: does reclaiming your own digital space actually look like for you?
Speaker 1: And what's one step, maybe inspired by this deep dive,
Speaker 1: you could take to start creating that space