I still think Proton is a better option than Gmail/Google Docs or most other doc/email platforms for most people doing any kind of organizing.
If your threat model requires complete anonymity (that’s not most of us), don’t pay for things with a credit card and always ALWAYS use a VPN
🧵 Worth adding: even though we think Proton is still a strong choice for many activists, the company sucks. Their response is dismal (as @bennjordan.bsky.social points out below). They are covering their ass and not demonstrating commitment to the cause of privacy.
bsky.app/profile/benn...
This is ridiculous, @protonprivacy.bsky.social.
You gave up the identity of a customer (as required by law) via an FBI request. You could be writing a guide on how customers can help prevent this from happening again, not frivolously attacking the integrity of a nonprofit journalism organization.
Another good thread on digital security with a variety of recommendations / options.
Alt headline: "How agreeing to to build mass surveillance and war tech for a fascist regime became an optics headache for OpenAI"
Senior ICE official says he thinks Kristi Noem was fired because of the Minneapolis protests, a sentiment I heard from other DHS officials
www.kenklippenstein.com/p/the-public...
🧵 cryptpad.fr is our best alternative for document editing. It's end-to-end encrypted and hosted by values-aligned folks. But (as stated earlier) it is a pain in the ass to use a lot of the time. The biggest feature benefit over Proton Docs is that you can set self-destruction dates on docs.
🧵 RiseUp.net is a great option for activist-aligned email. (Ask around in your network for an invite code.) They are likely to push back against a warrant and gag order. The downside is, if they don't succeed, they will have the ability to turn over you the data itself.
🧵 At the end of the day, security and usability are often a trade-off. We built Activist Checklist for non-technical users. We hear from them all the time about how much work even basic privacy/security steps are. Proton is the right choice for many projects when you need to protect the data.
🧵 What should you do? If you are able to self-host your email and docs, go for it (see Co-op Cloud). If not, check out May First for movement aligned email. It’s not end-to-end encrypted, but they are more likely to fight a subpoena or warrant. mayfirst.coop/en/
🧵 Who should NOT be using Proton (or any other 3rd party provider): If you need full anonymity. If you are doing work that has a high likelihood of being the target of a government investigation and the metadata alone (payment information, IP address, access time) could be used against you.
🧵 We need to invest in these tools if we’re going to get them to a point where they are usable. Co-op Cloud is one such project that is trying to get “one click” recipes for common activist infrastructure: coopcloud.tech
🧵 The long-term solution: we need self-hosted infrastructure run by people in your movement circles. You host email/docs for your people. If they get a subpoena, they're more motivated to fight it than a random provider — you share values and goals.
🧵 Reason 3 - You can still be anonymous on Proton if you do the following: Always use a VPN (like Mullvad). Don’t enter a real phone number or secondary email address (use SMSPool.net to rent a phone number for a minute). Don’t pay for Proton, or use anonymous crypto (Monero) if you really need to.
🧵 Reason 2: Usability. Proton is the most user-friendly encrypted email/docs/sheets tool available. Security and usability are a tradeoff. Ask people to use something painful (like Cryptpad) and they'll go back to Google. Which is much worse.
🧵 So why still consider Proton?
Reason 1: The content of your emails and docs CANNOT be handed over. It's end-to-end encrypted. For many people, the goal isn't full anonymity (which is hard anyway). It's keeping communications private. Which Proton still does. They have never handed over content.
🧵 It’s easy to say “this company turned data over to the cops, we can’t trust them.” But the unfortunate truth is that ANY COMPANY will turn over data to cops under the right legal pressure. Switzerland has a legal assistance treaty with the US. Proton has to comply with Swiss law.
🧵 Today’s news: Proton turned over payment info for a Stop Cop City account. Not good — it's state repression in action.
Controversial opinion: We don't think this means all activists should abandon Proton for docs/email.
It depends on your threat model. Let's explore.
(Long thread incoming 👇)
Using adblockers such as privacy badger or ublock origin is a necessary step, not just for privacy but for safety!
And to keep track of all the surveillance news we're tracking, we've got an RSS feed here: activistchecklist.org/news
It's important that we hold risks like this in the context of the larger fight. It's easy to see security risks and start to "get small" but the true value in movement security/safety work is to use those protections to help us organize and "get big" in our actions. Which includes taking risks.
We've got all of these steps on our essentials guide: activistchecklist.org/essentials
What you can do to protect yourself:
- Disable Advertising ID in settings
- Disabled location permissions for every single app that doesn't need it. (Mapping apps are probably the only ones that do)
- Consider installing a *trusted* VPN and turning on ad-blocking for an extra layer of protection
Hundreds of apps have been found to be selling your location to data brokers so they can earn extra $.
web.archive.org/web/20260216...
Let's talk about how a random app on your phone that shows ads might be giving your location to the cops. Hundreds of apps have ads. Creepy surveillance companies participate in the "ad bidding" process, which can include your phone's location. This allows them to track your movements.
And for those who want to go really deep, @yaelwrites.com also has a "filling in the gaps" spreadsheet where you can see the data brokers that your preferred opt out service does NOT cover so you can do those manually.
Hey, cool. @lastweektonight.com just did a segment using reporting I did w/ @farooqumar.bsky.social
Oliver was talking about body cams--and how law enforcement agencies have often undermined their potential
The same body-cams Dems are centering that ICE reforms on
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP4_...
If you want to remove your personal information online manually from each site, @yaelwrites.com's "Big Ass Data Broker Opt Out List" is the best place to start.
If you want to do it automatically, we recommend EasyOptOuts.com on our doxxing guide: activistchecklist.org/doxxing
"The Trump administration is loosening restrictions on the sharing of law enforcement information with the CIA and other intelligence agencies, officials said, overriding controls that have been in place for decades to protect the privacy of U.S. citizens."
If it wasn't already happening, it is now
Leaked list of companies that applied for DHS contracts. Many of these are no longer active and many are not surveillance related. But some are definitely worth looking into. Good time to do some research and find new targets for organizing campaigns.
