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NFT: How important is using secure methods

Hammer : 1/21/2017 10:22 pm
Of sending text messages and email?

I'm feeling rather spooked by recent events and am thinking of switching to Signal for text messages and two factor authorization for my cloud storage accounts.

Whada ya think?
What you trying to hide?  
Giantology : 1/21/2017 11:13 pm : link
.
depends what you're sending  
pjcas18 : 1/21/2017 11:22 pm : link
I wouldn't text or email anything I'm not comfortable being made public - other than work stuff which I only do from my work devices with work implemented protocols. If something is confidential I wouldn't text or email it.
Hammer  
Boy Cord : 1/22/2017 12:01 am : link
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you. Watch your back and trust no one.
RE: depends what you're sending  
jcn56 : 1/22/2017 12:06 am : link
In comment 13335202 pjcas18 said:
Quote:
I wouldn't text or email anything I'm not comfortable being made public - other than work stuff which I only do from my work devices with work implemented protocols. If something is confidential I wouldn't text or email it.


This is a good start, but remember - just because it gets transported securely doesn't mean it remains confidential. You could have the most ironclad method of encrypting and transporting messages, only to have the recipient dump it out for the world to see.

Bottom line: don't put it in electronic writing unless you're comfortable with it seeing the light of day.
My privacy is very important to me, and yours should be to you.  
Hammer : 1/22/2017 12:53 am : link
I treasure my privacy and want to take reasonable precautions to protect my private conversations and information.

Just because a person wants to keep their private information private does not mean they are engaged in nefarious conduct.
If you're pulling a Katie Rich  
Giants2012 : 1/22/2017 12:59 am : link
I would suggest stopping.

RE: My privacy is very important to me, and yours should be to you.  
Mad Mike : 1/22/2017 1:02 am : link
Then I think you've answered your own question. If you're concerned that your communications be kept private, then you should do more than just use the regular messaging app on your phone. I basically use my phone for play - I conduct no business on it, never access bank or other financial sites, etc... If someone wants to hack my idiotic texts with friends, they can knock themselves out. Not knowing anything about you, I nonetheless assume no one is interested in accessing what you do on your phone, but if even the possibility is unacceptable, then you absolutely should use something like signal.
what recent events  
GentleGiant : 1/22/2017 8:48 am : link
are you referring to?
Well, 500 million affected users for Yahoo  
JohnF : 1/22/2017 9:56 am : link
would make one pause. Those email accounts were cracked, with relative ease since the new head of Yahoo at the time didn't think security was a high priority.

Two factor authentication is vital, but won't ensure privacy. Right now, the 4th amendment has been gutted by the Feds (see this article). I guess it's not enough for the NSA to keep data as long as they want to, or to place firmware on your hard drive that allows them access to your data...or get their jollies off watching you via your webcam...not just watching, but listening via your microphone.

Think you can trust the Feds with your personal info? Well, it doesn't help we had Snowden, or Manning, or the Office of Personnel Managment suffered a hack of 18 million records,or that the Head of the CIA's emails were hacked.

Look up Metadata, by the way. Did you know, if the British had a version of the NSA, they could have stopped the American Revolution? Stupid American terrorists!

Here's the thing...no data is safe, and there is no "golden key" that will only allow the good guys to access it. Every time a weakness is put in software/hardware, someone will figure out how to access it.

You can make it harder to access, by encrypting your hard drive, and making your own backups (encrypted), using VPN's, using secure mail and messaging, using things like TOR for web browsing, and staying away from Operating Systems like Windows that are full of binary blobs in their software.

It's a lot of work, no kidding, to try and secure a right that was granted to us in the Constitution (4th Amendment). If you're willing to give up that, what rights are you willing to give up next for safety...even if this does not make you safer.

Nothing to worry about of course...we LOVE the NSA!
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