README.md

Privacy Respecting

Curated List of Privacy Respecting Services and Software

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Contents

• What?
• Search Engines
• Social Networks
• Messengers
• Cloud Storage
• Email
• Operating Systems
• Browsers
• AI Assistants
• Related

What?

This is a list of various 'free' services whose business models are to collect as much personal data about you as possible and alternatives you can use to them if you care about not losing control of your data and your privacy.

For reasons why you may want to care about this, you can read this article.

The list is separated into topics and each service or software stated gives support for why you may want to stop using the service. As well as show alternatives to these services and why you may want to switch to them.

Search Engines

⚠️ You are the product:

• Google - By 2030, You’ll Be Living in a World That’s Run by Google.
• Bing - Owned by Microsoft.
• Yandex - Russia's version of Google.

? Alternatives:

• DuckDuckGo - DuckDuckGo privacy policy.
• StartPage - How we protect you.
• Searx - Why use Searx?
• Qwant - Qwant privacy poloicy.

Social Networks

⚠️ You are the product:

• Facebook - What should you think about when using Facebook?
• Instagram - Owned by Facebook.

? Alternatives:

• Scuttlebutt - Scuttlebutt principles.
• Mastodon - What is mastodon.social?
• Diaspora - What is Diaspora?
• Steemit - What is Steemit?
• Indieweb - Why run your own website?
• Minds - Anonymous & open-source social network with encrypted conversations. How Minds.com Protects Your Privacy.

Messengers

⚠️ You are the product:

• WhatsApp - Uses Signal Protocol but logs all the metadata around messages as well as sends all contacts to FB servers. Owned by Facebook.
• Facebook Messenger - Owned by Facebook.

? Alternatives:

• Signal - Uses Signal Protocol.
• Silence - Fork of Signal based on SMS instead of a server.
• Riot - Secure decentralised chat powered by Matrix protocol.
• Threema
• Keybase - Open-source end-to-end encrypted chat and dropbox alternative.
• Ring
• Ricochet - Anonymous instant messaging.
• Briar - Peer-to-peer encrypted messaging and forums.
• Wire - Open-source Projet based on End-to-end encryption (server in Switzerland).
• Conversations - Built on XMPP/Jabber. List of XMPP clients for any operating system.
• Public XMPP services - Choose one, talk to any, or run your own with Prosody.
• Telegram - Uses MTProto Mobile Protocol.

Cloud Storage

⚠️ You are the product:

• Google Drive - Centralised and owned by Google.
• OneDrive - Owned by Microsoft.

? Alternatives:

• Syncthing - Open source.
• Seafile - About Seafile.
• Nextcloud - About Nextcloud. Self hosted.
• ownCloud - ownCloud Features. Self hosted + encryption app available.
• Keybase - Open-source end-to-end encrypted dropbox and GitHub alternative.

Email

⚠️ You are the product:

• Gmail - Owned by Google.
• Outlook - Owned by Microsoft.
• Yahoo - Multiple data breaches.

? Alternatives:

• ProtonMail - Security of ProtonMail.
• Tutanota
• Posteo - About Posteo. Transparency Report.
• iRedMail - Be your own email provider.
• CleanEmail – Manages your mailbox – group and organize, remove, label, and archive emails. Full Privacy Policy.

Operating Systems

⚠️ You are the product:

• Windows - Microsoft shares Windows 10 telemetry data with third parties.
• Chrome OS - Owned by Google.
• Android (preinstalled) - Google collects meta data (phone calls, SMS) from Android phones.

? Alternatives:

• Linux - Open source kernel.
• Tails OS
• Qubes OS
• iOS - iOS 10 security white paper.
• Android with LineageOS
• Android with Copperhead
• macOS - Apple privacy.

Browsers

⚠️ You are the product:

• Google Chrome - Owned by Google.
• Edge Browser - Owned by Microsoft.

? Alternatives:

• Firefox Browser - Firefox privacy.
• Brave Browser - About Brave.
• Tor Browser - Tor (anonymity network) wiki.
• Vivaldi - DuckDuckGo Collaboration.

AI Assistants

⚠️ You are the product:

• Amazon Alexa
• Google Home
• IBM Watson

? Alternatives:

• Snips - AI assistant platform.
• Mycroft - Open-source AI assistant, range of hardware options.
• Apple Siri and HomePod - Apple Privacy.

Related

• Privacy tools
• Prism Break
• List of best privacy practices
• Privacy awesome list
• Awesome self hosted
• Adversaries and Anonymity Systems: The Basics
• Will a VPN Protect Me? Defining Your Threat Model
• Bring Privacy Back
• Secure Email - Overview of projects working on next-generation secure email.

Contributing

See contribution guidelines.

License

To the extent possible under law, Nikita Voloboev has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this work.