online security

naturist wrote:
You don't have to be up to things nefarious to be concerned about privacy online. Merely attempting to do your banking via an open wifi hotspot or send/receive personal email on your phone or laptop at the library or the airport should be enough to raise alarm bells.

After all, your stuff is going out over radio, for pete's sake. Who knows what varmint might be listening in? Right?

So may I commend to your attention a couple solutions I have found. I've discovered for email Protonmail.com, which offers strong encryption between your computer and their server, and if both ends of the conversation are on Protonmail accounts, the encryption is end-to-end, meaning at no point between you and your spouse will it be possible for anybody to see your love notes. While on their servers, your mail is also encrypted, and they keep no logs of your communications, so they can't sell or surrender to any government any information on you. They are based in Switzerland, and while they offer free email accounts, with paid accounts you get more storage space and extra features including throwaway aliases to help scuttle spam.

Protonmail also has a VPN, which also is free, although there are extra features for paid VPN accounts. Besides being encrypted to their servers, they keep no logs on your surfing, so cannot sell your footprints or surrender data to the government.

For years I have been using AzireVPN, a VPN based in Sweden, and although it is a paid service, it has proven very helpful in keeping my credit card number and word of when I'll be gone from home (and home thus vulnerable to burglary) out of the hands of the bad guys. Azire also keeps no logs of your 'net footprints, and also gets my recommendation.

Those of us who roam the country, relying on cell phone networks and restaurant/campground wifi are justified in being cautious about our privacy on the interwebz. I am not affiliated in any way with either of these businesses, and do not profit in any way from recommending them to you all. I am merely giving you the benefit of my experience.

Azire VPN clicky
Proton mail clicky
proton vpn clicky

As for me, I don't trust "anything" to be secure whenever the Internet is used by us peons. We do all our serious banking - whether on the road or at home base - via mail correspondence and voice phone calls only. Any serious banking is all handled through our financial advisers and the large international bank they work for - using hardcopy mailings, phone calls, and personal meetings.

Additionally, we back up all financial transactions with hardcopies - including all monthly expenses along with our banking and credit card activites. This is for two reasons: 1) No Internet security concerns at our level, and 2) personal historical records in case of any massive Internet interruption.

Through all of this, I guess that I'm assuming that within our bank and credit card companies any/all of their internal Internet-based traffic is covered by 256 bit encryption. I may be wrong regarding this level of encryption though, but I hope not too much wrong. :(