Seeking software suggestions for internet security [Solved]

[CharlesV]

While I agree that a lot you do can compromise privacy, sorry I disagree about that ip!

If you want to be truly hidden then you need to obfuscate your outfacing internet IP from your real location. If your isp does not have your router in NAT, and your not using either a proxy or VPN, then it is FAR to easy to walk back down an ip and find where someone is located. Once you can do that, it is a fairly easy task to find "who" that is.

[CyberGhost]

@onion_rings Check this out! I haven't tried it yet, but it seems very promising! Supposed to be better than using a VPN.

Main site: https://safing.io/ VPN Alternative Page: https://safing.io/spn/

Also, Firetools is a good complimentary program and you could try using Whonix or Qubes OS on one of your computers. Although there is somewhat of learning curve with Qubes OS and it is very resource intensive. Supposedly that's what Edward Snowden uses and he definitely has more reasons to be paranoid. As was mentioned before, TAILS is good to use too as well. Do checkout that Safing Portmaster I linked above though. I have been studying it a great deal but just haven't had much time to use it yet. Best of luck!

[onion_rings]

@onion_rings Check this out! I haven't tried it yet, but it seems very promising! Supposed to be better than using a VPN.

Main site: https://safing.io/ VPN Alternative Page: https://safing.io/spn/

Also, Firetools is a good complimentary program and you could try using Whonix or Qubes OS on one of your computers. Although there is somewhat of learning curve with Qubes OS and it is very resource intensive. Supposedly that's what Edward Snowden uses and he definitely has more reasons to be paranoid. As was mentioned before, TAILS is good to use too as well. Do checkout that Safing Portmaster I linked above though. I have been studying it a great deal but just haven't had much time to use it yet.

Yeah, I looked at TAILS and Qubes. They looked pretty technical. I'm trying to figure out the appropriate level of security, so that I can focus on writing my blog without worrying about people hacking my computer, doxxing me, or publishing my address because they disagree with me politically. So, better than average security, but less than Edward Snowden level, because I'm pretty sure the feds don't care about my blog.

Safing Portmaster looks like an innovative option. It looks a bit more involved than what I'm going for--I want something I can just set up once and forget about. So I think that using Nord VPN will probably be a good option. I'll put my writing on substack, do some low-key promotion on reddit or other social media, and then use my other laptop for my personal life, basically.

Best of luck!

Thanks!

[m_pav]

I always use double Nat for my home network. I use my ISP or Providers router with wifi turned off and a single connection to my internal WiFi Router with its own NAT, firewall rules and LAN address. When I want to operate on the net from an anonymous machine, I use a VirtualBox VM to run a Live ISO which adds a further level of NAT as I did for our countries online census last month, however, I do have a good number of spare machines and live-USB sticks to boot from if I want to totally remove my daily driver from an session.

[onion_rings]

I use a VirtualBox VM to run a Live ISO which adds a further level of NAT

I've heard of people running their computers in a virtual machine for privacy. I assumed that the benefit of using a virtual machine had to do with insulating your computer from attacks, but it sounds like it adds an extra level of privacy, as well. Does it shield your IP address?

[razor2021]

Is Safing Portmaster better than the distro simple firewall e.g. UFW?

[CharlesV]

I use a VirtualBox VM to run a Live ISO which adds a further level of NAT

I've heard of people running their computers in a virtual machine for privacy. I assumed that the benefit of using a virtual machine had to do with insulating your computer from attacks, but it sounds like it adds an extra level of privacy, as well. Does it shield your IP address?

No, it does not shield your external IP (the internet facing ip )

A VM can create a "computer" which is distinct and restricted from its host, so in that aspect it can be 'safer'. And, if you kept host and guest completely different as far as identities, ( ie not checking email, not logging into social media accounts, etc), then they would not 'leak' identity. However, both the host and guest would still show the same external ip, providing a trail. One of the computers ( guest or host - which ever you want 'hidden' ), should be using a VPN so that its ip is not showing your location.

[onion_rings]

Is Safing Portmaster better than the distro simple firewall e.g. UFW?

They're both internet security software, but they work in different ways. A firewall is meant to prevent unwanted connections to your computer, while Safing Portmaster allows you to monitor connections to your machine so that you can ensure for yourself that there are no unwanted connections.

[CyberGhost]

But Safing Portmaster also has this as their solution to a VPN. Guess no one clicked the link I previously posted.

https://safing.io/spn/

[CharlesV]

But Safing Portmaster also has this as their solution to a VPN. Guess no one clicked the link I previously posted.

https://safing.io/spn/

I did :-) .. but I want to find out a bit more about it. Looks intriguing !