Privacy Tools for Everyday Users

I've consciously been trying to reduce my digital footprint and improve my security. The following tools have become important tools in my arsenal:

1) Wire - Instant Messenger. Free. Works on just about every device I have. Also provides voice and video communications.

2) Standard Notes - I utilise this for ALL my note-taking needs. Whether plain notes, markdown notes, to do lists and now spreadsheets!! Mo provides fabulous support, and the app has become my most used.

3) pCloud (& pCloud Crypto) - Secure file storage. Think Dropbox / Drive / OneDrive but zero-knowledge. Clients for iOS and Android devices, Mac & Windows too. (Sorry, haven't checked on Linux yet!)

4) Posteo - Email. I looked at all the email providers, and settled for something equally balanced. ProtonMail and Tutanota provide great security, at the cost of ease of use, i.e. no IMAP access, so limited ability to migrate mail in and out. FastMail is a fabulous mail setup, with a calendar that works well, however, the Australian owned, US hosted aspects are concerning. No matter how vociferous they are against the encryption bill, they are still under Australian Law, and if approached, they must do whatever asked of them, without being able to tell their users. I've settled for a combination of Fastmail (general email) and Posteo (secure account resets etc) for now. I suspect I will switch Fastmail over to Mailfence for better privacy in the near future.

More to come...