All I Want is Total Freedom

by lifeguard

When men like John Adams and Benjamin Franklin were hammering out the USA's Bill of Rights, it was possible for them to have a private conversation.

They could simply walk into the middle of an empty field and talk quietly to each other, all the while observing if another person came close enough to hear them.  Today the government has the ability to see and hear through walls!  There is also total integration of state and corporate data collection.  This article is about how to get back some privacy.  But be warned: taking these steps could be characterized as "tradecraft" and raise suspicions.

First, I got rid of the snitch on my PC by using Linux.  Next, I got rid of the snitch in my browser by using two different browser applications side-by-side.  By only logging into my Google account in Chrome and doing all my other web surfing in a modified Firefox browser, I made it much more difficult for the Googleplex to correlate all my map, YouTube, and web searches.  I use Adblock Edge to block a lot of third-party social networking content that also correlates my surfing.  For most searches, I use duckduckgo.com to anonymize Google web searches.  I installed Torbutton for when I wanted to randomize the IP address my traffic is emanating from.  I got rid of the snitch in my email by setting up a free email account at a company based in Switzerland.  Almost any "second tier" webmail provider in a non-U.S./British Commonwealth country reduces automated or warrantless data collection.  If I need a preexisting email account to activate service, I use mailinator.com.

Next, I turned my attention to the snitch in my pocket, my smartphone.  I dumped my Android phone and put an old expired cell phone (battery stored outside phone) in my car for emergencies - 911 will still work even if a phone is not on an active account.  Then I purchased the cheapest prepaid phone possible to reduce the remote attack surface area of my phone OS.  I got two GSM-based phones and multiple SIM cards.  I swap cards in and out to reduce traffic analysis.  I only store phone data on SIM and microSD cards so they can be quickly removed.  Remember, "destruction of evidence" is a crime.  To activate my prepaid phone, I used Tor and Mailinator with a pseudonym.  I provided a ZIP Code from a different town.  I made sure to be in a public place when I turned the phone on for the first time.  When I want to have a private face-to-face conversation, I remove the battery from my phone and request the people I am speaking with do the same.  This is due to the fact that phone mics and cameras can be remotely activated.

Then I looked at the snitches in my wallet.  I have customer loyalty "club" cards for several stores.  Why should I use the same card year-after-year when they are free?  So every few months, I lose my card and get a new one.  Next, I thought about my bank card.  It produces a time-stamped list of where I shop and what I buy.  So now, I go to my bank's ATM and withdraw $100 cash at a time and make all of my purchases with cash.  Some businesses ask for a credit card number as a form of deposit.  So I purchased a cheap debit card and activated it the same way as my cell phone.  This is not always accepted, but often it is.  Then I looked at my driver's license and wondered why I use it for identification?  It is a license to drive.  So instead, I use my passport for ID because it does not have my home address on it.

If I show a passport to a police officer while walking down the street, he is not able to pull my Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and other records with just the passport number.  It does not show my state and city of residence.  To improve privacy of my phone calls, I also purchased two prepaid long distance phone cards.

If I call card number 2's access number with card number 1, it obfuscates Caller ID.

I can also use them to make calls on payphones and courtesy phones that block toll calls.  When a card gets down to a few dollars, I abandon it near a payphone so another person can use it and dirty up my data.

Finally, I thought about the ways I am a snitch on myself.

I decided to make a 3x3 grid of keywords.  Next, I wrote three code words (names) down the side and another three code words across the top:

          Jones      King           Smith
Alvin     YES        NO             UNKNOWN
Bob       MY HOUSE   THE MINIMART   YOUR WORK
Charles   BEER       CIGARS         2600 MAGAZINE

I provided a copy of this to my partner so we could have an easy code to obscure details of what we are discussing.

So I could send this message: "Do you want to hang out with Charles King or Charles Jones?"

And my partner decodes it as: "Do you want beer or cigars?"

She could then reply: "Let's meet CJ at Bob King's house."

I would understand that she wants to get beer at the minimart.

So I would reply: "I am talking to Alvin J, see you in a bit!"

She understands that I said yes to her.  On a regular basis, we change the code words and, if we need to, we update the keywords to be relevant to our interests.  It is a good idea to have a unique first letter for each code word.

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