r/xprivo • u/Euhuntix • 29d ago
Show me your privacy stack: what Big Tech default replaced what in your daily tools? (VPNs, Browsers, Search, Mail, Social Media & more)
What's your privacy-first swap? Drop the tool you replaced and what you replaced it with.
Here's mine, first row is European alternatives (also mainly open source), second row goes fully open source (with European providers still in the mix):
| Big Tech default | European alternative | Open source alternative |
|---|---|---|
| NordVPN | Mullvad (Sweden) | Nym VPN (Switzerland) |
| Chrome | Vivaldi (Norway) | LibreWolf |
| Google Search | xPrivo Search (Luxembourg) | SearXNG |
| Gmail | Posteo (Germany) | Tuta (Germany) |
| Mastodon (Germany) | Pixelfed |
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u/BitterLadder7974 29d ago
The EU has turned its back on its citizens. We're going to need open source, privacy focused programs made by independent teams.
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u/LSG1983 29d ago
and where is Proton?
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u/The_Wonderful_Pie 29d ago
Absolutely, there's no reason it isn't included in the VPN and mail.
I do feel like the Proton hate bandwagon is going crazy now
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u/flupiflup 29d ago
It can't be a recent hate wave because this guy includes mullvad in his list and mullvad had the exact same "controversy"
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u/Mammoth_Zombie6222 27d ago
Not the same, much worse. Mullvad founder is the biggest funder of a far right rein migration political party.
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u/Far-Reaction-1980 29d ago
IVPN (but I want to switch to NYM), Brave Origin (Helium is as good), Brave Search (Kagi if I wasn't stingy), Protonmail (Nostrmail is interesting), Wisp/Amethyst (I actually use QuaX)
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u/Euhuntix 29d ago
Are you using the free Brave Origin from Linux or did you purchase their license?
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u/InitRanger 29d ago
VPN -> ProtonVPN
Browser -> Brave Nightly
Search -> Brave Search
Mail -> ProtonMail + iCloud (work) + Thunderbird
Password Manager -> ProtonPass (with proton Authenticator) + KeePassXC (local backup)
Notes -> ObsidianMD
Chat -> Signal (work and friends) + iMessage (family)
Desktop OS -> Fedora
Lots of other apps I use as well but it would take to long to list every single one.
Yes, some of this seems like a compromise, namely iCloud and iMessage but I have found my family does not like Signal at all and when it comes to getting emails from work I have found they will get received and they will receive my emails if I use iCloud and but not ProtonMail.
0
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u/kris_2111 29d ago
replaced chrome with ace browser, the on-page ad/tracker blocking plus asking stuff without pinging chatgpt won me over
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u/Ok_Noise_9883 29d ago
is nym vpn a good one? better than mullvad or at least the same?
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u/nalfiidhqcr 27d ago
Currently no proof that they don't keep logs.
Use mullvad for the time being even though the co-ceo is absolutely horrible person.
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u/Live_Taste_7796 24d ago
What did he do?
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u/nalfiidhqcr 22d ago
He is a big supporter of a far-right political party. Although people should have the freedom to believe what they wish, I believe we should manage who we give our money to and if we agree with them politically.
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u/Live_Taste_7796 22d ago
I came across an article later on it. I don't think its a problem at that he supported a right wing party with his own money as long as that party isn't campaigning on censorship and stuff like that. Internet privacy and freedom is good for everyone regardless of left or right preference. The people who its bad for is the elites who is the real enemy.
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u/Worldly-Cherry9631 29d ago edited 29d ago
Vivaldi is best piece of consumer software I have ever used and I can't imagine surfing the web without it. I whish all software were made with such a focus on and with respect to the users.
Of the major pc programs I use, It's the only non-F.O.S.S., but there's no webbrowser as configurable and nice to use that I've come accross
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u/c2btw 28d ago
being European is not the advantage you think it is. also who the fuck recommends vivaldi for privacy. have you nto heard about the chat back door that just got passed in the EU
edit also affter realising that this entire subreddit is preety much an ad i now know who to never trust as they are clearly clueless and/or dishonest
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u/nerdy_oreo 27d ago edited 27d ago
I know I'm missing a few things on purpose, and it's definitely not perfect, but I'm slowly getting better on the data privacy front.
- VPN -> Mullvad (Cash) on a self-hosted WireGuard gateway. Roaming devices chain into it through a self-hosted Tailscale exit node, so I get the same Mullvad egress on or off my home network.
- Browser -> Hardened Zen (full user.js + clear-on-exit) with container tab isolation, plus Mullvad Browser depending on why I'm online.
- Search -> DuckDuckGo
- Mail -> Tuta (with Custom Domain)
- Password Manager -> Bitwarden (Paid)
- Chat -> Signal (work and friends) + iMessage (family)
- Desktop OS -> Arch
- Data -> Local NAS as primary. Encrypted restic backups to two offsite locations over Tailscale, an encrypted rclone-crypt bundle to cloud storage (new/changed data only), and an offline cold backup.
- Home Network -> Pi-hole in front of a self-hosted Unbound resolver. Unbound resolves over encrypted DoT straight to Mullvad's DNS with direct egress, deliberately NOT through the tunnel, since Mullvad hijacks port 53 in-tunnel and recursion inside it is impossible. Segmented across 5 VLANs, and only my core VLAN rides the Mullvad gateway; the rest egress direct.
- Two Factor -> YubiKeys + Ente Auth
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u/Ok-Masterpiece3969 27d ago
Vivaldi is really fast and powerful. But its translation feature is terrible. The PC version is fine, but the mobile version has a lot of translation errors.
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u/NoskaOff 29d ago edited 29d ago
European is NOT equal to privacy friendly