2025: My Privacy Reboot

The line between privacy and security isn’t always clear — and in tech, it’s often treated like they’re the same thing. But they’re not.

Security is about control — making sure only authorised people (read: me) can access my data. Privacy is different. It’s about intent. It dictates how that data gets used, and whether the companies that hold it stick to the promises they made.

Over the past few months, I’ve been re-evaluating the tools I use daily, nudging my setup toward services that take both privacy and security seriously. This isn’t a call to ditch Big Tech or a manifesto for full decentralisation. It’s more like a timestamp — a snapshot of the tools I trust right now, and a few notes on why.

DuckDuckGo Browser

My default browser — but with all the built-in VPN and AI features turned off. I’m mostly using it for its cookie blocking, which, if I’m honest, is less about privacy and more about not wanting to tap “accept all cookies” for the thousandth time.

Standard Notes

My go-to for note-taking — and, more recently, blogging. I’ve started using the Listed.to publishing platform they offer, which simplifies getting thoughts online. I’m not completely sold on it yet, but there’s something refreshing about hitting “publish” without fiddling with formatting or plugins.

Ente for Photo Storage

I’ve started trialling Ente as an encrypted alternative to Google Photos, signing up for the 200GB family plan to test it with my wife. So far, it’s been impressive. The desktop importer handled 13,000+ images from Google Takeout without breaking a sweat — just drop in the .zip files and let it churn.

One quirk: machine learning features like facial recognition seem better tuned for iOS than Android (I’m on a Pixel 9 Pro). I’ve noticed the occasional metadata hiccup, but I’m holding off judgement until the full import is done.

Signal as a WhatsApp Alternative

I’ve shifted all personal messaging to Signal, and put WhatsApp on digital life support. To ease the transition, I’ve set up an automated reply using Whatauto for Android. It runs silently in the background, while I keep read receipts off and notifications disabled. Most of my regular contacts have now made the jump to Signal — a direct result of the automation doing its quiet work.

Here’s the message they get:

Auto Reply  
Hi, thanks for your message. I'm no longer actively checking WhatsApp as I've moved to Signal for messaging.  
https://signal.org/install

Migadu + Thunderbird for Email

I’ve moved my family’s email accounts from Gmail (and briefly Fastmail) to Migadu, using Thunderbird across macOS and Android. It’s been rock solid. Migration was painless thanks to imapsync, which — as always — just works.

Mullvad VPN

I don’t use Mullvad every day, but it’s my default when travelling. Either directly on-device or routed through my Beryl travel router. I like its multi-hop and anti-AI-analysis features, and the fact it doesn’t require an email address to sign up still feels radical.

Bitwarden for 2FA

I recently replaced Authy with Bitwarden for managing two-factor authentication. The breaking point was Authy’s decision to shut down API access — which killed off my favourite use case: pulling codes directly into Raycast for lightning-fast logins. Bitwarden doesn’t offer quite the same UX flow, but it’s transparent, trusted, and functional.

These changes aren’t about perfection. They’re about intentionality — understanding the tools I rely on and making sure they serve me, not the other way around.

This might all look different in six months. Maybe I’ll shift back. Maybe I’ll dig deeper. But right now, this is the version of digital minimalism that makes the most sense for how I live and work.