Privacy

With the advent of digital cameras and high-speed networking, it’s become easier than ever for the government (and other people) to spy on us at every turn. Ordinary Things dives in deep into the double-edged sword of public safety and the loss of privacy that come with mass surveillance.

Digital fingerprinting and identity tracking is a fact of life these days. But did you know that even the pages your printer has been spewing out could be tattling on you? According to this video from Half as Interesting, printer manufacturers have been outputting a hidden serial number onto every sheet of paper for years.

Jumbo is a privacy app that makes it easy to access your social media account’s deletion or security settings. Right now, it lets you delete old tweets and your Google search history, as well as set your Facebook privacy settings. It will soon work with Instagram and Tinder.

Tiny spy cameras have been found in hotel rooms, AirBnBs, public restrooms and dressing rooms. Take control of your privacy with this pocket-sized device that can detect hidden cameras by locating the reflections off even the smallest camera lenses in an instant.

This unique felt laptop case opens up to provide a private workstation. It not only enhances privacy from the sides, it reduces glare on your screen, cuts background noise and reflects your computer’s sound. An optional LED bar adds a dimmable work light.

Protect your privacy by surfing the web behind an IP address proxy. This lifetime subscription to Hide My IP lets you safely surf behind servers in over 115 locations around the globe, masking your real IP address from hackers and other parties you’d rather not have watching you.

It might look ridiculous, but this mask does serve a useful purpose. The Hushme uses masks your voice during phone calls, letting you make private calls without prying ears listening in. It can also cover up sounds with everything from Darth Vader to a squirrel.

Adam Ruins Everything digs a little deeper into the obvious – that free online services sell our data to advertisers. On one hand, targeted ads sustain the free stuff we enjoy (like this website). On the other hand, we don’t know just how much of our data is kept and by whom.

CGP Grey made two videos firmly arguing against any means, legal or otherwise, to defeat or circumvent digital encryption. As we rely more and more on digital storage and services, the outcome of this fight will affect not just us but also future generations as well.

(PG-13: Language) Last Week Tonight breaks down Apple’s refusal to comply with the FBI’s request to unlock a terrorists’ iPhone, a potentially precedent-setting case that unfortunately pits consumers’ privacy against law enforcement.

“I am you right now, if I wanted to be.” Fusion writer Kevin Roose asked white hat hackers and computer security professionals to hack him. For common folk like us, the simplest of tricks – pretending to be someone or something else – is the one thing we should all look out for.

Like Burner, Shuffle lets you purchase and use disposable phone numbers. But it also sells email aliases that forward messages to your real email account, and the costs of its services are shown in dollars (Burner uses “credits”).

Brett Gaylor’s Do Not Track is an interactive educational web series about how companies monitor and store your online behavior and data without your awareness, and how it affects you and other people online.

(PG-13: Language) In his interview with Last Week Tonight, Edward Snowden also talked about passwords. He recommends using passphrases. The right passphrase is harder to crack yet more memorable than a random string of characters.

Most of us blindly accept the terms and conditions for apps on our devices. To promote BlackPhone, Silent Circle and Ivan Cash asked passersby to read aloud some of the ridiculous permissions they’ve agreed to grant their apps.

A documentary about former CIA and DIA employee Edward Snowden and the NSA scandal by award-winning journalist and filmmaker Laura Poitras. Laura is one of the first journalists to receive copies of leaked NSA files from Edward.

A pair of small magnets that are meant to cover the front-facing webcam on computers. You can easily slide the cover away when you want to use the webcam, and they’re thin enough that you can still close your laptop with them on.