On 6/21/21 10:30 AM, Douglas McGarrett wrote:
On 6/21/21 12:30 AM, Lew Wolfgang wrote:
On 6/20/21 8:05 PM, Douglas McGarrett wrote:
I have had some evidence of a lack of privacy in my system, and I have a couple of questions. This lack of privacy is a function of the internet, not some person having physical access to the computer.
I realize that a vpn will definitely work with email, but will it work with Thunderbird? And will it work with vendors on the 'net? Can one access (for example) Amazon, peruse a category and purchase an item from them via vpn? Is it vendor neutral, so it works with any vendor of any type of product?
Assuming the answers to the previous questions are positive, which vpn would be easiest to set up and to use in practice, without being a 'nix guru?
I think you'll need to clarify your "lack of privacy" first. You shouldn't select a solution before you fully define the problem.
Yes, Thunderbird will work with a VPN but it's not needed if you use TLS for sending/receiving email. A VPN will just encrypt the already encrypted traffic between your host and the VPN exit node.
Vendors on the net? How would you access them? Web browser? Certainly you'd be connecting with https, which will give you TLS encryption between your host and the vendor. A VPN will do nothing for you if you can't trust your vendor in the first place.
VPN's are useful if you want to circumvent geographical content restrictions, or if you want secure access into a remote subnet. Businesses can use VPN to enable their secure remote access privileges for their employees. I'd guess that you really don't need a VPN service. Just make sure that the protocols you use are already encrypted with TLS. Maybe others here have different opinions?
Regards, Lew I have been subscribed to two magazines that I don't want--I managed to get rid of them, I hope--I was advised by a vendor that the password I used was compromised, and there have been unexplained charges to my credit card, according to the list which I received Friday, which I will be researching this afternoon. If that's not enough reason, I don't know what is!
Those are certainly reasons to be concerned, but I don't think that using a VPN will make matters better. Look to the security of your vendors instead. Don't reuse passwords, and don't pay for anything with a debt card. You have better legal protection with credit cards, and the bad guys can't directly empty your bank account. Also consider using a service that assigns a unique credit card number for each of your on-line accounts. CapitalOne has a service called "ENO" that does that. Another service is at https://privacy.com. They both allow you to turn your unique credit card numbers on and off so that they're valid only when you need them. If a web vendor gets compromised, no problem! Your credit card number is useless to them. Then, of course, beware of email scams, even if you're running Linux. Don't click on links in emails, even from people/places you know! And don't give personal information to anyone who calls you on the telephone! It would be nice if VPN would give you complete protection, but it won't/can't. Regards, Lew Remember! Don't Reuse Passwords!