kornhole · HackerTrans

3 tahun yang laludiscuss

I have been running Graphene for years and find that few proprietary apps really need GAPS. I get a warning that it is required when they try to serve an ad, but I just dismiss it and enjoy the ad free experience. Graphene has great shims and even a sandboxed Google Play Services for those who want a lot of notifications. I don't use it myself, but my partner does.

kornhole

3 tahun yang laludiscuss

That is only if you have Google Play Services installed.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

Yes we are using the same closed source hardware as 99% of people. Open source HW is ideal, but the options are currently very limited. I use rotating burner SIMs on occasions when I need cellular and never make calls with the SIM. The OS provides other SW mitigations for the HW such as no SW access to the device ID's, fine grained app firewall, and ability to turn off all cellular but enable WIFI.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

Yes some trust of the project is required. Consider what would motivate them to do something malicious. They do not know who is using the OS since these phones are anonymous and the user base is relatively small. Neither targeted surveillance nor bulk collection is really possible because of this.

The code is completely open source. With the most paranoid of us using and reviewing the code, any malicious code inserted would immediately kill the entire project. We can install and switch to another OS anytime we need to.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

Yes you need to know how to open a web browser and place an order online. ;) The self install is really slick. You basically set the phone into developer mode, connect it via USB to your laptop or another phone, and just follow the web installer steps.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

I am not sure it is, but Graphene has an optional sandboxed Google Play Services that does not require signature spoofing and does not require a Google account. I have it installed on a work profile for some proprietary work apps that require it. My main profile contains all FOSS apps that use web sockets or Unified Push(Nextpush on Nextcloud) to deliver notifications.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

Compared to installing the other AOSP versions, I find Graphene install the easiest. Yes it does require following the instructions and setting some things right. If anyone is hesitant about doing that themselves, they could buy one preinstalled on Ebay or from nitrophone.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

I use grapheneos.org on a Pixel phone. I have tried many AOSP variants. Graphene is hands down the most secure, private, and functional. Couple this with Nextcloud and you have a superior setup.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

GrapheneOS is a project rather than just a few devs. They have exhibited very high focus on security and peer review before commits. The code is FOSS and heavily audited by the most paranoid people like me. It is one of many AOSP projects with a relatively small user base. Therefore it is not a valuable target for compromise or coercion from threat actors.

Apple on the other hand is the biggest corporation in the world beholden to governments, closed source, and with a massive user base.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

That is an option but not tenable to most people in our modern world. How do you become informed about our world and people we care about far away without computer tech?. The better solution is free software we control and better ways to fund developers and journalists.

kornhole

4 tahun yang laludiscuss

Linux laptops are lovely at this point. Linux phones are for the more adventurous and tolerant hackers, and I love them for working out the issues. Android without any Google is the best handset option for most people. Degoogling can be accomplished in many ways such as using the universal android debloater found on github, or installing an Android fork such as Graphene, Calyx, or Lineage. Nextcloud is the most comprehensive replacement to many of the services and synchronization such as contacts, calendar, photos, files, bookmarks, passwords, phone location, news/RSS, podcasts, music, tasks, and notes. It can also host E2E chats and video calls.

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