#ondergrond #security
***How safe and private is my data on Ondergrond?***
I do the best I can with firewalls etc to keep bots and search engines and so on off this site. So your statuses and media are not going to be indexed and searchable. However, your toots might still show up in search results from other Mastodon instances who are less stringent about keeping out search engines.
I also have quite a lot of processes in place to keep out hackers. So it's unlikely (fingers crossed) that anyone could hack in from outside in order to steal things.
Because the whole of ondergrond uses SSL/TLS encryption (see the little lock in your browser bar?), your data can't be stolen in transit between your computer and the server.
I also encrypt data on the server itself, and in the cloud backup in Switzerland. So even if the server is seized or someone at the Swiss company tries to access our material, *nothing* will be recoverable.
Unfortunately, none of that technical security can stop people who follow you from just right-clicking and saving follower-only images. And even people who don't follow you can see images and statuses you post public (assuming they find your profile).
And of course, if you don't use two-factor authentication, and you use a weak password, or re-use a password here that you've used elsewhere, there's nothing to stop someone from just trying to login to your account here 🤷♀️
(This is the same as it would be on any social media ofc.)
So in summary!
I am pretty damn diligent about storing and protecting your data. If I had to guess, I'd say the security I offer here is probably above average for the Fediverse. But I can't protect against the human factor ;) So, as with posting on any site, be wary of what privacy settings you use, and who you allow to follow you.
Thanks for reading! <3