Call me crazy... but I’ve got this complicated setup right now:

An old Pixel 8 Pro without a SIM card, with no apps installed—or rather, all apps disabled—and on it I’ve set up a second user profile where only the Aurora Store is running, and from there I’ve installed MullvadVPN and WhatsApp. No contacts saved, no Google account linked. On this second profile, my old WhatsApp number runs via the VPN and over Wi-Fi. Unfortunately, most of my friends are on WhatsApp, and very few want to install another messenger or switch, no matter how often or how hard I try to make them understand the dangers of WhatsApp or Meta in general. This dedicated WhatsApp smartphone just sits on my desk at home.

Just like my old iPhone 13 Mini for banking and ID Austria, the government app for Austria (official procedures, digital mailbox, etc.)

And last but not least, my Pixel 8a with GrapheneOS and my phone number for calls, texts, Signal, and calendar management on the go. I always have this smartphone with me; as I said, the other two just stay at home.

It might be a hassle—everyone else just uses one smartphone for this—but in return, I can use WhatsApp without Meta or Google gaining any access to my other usage behavior and data or being able to track my activities. I'm glad I kept these two extra devices when I did a major tech purge a few weeks ago.

#linux #opensource #freesoftware #surveillance #bigtech #meta #whatsapp #signal #grapheneos #google #smartphone