4 ms·

There is not much you can do if you just try to avoid mass surveillance, but if you try to get laws changed, then there is some hope.

mirimir 8y ago
I disagree. You can do a lot to avoid mass surveillance. But you need to think like a smart criminal. Or a spy. And that comes hard for some. I truly doubt that there's much hope for limiting mass surveillance in the US. The NSA does not respect the law. Because it's a military organization, and the US is always at war. At most, the NSA merely pretends to respect the law.
- acct1771 8y ago
  > The NSA does not respect the law. Because it's a military organization, and the US is always at war. You're working your way backwards through this problem, but stopped short. The US is always at war because... This is a feedback loop, and the ones causing the endless war utilize the NSA, indirectly, and otherwise, to keep the train moving.
  - mirimir 8y ago
    Yes, agreed.
- trumped 8y ago
  I think that you underestimate them... How often do you change your burner phones? Do you turn them off before you get back home? do you use different phones/computers for different purposes?, etc... if want to be truly untraceable, it is not practical at all.
  - mirimir 8y ago
    I have just two phones, a smartphone for work, and an old dumb one for friends and family. Using those, I am entirely unremarkable. I have occasionally used burner phones. Except when in use, I would remove the batteries and store them in an old steel paint can, with a charger. In the back of my vehicle, with tools. I never opened the can unless I was a few hundred km from my home and work. Supposedly on camping/fishing trips, and I lied about where I was going. Using an old vehicle, and keeping to back roads.
    - trumped 8y ago
      You might or might not be remarkable but even if what you do is of no interest to the NSA, they know a lot about you and you are not doing enough if you are trying to avoid the NSA net.

mirimir 8y ago

I disagree. You can do a lot to avoid mass surveillance. But you need to think like a smart criminal. Or a spy. And that comes hard for some. I truly doubt that there's much hope for limiting mass surveillance in the US. The NSA does not respect the law. Because it's a military organization, and the US is always at war. At most, the NSA merely pretends to respect the law.

acct1771 8y ago
> The NSA does not respect the law. Because it's a military organization, and the US is always at war. You're working your way backwards through this problem, but stopped short. The US is always at war because... This is a feedback loop, and the ones causing the endless war utilize the NSA, indirectly, and otherwise, to keep the train moving.
- mirimir 8y ago
  Yes, agreed.
trumped 8y ago
I think that you underestimate them... How often do you change your burner phones? Do you turn them off before you get back home? do you use different phones/computers for different purposes?, etc... if want to be truly untraceable, it is not practical at all.
- mirimir 8y ago
  I have just two phones, a smartphone for work, and an old dumb one for friends and family. Using those, I am entirely unremarkable. I have occasionally used burner phones. Except when in use, I would remove the batteries and store them in an old steel paint can, with a charger. In the back of my vehicle, with tools. I never opened the can unless I was a few hundred km from my home and work. Supposedly on camping/fishing trips, and I lied about where I was going. Using an old vehicle, and keeping to back roads.
  - trumped 8y ago
    You might or might not be remarkable but even if what you do is of no interest to the NSA, they know a lot about you and you are not doing enough if you are trying to avoid the NSA net.