privacyguides.org/docs/tools.en.md

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Privacy Tools	material/tools	toc

If you're looking for a specific solution to something, these are the hardware and software tools we recommend in a variety of categories. Our recommended privacy tools are primarily chosen based on security features, with additional emphasis on decentralized and open-source tools. They are applicable to a variety of threat models ranging from protection against global mass surveillance programs and avoiding big tech companies to mitigating attacks, but only you can determine what will work best for your use case.

If you want assistance figuring out the best privacy tools and alternative programs for your workload/use-case, start a discussion in our Reddit or Matrix communities!

For your convenience, everything we recommend is listed below with a link to the project's homepage. For more details about each project, why they were chosen, and additional tips or tricks we recommend, click the "Learn more" link in each section.

Web Browsers

• { .twemoji } Tor Browser
• { .twemoji } Firefox (Desktop)
• { .twemoji } Bromite (Android)
• { .twemoji } Safari (iOS)

Additional Resources:

• { .twemoji } uBlock Origin
• { .twemoji } AdGuard for Safari
• { .twemoji } Terms of Service; Didn't Read (1)

1. We do not recommend installing ToS;DR as a browser extension. The same information is provided on their website.

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Operating Systems

Android

• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } GrapheneOS
• { .twemoji } CalyxOS
• { .twemoji } DivestOS

Android Apps:

• { .twemoji } Droid-ify (F-Droid Client)
• { .twemoji } Orbot (Tor Proxy)
• { .twemoji } Shelter (Work Profiles)
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Auditor (Supported Devices)
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Secure Camera
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Secure PDF Viewer
• { .twemoji } PrivacyBlur

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Linux

• { .twemoji } Fedora Workstation
• { .twemoji } OpenSUSE Tumbleweed
• { .twemoji } Arch Linux
• { .twemoji } Fedora Silverblue & Kinoite
• { .twemoji } NixOS
• { .twemoji } Whonix (Tor)
• { .twemoji } Tails (Live Boot)
• { .twemoji } Qubes OS (Xen VM Distribution) (1)

1. Qubes uses Xen to provide strong sandboxing between multiple Linux virtual machine installations, and can run most Linux applications. Learn more about Qubes...

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Router Firmware

• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } OpenWrt
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } pfSense

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Service Providers

Cloud Storage

• { .twemoji } Nextcloud (Self-Hostable)
• { .twemoji } Proton Drive
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Cryptee
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Tahoe-LAFS (Advanced)

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

DNS

We recommend a number of encrypted DNS servers based on a variety of criteria, such as MullvadDNS and Quad9 amongst others. We recommend for you to read our pages on DNS before choosing a provider. In many cases, using an alternative DNS provider is not recommended.

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Email

• { .twemoji } ProtonMail
• { .twemoji } Mailbox.org
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Disroot
• { .twemoji } Tutanota
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } StartMail
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } CTemplar

Email Cloaking Services:

• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } AnonAddy
• { .twemoji } SimpleLogin

Self-Hosting Email:

• { .twemoji } Mail-in-a-Box
• { .twemoji } mailcow

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Search Engines

• { .twemoji } DuckDuckGo
• { .twemoji } Startpage
• { .twemoji } Mojeek
• { .twemoji } Searx

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

VPN Providers

??? danger "VPNs do not provide anonymity"

Using a VPN will **not** keep your browsing habits anonymous, nor will it add additional security to non-secure (HTTP) traffic.

If you are looking for **anonymity**, you should use the Tor Browser **instead** of a VPN.

If you're looking for added **security**, you should always ensure you're connecting to websites using [HTTPS](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTPS). A VPN is not a replacement for good security practices.

[Learn more :material-arrow-right:](vpn.md)

• { .twemoji } Mullvad
• { .twemoji } ProtonVPN
• { .twemoji } IVPN

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Software

Calendar/Contacts Sync

• { .twemoji } Tutanota (SaaS)
• { .twemoji } Proton Calendar (SaaS)
• { .twemoji } EteSync
• { .twemoji } Nextcloud
• { .twemoji } DecSync CC

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Notebooks

• { .twemoji } Joplin
• { .twemoji } Standard Notes

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Email Clients

• { .twemoji } Thunderbird
• { .twemoji } Apple Mail
• { .twemoji } GNOME Evolution (Linux)
• { .twemoji } Kontact (Linux)
• { .twemoji } Mailvelope (PGP in standard webmail)
• { .twemoji } K-9 Mail (Android)
• { .twemoji } FairEmail (Android)
• { .twemoji } Canary Mail (iOS)
• { .twemoji } NeoMutt (CLI)

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Encryption Tools

??? info "Operating System Disk Encryption"

For encrypting your operating system drive, we typically recommend using whichever encryption tool your operating system provides, whether that is **BitLocker** on Windows, **FileVault** on macOS, or **LUKS** on Linux. These tools are included with the operating system and typically utilize hardware encryption elements such as a TPM that other full-disk encryption software like VeraCrypt do not. VeraCrypt is still suitable for non-operating system disks such as external drives, especially drives that may be accessed from multiple operating systems.

[Learn more :material-arrow-right:](encryption.md##operating-system-included-full-disk-encryption-fde)

• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } VeraCrypt (FDE)
• { .twemoji } Cryptomator
• { .twemoji } Picocrypt
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Hat.sh (Browser-based)
• { .twemoji } Kryptor
• { .twemoji } Tomb

OpenPGP Clients:

• { .twemoji } GnuPG
• { .twemoji } GPG4Win (Windows)
• { .twemoji } GPG Suite (macOS)
• { .twemoji } OpenKeychain

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

File Sharing

• { .twemoji } OnionShare
• { .twemoji } Magic Wormhole
• { .twemoji } FreedomBox
• { .twemoji } Syncthing
• { .twemoji } git-annex

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Metadata Removal Tools

• { .twemoji } MAT2
• { .twemoji } ExifCleaner
• { .twemoji } Scrambled Exif (Android)
• { .twemoji } Imagepipe (Android)
• { .twemoji } Metapho (iOS)
• { .twemoji } ExifTool (CLI)

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Multi-Factor Authentication Tools

• { .twemoji } YubiKey
• { .twemoji } Nitrokey
• { .twemoji } Aegis Authenticator
• { .twemoji } Raivo OTP

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Password Managers

• { .twemoji } KeePassXC
• { .twemoji } KeePassDX (Android)
• { .twemoji } Bitwarden
• { .twemoji } Psono
• { .twemoji } gopass
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Vaultwarden (Bitwarden Server)

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Productivity Tools

• { .twemoji } LibreOffice
• { .twemoji } OnlyOffice
• { .twemoji } Framadate (Appointment Planning)
• { .twemoji } PrivateBin (Pastebin)
• { .twemoji } CryptPad
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Write.as (Blogging Platform)
• { .twemoji } VSCodium (Source-Code Editor)

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Real-Time Communication

• { .twemoji } Signal
• { .twemoji } Element
• { .twemoji } Briar (Android)
• { .twemoji } Session

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

News Aggregators

• { .twemoji } Fluent Reader
• { .twemoji } GNOME Feeds
• { .twemoji } Akregator
• { .twemoji } Handy News Reader
• { .twemoji } NetNewsWire
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Miniflux
• { .twemoji } Newsboat

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Self-Contained Networks

• { .twemoji } Tor
• { .twemoji } { .twemoji } I2P
• { .twemoji } Freenet

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

Video Streaming Clients

• { .twemoji } FreeTube (YouTube, Desktop)
• { .twemoji } LBRY
• { .twemoji } NewPipe (YouTube, Android)
• { .twemoji } NewPipe x Sponsorblock
• { .twemoji }{ .twemoji } Invidious (YouTube, Web)
• { .twemoji } Piped (YouTube, Web)

Learn more :material-arrow-right:

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