Hello. I have recently came across the mobile Android operating system known as GrapheneOS.
It seems to be very good for my needs, as I live in very repressive government (Russia) and want to avoid their (and Google’s) spying as much as possible.
However, I am afraid that is also an issue. As I understand, there is quite a bit of stereotypes of people that like to use it (GrapheneOS), even in quite free countries like the US. I am wonder if my use of the system would lead me to be more susceptible to suspicion.
So, my question is, are my fears warranted? Has their been issues with ordinary people like me using GrapheneOS?
Also, how obvious would it be to a police that I am using it?
There are some ways to obfuscate this on the network (disabling GrapheneOS proxies and connecting straight to Google) but I am not sure how comprehensive this is or whether it would fool anything more than basic, passive network scanning. If you are just generally concerned about your ISP or mass surveillance programs knowing you’re using GrapheneOS, this may be a good idea to configure.
If you are being actively surveilled or if we are talking about physical inspection like at a border crossing, GrapheneOS is absolutely discoverable, yes.
I will be using a VPN so hiding network activity isn’t a very large concern.
I am mainly speaking of, as you say, border crossings and police stops. I now know it is easily detected, but I wonder if anyone knows how scrutinized it is specifically in Russia.
If you use a VPN and want to hide your usage of GrapheneOS from the network, make sure to change connectivity checks from GrapheneOS servers to Google to blend in with other Android devices (as Jonah already alluded to).
Connectivity checks are performed on both the VPN connections and the underlying networks to check if they work.
Good answers so far, so I’d just add that you may find more info on their forum if you ask there too.
Unfortunately, their “criminal” reputation is not unique to GrapheneOS, but they sure are a popular target these days. Lots of claims from government intelligence agencies, like France and UK that simply don’t understand that privacy is a normal and acceptable pursuit for your average citizen.
I will say that it is best to read up on your local privacy and data request laws. GrapheneOS has features like duress PIN that wipes the device on “unlock”, which may be a federal crime if you do it when asked to hand your phone to police.
Make sure you don’t have anything on your phone that can be used against you by authorities. I recall someone in the US border was detained for having evidence of marijuana usage on their phone. I wouldn’t consider that “shady”, but it’s enough for probable cause to detain, unfortunately.
If you love a good rant, I’d recommend following the GrapheneOS Mastodon/X page where they often clarify articles that claim they are “CriminalOS”. It must be maddening for them to constantly defend against these silly claims.
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