Why did Michael Bazzell, a credible privacy expert, say that buying a smartphone from an online marketplace is bad?

Privacy Questions
23

I feel like I learned a ton from his podcasts. Why do say “he’s actually a huge grifter?

I’m considering the latest ebook because it’s comprehensive and I can pick and choose what I want to implement based on my needs.

Do you know of a better source that’s as comprehensive as his material?

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24

I did learn a lot as well but he entices the idea of extreme privacy, and that includes a threat model with a lot of threat actors in it that the everyday people doesn’t need to have.

Changing names and faking death is also included as well as using companies to hide your properties behind. It could be of value to someone, but definitely not everyone.

I have his 4th edition of the book from Amazon as well a copy of all his old podcasts. But Iearned more here on this forum. He has good physical security tips though and we dont cover it much here.

25

I apologize in advance for not directly answering the question and waxing philosophical below :slight_smile:

I don’t think anyone can give you an objective better source, since this approach of finding “best” source is flawed. It’s like asking for solution to a problem you haven’t yet diagnosed. “I might recommend a hammer, but you might be needing a drill” kind of situation.

The first step is always to start with defining the problem. I can give you an example:

  1. Who am I? If I’m a public figure, or someone whose work depends on being in a network, my model will be wayyyy different than someone who is looking to buy a homestead and go off grid.
  2. What am I looking to protect? Let’s say it could be the password to my YouTube channel, or it could be my finances, my physical address, my behavioural data, etc. Each of these require different tools and setups to protect.
  3. Who am I protecting it from?It could be Corporate surveillance, My snooping neighbours, Government dragnets, internal Espionage, etc. This would determine the capabilities of my adversary.
  4. What is the consequence if I lose some part of my data? It could be that my life might be in danger, or maybe it will just be used to serve me an ad. This will determine the extent to which I’d need to go.

And other similar questions. This will give you the background of what you actually want to do, instead of running around with a tool in search of a problem.

Once you have this ready, you can make the decision to start using password manager and 2FA or you find out you need to go to the extremes and start using Tor everyday and not communicate with anyone outside of pigeon mails carrying one time pad encryption.

It is during the above stage you start looking for resources. Now let’s say you want anonymous purchasing abilities online. So you start looking at cryptocurrency communities and ask for advice there. You start reading on let’s say Monero, and then dive deeper into attacks against Monero, how it works, etc. Go to primary sources for all of this, research what you don’t understand, ask people online. This is the resource that will actually help you.

There is no book or website anyone can point you to and say “job’s done”. It will require time and effort from your side if you wish to escape bad information and advice. Apologies for the long response, but this is a frequent question in forums like this.

If you are looking for a starting point, I have always found starting with mainstream privacy provider blogs like Proton, Mullvad blogs, etc. always helps. There is also a thread on this forum that lists out the blogs and podcasts people find good, that can also be a good jumping off point. Even reading through all the links and sources in PG recommendations would be a great starting point. No need to buy anything, all good advice is freely available. Information wants to be free, it’s just looking for people who wish to chase it :slight_smile:

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26

Thanks for your thoughtful response. What you’re describing is a critical thinking model for research.

I’ve used Bazell’s materials as an issue spotting guide from which I can pick and choose based on my own cost benefit analysis. The hassle factor involved in following some of his advice outweighs the benefits in many cases. But, much of what I’ve read and listened to has made me aware of issues and helped me implement some usefule tools.

While I know he has a business and he’s selling products, I can’t consider him a
a “grifter,” You just need to pick and choose.

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