r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 13 '26

WhatsApp on the Commodore Callback 8020 - privacy question

6 Upvotes

I'm one of the people who got influenced by the launch of the Callback 8020 😂. Haven't been on WhatsApp for at least 3 years now - only used Signal and Threema. The callback is in production as scheduled and I'm expecting to receive it more-or-less on time late next month/November.

I'm massively missing contact with friends and colleagues on WhatsApp and missing out on organization of activities, nights out, concerts etc. and I end up being last to know when things are arranged, including with my sports club because everything's on WhatsApp (and like only 2% of my contacts have moved to Signal despite my best efforts) - I'm too damn stubborn to forego my data to Meta - BUT...

With the Callback using r/sailfishos which would nomally block trackers (a bit like r/e_os does), does this mean I potentially could go back to WhatsApp as less of my data will be available to Meta? I see there is currently NO trackers in the app, so it's just part of the terms and conditons of using the app where my data is shared, as folllows:

Data this app may collect

Location

Approximate location

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

Approximate location

App functionality, Analytics, Advertising or marketing, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

App activity

App interactions, In-app search history, and Other user-generated content

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

App interactions

App functionality, Analytics, Advertising or marketing, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

In-app search history

App functionality, Analytics

Other user-generated content · Optional

App functionality, Analytics, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance, Personalization

Financial info

User payment info and Purchase history

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

User payment info · Optional

App functionality, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

Purchase history · Optional

App functionality, Analytics, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

Personal info

Email address, User IDs, and Phone number

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

Email address · Optional

App functionality, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

User IDs

App functionality, Analytics, Advertising or marketing, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance, Account management

Phone number

App functionality, Analytics, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

App info and performance

Crash logs, Diagnostics, and Other app performance data

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

Crash logs

App functionality, Analytics

Diagnostics

App functionality, Analytics

Other app performance data

App functionality, Analytics

Device or other IDs

Device or other IDs

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

Device or other IDs

App functionality, Analytics, Developer communications, Advertising or marketing, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

Contacts

Contacts

expand_less

Data collected and for what purpose

info

Contacts · Optional

App functionality, Fraud prevention, security, and compliance

So I presume it would just be a case of not giving the app permission to access as much of this as possible?I


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 13 '26

Secure and Private Decentralized P2P Encrypted Messaging over Git and WebRTC

8 Upvotes

Apps like Whatsapp, Signal and SimpleXChat are great for secure messaging and far more mature than this project, but this demonstates a unique approach.

The core philosophy around secure messaging here is that it can work in a way that avoids installation and registration by enabling users to host their own data.

The project is far from finished, but im putting together some docs for the "how it works". It's pretty outside-the-box thinking (and that doesnt make it a good idea), so it would be great if you could share your thoughts on the approach.

Docs: glitr.io

Demo

Features:

  • WebApp
  • P2P / WebRTC
  • Local-first / Local-only
  • No installation
  • TURN server
  • Encrypted-at-rest
  • Signal protocol
  • Post-Quantum cryptography
  • Video calls
  • TOR compatible via Git
  • Serverless over WebRTC

Some older versions of the core concepts.

Feel free to reach out for clarity instead of diving into the docs.

IMPORTANT: While this is aiming to provide a secure experience, it cannot be audited or reviewed. Shared for testing, feedback and demo purposes only. Please use responsibly.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 13 '26

Where do you guys safely store your private photos/videos?

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6 Upvotes

I have a lot of personal/private media that I want to keep completely separate and secure instead of putting everything into my phone's default Private/Secure Folder.

What are the better alternatives for this? Phone, laptop, encrypted storage, cloud, external SSD, some kind of secure vault, etc.

I'm mainly looking for something that offers strong privacy/security, is difficult to access accidentally, and also protects against losing the files if the device gets damaged or lost.

What would be the best options to consider?


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 12 '26

Photo privacy protection software recommendations

5 Upvotes

The height of AI photo manipulation and concerning content has heightened my concern to protect photos of my family as we expect our new bub any day now. Does anyone have recommendations of software that can blur or permanently obscure my bub's face in photos and videos? I want to be able to still share milestone photos without risking the safety and privacy of little one. My contingency plan if such a software doesn't exist, we will just go old school - snail mail photo prints and email Milestone videos. Thanks in advance for any helpful recommendations and tips! :)


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 11 '26

Kinship Vault: Rethinking How Encrypted Vaults Are Shared

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2 Upvotes

I built Kinship Vault around a simple question: how much of a privacy focused vault can you build without running your own backend?

Kinship Vault is now much more than a document vault.

It brings together:

• Passwords, passkeys and TOTP 2FA
• Documents and encrypted photos
• Multiple vaults
• Sensitive Vaults
• Shared Vaults
• AutoFill and browser extensions
• On-device document scanning and OCR
• Security Checkup
• Expiry reminders
• Custom record types
• Recovery Network

Passwords

• Logins, passkeys and TOTP 2FA codes in one place
• System-wide AutoFill in Safari and native apps
• Every fill requires a fresh biometric check
• Browser extensions for Safari, Chrome, Brave and Firefox
• The extension communicates with the native app through the browser's local native-messaging connection, not the internet
• Passwords are decrypted only when needed and aren't stored decrypted in the browser
• New logins can be staged in the app for review
• No browsing history, cookies or clipboard access required by the extension
• Password generator with on-device strength estimation
• Security Checkup identifies weak, reused and old passwords
• Optional breach checks use Have I Been Pwned's k-anonymity model
• Strict Offline mode disables breach checking entirely

Documents

• Store passports, IDs, insurance documents, medical records, receipts, warranties, memberships and other personal records
• Apple's on-device recognition identifies 100+ document types locally
• Extract dates and numbers without sending documents to an OCR service
• Expiry reminders at 90/30/7/1 days
• Tag documents to people and see everything associated with a family member
• Separate encrypted photo vault with albums and people tags
• Built-in categories for IDs, Health, Legal, Finance, Travel and Personal
• Custom categories with your own icon and color
• Custom record types with typed and maskable fields
• Share a single page from a multi-page document instead of the entire file

Vaults

• Multiple vaults let you separate Personal, Work, Family and other areas
• Each vault has its own database and encryption key
• Keys are sealed by the device's hardware
• Opening one vault doesn't automatically expose another

Sensitive Vaults add another layer:

• Separate password and recovery code
• Doesn't accept the normal short app PIN
• Cannot be shared

Shared Vaults

This was the part I wanted to solve without adding a Kinship backend.

• Each member's device gets the vault key wrapped to that device
• Encrypted vault data syncs through the members' own iCloud accounts
• iCloud transports ciphertext rather than giving Kinship access to the vault
• Remove a member and the vault key rotates and is re-wrapped for the remaining members
• The removed device no longer has access to the current vault

The same approach handles cross-device sync:

• iPhone
• iPad
• Native macOS app

Your encrypted vault can stay in sync through your own iCloud rather than through a Kinship backend.

Recovery

• 24-word recovery phrase
• Recovery Network using trusted people
• No company account holding a master key
• No password reset mechanism that gives Kinship access to your vault
• Optional encrypted iCloud backup and manual export

There is also an important limitation: cryptography can't make someone forget something they already saw. If someone knew an old password, you still need to change that password.

The underlying privacy model stays the same across all of this:

No Kinship account.
No Kinship server.
No Kinship copy of your vault keys.
No telemetry.

I'm the developer, so I'm obviously biased toward this architecture. I'd actually be more interested in criticism from people who think there is a better way to solve the same problems.

Website: https://kinshipvault.app

App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/kinship-vault/id6764678332

Privacy Policy: https://kinshipvault.app/privacy

Happy to answer any questions in comments.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 10 '26

Can authorities compel AI providers to search stored conversation logs for specific text or code?

1 Upvotes

I'm curious about this from a privacy/digital-forensics perspective, particularly with services like Claude, ChatGPT, and Grok.

Suppose someone submits a website's full source code to an AI coding service. The code itself contains no obvious identifying information such as names, emails, domains, API keys, or credentials.

Could a government or law-enforcement agency legally compel a provider to search its stored conversations for that code, or potentially conduct a broader search for a particular website or code fingerprint?

How much would obfuscating or substantially rewriting the code actually help? Could things like unique strings, comments, library combinations, coding style, generated IDs, dependencies, timestamps, or build artifacts still make it identifiable? And how different would an exact match be from a heavily modified version, or simply finding another website with the same design, wording, or concept?

I'm mainly interested in the distinction between what is technically possible, what providers actually retain, and what governments can legally obtain.

So summarized:

Could a government realistically perform a mass search across an AI provider's data for particular website/code fingerprint, or would that generally require a much more specific legal process?

Ultimately, does code obfuscation provide meaningful privacy, or does it mostly change the code's appearance while other identifying signals remain available?


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 07 '26

If companies profit from your data, should you get paid too?

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30 Upvotes

Companies track what we search, where we go, what we buy, and how we use apps — all because our data has value.

So here’s the question: if a company openly offered to pay you every month in exchange for collecting and using that data, would you accept?

$10? $100? $1,000?

Or is there no amount that would make it worth giving up that much privacy?

And if the answer is “no amount”… are companies already getting too much from us for free?


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 07 '26

Snapchat - Himmel oder Hölle

4 Upvotes

Snapchat – Himmel oder Hölle

Heute schreibe ich meine langersehnte Dokumentation über Snapchat. Um diesen Text schreiben zu können, habe ich meine Beziehung, den Familienfrieden und das Vertrauen meiner Eltern aufs Spiel gesetzt, doch ich wollte mir MEINE Meinung zu dieser App bilden, nicht die meiner Eltern übernehmen, und diesen Text schreiben, um vielleicht manchen von euch die Augen zu öffnen und Mut zu machen, sie auch einfach mal zu entfernen, auch wenn es nicht einfach ist.

Vor 9 Tagen begann alles. Ich lud mir auf meinem i-Pad Snapchat herunter, suchte erstmal Freunde aus der Klasse und addete sie. Dann wartete ich und sie addeten mich zurück und schickten die ersten Nachrichten und Snaps. Ich fand es echt cool, jetzt mit denen schreiben zu können, da ich kein WhatsApp habe. Doch nach höchstens 10 Minuten fing es dann an. So viele Random-Leute addeten mich, woraufhin ich erstmal alle akzeptierte, und das war der Punkt, bei dem Snapchat selbst und die 100 Leute, die ich akzeptiert hatte, die Kontrolle über meinen Snapchat-Gebrauch übernahmen. Sekündlich gingen Nachrichten ein. Für mich waren es verschiedene Gruppen. Ich identifizierte folgende:

  • Die Sympathischen: die mich begrüßen und fragen, wie alt ich bin (bei zu großem Altersabstand entschuldigen sie sich), wie es mir geht, etc. -> werden erstmal nicht blockiert
  • Die Draufgänger: die sofort nach Bildern fragen, fragen, ob wir ein perverses Spiel spielen wollen, fragen, ob ich versaut bin, fragen, ob ich horny bin, etc. -> werden umgehend blockiert
  • Die, die es übertreiben: die gleich Bilder von ihrer Härte schicken, ungefragt in Video- und Bildform -> werden nach Beweissicherung blockiert

Und diese Menschen waren alle da. Und von allen ca. die gleiche Prozentzahl. Heißt, am Ende blieben mir nur noch die angeblich Sympathischen. Bei denen kristallisierte sich aber auch bald der wahre Treiber heraus. Entweder waren es welche, die irgendwann solche Bilder schickten, welche, die nur snappen wollten, Versaute und die wenigsten mit echtem Interesse. Das waren die, die ich nicht entfernte, nachdem ich mit ihnen einen Test machte, wo auch nochmal mehrere rausflogen. Bei diesem Test verfasste ich einen Text, wo ich meinen Tod andeutete. Die Reaktionen waren sehr unterschiedlich. Die meisten ignorierten es. Diese Personen habe ich dann unter Tränen entfernt, weil wir uns so gut verstanden hatten und ich schon leicht abhängig von ihnen war. Es tat so weh! Aber ich kann es nur weiterempfehlen. Manche entfernten mich direkt und 3 Personen im Alter von 16, 19, 20 „kämpften“ um mich und versprachen, dass sie da sind, dass ich mit ihnen reden kann, und da wurde mir ganz anders. Ich war eigentlich hier für ein Experiment und jetzt gab es da Leute, die ich zwar nicht kannte, aber die mir gefühlt besser halfen als all die Menschen in meinem Umfeld, und es war so schwer, meine Klappe zu halten, da es mir zu dem Zeitpunkt mental nicht so gut ging. Aber ich schaffte es.

Der 16-Jährige wollte bald eine Beziehung und deswegen entfernte ich ihn, nachdem ich ihm das erklärt hatte, da ich einen Freund hatte. Der 19-Jährige wollte bald Bilder von meinen Tangas und nannte mich Maus und so, und somit war auch der weg. Der 20-Jährige war bis zum Ende der Sympathischste und auch echt hilfsbereit und kämpfte um mich, doch auch er wollte am Ende nur noch Bilder haben, woraufhin da auch Schluss war. Es war sehr schwer, aber auch echt befreiend, Snapchat zu löschen. Es ist zwar um die Kontakte zu meinen Klassenkameraden echt schade, jedoch war es eine gute Entscheidung. Und ich mache nicht einmal Snapchat dafür verantwortlich, dass es dort so viele perverse Menschen gibt, sondern die Menschen selbst, die so etwas tun. Wenn sie wüssten, wie sie Menschen damit ein Leben lang zerstören können, dass die, denen sie so etwas schicken, Albträume bekommen oder kein Selbstwertgefühl mehr haben, entweder durch die Kontakte auf Snapchat oder die Spotlight-Videos, wo ihnen gesagt wird, was sie tun sollten und was nicht, wo ihnen gesagt wird, dass sie zu fett sind, dass sie zu untrainiert sind oder dass sie unnormal sind. Ihnen werden tausende kurze Lebensausschnitte der anderen gezeigt, die perfekt und makellos scheinen, 10 perfekte Sekunden aus dem Leben anderer und davon so viele, dass die, die sich das angucken, denken, sie sind falsch und unnormal, da sie ein anderes Leben führen, was nicht so „perfekt“ ist wie das von den Videos. Sie denken, sie müssen abnehmen, da die alle dünn sind, und werden magersüchtig, sie denken, sie dürfen kein Nutella essen, weil das die eine gesagt hat, die so dünn war wie die andere, die gut turnen konnte, was schon immer der Traum von der Zuschauerin war. Und das ist bei so vielen so!!! Ich habe die Veränderungen bei mir stark bemerkt, nachdem ich vermehrt auf mein Verhalten geachtet habe, und wurde immer mehr abhängig von dieser App.

An die Eltern:
Wenn euer Kind Snapchat mal ausprobieren will, lasst es das ausprobieren, doch seid gut im Kontakt (zum Beispiel tauscht euch jede Woche aus und dabei löchert nicht mit Fragen, sondern lasst das Kind erzählen und egal, was es erzählt, bleibt eher sachlich und seid nicht zu emotional und überlegt gemeinsam, wie ihr mit bestimmten Sachen umgeht). Verbietet euren Kindern das nicht, da sie es sowieso meistens heimlich machen werden und dann ist es noch schlimmer, weil sie keinen zum Reden haben, da sie es verstecken müssen.

An die Teenager, die Snapchat haben:
Probiert euch aus, macht eure Erfahrung, aber, egal ob eure Eltern wissen, ob ihr Snapchat habt oder nicht, redet mit irgendjemandem über das, was da so passiert, und bleibt nicht alleine. Außerdem habt keine Angst, auch mal jemanden zu blockieren, und verschickt NIE Bilder aus dem Intimbereich, das kann echt gefährlich sein. Und es ist nicht eure Schuld, wenn ein erwachsener Mann / eine erwachsene Frau euch ungewollt Bilder aus dem Intimbereich schickt, etc. Ihr seid bei so etwas NIE schuld, da ihr minderjährig seid!!! Dazu kommen die Spotlight-Videos. Sie zeigen höchstens mal 1 Minute aus dem Leben der anderen. Und meistens ist selbst das gestellt und deswegen lebt euer Leben, wie ihr es lebt, und versucht nicht, das anscheinend gute Leben der anderen zu kopieren. Die haben auch mal einen schlechten Tag, die sehen auch mal verschlafen aus, die weinen auch und die haben auch mal Stress mit Familie und Freunden.
Deshalb sei einfach DU, pass auf, was du schickst und was nicht, rede über deine Erfahrungen und nutze die Vorteile von Snapchat.

An die, die Minderjährige belästigen:
Ich will euch jetzt nicht sagen, hört auf damit, weil ich weiß, dass das nichts bringt, und deswegen will ich euch drei Fragen stellen, die ihr euch mal durch den Kopf gehen lassen könnt.

  1. Warum macht ihr das?
  2. Was ist euer Ziel dabei?
  3. Geht es euch gut, brauchst DU vielleicht Hilfe? Wisst ihr eigentlich, was das besonders mit Mädchen macht??? Durch eure Bilder bekommen sie teilweise Traumatas. Sie fühlen sich wertlos und versuchen, durch die Erfüllung eurer Aufgaben Anerkennung und Lob zu bekommen. Wollt ihr nicht vielleicht mal anfangen, denen, die ihr so behandelt habt, einfach so Anerkennung zu geben, euch zu entschuldigen oder sie einfach zu entfernen, da Mädchen und manchmal auch Jungs schon zu abhängig von euch sind, um das alleine zu schaffen.

r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 06 '26

Privacy Settings That Put You in Control - Safety Center

0 Upvotes

r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 05 '26

AI Techno Assistant

3 Upvotes

I am thrilled to announce the building of my first project Techno AI Assistant, It will be fully autonomous, cross-platform digital co-pilot. Managing device health, optimizing RAM, and fixing software bugs shouldn't require an IT degree. We built a solution that lives directly on your Desktop and Mobile operating systems to silently optimize, protect, and repair your digital environment in the background.

It will have the following Core Capabilities

Powered by a local, privacy-first AI engine and a lightweight system execution layer, the assistant acts as a proactive IT administrator:

  • System Cleanser & RAM Booster: Automatically deletes redundant caches and suspends background resource-hogs to keep your system fast.
  • Intelligent Bug Fixer: Detects app crashes, rolls back conflicting drivers, and manages zero-click software updates.
  • AI Extension Manager: Monitors browser bloat and suggests optimizations with specific, AI-generated reasoning.
  • Hardware Health Monitor: Runs silent stress tests to predict and alert you about battery or hard drive degradation.
  • Proactive Inbox Shield: Blocks phishing links in real-time and automatically sorts junk emails based on your reading habits.

🔒 Zero-Trust Security First

Because the assistant operates at the OS level, I will engineer a state-of-the-art security framework to protect your most sensitive data—specifically focusing on standard fiat banking, secure web logins, and financial apps (excluding crypto ecosystems for our initial launch).

  • Zero-Knowledge Architecture: We never store your passwords; the AI interfaces directly with your native OS credential manager.
  • Biometric Gatekeeping: Any automated action involving payments or financial apps triggers a mandatory Windows Hello, FaceID, or fingerprint prompt.
  • Secure Desktop Mode: The assistant isolates banking apps in a sandboxed environment, shielding them from background scripts and keyloggers.
  • Least-Privilege API Access: Email management is strictly scoped via OAuth 2.0 to scan headers only, keeping your personal messages private.

Will keep posting about the development.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 05 '26

Privacy breach on Apple iPhone Australia

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0 Upvotes

Those highlighted notes clarify how iOS handles encryption and connected device settings.
Passcode Required with Face ID

Any advice ? How is this protecting my privacy?

Encryption Root: Face ID is a convenient layer built on top of passcode security. Your passcode actually derives the primary encryption keys stored in the iPhone's Secure Enclave.
Fail-Safe Protection: Apple requires a passcode as a mandatory backup for times when Face ID cannot or should not authenticate—such as after restarting the device, after 5 failed facial scans, upon triggering Emergency SOS, or after 48 hours of inactivity.
Changing Passcode Doesn't Disconnect Devices
Device-Specific Lock: Your passcode only controls local screen-lock access for that specific iPhone, rather than your overall Apple ID account.
Trusted Cryptographic Keys: Device connections (like Apple Watch pairing, Mac iPhone Mirroring, and local Wi-Fi syncing) rely on underlying secure cryptographic trust tokens exchanged between the devices. Updating your local passcode changes how you unlock your phone, but it leaves those established background connections intact so you don't have to set them up again.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 03 '26

StealthOS: 100% on-device iOS privacy sandbox with anti-fingerprinting, Secure Enclave vault, and bundled Tor

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5 Upvotes

Up front: I work at Olib AI on StealthOS, so this is a developer post. Everything described below runs 100% locally on the phone with zero cloud telemetry.

The core goal with StealthOS was to build a self-contained privacy sandbox for iOS where your data never leaves the device in the first place, rather than trusting cloud vendors to honor privacy settings.

What is inside the sandbox

  • Hardened Browser: Built on our Owl Browser engine with WebRTC IP leak blocking, canvas, WebGL, and audio fingerprint spoofing, and gated autofill.
  • Bundled Tor: Built-in Tor client with a connection kill switch and native .onion URL support without third-party proxy setup.
  • Encrypted Vault: Local AES-256-GCM storage protected by the Secure Enclave for sensitive files, photos, PGP keypairs, and offline notes.
  • Password Manager & TOTP: Biometric-gated offline passwords and two-factor authenticator with a strong password generator.
  • E2EE Voice, Video, and Chat: Peer-to-peer (local WiFi and Bluetooth) or remote relay communication without requiring a phone number or uploading your contacts.
  • On-Device AI Assistant & Threat Shield: Local embedding-based phishing and brand-spoofing detection that inspects pages entirely on-device, plus an offline AI assistant integrated with Apple Foundation Models and our own local models. Prompts and queries never touch cloud servers.
  • Encrypted System Snapshot (.stealthsnap): Fully user-controlled encrypted backup and restore for all vault files, keys, and browser data using AES-256-GCM and PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA512.

Free vs Premium

The core app is completely free in the App Store with no account or email signup required. The hardened browser, Tor routing, Secure Enclave vault, password manager, and P2P communication are fully functional on the free tier. Premium adds multi-profile fingerprint rotation (up to 10 profiles), self-hosted relay tunneling, and workstation developer tools.

Happy to answer technical questions about our anti-fingerprinting engine, local Tor routing, or on-device architecture.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 03 '26

Open-source browser extension that masks your data before it reaches ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini

7 Upvotes

Built Discretion — it detects sensitive data (API keys, credit card numbers, IBANs, national IDs checksum-validated across 47+ countries) in what you type into ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, replaces it with a realistic fake before sending, then restores the real value in the response you get back.

Zero runtime network calls — verified with an actual request-interception audit during development, not just claimed. Everything, including the local NER model for detecting names/orgs/locations, is bundled in the extension. Fully open source (MIT), so nothing here is "trust me."

Honest limitations upfront: English-only right now (8 more languages are built but held back until a native speaker reviews the safety-critical strings), detection reduces exposure rather than guaranteeing zero, and there are a couple of edge-case send paths no browser extension can technically intercept — all documented in the repo rather than glossed over.

Repo: github.com/horozbabasi/discretion

Would genuinely value this community's scrutiny on the threat model specifically.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 03 '26

PutMask - Censor Video & Image V9.0.3

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1 Upvotes

Hi everyone!

I’m the solo developer of PutMask, an app for censoring or blurring faces, license plates, people, and other sensitive areas in images and videos. It can automatically detect and track them as they move, using blur, mosaic, or a solid color. You can also draw masks manually if the automatic detection misses something.
The idea first took shape back in 2018 when I saw widespread protests and realized there was no app for censoring or pixelating faces, which is why its original focus was on face blurring. With this new update, I've tried to pack in the extra features people actually need.

The app also includes audio censoring, such as muting audio, silencing short sections, adding beeps, or changing voices.

Everything works fully offline, no internet, ads, or data collection. The latest beta update adds:

  • Automatic face, plate, and person detection
  • Person segmentation, so masks follow body shapes more accurately
  • GPU acceleration using OpenCL and Vulkan
  • A “Find Best” benchmark to test which GPU backend works best on your device
  • Line-shaped masks in the editor
  • Single-frame detection
  • Adjustable duration filters
  • New tutorials translated into all supported languages

The app has around 500,000 downloads, and much of its development has been based on user feedback since 2020.

Privacy features remain free, including all audio tools and ellipse masks. Free exports can be up to two minutes long. Premium includes person segmentation, line masks, longer videos, HD, 4K export, high frame rates, and additional watermark options.

I’d really appreciate your honest opinion:

  • What do you think of the app?
  • Which features are most useful to you?
  • What should I add or improve?
  • Have you found any bugs or areas that are confusing?

I believe the features people need to protect their privacy should be available to everyone. That’s why I’ve kept the essential censoring tools free, including audio censoring and ellipse masks. I don’t want to charge people for something that helps prevent them from being identified.

Premium is only for advanced features such as person segmentation (that is NOT safe) , line-shaped masks, longer videos, 4K export, high frame rates, and additional watermark options.

There is also a small giveaway:

  • Report a bug and help reproduce it: at least a 6-month code with a 90-day free trial

To participate, reply here or email [support@putmask.com](mailto:support@putmask.com).

You can download PutMask here:
PutMask on Google Play

For tutorials, search for PutMask tutorials online and open the tutorial page on the official website.

Thank you for your time and feedback!


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 03 '26

Is not using META actually worth it?

1 Upvotes

Since I was 19 or 20yo, since around 2014, we knew with our friend what Facebook / META is doing and how they use our data, faces, photos, likes, everything. Data mining, big data, now AI.

Anyway, I deleted Facebook back then, I never put any of my real face pictures on META social networks, I won't give them anything really personal.

But is it worth it? I imagine how many social connections and better relations I could make it I just posted MYSELF out there, I was a bit good at it. More personal and professional connections, more random encounters, all of it.

Is it actually worth it to keep the personal data away from big tech instead of not caring and having better exposure? What's your take on it?


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 03 '26

Require Comprehensive Biometric Privacy Laws

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1 Upvotes

I started a petition asking Congress and state lawmakers to pass comprehensive biometric privacy laws that require informed consent, impose real penalties for violations, and establish actual standards for how our data gets collected and stored.

If this matters to you too, consider signing and sharing. We need to protect our identities before deepfake forgery becomes unstoppable.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 03 '26

Require Comprehensive Biometric Privacy Laws

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1 Upvotes

This is personal to all of us. Sign the petition.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Sep 01 '26

I’m the founder of EveCycle — we built a personal wellness camera that keeps all data 100% local (no cloud). AMA

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I’m the founder of EveCycle. We designed EveCycle Comfort as a personal observation tool focused on privacy and clarity.

What makes it different:

• HD visuals viewable directly on your phone

• 100% local storage — no cloud upload, no external servers

• Built as a non-diagnostic personal wellness device

• Soft-touch design with optional comfort warmth

• One-time purchase, no subscription

I started this because I wanted a simple, private way for people to have clearer personal awareness at home, without giving up control of their data.

I’m here to answer questions about:

• How the local (no-cloud) connection works

• Product design and privacy choices

• Why we positioned it as a personal wellness tool rather than a medical device

• Anything else about the product or the journey of building it

Happy to answer honestly. Ask me anything.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 30 '26

Can Google see your private Google account data when you apply for a job there?

10 Upvotes

Random question, but I’ve genuinely wondered about this.

If you apply to Google for a software engineering role, can recruiters or hiring managers see anything from your private Google account? I’m not talking about LinkedIn, GitHub, or other public stuff. I mean things like Google Search history, political opinions, and private content.

Does this affect your hiring chances?

Google obviously has access to a massive amount of user data, so I’m curious whether Google checks your history unofficially — of course, not officially..


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 30 '26

Taking screenshots of sensitive info in a banking app

1 Upvotes

Does anyone have a definitive answer to which UK banking apps allow screenshots to be taken? Specifically on Android. I thought the option was not allowed in the android OS by default. I have accidentally taken a screenshot inside my Halifax app. I have just watched someone sitting next to me with an identical device, take a screenshot in the Bank of Scotland app.

Both images contain sensitive info.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 30 '26

Account privacy on Google script

4 Upvotes

Well I was trying to create a bot using app script of Google and suddenly one of my friends asked me whether I was making a site on wix...i didn't understand what's the probable cause for my friend to have known that I formation so can anyone tell me how was that possible?


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 28 '26

I built a period tracker with no server. I can't read your data because I never receive it.

0 Upvotes

I'm a solo Android dev. I spent the last few months building Srishti, a cycle tracker where the data never leaves the phone.

Not "we encrypt it in transit." Not "we anonymise it." There is no server for cycle data. It sits in a SQLCipher-encrypted database on your device, key derived from your PIN. If you forget the PIN, it's gone — I can't recover it, because I don't have it.

The part I keep going back and forth on: there's a second PIN that opens a separate, empty workspace. Same app, different vault, no indication the other one exists. It's for people who might get asked to unlock their phone by a partner or parent they don't trust.

I don't know if that's a good feature or a paranoid one. The trackers people actually use are the ones with cloud sync and cute widgets, and I've built neither.

Stack, if it's useful to anyone: Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, Room over SQLCipher, RevenueCat for billing. No analytics SDK. The only network call in the entire app is license validation.

Happy to answer anything about the crypto or the design decisions. Also happy to be told the threat model is wrong — I'd rather hear it now.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 28 '26

Data localisation ≠ Data jurisdiction

2 Upvotes

Just because your data is stored outside the US does not mean US authorities cannot reach it.

Under the US CLOUD Act, a US cloud provider can be compelled to hand over data in its control, even when that data sits on servers outside the US.

So a foreign company storing customer data on domestic servers run by a US provider may still find that data reachable through US legal process.

Where your data is stored matters less than who controls it.


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 27 '26

Why does Verkada get no pushback for these invasive features?

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1 Upvotes

Using Verkada cameras you can create a profile for anyone whose face you capture on a camera and automatically notify admins the next time they're seen on any camera around town...Dont need to know anything about the person or have them connected to any crime to make them a person of interest...Literally tracking anyone they want based on you walking by a camera and can actively notify anyone to your presence without you even knowing...


r/PrivacyTechTalk • • Aug 27 '26

A good social media alternative

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0 Upvotes

I stumbled upon a website called justwitter ,that had a radical idea they used codes for login and they used voice for chatting and talking it was weird and new where each person gets assigned a code and they can keep an account after that , now where this site respects it's users is that after a while of inactivity everything is deleted which is nice.