A crash course in digital security | What's Left

The election of The Donald has raised more concern about personal privacy and digital security on the internet. For those who thought that previous US administrations over-zealously compromised the online privacy of innocent people around the world the Trump era isn't gonna get any better.

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For those who aren’t that concerned, you should be. Chances are that most of your online communications, encrypted or not, have been, and continue to be swept up, and catalogued by intelligence agencies  and profit-seeking companies around the world. These claims may sound conspiratorial, but with the revelations of Edward Snowden and dozens of court cases, it has been clear that these claims are factual.

Perhaps now it a good opportunity to think about how secure your communications really are. Below are a series of of articles that detail some best practices for improving your online security. They are easy to understand guides sharing the steps to protect your communications and personal privacy with little inconvenience.

1. Read these articles

Protecting the Republic: Securing Communications is More Important than Ever

Surveillance self-defense against the Trump administration

2. See if your passwords have already compromised

Enter your email address on this site and it will search through many of the major hacks that have occurred and let you know if your username and password for that service were stolen. • Have i been pwned?

3. Update your passwords

Your Password Sucks. Sincerely, Edward.

4. Learn from Clinton’s mistakes, secure your email

Dear Clinton team: we noticed you might need some email security tips

5. Use Signal for secure communications

Install Signal

Signal for Beginners

Security tips every Signal user should know

6. Give your folks a hand

3 Ways to Boost Your Family’s Online Security This Holiday