Your new mobile phone is ready to use with GrapheneOS. As I told you in lesson two, it is clean and contains no apps. Now it doesn’t hurt to add another kind of security to increase privacy a little. That’s why it’s necessary to buy the following things from a shop or, of course, use an online shop.

Useful things that will increase your privacy on any mobile device

Hardware and some goods you need

Mic Lock

  • It is used to prevent the microphone from recording conversations or other sounds nearby. With GrapheneOS, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t record anything if you disable it from the quick menu (drag the menu from the top with a sliding gesture and disable camera, microphone, etc.), but you never know…. Maybe you downloaded something or installed an app that hasn’t been tested yet. Or maybe it’s not fully open source and therefore hasn’t been reviewed by others.

Display shield

  • There are some screen protectors with anti-spy glass. It prevents “Shouldersurfer” or curious glances from seat neighbours. This is because the screen content is only visible on the display at a certain angle. For others, it’s just a black or grey display.

Camera shield

  • A simple slider that hides the camera behind a piece of metal, like you can buy for laptops. Some mobile phone cases already have it built in, but it is not available for every model

USB charger - Data blocker

  • If you want to charge your mobile phone in public, it is recommended not to use a cable that allows data transfer. There are adapters that block/prevent data use or cables that only charge mobile phones and you can plug your phone into any USB port without worrying about someone connecting to your phone without asking.

VPN is a must

What is VPN encryption?

At its core, encryption is a method of converting data from a readable format to an encrypted, non-readable format using an algorithm. The encrypted format can only be decrypted with the correct decryption key. VPN encryption can be defined as a means of encrypting plaintext data (such as your online traffic) to ensure that it appears as indecipherable gibberish to anyone trying to monitor it (such as your ISP). Some Apps or Bitcoin Wallets (like Samourai) have the option to use the Tor Network inbuild.

How can VPN on our mobile phone improve privacy?

For one, VPN encryption allows you to protect sensitive data (such as bank account details and login credentials) from cybercriminals, as they cannot eavesdrop on your internet connections, even if you are using public Wi-Fi. In addition, VPN encryption ensures that your internet activity cannot be monitored by the government, ISP and advertisers.

How does this help?

  • It prevents governments from enforcing censorship
  • VPN encryption protects you from your ISP seeing what you do online.
  • Encryption keeps advertisers at bay, as they are less likely to be able to overwhelm you with “personalised” ads or have your online data sold to advertisers by your ISP.
Mullvad VPN

A very good VPN provider

There is also a wide range of VPN providers in all possible price segments.

The short version: There is no such thing as a “beast of burden”. But Mullvad is a very, very good choice. Why? Because no identity information, kyc or email. You generate an account number. Pay with coinjoined bitcoin.

Watch this Video on YouTube to learn more:

https://www.youtube.com/embed/cpjYN8Q7Mz8

At the time of writing, it is the best choice in all categories.

Samourai Wallet

A wallet to store Bitcoin on your mobile phone

Again, there are a lot of options we can choose from. But I recommend Samourai Wallet. There is no exception. Full stop. OK, there is one, if you want to continue using an Apple device you cannot install the app. Also, you can only use Bitcoin On-Chain. You can’t do transactions via Lightning Network.

There is another wallet

Let’s say you want a second wallet or something that is not only On-Chain. Then take a look at Muun. It’s another nice wallet, and there are already many good explanatory videos about how to use it.

Epilogue and appendix of the third lesson

This article has been quite intense and many things have come up that you may not understand right away. Take the time to read the following links in the footnotes. We will get into the tools later and do some practical exercises.

And yes, making it perfect seems impossible, but with each additional obstacle we implement and use, we regain more of our freedom and can be sure that the Bitcoin we will later own is really ours and nobody can get it.