At the most basic level we want our mobile phones to receive and answer calls.
Add to this the next set of slightly more specific asks
Receive and send text messages
Send and receive emails from all my accounts
listen to music \ FM radio
browse the net
use apps like Twitter, Whats app, Instagram or whatever app it is that is currently popular
A mobile OS should be able to support all these requests and more. As a user I want that as I browse/ read / share information with my friends and the world my personal information is safe.
This is the area where we as users felt let down by google. This is where / e / comes in. The OS has been built with the intention of keeping the user data safe from prying eyes.
A growing community of users spread across the globe are daily checking and reporting glitches and areas where the apps or OS needs to be strengthened. This forum and some of the issues raised on Gitlab are indicators of this active role played by the users. While I understand that / e / as of today is not perfect, with the support and guidance of all the users I am sure it will be able to iron out these vulnerabilities.
With / e / on my mobile I feel safe.
@Manoj pretty much agree to your points. I also have some more vision to /e/. In your own writing you have mentioned that you want your data to be safe and that is where Google has failed. Now I want the same sense of security as well. But it is not only Google that has failed us all there but its entire ecosystem such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram ,etc., I dream of /e/ creating a credible platform which F droid has failed to deliver ; which Ubuntu Touch has failed to deliver; which sailfish has failed to deliver, which Tizen and other myriad initiatives has failed to deliver.
I am counting on /e/ to create an app market to encourage development of FOSS apps. With enough consumers adoption and an opportunity for some amount of monetization this should be doable. I believe elementary OS is taking baby steps in this direction in Linux world. I would like something similar here.
Safety of personal information is one thing, abusing/using it against you (aka targeted advertising, curated information feeds etc) said information is another. For the general public they know the governments are collecting there data and generally don’t care or conditioned not to. What they aren’t aware and would likely object if they could is the level of corporate surveillance. I assume most people don’t want Instagram/Facebook listening to you all the time with their apps selling your data to the highest bidder. Google recording all your searches and reading your most private emails.
That’s where I can see /e/ gaining traction. In education (alerts, inforgraphics built in), safeguards where possible (mircoG) then alternatives (floss apps)
What I’m looking for in /e/?They do everything to de google the phone,but what about security apps like signal andere others.I’m searching for a super secure /e/phone.What’s the use of an degoogled phone when the other apps are not secure based and safe.I vote for a super secure phone with/e/,because privacy and safety do really mather for most of us.
My personal expectation was/is a distribution that promotes privacy.
This comes down to preventing other organisations, primarily companies access to my data and communication.
With that I mean:
de-googled OS
privacy focused standard apps
an app store that makes it easy to chose additional apps. In my view the app store should mostly promote privacy focused apps. The rest can be downloaded from e.g Yalp store.
a standard communication app that is very privacy focused and is used at least for all /e/ communication.
a privacy focused browser as standard app
I did not realise it at first but now think that to include cloud access was a good idea for the masses. It should be explicitly turned on though (like with Google or Apple)
encryption is used wherever possible and useful for the privacy oriented approach
I think the app store has a big role to play here. It should:
give a high level of confidence to the user that they can find privacy focused apps easily and that problematic apps are clearly marked.
make it easy to discover privacy focused open source apps
sort searches based on privacy
mostly include privacy respecting apps
probably not include obvious privacy risk apps like WhatsApp and instead point the user to Yalp if they really have to use it.
clearly mark open source apps
have a moderated section for recommended privacy/security focused apps
last but not least there should be decent documentation that explains his the app store works. Where do the apps come from, how recommendations are made, his lists are sorted and why, etc. So next to the how do I use the app store docu there should be info on the approach
I do appreciate that some people also look for a very secure system in the sense that data on the device and ideally communication with others is very secure and can also not be accessed by government organisations (anybody really). I think the privacy focused and the security focused are two slightly different audiences but the second objective can be build on the first.
However, to achieve decent privacy is much easier than a water tight safe system. Also prioritising security that much would almost inevitably require decisions that are probably unwanted by the other group.
In the end it is probably also difficult for the e.foundation to build a level of trust that people with super high security requirements are satisfied in. These things take time.
So if /e/ prioritises easily to achieve privacy for now with the option to increase security in the future I am a happy camper.
I honestly think this desire is a potential trap. As leaks and whistleblowers have revealed is that there is no such thing has a ‘secure’ device/apps because if you are targeted then they will devised means to surveil your device. Obviously a more secure phone could potentially shield you from NSA style mass surveillance. I don’t see /e/ providing a ‘super secure’ phone for journalists/activists or the like but more a operating system that makes apps more transparent, educates and informs people like above that telcos record your locations from cell towers, that this social app or this app has access to your contacts, microphone, camera etc.
I really support it!!!