In the same vein as the topic there, which of these features do you use?
I also add the Hide my email option (via aliases) in the survey to be checked or unchecked depending on whether you use it (even if only once) or not.
Tracker (Always)
Tracker (Sometime)
Tracker (Never)
Location (Always)
Location (Sometime)
Location (Never)
Real IP address (Always)
Real IP address (Sometime)
Real IP address (Never)
Hide my email
0voters
You can also briefly give reasons why you do or do not use a particular feature.
I use tracker blocking for all apps, except a couple of M$ apps (for work) which do not function without a specific tracker enabled
I would love to use the fake location, but only if I could choose to show it only to certain apps (I would like to have fake location enabled for all the apps on the phone, except for the maps/navigation app which needs to see my real location, to be any good).
I would also love to use fake IP (“VPN” through the Orbot network), but once enabled, the network becomes VERY sluggish and 50% of the time it doesn’t even work (I lose network connectivity completely).
I do not have the “hide my email” option. Is it because I haven’t decided to leverage any /e/OS online account for the phone itself? (I use my /e/OS account only inside the email app).
Hopefully the fake IP and location items will be improved in the next versions of /e/OS, so I can take full advantage of them too
Bit confusing options, but I assume “Tracker” refers do I use Tracking prorection and “Location” refers do I use hide my location. Especially location with given options could also refer to real location…
Hmm… Then I have to change my replies + still confusing cause opposite options… Answered always to Real IP address, but answer to opposite Hide my IP would be never. Bit like shouldn’t answer anything
I have tried AP only when it became available with 1.0 and functionality was still pretty awkward (and/or not well enough understood by me …).
I presume it has improved much since then but from what I catch up whilst browsing the forum I still get the impression that usability is not yet convenient enough for my personal use case. Maybe I have not dug deep enough…
However, I deal with trackers and ads via blokada-app (and pihole @ home) and therefore will not give up blokada using the VPN interface of the phone for the time being.
Yet still, I am happy these options/functions are being evaluated and developed!
I always use Netguard in addition to the Trackers Blocker feature of /e/OS.
What I particularly appreciate is that Trackers Blocker does not use the VPN slot of android.
I know it’s redundant but I’m fine with it.
That´s an interesting point, I was not aware of that detail for netguard actually (edit: and I got this one wrong…)
… I glanced at netguard in the very beginning of my considerations on blocking trackers, also because I appreciate Marcel Bokhorsts FairEmail-app a lot. But at that time somehow I thought it was too complicated for me . Now I am used to blokada… but might give netguard a second chance some time.
attention check got it!
… now I recall, that blokada and netguard were actually colliding when I tried the apps in parallel…because of the VPN interface
I always use Tracker Control with connection log enabled in addition to Tracker Blocker feature & on other than /e/ OS. Haven’t ever test Netguard. Do you know are those how similar or different? At least Tracker Control is based of Netguard but…
Edit: Readed quickly about Netguard from it page. Seems like there are similarities but Tracker Control blocks trackers and reports found ones after installing app & finds more of those than privacy exodus project.
I usually have location services off and just back that up by switching AP Location to “random plausible”. When I actually want to use my GPS, I switch AP to real location and turn location services back on. I don’t use this often so the extra switch in settings does not bother me.
I block trackers always, allowing as few through as possible because of a few problematic apps/sites.
I tried AP faked IP (Tor) with a selection of apps for a while. In the end, I decided I preferred to use the VPN slot for NetGuard.
AFAIK, Netguard does not aim to find or identify trackers. However, it can be optimally set to block them based on lists.
For my part I use several different concatenated lists and in particular the list of trackers of exodus privacy that I gave to Netguard
I use all of those except for fake ip address. It just makes to many websites not work. I do have to use gps at time and so I need to turn real location for that.
… from what I understand your use of Netguard in parallel to AP´s tracker blocker-function is not redundancy, is it? You use Netguard to achieve additional blocking (on top of AP´s tracker blocker), correct? Any other benefits of that combo from Your point of view?
@huuhaa do you like to share on the benefit that You see in using additional Tracker Control on top of AP´s tracker blocker? (I gave TC a try as well … a while ago but cannot recall what it was like exactly nor do I understand the differences from AP´s function well enough so I am just curious … I ended up with Blokada (version 5, apk straight from their website) and stuck to it ever since as I find it very conveniant)
My approach to NetGuard is slightly different. I let AP tracker blocking worry about the tracker lists and hope that will continue to develop and provide good protection based on which sites apps on my phone are trying to reach.
With NetGuard: a) I fairly aggressively look at the list of apps and system components on my phone asking “why would that need to talk to the internet at all”. If I’m not sure, I block the app in NetGuard and wait to see if it causes any functional problems. If so, I take the block off or reconsider use of the app. b) I also like that NetGuard provides one place for me to decide whether particular apps should ever connect over mobile data.
