Over the next three episodes (17, 18, and 19), we'll let our medical and privacy experts take center stage, so all of the tips in these three episodes will be super short.This week, BJ (with Rosie's assistance) interviewed Dr. Arthur Caplan, a professor of bioethics at New York University. Dr. Caplan is also the founding head of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.BJ's audio got jacked up, so Rosie re-recorded BJ's questions. Wasn't that nice of her?This discussion with Dr. Caplan is super important to listen to. That's because it sets the stage for our following interview with Brittan Heller, Senior Fellow of Democracy and Technology at The Atlantic Council, and Jen Caltrider from the Mozilla Foundation's Privacy Not Included initiative. All three of these interviews build off each other.Dr. Caplan explains how HIPPA is useless and doesn't protect you at all from the misuse of your health data by Big Tech.Brittan and BJ talk about how head-mounted displays used in AR and VR devices can be used to tell if you have Autism (as one example).And Jen talks to BJ's co-author, Amanda King, about the current state of pregnancy trackers, the device they collect, and who that information is being shared with.So, pretty important stuff. We hope you give these three episodes a listen. And don't worry. Rosie and BJ will be back with more tips and jokes in Episode 20!  Resources Mentioned In Today’s Show:-Set up a Google Alert for your name and any prominent usernames you use here.-If you are being stalked and harassed online, Hunchly can help you collect evidence of the harassment. You can use the information gathered by Hunchly to create an Incident Tracking Chart, which will help you and your attorneys strike back at harassers.-Page Vault is a more advanced program that offers similar features to Hunchly, but with one key difference: Information saved into Page Vault is admissible in a court of law. The downside? Page Vault is REALLY expensive.Our Sponsor: DuckDuckGo*Affiliate Link: 1Password.com*Affiliate Link: Delete MeGet Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal here.*Using the affiliate links supports the show and does not cost you anything extra. If you enjoy the show, we encourage you to use these links.And before we go ...BJ and Amanda are recording a two-hour video course that you can purchase based on this podcast and their upcoming book, "How to Protect Yourself From Fascists and Weirdos."The course will include every step from our privacy audits and examples of how to put those steps into practice.If you'd like to know when the course is available, email BJ at BJMendelson@Duck.com with Privacy Course in the subject line. 

You ever have a doctor take photos of your condition for further examination? How about an MRI? Have you had one of those? We like to think that HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) protects us here in the US. But increasingly ... It doesn't.So over the next few weeks, we'll talk about who's collecting your medical information, how they're using it, and who they're sharing it with. And this series is wild because we're not only talking about pictures of that funny-looking mole you have. We're talking about the neural patterns of your brain and how it acts as you make decisions in Virtual Reality.First things first, though: This week, we're going to look at services like MyChart, Phreesia, and the MANY doctor's offices that utilize Facebook's Tracking Pixel on their website. We'll tell you how to stop these companies from collecting and sharing your data, and then we'll explain why you want to do that. I mean, unless you want a generative AI like Chat GPT3 to be looking at photos of your favorite private parts and drawing some really interesting conclusions to share with others. (A real thing that's already happened.)Also, In Today's Episode ...BJ Speaks with Matthew D Green at John Hopkins University Information Security Institute to follow up on our previous episode concerning "The Cloud" and why you shouldn't put your important stuff in there.Resources Mentioned In Today’s Show-Email Privacy@Phreesia.com to opt out of their data collection -Call your doctor's office to see what data is being shared and collected on you by companies like My Chart and request to opt out.-Use the Tor Browser when visiting any websites related to managing your health care.-Use PimEyes to see who is using pictures of your face.-Use the pictures found by PimEyes to search HaveIBeenTrained.com to make sure your photos aren't being used to train generative AIs like ChatGPT3 -Request Clearview AI remove any pictures they have on you here.-BJMendelson.com's Data Opt-Out Request ListOur Sponsor: DuckDuckGo*Affiliate Link: 1Password.com *Affiliate Link: Delete MeGet Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal here.*Using these affiliate links helps to support the show and do not cost you anything extra to use. If you like the show, we encourage you to use these links to sign-up for must have services like 1Password and Delete Me.And before we go ...Thanks to the interview in Slate, we're overwhelmed with requests for Privacy Audits.So!We want to let you know BJ and Amanda are recording a two-hour video course that you can purchase.The course will include every step from the privacy audit and examples of how to put those steps into practice.If you'd like to know when the course is available, email BJ at BJMendelson@Duck.com with Privacy Course in the subject line. 

The "Cloud" has a bigger carbon footprint than the entire airline industry. It's also not secure. So if someone wants to mess with you, or worse, blackmail you after accessing your iCloud, GDrive, or Dropbox data? They absolutely can. Instead, we want you to go old school. So this week, Rosie explains why you want to get a nice external hard drive, encrypt a folder or the entire drive, and save your stuff there.Resources Mentioned In Today’s Show-Veracrypt (Wired's article on how to use it)-Toshiba Canvio Flex External HD (Portable)-Seagate Backup Plus Hub External HD (NOT portable. This drive needs to be plugged in.)-Tresorit-ProtonDrive (comes with a ProtonMail account, which we recommended here in a previous episode.)TP Link AX3000 Router-Additional Steps on how to secure your router.Also In This Episode ...This episode also contains the last part of BJ's first book on privacy — written back in 2017 —  as read by Broadway actor Roger Wayne. After this week, every remaining episode will include an interview with a privacy and security expert! Our Sponsor: DuckDuckGoAffiliate Link: 1Password.com Get Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal here.And before we go ...Thanks to the interview in Slate, we're overwhelmed with requests for Privacy Audits. So! We want to let you know BJ and Amanda are recording a two-hour video course that you can purchase. The course will include every step from the privacy audit and examples of how to put those steps into practice. If you'd like to know when the course is available, email BJ at BJMendelson@Duck.com with Privacy Course in the subject line.Photo Credit: Karolina Grabowska

This week, the women of our show kick BJ to the curb and go deep on tips, tricks, and apps you can use to keep safe while going out on a date.There's A LOT covered in this episode, but some of the highlights of what's covered by Rosie and Amanda King (co-author of "How to Protect Yourself From Fascists and Weirdos) include: How to avoid getting blackmailed, why you should use all new photos for your dating profile and remove the EXIF data from them, what tools you should know like Garbo.io and Noonlight, and why you should break up with someone at a Walmart. (A Mendelson Family tradition.)Resources Mentioned In Today’s ShowRemove EXIF information from your photos here.California Consumer Privacy Act (Now in effect!)Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act <-- This page is not as helpful as the California one. We're looking for an alternative. GDPR Data Removal Request (UK and European Union only)Spot Infrared Imager to spot hidden camerasNoonlight appStop Apple AirTag stalking with: Light Blue (ios) AirGuard (Android)Garbo.io Background ChecksBurnerApp / Google Voice (see the previous episode for more!)TinEye.com Reverse Image SearchPimEyes Reverse Image SearchIf someone is trying to blackmail you online, read this.Our Sponsor: DuckDuckGoAffiliate Link: 1Password.com Get Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal here.Today's episode was NOT sponsored by Chena Hot Springs. We just love that place.And before we go ...Thanks to the interview in Slate, we're overwhelmed with requests for Privacy Audits. So! We want to let you know BJ and Amanda are recording a two-hour video course that you can purchase. The course will include every step from the privacy audit and examples of how to put those steps into practice. If you'd like to know when the course is available, email BJ at BJMendelson@Duck.com with Privacy Course in the subject line.

This week we introduce the Stranger Danger Phone! This is a backup, pre-paid Smartphone we recommend you use when dating online. The Stranger Danger Phone is also great for content creators who maintain some kind of public-facing presence online and need to be accessible to their audience.These are easy to set up, and not expensive. Never give out your real phone number again! Rosie will explain why, and give you the steps you need to take to get one set up.Also featured in today's episode, BJ speaks with the author of "How to Disappear," Frank M Ahearn. Today, Frank helps the thousands of people who fall victim to blackmail, extortion, sextortion, and romance scams online. We talk about what steps you can take to better protect yourself, and why you should consider riding the bus the next time you want to make a break for it.***Resources Mentioned In Today’s ShowGoogle Voice <--Use this with your Stranger Danger Phone to create a Decoy Phone number. Burner (a paid alternative to Google Voice)Faraday Bag from Silent PocketEmergency Power Bank to keep your phone fully charged when out with a stranger.Mint Mobile <-- Have a trusted friend or family member buy your Stranger Danger Phone, in cash, along with a Mint Mobile sim card or three.***Our Sponsor: DuckDuckGoAffiliate Link: 1Password.com Get Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal here.And before we go ...Thanks to the interview in Slate, we're overwhelmed with requests for Privacy Audits. So! We'd like to let you know BJ is recording a two-hour video course that you can purchase. The course will include every step from the privacy audit and examples of how to put those steps into practice.If you'd like to know when the course is available for purchase, email BJ at BJMendelson@Duck.com

You need Proton Mail. Get on that immediately.Unless you use Gmail and you followed our previous advice about pairing your Gmail account with a Yubikey. In which case, you can do nothing.Unless ...This week, Rosie is going to show you how to send an encrypted email, using Proton Mail's free plan, to anyone who doesn't have an encrypted email account.This is especially useful if you ever need to send financial or health information to someone, and you can't get them to ride the Signal Bus.We're also going to explain in this episode why you should keep your most important email contacts stored offline, the way BJ's Boomer Dad does.For once, when it comes to technology, BJ's Dad is doing the right thing, and you should too. And later, Roger returns to talk about some recent data breaches, including North Korea's hacking of SONY, which is way crazier than you think it is.Resources Mentioned In Today’s ShowProton Mail and Proton VPN Recent example of a rogue employee causing a security breach.Another example of a serious hack caused by an employee's computer getting infected with malware.***Our Sponsor: DuckDuckGoAffiliate Link: 1Password.com Get Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal here.And before we go ...We're overwhelmed with requests for Privacy Audits thanks to the interview in Slate. So! We'd like to let you know BJ is recording a two-hour course that you can purchase. The course will include every step from the privacy audit and include examples of how to put those steps into practice.If you'd like to know when the course is available for purchase, email BJ at BJMendelson@Duck.com

Rosie Tran, a Weibo.tv reporter known for her actionable privacy insights, dives into essential online security tips. She highlights the importance of securing email accounts with hardware authentication devices like YubiKeys. The conversation emphasizes Google's Advanced Threat Protection Program for Gmail users. Rosie also touches on the broader implications of data tracking in retail, urging for transparency and ethical practices in how consumer data is handled. Her no-nonsense approach makes protecting privacy straightforward and accessible.

Join reporter Rosie Tran as she shares powerful strategies for creating a phone-free zone in your bedroom, improving sleep and intimacy. Victoria Song, a Wearables and fitness tech guru at The Verge, unpacks the privacy implications of health-tracking devices, especially for women. They also dive into the playful side of privacy with ghost stories, reflecting on how our fascination with the supernatural ties into surveillance and personal data security. Perfect for anyone looking to enjoy life with a little less digital distraction!

In this chat, Kelly Carlin, an author and life coach known for her work in The Sacred and the Profane community, helps us tackle digital clutter. She and the host discuss practical steps to remove unused apps that can compromise our privacy. They dive into the sneaky tactics of tech companies that exploit personal data, revealing a history of privacy invasions. Kelly also shares insights on balancing tech use with mental well-being, emphasizing the importance of mindfulness and reconnecting with nature to combat digital addiction.

Episode SummaryThis week is super simple. There are four programs everyone should have.  3 of which you can use on both your laptop and phone, and one that's desktop only (ClamAV).So, when you're done listening to today's episode, you're going to want to download and use these.Pro-Tip: Always activate your VPN if you're out and about. You can't trust every public Wi-FI spot that's out there. And while many are legit, it's just as easy to activate your VPN before connecting to any of them on your phone.Resources Mentioned In Today’s ShowSignal <-- FreeDuckDuckGo Browser <-- FreeClamAV <--Free.  (Here are visual directions on how to install and use ClamAV on your Mac. )ProtonVPN <-- Free plan available ***Our Sponsor: DuckDuckGoAffiliate Link: 1Password.com Get Your Privacy Notebook: Get your Leuchtturm1917 Official Bullet Journal hereBook Your Privacy Audit with BJ: Email BJMendelson@Duck.comIn this confidential, one on one call (conducted through Signal), BJ will walk you through all 23 steps that you should follow to better protect yourself from fascists and weirdos on the Internet. Then, a week later, he will follow up to answer any questions you might have and troubleshoot if/as needed.Today's Photo is by Kerin Gedge on Unsplash