A lot of security stuff if also written for folks worried about compliance, so you don't need to spend hours and hours reading about threat modeling. Schneier and Micah are really effective communicators while also being very credible, with long histories of infosec work
January 30, 2026 at 5:53 AM
A lot of security stuff if also written for folks worried about compliance, so you don't need to spend hours and hours reading about threat modeling. Schneier and Micah are really effective communicators while also being very credible, with long histories of infosec work
Just know that you can find yourself overwhelmed quickly when reading something like these historical essays on the Snowden disclosures and what to do about them. Drinking from the firehose is sometimes just as likely to make you unsure and trust nothing as other people's misinformation
NSA surveillance: how to stay secure | Bruce Schneier
Bruce Schneier: The NSA has huge capabilities – and if it wants in to your computer, it's in. With that in mind, here are five ways we can protect ourselves
www.theguardian.com
January 30, 2026 at 5:49 AM
Just know that you can find yourself overwhelmed quickly when reading something like these historical essays on the Snowden disclosures and what to do about them. Drinking from the firehose is sometimes just as likely to make you unsure and trust nothing as other people's misinformation
I'm probably rambling and repeating myself a bit due to being tired, but if you want a good place to start wrt the history and what to be worried about (other than everything), start with Schneier (look at the featured essays to start) and micahflee.com/using-signal...
Schneier on Security
www.schneier.com
January 30, 2026 at 5:47 AM
I'm probably rambling and repeating myself a bit due to being tired, but if you want a good place to start wrt the history and what to be worried about (other than everything), start with Schneier (look at the featured essays to start) and micahflee.com/using-signal...
There are all kinds of security features in your phone that make remote exploits hard. It makes the bar very high, even for the gov. Not impossible, but not realistic when you can also see ICE/CBP just running around scanning people's faces and attacking them. That is easier and somewhat scalable
January 30, 2026 at 5:43 AM
There are all kinds of security features in your phone that make remote exploits hard. It makes the bar very high, even for the gov. Not impossible, but not realistic when you can also see ICE/CBP just running around scanning people's faces and attacking them. That is easier and somewhat scalable
We may find out that is wrong. But something to know is Apple and Google did built a lot of tools into their products (Lockdown, Advanced Protection) during prior admins, and Apple did publicly refuse to backdoor the OS of their devices. That, and cloud protections still stand until proven otherwise
January 30, 2026 at 5:40 AM
We may find out that is wrong. But something to know is Apple and Google did built a lot of tools into their products (Lockdown, Advanced Protection) during prior admins, and Apple did publicly refuse to backdoor the OS of their devices. That, and cloud protections still stand until proven otherwise
So, there is almost certainly an appetite to do dragnet (i.e. monitor traffic at scale) surveillance, but it's not feasible to monitor encrypted traffic. The people at the top of FBI, NSA, DHS are incompetent, and I do imagine some smart and JAG-type folks within will find cause to not infect phones
January 30, 2026 at 5:38 AM
So, there is almost certainly an appetite to do dragnet (i.e. monitor traffic at scale) surveillance, but it's not feasible to monitor encrypted traffic. The people at the top of FBI, NSA, DHS are incompetent, and I do imagine some smart and JAG-type folks within will find cause to not infect phones
I don't think the Trump folks give much of a shit about the foreign/domestic distinction, which is related to your ask, but I do think there is probably at least some resistance to arbitrary endpoint compromise, especially at scale
January 30, 2026 at 5:35 AM
I don't think the Trump folks give much of a shit about the foreign/domestic distinction, which is related to your ask, but I do think there is probably at least some resistance to arbitrary endpoint compromise, especially at scale
During the Obama/Bush admins, the NSA got cute and considered a warrantless search of data to not be the collection but the "looking at" the collected data. I doubt that construct still holds. But regardless, if your communications are E2E encrypted, Signal Org can't read it, and neither can the gov
January 30, 2026 at 5:34 AM
During the Obama/Bush admins, the NSA got cute and considered a warrantless search of data to not be the collection but the "looking at" the collected data. I doubt that construct still holds. But regardless, if your communications are E2E encrypted, Signal Org can't read it, and neither can the gov
Short answer is, 'probably not' if you mean using the FISA court or spyware.
This is not to say the government doesn't record vast amounts of encrypted traffic with the hope to decrypt it later. That has happened and almost certainly still does. That is what Signal protects against.
This is not to say the government doesn't record vast amounts of encrypted traffic with the hope to decrypt it later. That has happened and almost certainly still does. That is what Signal protects against.
January 30, 2026 at 5:33 AM
Short answer is, 'probably not' if you mean using the FISA court or spyware.
This is not to say the government doesn't record vast amounts of encrypted traffic with the hope to decrypt it later. That has happened and almost certainly still does. That is what Signal protects against.
This is not to say the government doesn't record vast amounts of encrypted traffic with the hope to decrypt it later. That has happened and almost certainly still does. That is what Signal protects against.
To my mind, your initial statement was wrong, but the concern is understandable, and it seemed, to me, like you followed the points raised, so I don’t think we need to double tap this thread too hard
January 30, 2026 at 5:04 AM
To my mind, your initial statement was wrong, but the concern is understandable, and it seemed, to me, like you followed the points raised, so I don’t think we need to double tap this thread too hard
Making chain emails great… or a thing… again
January 30, 2026 at 4:58 AM
Making chain emails great… or a thing… again
If being annoying in Signal chats is grounds for being banned, it isn't being used enough
January 30, 2026 at 4:44 AM
If being annoying in Signal chats is grounds for being banned, it isn't being used enough
Reposted by Phillie Phonetic
Security theater undermining activism is a real thing that happens all the time. People need to sit down and actually learn how to think through threat models.
January 29, 2026 at 9:25 PM
Security theater undermining activism is a real thing that happens all the time. People need to sit down and actually learn how to think through threat models.
What? Google has a public HR number?
January 30, 2026 at 3:43 AM
What? Google has a public HR number?
Well, him and Mavis Beacon. The OG power couple.
January 30, 2026 at 3:38 AM
Well, him and Mavis Beacon. The OG power couple.
It is a cool property, but I’d never forgive whomever painted all the wood trim/ceiling/etc. were I to move in
January 30, 2026 at 3:32 AM
It is a cool property, but I’d never forgive whomever painted all the wood trim/ceiling/etc. were I to move in
The Greatest Generation, they’ll call it.
January 30, 2026 at 2:55 AM
The Greatest Generation, they’ll call it.
After the pandemic? You get a mulligan, legally speaking.
January 30, 2026 at 2:54 AM
After the pandemic? You get a mulligan, legally speaking.
It was felching, wasn’t it
January 30, 2026 at 2:09 AM
It was felching, wasn’t it
I am not there, but this seems like a deeply counterproductive outcome.
January 30, 2026 at 12:30 AM
I am not there, but this seems like a deeply counterproductive outcome.
A new D&D class has dropped.
January 30, 2026 at 12:12 AM
A new D&D class has dropped.