Geo-location and Anonymity
Anonymity is a state of being Anonymous, achieved online(up to a certain level) by hiding or masking your digital identity(IP Address, Email ID, Name, Date of Birth, Biometrics, etc) and by minimizing your digital footprint. Anonymity and Privacy are two sides of the same coin, being anonymous one can conceal his/her identity whereas in maintaining privacy one can maintain the confidentiality of his/her doing. E.g. HTTPS protocol maintains privacy by encrypting the data sent and received, whereas VPN facilitates anonymity by hiding or masking the IP Address.
Why Privacy?
Privacy is a fundamental human right that not only confirms a haven for unfettered thoughts & psychology but ultimately helps a human being develop a distinct personality through the autonomy of ideas & interpretation.
To know more about Privacy & how surveillance disrupt free-thinking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJCH0HUhdWU
More on Surveillance: https://open.spotify.com/episode/06GBl1oQGMAHs55SW4Aj5n?si=t1bsgdTATN2MW0VG5FZYNg
Why Anonymity?
Anonymity complements and emboldens freedom of expression & free speech. It allows or sometimes empowers people to express their (uncensored) thoughts which might not conform to the majority views.
Activists, Hacktivists, Journalists and common people trying to reveal their sufferings under the dictatorial regime, oppression of their rights & freedom under the autocratic or majoritarian rule are the ones who require anonymity to show the reality, protect human rights and get help.
How to achieve online Anonymity?
Masking or Hiding your Geolocation is the first and most important step on the path of achieving online anonymity. Geolocation of a system or person online can be determined by several methods but the most common and prevailing one is by the IP Address of the system.
Some Methods to strengthen your privacy and being anonymous online
By no means these methods will make you 100% anonymous
1. VPN: Use a VPN to mask your IP Address. Use two (Inside system and then inside a browser) if you are more paranoid. Use three (Inside a host machine, then inside it make a Virtual Machine use one there and one inside the browser of the VM) if you think the whole world is coming after you.
2. Private DNS: Using a private DNS can prevent your ISP from seeing what websites are you visiting.
3. Turn off webRTC: Even when using VPN webRTC can leak your IP Address. Turn webRTC off in your web browsers either manually or use a browser extension to do that. But remember if you disable these services requiring a p2p(peer-to-peer) connection will not work, e.g. google meet.
4. Time Zone Spoofing: Some websites may fetch timezone information, spoofing time zone may prevent further pinpointing your location.
5. Ad Blockers: You can use extensions to block ads and trackers on websites that track your online activity. e.g. Privacy Badger Extension, uBlock origin extension, etc.
6. Temporary Email services: Use temporary email addresses to log in to services and links that appear malicious.
7. Disable Javascript & cookies: There are tons of browser extensions available to disable javascript and clear cache and cookies. You can also do this manually.
8. Check app permissions: If a smartphone application requires an arbitrary amount of permissions it might be spyware. e.g. a calculator app is asking for camera permission.
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