10 privacy-friendly Big Tech alternatives
Amazon uses your Alexa voice commands to train its AI, Dropbox had a breach in April that exposed customers’ passwords, and apps like Facebook and Google make billions of dollars gathering and sharing every little detail about you. I could go on (and on).
Luckily for you, there are privacy-friendly alternatives. Here are some proven ones.
1. Instead of Dropbox …
Try Nextcloud. It does everything Dropbox does (including end-to-end file encryption) but gives you total control. You can even host your own server for free at home.
2. Instead of Google Docs or Microsoft 365 …
Try Joplin. It’s a document app that keeps your files encrypted and stored in open formats, so you can take them anywhere without anyone snooping.
3. Instead of Google Keep or Apple Notes …
Try Notesnook. It’s end-to-end encrypted and lets you export to other apps. Unlike some companies, Notesnook won’t use your stuff to train an AI chatbot.
4. Instead of Google Photos or Apple Photos …
Try Ente, a free photo storage app that backs up your data in multiple locations and scrambles it with a password for maximum security. Ente doesn’t use your pics for AI machine learning, either, like Google Photos and Apple Photos both do.
5. Instead of Apple Home or Google Home …
Try Home Assistant. It’s an open-source smart home hub that works with just about every smart home device out there. The best part? You can manage everything from your browser or phone — no need for home apps that collect your data … and voice … and schedule … and shopping habits …
6. Instead of Adobe Acrobat …
Try Stirling PDF. Acrobat is expensive, and lots of the other PDF editors are sketchy and crawling with ads. Stirling does everything Acrobat can (convert, edit, sign, merge and split files, all for free), and it doesn’t sell your personal info.
7. Instead of CamScanner …
Try Open Scanner, a great no-nonsense document-scanning app. No ads, no AI tools — just click and scan. Your documents will stay safe and sound on your own phone.
8. Instead of Twitch …
Try Owncast. It’s great if you love livestreaming but hate the idea of Amazon controlling your content (I’m looking at you, Twitch). Owncast is self-hosted and totally free.
9. Instead of Facebook Messenger …
Try Signal. It’s the gold standard of messaging apps and for good reason: It keeps your messages fully encrypted and scrambles the metadata so no one will know who you’re talking to or when.
10. Instead of Pocket …
Try Wallabag. This is a smart way to save links to read later. Unlike Pocket, it won’t track your activity to push sponsored content. It also lets you host pages on your own server at home.
Pro tip: Switch one app at a time so you’re not getting used to a lot of new software.
🔑 Your data is valuable, and it’s up to you to protect it. Share the smarts — use the buttons below to send this to a pal who values their privacy, too.
Tags: Adobe Acrobat, alternatives, Apple, Apple Home, Apple Notes, Apple Photos, apps, Big Tech, CamScanner, Dropbox, Facebook Messenger, Google Docs, Google Home, Google Keep, Google Photos, Microsoft 365, Pocket, privacy, security, software, Twitch
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