I like Techlore (https://www.techlore.tech if you don’t know) and I usually regard them as one of the most impartial and most trustworthy Youtubers out there. But for the past few months, I couldn’t help noticing their somewhat heavy bias towards some of their video sponsors. Still, everybody has to eat right?
This time though, it looks like Synology flew them over to Taiwan, and if you watch their video at the event, it’s wall-to-wall Synology shilling. I’m really disappointed.
I lost interest in them after they had their beef with GrapheneOS and stopped recommending them. I get it, they hate the old lead dev cause he was a jerk but how are you going to spread the word of privacy and not recommend the most superior OS in privacy and security? If you truly want to help people achieve the best results with their privacy and security then you should be unbiased with your recommendations. They are doing the privacy space and all the new people looking for advice a disservice because they hold a grudge. Now they’re taking free trips to review products? Sounds like they’re using their subscription count to spread their own agenda.
I don’t have any issues with people not recommending Graphene OS but they also suggested Google Android which is very bad for privacy.
I think you have to be exceptionally strong to resist this sort of thing. You can justify sponsorship in a hundred ways - not least to yourself. But in every case, it changes everything. That, of course, is why companies spend money influencing the influencers.
Buyer beware, as always.
I used to like his content and still like Surveillance Report but Henry always talks about how Apple is so private and a good option for an OS ecosystem. It’s closed source, it looks like they (Apple) push “privacy” so they can have a monopoly on the data, and are anti consumer in many ways. Now his push for Synology has been growing.
Seems like he takes the easy way out with privacy. I understand life is busy (as he mentions a lot) but in order to make positive change you have to believe in and follow values that give power to open source tech and not the giants who steal your data, monetize you, and are in bed with the government
They are good and bad. I think they have some good intentions but it gets lost sometimes in the form of bad advise. I do like that they have a Matrix Space and a Peertube instance.
Also I agree with them on Graphene OS. People need to realize that by just not using Google Android they are much more private. I think there is to many fans. They are almost as bad as Apple fans.
My biggest problem with not using android is the last 3 phones I’ve had are pretty much as far as I’m aware unsupported by 3rd party ROMs in general. While yes it is my fault for getting phones that are more budget phones, it’d be nice to see support or ROMs focusing on lower end budget phones instead of mostly just the major flagship models. That, and US model sams*ng phones not being the devil to root, if even possible on any US model.
Well depending on the device you can port Lineage OS. You need an unlocked bootloader and the GPL source code.
Tried unlocking the bootloader on my current Samsung after it arrived in the mail. The best I got was it not unlocking after leaving it for a few hours. No screen changes or prompts appearing on screen. Nothing.
Samsung is famous for being bad from a software perspective. They also make a lot of money from bundling software so it isn’t in there interest to let you get out of the ecosystem.
That’s pretty sad to see, Techlore is one of the main ways how I got into digital privacy and security, but ever since they removed GrapheneOS from the mobile OS recommendations section on their resources page, I don’t feel like it’s a trustworthy source anymore. Removing the most private and secure mobile OS from your OS recommendations, while claiming to give people privacy and security-focused recommendations is pretty hypocritical. Instead they recommend CalyxOS which rolls back default AOSP security features, LineageOS which doesn’t even work with a locked bootloader and microG which requires root access. It just feels like a bad joke.
I’m using LeneageOS with MicroG without root, and MicroG installed as a user app via their F-Droid Repo.
It works seemless.
Also, afaik GOS dislike Techlore, bc of some stuff and they don’t want to be mentioned by them according to Techlore.
LineageOS for microG is a custom build which already includes the patch to enable signature spoofing. This still means that microG is running with root privileges. It btw also includes the F-Droid privileged extension, which is yet another app running with elevated privileges and adding unnecessary attack surface. Installing microG is the quick and easy workaround to get Google Play services, but it’s more like a dirty hack that reduces security. GrapheneOS is currently the only ROM that properly integrates the official Google Play Services using the Android app sandbox. This also increases app compatibility, and it’s the reason why most banking apps work without any issues on GrapheneOS, while they are broken on Lineage, Calyx and other ROMs that use microG.
Apparently the gos devs (or the main guy at least) are snooty and shitty to alot of people.I see a lot of criticism about that but never see any criticism of the project itself luckily, I’m really settled in now lol
Since you noticed the bias, let me give you the real dark history of both Techlore and PrivacyGuides ( Jonah Argon ) and how they took over Privacy Tools.io and closed their subreddit.
https://www.privacytools.io/guides/jonah-aragon-privacyguides-failed-attempt-to-takeover
Don’t trust Privacy YouTubers, trust experts who know what they’re talking about
Always funny when people try to pretend this PrivacyTools guy is some brave whistleblower when in reality he destroyed his own website going for a cash grab and then got butthurt when people created better alternatives that actually gave genuine advice instead of ads.
There’s no pretending… if you actually click the link the first video is about the practices or Techlore, so I’ll make it easy for you :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cEfJ1UTNvw
The rest of the article, talks ( with proof ) about the betrayal of Jonah Argon, changing the website license for example…
got butthurt when people created better alternatives that actually gave genuine advice instead of ads.
Really ? Sounds like a very childish thing to be mad about… Especially when you realize there are many websites and blogs that are written by experts
I’m not trying to be funny, I’m saying what happened, and simply don’t trust Techlore because or the lack of ethics…and going after the cash grab… What kind of Privacy minded individual drives a Tesla? Uses Apple hardware? Promotes proprietary solutions?
genuine advice instead of ads
Techlore literally said buy my course so you’ll have an ad free experience… And PrivacyGuides covers surface level stuff…
Why are you defending Privacy Tools so hard here? Literally anyone can look at the website and see within seconds that it is absolutely loaded with ads and affiliate links. The owner sold out years ago, the privacy community moved on and now he’s mad that he can’t AFK farm money from his shit website. He has absolutely zero credibility and writes stuff like “fuck fame, fuck money, fuck dishonesty” in that post when he himself literally used the fame of his website to make money by dishonestly recommending sponsored shit on it. It is absolutely bizarre to me that you hold this person up as some kind of moral authority and believe everything he says.
Defending ? so showing that Techlore is doing the same thing ( actually way more worse ) means I’m defending PT ?
I’m not going into who’s more corrupt than the other, but I can provide a different source, if you think this one is problematic
But yanno why I’m not focusing on Privacy Tools that much…A - because this post is about Techlore. B - Because the project is dead, so what’s the point?
his shit website
Using this language means nothing to me, and doesn’t effect me in anyway shape or form… I have no gain in the matter… they can both be down tomorrow, and I wouldn’t care
privacytools.io doesn’t even list NordVPN as an ad anymore…
Is there another trustworthy site which compares different platforms?
There is, it’s the exact one that user and the delusional founder of Privacy Tools have a hate boner for. Privacy Guides is non-profit with no ads or affiliate links.
Instead of searching for a “trustworthy” source… whatever that means… Learn about which criteria you should look for when choosing a VPN… learn who are the creators of such service and their experiences…
And then you won’t need to trust, you’ll be able to evaluate
Wait, I’m confused. Why would privacytools.io host this article?
I’m not sure, maybe they thought it’ll be more visible for the website followers…
I think I got confused by this Lemmy post claiming it was taken over, not “attempted”. If it was taken over, then why would they shoot themselves in the foot?
This is all really insane. But there are people here saying that privacyguides are reputable.
Privacytools seems shadier though, even if they’re claiming to be victims.
This is all too much drama.
I think I got confused by this Lemmy post claiming it was taken over, not “attempted”. If it was taken over, then why would they shoot themselves in the foot?
They stole their funds, git repos, subreddit… they might as well declare it’s the end of the website even though they still hold ownership to some extent … That’s my understanding of it at least
Privacytools seems shadier though, even if they’re claiming to be victims
I agree
This is all really insane. But there are people here saying that privacyguides are reputable
It is indeed insane, at least PrivacyGuides doesn’t push for shitty products and insult his followers for not supporting him, however toxicity towards other projects ( especially GrapheneOS ) is completely allowed on their channels…
I’m not saying we should cancel them and never speak about them again, but if you’re a fan of PG you should hold them accountable, because they can do better
As for Techlore, 😮💨…I don’t think there’s hope for Henry… he went too far, he earned the title of a “privacy scammer” for me… and the sad part is that he knows it, he knows he’s in it for a quick buck not to spread the message
Thanks for the detailed breakdown, I think I get the broad strokes now.
It’s difficult to parse when your brain defaults to “one of these parties are unfairly maligned” - when the truth is they’re both shitty.
It’s a shame. Some years ago I got a lot of value from both websites, but haven’t really followed digital privacy trends lately. It’s such a time sink to gauge the value of everything by yourself.
It’s difficult to parse when your brain defaults to “one of these parties are unfairly maligned” - when the truth is they’re both shitty.
Oh, glad someone said it… this is a common theme on the Internet 😭… It’s okey
It’s a shame. Some years ago I got a lot of value from both websites, but haven’t really followed digital privacy trends lately.
when you’re a beginner you tend to accept advice from anyone in the field, this makes sense because you don’t know which advice to trust, but once you understand the principle, you look back and just know instantly who gave you bad advice vs good advice…
If someone tells me to use a degoogled phone and later I see they’re using an IPhone, it’s not great look… ( for them )… It’s disappointing ( just an example )
It’s such a time sink to gauge the value of everything by yourself.
Whatelse you can do ? Not much… accept keep on learning, I enjoy these kind of stuff, and the more I learn the more I realize the tools we use aren’t perfect and they have many flaws… in technology I learned to be careful before adopting new technologies and not just jump on the hottest thing, I have to resist the Tech enthusiast within me if I wanna satisfy the privacy advocate ( the opposition within me )
I used to watch Techlore too, but the final nail in the coffin for me was saying he was using stock Android
I lost interest when they moved from matrix to discord
Oh I didn’t know that. Privacy-wise, Discord is… suboptimal to say the least.
They didn’t move from Matrix to Discord, that’s a very misleading way to frame it. They had Matrix, Discord and their forums, then they closed Matrix and encouraged people to use the forums instead. They left the Discord open for people who require real-time privacy advice. Here is their detailed reasoning behind the change, if you are interested.
I read their reasoning and it sort of makes sense: what they’re saying is essentially “We do Discord because that’s where the people we want to reach - the folks who don’t know anything about privacy - hang out.”
Well, I get that. But it’s kind of like Al Gore saying his flying around the world and spewing megatons of CO2 doesn’t matter because he’s doing that to promote environmental causes. I don’t like people who exempt themselves from the rules they preach, whatever their reason. People who walk the talk are usually more convincing.
But yeah, they do have a point I guess…
I don’t like people who exempt themselves from the rules they preach
Techlore isn’t about preaching rules or activism, though. Their aim is to provide balanced and nuanced information for people with lower threat models. Often that means that the products or services they discuss or recommend to certain viewers are nowhere near the most private or ethical overall; they’re just the ones that have the right balance of privacy and convenience for that person.
This is all made even more irrelevant by the fact that they actually did close their Discord earlier this year, now that their official forums are in a better state for real-time communication.
Techlore isn’t about preaching rules or activism
What is it about then?
It’s TOTALLY about preaching rules and activism: they advocate for privacy and purport to educate people on how to achieve better privacy.
Can you please read the rest of my comment before replying? Literally the very next sentence after the one you quoted answers your question.
Ah I wasn’t aware of that. They were one of the few large channels at the time, so when they shut it down I quit using Matrix altogether.
Lol cope
that has been the case for a long time. there was a time there he was recommending google services, saying apple services are private, etc.
Enshittification can apply to content creators too it seems. Sad, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t see it coming.
I was very surprised about the Synology video too. There was no critical word about anything in it.
Sure they offer a selfhosted sollution for things but their software is closed source for example.
Yes.
He’s also kind of a Brave fanboy
Brave is a really good browser for many people who care abt privacy, if you dislike people just bc of their browser choice then don’t support them.
Privacy guides and intel techniques ebooks are my main 2. Techlore is just an extra info for me.
Can you give me the link of these sources , I enjoy reading about privacy.
Thanks man just got a copy of 1 of their book, after reading it I may buy more of them, deponds.
This and https://www.privacyguides.org/en/
Don’t buy all the ebooks. Unless you really want to. But the big 2 ebooks, extreme privacy 4th edition and Resources for Uncovering Online Information - 10th Edition (2023 are the best ones cause they cover a lot. But they are currently being updated and going to be re-released next year.
The smaller ebooks are for specific topics. Monthly updated forever. You may find these ebooks online. Very hard to find. I have linux devices, don’t mind doing swaps for ‘Leaks, Breaches, & Logs - Digital Edition (2024)’ and or ‘The Ultimate Virtual Machine - Digital Edition (2024)’ if somebody has them. We can do a simplex chat. Well done on your journey op. It’s a rabbit hole.
I really would like to start a YouTube channel to get free stuff but I dont want to put my face on YouTube.
Yeah man! same I loved his content but recently he has been taking side with colgomarates.
