Surveillance Self-Defense
The Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF) created a site (https://ssd.eff.org/) discussing the various ways the US government can obtain information about you and how to limit this. They state their objective is to "educate the American public about the law and technology of government surveillance" and to provide "the information and tools necessary to evaluate the threat of surveillance and take appropriate steps to defend against it."
The information will also help understand general risks of using the internet and measures to reduce these. So it really does apply to everyone, not just those who consider themselves at risk of government surveillance.
The quick highlights:
1. "If you don't have it, they can't get it." Limit the information you keep in any form. Shred or use secure file delete practices. Make a habit of cleaning out so that if a device is seized or searched there won't be as much for them to find.
2. "If someone else has stored it, they can get it." Consider anything on a mail server or any other site easily obtainable. This includes search history, browsing history, and anything else.
3. "Think before you communicate." This was interesting. They ask "Do you really want there to be a record of this?". So don't just pick how to communicate (you have more protection and less of a trail using a land-line phone than anything else), but also consider when and to whom. With encryption they may not be able to read the email or IM but they'll still know when you sent it and who you sent it to.
4. "Use encryption." An obvious one. But just because you encrypt it doesn't mean they can't get it. You may be forced to provide the key or to decrypt and provide access to some or all of the content.
Realizing just how little privacy and protection we have is the first step. And if it's this easy for the government to obtain through legal means, it's even easier for others to obtain through illegal means. Protecting yourself from the government is a good first step to protecting yourself from criminals.
