I collaborated with Naomi Brockwell NBTV to craft a YouTube video accompanying this guide. The process involved significant dedication and effort, resulting in the creation of this video. Whether you stumbled upon it from the YouTube video, discovered it by chance, or were referred by a friend, your feedback is highly valued. Please don't hesitate to propose any additions or improvements to this guide. Whether it's links, configurations, apps, or any other suggestions, I welcome your input. Your recommendations will be thoroughly reviewed, and I'll consider their integration into this guide.
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📱 Mobile Phone
- Purchase a new
Google Pixelwithcashfrom a local store (including the Google Store) and avoid Verizon, as they lock the OEM.- Ensure the transaction remains anonymous to avoid linking the phone's IMEI to your identity.
- Purchase a new
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📶 Mobile Carrier
- Buy a pre-paid Mint Mobile (T-Mobile) SIM card with
cashfrom a local store.- Wire it up to a privacy.com card.
- For $15/month*, it provides unlimited* 4G/5G domestic data with relatively little attributable information on the account (e.g., no name, address, SSN, etc.)
- Wire it up to a privacy.com card.
- Calyx hotspot for unlimited, unthrottled, anonymous connectivity.
- Buy a pre-paid Mint Mobile (T-Mobile) SIM card with
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📳 Configuring Mobile Carrier
- Use a free public Wi-Fi network far from your home to configure your recently acquired mobile carrier.
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🌐 Utilizing Port 53 (DNS) with a VPN on Public Wi-Fi
- Connect to a VPN service, configuring it to use port 53. This disguises VPN traffic as DNS queries, bypassing login requirements on public WiFi with captive portal networks, ensuring unrestricted internet access while preserving privacy and security.
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📲 Mobile Accessories (optional)
- Protective Case/Cover
- Privacy Screen Protector
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- Remove physical SIM card
- Factory reset (Settings > System > Reset options >
Erase all data (factory reset)✅ - Setup Wi-Fi Connection (Settings > Network & internet > Internet)
- Settings > System > Dev >
Allow OEM unlocking✅
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- Download: Link
- Unzip "usb_driver_r13-windows.zip"
WIN + Renter:devmgmt.msc- Portable Devices > Google Pixel
- Right click device >
Properties>Driver>Update Driver>Browse my computer for drivers>Browse> Select unzipped "usb_driver_r13-windows" file once located.
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Official Site > https://grapheneos.org
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- Settings > Network & internet > Internet > Carrier Settings ⚙️ > Preferred network type >
LTE only✅ (if you don't have 5G) - Settings > Network & internet > Internet > Carrier Settings ⚙️ >
Allow 2G❌- Setting may not exist on your phone
- Settings > Network & internet > Internet > Select your Wi-Fi ⚙️ > select pen icon > Advanced options > Privacy >
Use per-connection randomized MAC (default)✅ - Settings > Network & internet > Private DNS > Private DNS provider hostname:
dns.quad9.net✅- Only enable if you're NOT using a custom DNS configuation with your VPN, or else the private DNS will override the VPNs DNS.
- Settings > Network & internet > Internet connectivity checks >
Disabled❌- Make sure to enable again for captive portals used via public Wi-Fi!
- Settings > Apps > Default apps (Set your favorite default apps here) ✅
- Settings > Battery >
Battery Percentage✅
- Settings > Sound & vibration >
Vibration & haptics❌ - Settings > Sound & vibration >
Dial pad tones❌ - Settings > Sound & vibration >
Screen locking sound❌ - Settings > Sound & vibration >
Charging sounds and vibration❌ - Settings > Sound & vibration >
Touch sounds❌ - Settings > Sound & vibration >
Always show icon when in vibrate mode❌
- Settings > Display >
Adaptive Brightness✅ - Settings > Display >
Auto-rotate screen✅ - Settings > Display > Lock Screen > Privacy >
Show sensitive content only when unlocked✅ - Settings > Display > Lock Screen >
Wake screen for notifications❌ - Settings > Display > Screen timeout >
1 minute✅ - Settings > Display >
Dark Theme✅ - Settings > Display >
Increase touch sensitivity✅ (If you have screen protector)
- Settings > Security > Auto reboot >
12 Hours✅ - Settings > Security >
Scramble PIN input layout✅
- Settings > Privacy > Permission manager > Customize Everything! ✅
- Use exodus-privacy to assess if an app has excessive trackers or questionable permissions.
- Settings > System > Language & Input > on screen keyboard > GraphineOS Keyboard > Appearance & Layouts > Theme >
Material Dark✅
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- Web Browser
- Mull - Privacy oriented web browser (FF Based)
- Add-ons
- uBlock Origin
- Tampermonkey
- User Scripts (JS)
- Add-ons
- Mull - Privacy oriented web browser (FF Based)
- YouTube Alt
- Movie/Show Streaming Alt
- CloudStream - Android app for streaming and downloading media.
- Music
- Photo/Video Gallery
- Aves - Aves is a gallery and metadata explorer app, built for Android with Flutter.
- Fossify Gallery - A premium app for managing and editing your photos, videos, GIFs without ads
- Notes
- Fossify Notes - A simple textfield for adding quick notes without ads.
- Secure Messaging
- Email Service
- Calendar
- Fossify Calendar - A simple calendar with events, customizable widgets and no ads.
- Proton Calendar - Organize your schedule privately with Proton Calendar
- Tuta Calendar - Quantum-safe encrypted planner to schedule & manage your events & sync calendars
- Navigation
- OsmAnd - Global Mobile Map Viewing & Navigation for Offline and Online OSM Maps
- Weather
- Rain - Weather app.
- Updates
- Obtainium - Get Android App Updates Directly From the Source.
- F-Droid - The app store that respects freedom and privacy
- Accrescent - A novel Android app store focused on security, privacy, and usability
- Aurora Store - An open-source alternative to Google Play Store with privacy and modern design
- Web Browser
- Navigation
- Organic Maps - Open-source, community-driven maps for travelers, tourists, cyclists & hikers
- OsmAnd~ - Global Mobile Map Viewing & Navigation for Offline and Online OSM Maps
- Calendar
- Fossify Calendar - A simple calendar with events, customizable widgets and no ads.
- Tuta Calendar - Quantum-safe encrypted planner to schedule & manage your events & sync calendars
- Weather
- Rain - Weather app.
- Breezy Weather - A Material Design Weather Application
- Online Video, Music, Streaming, Podcasts, etc
- NewPipe - Lightweight YouTube frontend
- LibreTube - An alternative frontend for YouTube, for Android.
- Clipious - Invidious client for android
- ViMusic - Seamlessly stream music from YouTube Music
- InnerTune - A Material 3 YouTube Music client for Android
- Spotube - 🎧 Open source Spotify client that doesn't require Premium nor uses Electron! Available for both desktop & mobile!
- Transistor - Transistor is an app for listening to radio stations over the internet.
- AntennaPod - Easy-to-use, flexible and open-source podcast manager and player
- Podverse - Podcast app with clips, video, livestreams, playlists, profiles, and cross-platform
- Social Media
- Squawker - An open-source Twitter/X client
- Infinity for Reddit - A beautiful, feature-rich Reddit client.
- Mastodon - Decentralized social network
- Shitter - A lightweight Mastodon client focused on privacy and low data consumption
- Tusky - A multi account client for the social network Mastodon
- Fedilab - A multifunctional Android client to access the distributed Fediverse
- PixelDroid - Client for Pixelfed, the federated image sharing platform
- Note-taking
- Notesnook - A fully open source & end-to-end encrypted note taking app
- Standard Notes - An end-to-end encrypted note-taking app for digitalists and professionals
- Offline Media
- VLC Media Player - The best video and music player. Fast and “just works”, plays any file
- Just (Video) Player - Simple video player based on ExoPlayer library
- Video Transcoder - Video transcoding between common formats
- SimpleTextEditor - Simple Text Editor
- Messenger (Private, Secure, etc)
- Email Service
- Proton Mail
- You Have Mail - Email Notification for Proton Mail without Google Play Services
- Tuta
- Proton Mail
- VPNs
- Mullvad VPN - Protect your online privacy with a fast, trustworthy, and easy-to-use VPN.
- IVPN - Privacy focused VPN service with WireGuard
- Calyx VPN - Free VPN Service offered by The Calyx Institute
- Proton VPN - Free Swiss VPN with advanced security and privacy features.
- App Control & Container/Isolator
- Misc. Apps
- PCAPdroid - No-root network monitor and traffic dump tool for Android devices
- Seal - 🦭 Video/audio downloader for Android (YT-DLP), designed with Material You
- PrivacyBlur - Blur or pixelate faces or sensitive areas in pictures
- KeePassDX - Secure and open source password manager compatible with KeePass files.
- Key Driver - Unlock KeePassXC databases with YubiKeys
- Bitwarden - End-to-end encrypted cloud password manager
- Ente - Private cloud storage for your photos, video and more
- Ente Auth - Open source 2FA authenticator, with E2EE backups
- Lemuroid - All in one emulator on Android
- Lawnchair - Pixel Launcher features plus customizability
- Public IP - App and Widget allowing user to find its current public IP address
- Catima - Catima, a Loyalty Card & Ticket Manager for Android
- Feeder - Android RSS reader app
- Magic Earth
- Google Play Store
- Direct Download: https://www.magicearth.com/apk/ - Password:
7h6Q7\9AsF:a7"Ja
- Tor Browser
- Google Play Store
- Guardian Project app repository for F-Droid
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If you would like your system to look like mine, please check out these apps:
- unlauncher - Android minimalistic launcher
- KISS - Lightning fast, open-source, < 250kb Android launcher
- My KISS Config
{"__v":183,"freeze-history":true,"history-hide":true,"first-run-favorites":false,"selected-search-provider-names":["DuckDuckGo"],"require-layout-update":false,"gesture-up":"display-apps","favorite-apps-list":"app:\/\/us.spotco.fennec_dos\/us.spotco.fennec_dos.App;app:\/\/com.zionhuang.music\/com.zionhuang.music.MainActivity;app:\/\/org.thoughtcrime.securesms\/org.thoughtcrime.securesms.RoutingActivity;app:\/\/com.android.dialer\/com.android.dialer.main.impl.MainActivity;app:\/\/com.android.settings\/com.android.settings.Settings;","enable-app-history":false,"available-search-providers":["DuckDuckGo|https:\/\/start.duckduckgo.com\/?q=%s"],"enable-search":false,"large-search-bar":true,"transparent-search":true,"subicon-visible":false,"pref-toggle-tags-list":["call","clock","message","people","messaging"],"excluded-apps":["fr.neamar.kiss\/fr.neamar.kiss.MainActivity"],"default-search-provider":"DuckDuckGo","theme":"transparent-dark","pref-hide-circle":true,"first-run-shortcuts":false,"exclude-favorites-history":false,"deleting-search-providers-names":["Google","Google Maps","Google Play Store","YouTube","Ecosia","Bing"],"force-adaptive":false,"icons-pack":"com.donnnno.arcticons","pref-hide-search-bar-hint":true,"__tags":{"app:\/\/com.android.dialer\/com.android.dialer.main.impl.MainActivity":"dial call phone","app:\/\/com.android.contacts\/com.android.contacts.activities.PeopleActivity":"contacts people relations","app:\/\/org.chromium.chrome\/com.google.android.apps.chrome.Main":"internet web browser","app:\/\/com.android.deskclock\/com.android.deskclock.DeskClock":"clock alarm timer stopwatch","app:\/\/us.spotco.fennec_dos\/org.mozilla.fenix.IntentReceiverActivity":"internet web browser","app:\/\/com.android.deskclock\/com.android.deskclock.HandleApiCalls":"clock alarm timer stopwatch","app:\/\/com.android.messaging\/com.android.messaging.ui.conversationlist.ConversationListActivity":"text message compose sms mms messaging"}} -
Arcticons
- Arcticons Dark - A monotone line-based icon pack
- Arcticons Light - A monotone line-based icon pack
- Arcticons You - A Material You line-based icon pack