Privacy

32159 readers

874 users here now

A place to discuss privacy and freedom in the digital world.

Privacy has become a very important issue in modern society, with companies and governments constantly abusing their power, more and more people are waking up to the importance of digital privacy.

In this community everyone is welcome to post links and discuss topics related to privacy.

Some Rules

Posting a link to a website containing tracking isn't great, if contents of the website are behind a paywall maybe copy them into the post
Don't promote proprietary software
Try to keep things on topic
If you have a question, please try searching for previous discussions, maybe it has already been answered
Reposts are fine, but should have at least a couple of weeks in between so that the post can reach a new audience
Be nice :)

Related communities

much thanks to @gary_host_laptop for the logo design :)

founded 5 years ago

MODERATORS

288

Decided to start paying predominantly cash again (lemmy.mtate.me.uk)

submitted 4 months ago by smeeps@lemmy.mtate.me.uk to c/privacy@lemmy.ml

163 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I had two reasons, the first is because i found it way too easy to spend on my card without thinking, and the second because I wanted to regain a bit of privacy alongside everything else I'm doing. Ive set it up in my bank that on payday, an amount of my salary automatically goes to the bills account, some goes to long term savings, some to short term savings, then the rest I take out in cash.

It really does change my perception of spending I think: Ive found myself not buying things because I didnt want to break a note and carry change. I can physically see how much I have left. I can take £20 to the pub and leave when its finished. Plus it feels really good knowing every single transaction isnt stored forever. I have a small amount of money on a contactless ring for emergencies like a bus fare or somewhere that unexpectedly only takes card.

Is anyone else still predominantly using cash day to day?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] communism@lemmy.ml 6 points 4 months ago (2 children)

I also want to pay more in cash to reward businesses for still allowing you to pay in cash as I'm noticing more are going cashless. I'm occasionally reliant on cash so I don't want to end up stranded on those occasions where I can only pay cash, so definitely want to ensure the option remains open. The privacy is a benefit too of course.

I think at the moment I mostly buy "important" stuff in cash and everyday stuff with card. Important like a new computer or something, because I'd plan to have that computer for a while and don't want it easily traced to me. Everyday stuff like food because, while I completely understand not wanting the state/banks/etc to know anything about you, I personally don't care too much if the state knows what I eat. Would be nice to eventually become one of those people with no footprint at all though.

[–] smeeps@lemmy.mtate.me.uk 9 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Anyone in a 14 eyes country is essentially impossible to achieve zero footprint, but assuming they're not actively looking into your network packets or searching for you on CCTV its feasible to have a relatively low footprint. I'm essentially trying to eliminate as far as practical, any data points I'm just giving away for free for no reason, especially to corporations and advertisers.

[–] communism@lemmy.ml 5 points 4 months ago

Afraid they almost definitely are actively monitoring all my above-ground activities lol, I'm in a country getting quite a bit of international flak for cracking down on political dissidents. Won't say any more than that, tbh that doesn't narrow down my location much with the current state of things anyway. But yeah I agree, I want to minimise the amount of data accessible about me.

[–] dandu3@lemmy.world 6 points 3 months ago (1 children)

A computer is something you'd want to buy with a credit card, as they often come with additional free warranties for various mishaps

[–] communism@lemmy.ml 2 points 3 months ago

Thats fine if you value the warranty over your privacy (not trying to be sarcastic, everyone has a different threat model and I mean it when I say that's fine for some people), but personally I would prefer the computer were not traceable to me, including at the cost of having to buy replacements when they otherwise come with warranty. I have turned down various things that electronics come with that require leaving your details. I understand why people leave their details to get the extra stuff but i am willing to spend more to be anonymous.