Google is one of the biggest obstacles to privacy. This article will explore how and why to de-Google yourself to reclaim and protect your digital privacy.

Google is one of the biggest obstacles to privacy. This article will explore how and why to de-Google yourself to reclaim and protect your digital privacy.

  • MigratingtoLemmy@lemmy.world
    595·
    7 months ago

    Basically an advertisement for their services, but since they’re shitting on Google’s ad revenue model I’m all for it.

    I will not shit on Google completely myself though, because I do appreciate (other than a few naughty shenanigans they’ve pulled recently) their work on the Android kernel.

    • CrypticCoffee@lemmy.mlM
      181·
      7 months ago

      Completely self serving though. Mobile is a personal data goldmine and Google gotta dig into that one way or another and if folks can contribute to that side with bug fixes, great.

    • theneverfox@pawb.socialEnglish
      9·
      7 months ago

      And Facebook has some of the best open source work of all time, from the react ecosystem to making php feasible, to LLMs. There’s certainly a ton missing and a lot of it is for their own products, but some of it goes far beyond their own needs

      Facebook also did unethical human testing and debatably broke democracy and the social fabric

      Just be even handed. Praise the good, denounce the bad, and keep in mind these are monstrously large companies and the people that did the good probably have little to do with the ones that did the bad

      Google shouldn’t get a pass because they bought Android and only partially used that ownership to control the ecosystem and push their own products

    • deweydecibel@lemmy.worldEnglish
      33·
      7 months ago

      This is honestly what puts me off using Proton. They advertise way too much and way too aggressively. It’s just a bad vibe for a company that’s trying to set itself up as an alternative to Google.

      I use Tutanota but I’m looking to find something else because I’m sick of platforms that lock you into their ecosystem, and the fact they don’t provide any means of using other mail clients like Thunderbird has become a deal breaker.

      Problem is there doesn’t seem to be consensus on third place.

      • Broken@lemmy.ml
        121·
        7 months ago

        They advertise way too much and way too aggressively.

        I understand your feeling, but I think massive advertising is needed. This is high level marketing, basically telling the general public there is another way other than big tech. Most people don’t know this to know there are options to choose…so they don’t.

        • deweydecibel@lemmy.worldEnglish
          11·
          7 months ago

          I understand your feeling, but I think massive advertising is needed.

          Why is it “needed”?

          This is high level marketing, basically telling the general public there is another way other than big tech

          Why do they care about attracting all these people?

          Every one of them increases their operating costs, and doesn’t provide revenue if they stay in the free tier. Why do they want to increase their numbers so badly?

          Why isn’t it enough to just make a good product and let that be what brings people in?

          The only reason for this kind of aggressive advertising is because they’re making a push for growth. They want to become one of those “big tech” companies.

          Let me be clear, I’m not shaming them for advertising their services. But I’m uncomfortable with the scale and aggression with which they do it. They are putting money into this, and a lot of it. It’s not like they’re a non-profit, the end goal is pretty obvious here.

          We’ve been through this before with so many other tech companies, Proton will be no different. It’s just entering the honeymoon phase, is all.