All HTTP requests include your ip address, you don’t “consent” to giving it to anybody. You can geolocate somebody based on ip address but it won’t be very accurate
You can set up wireguard vpn on a tiny instance in Amazon or Google, and bounce traffic through that one. Then you control what gets logged (Amazon may have logs over all outgoing connections from all instances somewhere though).
You can even make it change it’s public ip every day if you want.
This problem solved, but whenever you change your network or IP and then periodically, your phone will report to Firebase, so you can receive push notifications.
You can block those with software that simulates a local VPN with a filter, but you won’t get any more push notifications. Now push notifications are not just the ones you see. Some apps use invisible ones to get infos they need to work.
Not the magic bullet people think they are. Oh, and you can’t turn it off, so you’ll have to take the loss in network speed on absolutely everything. And better know how to configure each device so it doesn’t go ahead and check leak your IP anyways, which also restricts choice of devices you use. Cause remember, if any device on your network ever connects to the net without the VPN, then your anonymity just went out the window.
I agree it’s a powerful tool! I was specifically responding to “problem solved” in the previous comment. My reply was in no way meant as a general review of VPNs.
All HTTP requests include your ip address, you don’t “consent” to giving it to anybody. You can geolocate somebody based on ip address but it won’t be very accurate
True, it’s storing the IP address that is the issue.
Storing it and associating it with all the other identifying information collected.
Which they actually acknowledge in the blog post.
Kind of interesting that they’re smart enough to understand how to sniff packets but not enough to understand that IP address = location.
Use a VPN. Problem solved.
Using a VPN just moves the trust to another middleman.
Is that tinfoil hat comfortable?
Tor over VPN
Yeah, a middleman you get to choose. That’s a huge improvement. There are plenty of trustworthy VPN providers.
So use a trustworthy middleman? Surely you can find someone more trustworthy than advertising companies?
You can set up wireguard vpn on a tiny instance in Amazon or Google, and bounce traffic through that one. Then you control what gets logged (Amazon may have logs over all outgoing connections from all instances somewhere though).
You can even make it change it’s public ip every day if you want.
This problem solved, but whenever you change your network or IP and then periodically, your phone will report to Firebase, so you can receive push notifications.
You can block those with software that simulates a local VPN with a filter, but you won’t get any more push notifications. Now push notifications are not just the ones you see. Some apps use invisible ones to get infos they need to work.
Make sure you disable or properly configure webrtc. Even with a VPN it will leak your true IP address.
Check here.
https://browserleaks.com/webrtc
Not the magic bullet people think they are. Oh, and you can’t turn it off, so you’ll have to take the loss in network speed on absolutely everything. And better know how to configure each device so it doesn’t go ahead and check leak your IP anyways, which also restricts choice of devices you use. Cause remember, if any device on your network ever connects to the net without the VPN, then your anonymity just went out the window.
No one thinks VPNs are “magic bullets”. I don’t know why this gets repeated ad nauseum.
True but it’s not that bad.
Just choose a good provider. You don’t need to configure anything.
That’s what kill switches are for.
I agree it’s a powerful tool! I was specifically responding to “problem solved” in the previous comment. My reply was in no way meant as a general review of VPNs.
That VPN provider will then know ALL the connections you make. Almost worse than just using the Internet normally.
That’s an uninformed statement.
You get to pick your provider. So pick one that you trust.
It’s FAR better than without as your ISP is probably selling your traffic to third parties or at least monitoring it. Some VPNs don’t.