Surviving iPhone Tyranny

iPhone 12

In a senile move worthy of any senior citizen, the Proton Mail migration was mummified. All on-line accounts will continue to use iCloud Mail. A free s/mime encryption certificate from Actalis was obtained and installed in the Mail “app” on the iPhone 12 using instructions from MacObserver. The certificate is good for one year, and it allows for full S/MIME-encrypted e-mail. Keyword scans by the Fascists will not be possible with content encryption. Thus, the ability to safely communicate with allies is plausible when the Fascist “gauntlet” eventually drops. Everyone should consider doing the same, and everyone should acquaint themselves with the tedious procedure for communicating by encrypted e-mail. Tedious, but life-saving.

There are only two on-line accounts currently tied to Yahoo! Mail, and that will change shortly. Then, that e-mail account will be mummified. There is still an active GMail account, but it is not used for anything. It will most likely be mummified. Everyone is advised to do the same. By the way, ProtonMail is probably the best free and secure e-mail service.

The upcoming Apple® on-device AI scanner will also be deployed in the Messages “app.” It will scan iMessage and regular SMS text messages. The only safeguard is to use the Signal messaging “app.” Unfortunately, in iOS, it cannot replace Messages. Thus, conversations can only be with other Signal users. The “app” was installed briefly just for orientation purposes. As the Fascist tyranny unfolds, the “app” will be reinstalled and deployed.

All iPhone users are encouraged to follow the suggestions listed above. In addition, all system “apps” should be disconnected from iCloud synchronization (except Mail). Simply keep all personal data on-device or stored on a flash drive. Unused or superfluous system “apps” should be deactivated. Siri should be immediately disabled, as well as location services. Do not put any health information in the Health “app.” Do not use the Wallet “app.” Unsubscribe from all Apple® services. FaceTime should be disabled. And, disable photo storage on iCloud. The latter option is what allegedly triggers the on-device AI photo scanner.

Of course, in Orwellian language, Apple® has stated that the on-device AI scanner increases privacy. Yeah, right. All of the components … face and voice recognition, voice transcription, language translation, keystroke monitoring … are already incorporated on the device. Once all of the latter features are deployed by AI, there will be no mitigation.

The new privacy features coming in iOS 15 are seemingly impressive, but not enough to negate the effects of the rogue AI surveillance utility. The iPhone, like all other “smartphones,” should be looked upon as an adversary. The device must be contained and reduced to the barest of functionality, the latter of which must only serve the user.

Addendum: Only one on-line account references Yahoo! Mail. There is also an interest in deploying ProtonVPN.