Hey dear smart community, I don’t use any Google products or services over 3 years now. Always had android and used fdroid. No apps for banking ( cash lover). Osmand for maps. Extremely happy to find this app for socializing with like minded people. Now I feel time has come to upgrade privacy and security and custom ROM phone. I am considering if getting pixel8 and installing GOS. The only issue is,that I have 0 (ZERO) knowledge about how to do it. I have looked many videos and read on websites how to do it,but I am so afraid that I will not be able. I don’t know if that is right to ask for assistance from people here,but I don’t feel like I am capable of doing so. Plus,I have samsung which I would like to prepare and give my friend to use. Unfortunately, that person in immersed to Google world ( internet banking apps ect). Do you think LineageOS could give more protection and same smooth usage of phone ? I will appreciate any suggestions how to custom ROM phones. Best wishes to all.
I think you’re right – if your focus is security. Especially against a local gang or a not-so-developed and corrupt government that may get physical access to your phone. Especially short- to mid-term.
However, that is not the only possible threat to your or mine safety. Personally, I’m much more afraid of a very specific gang of billionaires. I believe they can do me more harm, currently. Them, and the overall process of centralization and monopolization. I also believe they have a high likelihood to do me even more harm in the future. While security against exploits etc is an ongoing battle that goes both ways, a total collapse of the market to monopolization is hard to revert. This is evidenced by our own chat earlier, where we both acknowledge that big corporations and hardware manufacturers simply tell us which binary blobs to install to run on their blackbox hardware. And we have to inhale quite some copium to start calling it OK.
If actually that is your or mine threat model, then the solution may naturally be different, too. You would then prioritize on projects that demonopolize the market, you would chose smaller brands when possible. And would you then vote with your pocket for projects that are technologically independent from the billionaire tech?