Questions tagged [privacy]
Questions related to privacy management with Ubuntu OS, network, apps, etc. and related issues.
161
questions
5
votes
1answer
255 views
Install and run Zoom Client inside a sandbox
With COVID-19 pandemic there was a boom of video conferencing. Although there are free and open source alternatives like Jitsi, Zoom became popular. Is not a secret that have some privacy issues (EFF, ...
0
votes
0answers
9 views
Ubuntu 18.04 desktop bug - location services cannot be disabled?
I recently noticed that, despite location services being disabled in the settings menu, the location service indicator will sometimes show in the upper right corner. When I navigate to the settings -> ...
1
vote
3answers
155 views
How can I prevent a third party software to gather data from my device?
For work purposes I have to use a not open source software that collects and sends to the producer MAC address, other device IDs and other hardware datas (from its privacy policy, which is not very ...
1
vote
0answers
164 views
Why is my system connected to an Amazon AWS server?
From a fresh reboot I entered netstat -an | more in a terminal shell and located a foreign ip address 99.86.32.24 from netstat's output connected to my system over port 443. I've opted out of sending ...
1
vote
1answer
34 views
How is my language exposed when im on the web?
This is driving me nuts. I use a VPN (that protects against leaks and shuts down internet in case it suddenly stops working) and then go to https://whatismyipaddress.com/ to confirm that it actually ...
0
votes
0answers
43 views
Camera turns on on startup
I have a laptop which has ubuntu 19.10 on it.
Every time I start my computer, the LED indicator for the web cam turns on.
why is it happening ?
Update 1:
I ran ls -ltrh /dev/video*
and got:
crw-rw-...
0
votes
0answers
35 views
How private is visual studio code on ubuntu?
I can install visual studio code on ubuntu bionic beaver. When I go to the software manager I find it in the list of applications but I do read that:
"This application has no limitations and has ...
-2
votes
1answer
40 views
Book recommendation for a novice [closed]
I'm 30+ with a family and working in a non-IT field. I've been getting into IT privacy and security and playing around with Ubuntu. What would you recommend for me to read so I can learn more. I'm ...
0
votes
2answers
118 views
On awake the unlocked desktop shows for a blink moment [closed]
When I close my laptop, on Ubuntu 19.10, I want to prevent others from accessing my computer and also hide, whatever is shown on my screen.
Now, when I open the lid, the desktop shows for a fraction ...
0
votes
1answer
75 views
Ubuntu remembers every drive ever connected and every dvd ever inserted and PCmanFM shows it in folder panel
I am using PCManFM 1.2.5 as file manager on Ubuntu 18.04.2. When I go to my media folder, there I find listed the names of every external drive I ever connected and every disk I ever inserted in my ...
0
votes
0answers
26 views
I don't have the lock screen button at the bottom of the menu
I don't have the lock screen button at the bottom of the menu. I am using 19.04 on Dell Inspiron 14z 5423.
Also, I can not access the settings of Lock Screen in the Privacy menu because it's ...
0
votes
1answer
62 views
How does installing ubuntu alonside windows work?
I am curious about is there any difference between installing just Ubuntu and installing Ubuntu alongside Windows 10?
Do they run separately or together?
As you know, Windows 10 is a privacy killer ...
5
votes
1answer
1k views
Does Ubuntu Server 18.04.2 LTS “track” users in any way?
I am considering Ubuntu Server 18.04.2 LTS for a personal home server. Though, reading online about things like Zeitgeist and Unity Dash (Online Search Results) I became a bit concerned about privacy. ...
2
votes
0answers
182 views
Disable media key actions on KDE Plasma lock screen
It is a neat feature that there is a whitelist for certain key actions while the KDE Plasma lock screen is active. These whitelisted actions include volume and brightness control, and also media key ...
-1
votes
1answer
285 views
How to prevent someone from logging in into Ubuntu without knowing the password?
I just had my browser tabs changed when I just logged in today, it was Incognito so I can't tell if I can go back to it, but I'm very confused as to how can someone logged in to my computer without ...
10
votes
1answer
1k views
List and remove unofficially installed CA certificates
This article expose how around 18% of HTTPS connections are being detected as intercepted by MITM proxies. As the great related paper state:
To circumvent this validation, local software injects a ...
0
votes
1answer
479 views
Why Lubuntu 18.04 calls Amazon servers? (motd.ubuntu.com)
In wireshark logs I found that my Lubuntu 18.04 calls Amazon servers. See this log:
17 192.168.1.1 192.168.1.13 DNS 118 Standard query response 0x0e33 A motd.ubuntu.com A 54.194.229.79 A 52.18....
8
votes
2answers
663 views
Ubuntu 18.04: Missing Problem Reporting option in Privacy Settings
I am missing the Problem Reporting option in Privacy Settings, and I wanted to set it as manual. It was there when I installed Ubuntu, but now it's gone.
To clarify, I have Ubuntu 18.04 with the Pop ...
-2
votes
2answers
502 views
Prevent Ubuntu from leaking information to the internet upon login
I am surprised to find so little information about what I would consider a serious breach of privacy and security.
It appears ubuntu-report is sending very unique information about your system - like ...
1
vote
1answer
259 views
Can't change settings in Ubuntu 18.04 (Screen Lock)
I can't change any settings inside Screen Lock portion as they are grayed out. Settings options for other categories seems okay.
How can I fix this ?
2
votes
0answers
253 views
Enable WebRTC in Firefox for whitelisted sites only
I would like to have WebRTC generally blocked in my Firefox browser, except for a small set of websites which I trust and which need this functionality.
I know one can disable WebRTC in Firefox by ...
1
vote
0answers
73 views
Open Tor from specific Firefox urls
I have Firefox and Tor installed on my Ubuntu 18.04.
Day to day I mostly use Firefox, but in some specific cases I want to open a webpage using Tor.
For example, say I want to open askubuntu.com in ...
1
vote
0answers
89 views
Ubuntu 18.04 Unity after wakeup shows desktop before login
I have encountered a bit of a security and privacy issue on my Ubuntu 18.04 with Unity. After wake up it shortly shows my whole desktop with everything that was running on it before suspending it and ...
0
votes
1answer
1k views
Unable to change privacy settings upon install of Ubuntu 18.04 LTS
I am new to Linux with Ubuntu 18.04 LTS as of this morning.
Anyone else experienced the inability to change privacy settings upon installation? I.e. I can tap the toggle switch to the "off" position ...
3
votes
1answer
2k views
How to clear Weather location on Ubuntu 18.04 (GNOME)
On my Ubuntu 18.04 system with GNOME 3.28 on it I have set in the top-panel's calendar pull-down the weather location so it checks with the gnome-weather application the weather information for my ...
9
votes
1answer
846 views
Is there a technical reason why a Ubuntu One account is needed for livepatching?
In order to set up Livepatch on Ubuntu 18.04, one needs to have a Ubuntu One account. Clearly this choice has privacy implications, and possibly also security ones (for instance, in theory, Canonical ...
1
vote
2answers
231 views
Is it safe to use Bleachbit in a ext4 filesystem with journaling?
I want to shred a file, making it unrecoverable. I normally use the command 'bleachbit -s file'. When I was searching about it, I found out that the journaling in ext4 makes a copy of the file ...
1
vote
0answers
74 views
Have I opened myself to a hack from posting terminal output here?
So, yesterday I posed a question where I supplied two dmesg | tail outputs, plus uname -a and ls -a /boot. It disclosed my system time and my username, (plus my VPN provider and other software).
I ...
0
votes
0answers
424 views
How to disable unauthorised and automatic connections to extensions.gnome.org?
I'm fairly new to Ubuntu and using version 17.10 with Gnome 3.26.2 in a VirtualBox VM. Occasionally (once a day?) an unauthorised and automatic connection to "extensions.gnome.org" on port 443 is ...
0
votes
0answers
559 views
Firefox 57 (Quantum) Cookies exceptions not working (in Ubuntu 14.04)
When trying to add servers to black list I can't get it; I type the domain, click "Block", but nothing is added to the list.
I regret so much for updating Firefox to v57 since it's much worse ...
-2
votes
1answer
46 views
Do cookies and flash objects change with a new user account? [closed]
I think Chrome's browser cookies and flash cookies are stored in
~/.config/google-chrome/Default/Pepper Data/Shockwave Flash/WritableRoot/#SharedObjects/
When I create a new user account in Ubuntu, ...
-1
votes
1answer
507 views
Why is Ubuntu 17.10 locking the screen and asking for password?
I'm using 17.10 with Gnome. (I upgraded from Unity).
When I close my laptop and reopen I get a duff looking password prompt:
Why is this? There is only one account on this machine and under User I ...
2
votes
0answers
83 views
How to disable job name in print notifications for other logged in users?
We have a terminal server where users log in via Thinlinc. They are provided with a mate session. When a user prints a document, a notification of the successful print job pops up for every user. The ...
2
votes
1answer
525 views
Why Ubuntu Gnome needs access to my location?
Ubuntu Gnome 17.04 requests to know my location after every boot. I never experienced such thing with Linux distros before. Can anyone explain why this is so?
0
votes
0answers
505 views
privacy & security settings icon missing in ubuntu studio 16.4
I have tried several ideas to solve this :
sudo apt-get install ubuntu-desktop
sudo apt-get install unity-control-center
sudo apt install gnome-control-center
...and after that i still have no ...
13
votes
6answers
3k views
Encrypted home folder still accessible after logout
I you have an account with an encrypted home folder, you can't access the user's plain text data in their home folder if that user hasn't logged in, yet, since the system last booted up. This is what ...
1
vote
0answers
497 views
Lubuntu - What is the BEST (and most of all easiest) way to monitor as well as block websites?
I set up an older Dell laptop for our kids to play with as well as use for school projects. However, just like with any technology they poke around and do what they want when no one is over their ...
1
vote
1answer
97 views
Are there any default programs in Ubuntu 16.10 which take my data and pose a privacy risk?
For instance: the Amazon icon. That's a red flag for me because some huge corporation is always up to no good. Also, there is a facebook plugin. Get my tinfoil hat and hold onto my jimmies.
Are there ...
0
votes
0answers
95 views
Is it possible to hide applications in Ubuntu 16.04?
Maybe something where you need to enter a password to access hidden applications or something? (I'm pretty new to Linux)
1
vote
1answer
3k views
AutoLogin does not turn off
Ubuntu has been on my Laptop for almost half a year now. I used to have a login password, then turned it off about two months ago. After reading this (http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/...
8
votes
1answer
1k views
RFC7217 (stable privacy addresses) implementation in Ubuntu 16.10
I'm the author of IETF RFC7217, and I'm trying to figure out whether Ubuntu 16.10 implement support for RFC7217.
It seems that there is no support in the version of NetworkManager Ubuntu is using, or ...
8
votes
3answers
8k views
Is it safe to use an Ubuntu VM on Windows 10 from a privacy perspective?
My question is basically in the title - We all know about the telemetry bullcrap that windows 10 comes with and about NSA spying on everyone. Considering all that stuff, is it (from a privacy ...
0
votes
1answer
314 views
2 hard drives + privacy (Windows 10 and Ubuntu)
I have a computer with Windows 10. I want to have a hard drive with Ubuntu that Microsoft can't access or read. Can this be done on one computer and two hard drives or do I have to have Windows and ...
0
votes
2answers
69 views
Basic disk encryption in Ubuntu
I'm new to Ubuntu and Linux in general, so feel free to explain like I'm five (I wont be offended)
I'm starting work as a private therapist and have brought a T450 Thinkpad with the express intent of ...
0
votes
1answer
135 views
Google collects data over ubuntu
So I was browsing and just typed "Ubuntu" over my top bar. The Google URL mentions: client=ubuntu
I deleted cookies, even disabled the Ubuntu plug-in in Firefox (presuming this was the problem) but ...
1
vote
1answer
110 views
Prevent other users to login as me and view my files
My Ubuntu user account name "user-3121" with type as "Administrator". There is one more account named "sysadmin" with type as "Administrator". How do I know whether "sysadmin" can login as me and view ...
1
vote
0answers
205 views
Tox over Tor won't come online
I've recently installed toxic (tox-based terminal chat client) and am attempting to route it through Tor for extra privacy. I followed this tutorial for installing the tor service. But, when I try and ...
2
votes
1answer
4k views
LUKS and Nuke key installtion on Ubuntu?
When you install Ubuntu there's an option to encrypt the installation. I didn't select that, can I still encrypt Ubuntu? I do not want to encrypt my home folder I would like to encrypt Ubuntu as if I ...
0
votes
2answers
59 views
What do I share when I connect to a public wireless network
Is there a list of data/infos Ubuntu (or other Linux distributions) share when connecting to a (public) wireless network?
Such as mac address, hostname, ...
2
votes
0answers
582 views
Does 16.04 still send searches to Canonical, even with Online searches toggled off? (See privacy policy)
I was reading Canonical's updated privacy policy as of Feb 2016, and it doesn't unambiguously state that the Dash's searches and keystrokes don't go to Canonical.
Can anyone confirm that keystrokes ...
