No single tool can protect you from every privacy threat. These are the tools our team actually uses to keep their information private and secure, all of which are free or highly affordable.
Ad & Tracker Blocking
Every website you visit is a potential data collection point. Ad and tracker blockers prevent advertisers and third parties from building behavioral profiles on you, reducing how much of your data gets harvested and sold.
- uBlock Origin (Free): An open-source content blocker for web browsers. It filters out ads, trackers, and malicious sites by checking web requests against blocklists like EasyList.
- Privacy Badger (Free): An open-source browser extension created by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) that automatically detects and blocks hidden third-party trackers based on their behavior as you browse. If a domain tracks you across three or more sites, Privacy Badger blocks it dynamically.
Pro Tip: We recommend running both simultaneously. uBlock Origin stops known, listed threats instantly, while Privacy Badger acts as a safety net for novel or unlisted trackers.
Address Aliasing
Your home or business address can end up in public records, package delivery databases, voter rolls, and business filings. An address aliasing or mail-forwarding service puts a layer between your real address and the outside world.
- PhysicalAddress.com (Paid): Provides a real physical street address to receive and forward your mail, keeping your home address private.
- California Registered Agent (Paid): Can receive physical mail, but also meets the requirements for a business's physical address.
Credit Freezing
Freezing your credit is one of the most effective ways to prevent identity theft and new account fraud. When your credit is frozen, lenders can't access your credit report, which means no one can open a new line of credit in your name.
- The Big Three Bureaus (Free): Freeze your credit with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. It’s 100% free to freeze, it won’t affect your credit score, and it takes only a few minutes.
When you need to apply for a new loan or credit card, simply perform a temporary "thaw" online and refreeze it once the application is complete.
Email Aliasing
Your primary email links your digital footprint across the web, exposing you to spam, breaches, and scams. Email aliasing services create disposable forwarding addresses that direct to your real inbox. If one gets spammed or compromised, you can just delete it.
Pro Tip: You can layer two different email aliasing services, adding an extra layer of protection. Both email aliasing services would need to be compromised to expose your real email address.
Monitoring
Even with strict security practices, data breaches happen. Proactive monitoring helps you detect exposures early so you can update compromised credentials before attackers exploit them.
- HaveIBeenPwned (Free): Enter your email address to check if your information has been exposed in any known data breaches. You can also sign up for ongoing breach alerts.
- Google Alerts (Free): Set up custom alerts for your name, address, phone number, and other personal identifiers. Whenever new search results containing that information are indexed, Google sends you an email.
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Multi-factor authentication adds a second form of verification beyond your password, making it harder for an attacker to access your accounts even if your credentials are compromised.
- Authy (Free): An authenticator app with encrypted cloud backups and multi-device syncing.
- Google Authenticator (Free): An authenticator app for generating time-based one-time passwords.
Password Manager
Reusing passwords is a common security risk people take. A password manager generates, stores, and auto-fills strong, unique passwords for every account, so a breach at one site doesn't cascade into others.
- Google Password Manager (Free): Built directly into Chrome and Android, offering smooth integration for users within the Google ecosystem.
- Apple Passwords (Free): Integrated natively into iOS, macOS, and Safari, making it a convenient choice for Apple users.
Payment Cards
Every merchant you give your credit card number to is a potential breach. Virtual card services generate unique card numbers linked to your funding source that keep your real payment information private.
- Privacy.com (Free / Paid): Create virtual debit cards tied to your bank account. You can set spend limits, assign cards to a single merchant, or set cards to close automatically after one use.
- MySudo (Paid): Offers virtual debit cards alongside its email and phone masking tools.
Phone Aliasing
Giving out your real mobile phone number makes it easy for data brokers to link your offline identity to your online profiles. A secondary phone number shields your real line from spam and exposure.
- Google Voice (Free): Provides a free US phone number that forwards calls and texts to your real phone.
- MySudo (Paid): Allows you to create distinct digital identities with dedicated phone numbers, call management, and texting capabilities.
Registered Agent Services (For Business Owners)
If you own a business, state regulations often require a public physical address for business filings. Using a Registered Agent service allows you to list the agent's official address on public state incorporation documents instead of your personal home address.
Secure Messaging
Most mainstream messaging apps collect metadata about who you communicate with and when. Switching to a privacy-focused messenger ensures both your messages and your communication patterns stay private.
- Signal (Free): An open-source messaging app featuring default end-to-end encryption. Signal is non-profit and collects little data about its users.
Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)
A VPN masks your IP address and encrypts your network traffic, preventing your ISP, network administrators, and basic online trackers from monitoring what you're doing online.
- iCloud Private Relay (Included with iCloud+): For Apple users, Private Relay routes Safari traffic through two separate relays, ensuring neither Apple nor third-party network providers can connect your identity to what you’re browsing.
- Tor Browser (Free): Directs your internet traffic through a multi-layered, volunteer-operated network. While slower than standard VPNs, it's free and vetted.
By layering these tools across different areas of your digital life, you build a multi-layered defense that makes it much harder for anyone to track, collect, or sell your data. These are just some of the tools we've used personally. Let us know if you have any recommendations for us.
Good luck, and stay safe out there,
— Ben, Tyler, and Alison
P.S. If you'd like our help removing the information that’s already out there about you, it's just $19.99/year (with a money-back guarantee). We cover 200+ sites, and signing up takes only a few minutes.