Sometimes for work trips I’ll user uber in a vanadium web browser. I think they also have a number you can call to order one. Primarily for old people but works well in this case.

Using uber is its own question but you got to find the most private set up that works for you. Anything is better than nothing.

Seems that everyone else has said the same as what I mostly already do, but I’ll just make a couple comments on the student communication topic:

My university already created a Microsoft 365 account for my university user, which included Teams. For my threat profile, I don’t consider Teams a terrible option if I’m only using it for study purposes, so I’ve communicated over that for assignments before (web UI only).

Otherwise like others have suggested, some students are open to something like Signal (a fellow student got me onto it years ago) if you kindly ask and mention upfront that it just requires a phone number. I did an assignment over Signal with two other students, so it’s very doable.

1. email, everybody has that, if they can’t use it, well up to them to offer an alternative but anyway with DeltaChat I can get notified instantly.
2. Web. Sure the app does provide some convenience but most banks do have a working website that do not need an app as usually SMS 2FA works.
3. Real taxis do have phone numbers… but they also have apps and most do not required Google Services AFAIK
4. OpenStreetMap and CityMapper and (I know I’m going to sound nuts) but actually road signs or asking people
5. No but same, plenty of apps on F-Droid that don’t require Google Services, otherwise… a .txt file? .ods spreadsheet with visual? Same on NextCloud so you can share with others even though nobody cares? (sorry)
6. PinePhone, PinePhone Pro, Purism Librem, and (ahem…) Apple iPhone if you want a compromise between privacy and still convenience?

Some food for thought:

Absence of information is its own sort of information. You may find it worthwhile in your search for an acceptable compromise to place some kind of value on “looking normal”.

For communication I just tell them I have signal or other close apps or they can text me. Rather have regular texts than Messenger.

Banking apps works fine for me even if they complain about the lack of google.

I use Organicmaps but I really wish they could make it so it could accept gmap links without me having to use another app as a medium.

I’m trying to find the best apps for fitness. I have a wear watch with Fitbit that I use, but I would like to integrate the Fitbit stats with a calorie tracker and an exercise app.
Right now I have all apps on a separate profile on my GrapheneOS. Except Waistline but that can’t integrate, so I’m looking for alternatives.

I had very similar experiences around 2015. Before that, it was reasonably easy to use a fully FOSS system, but things have gotten worse over the years. Sure, there’s more FOSS for mobile hardware than ever before, but the world surrounding the phone has moved in the exact opposite direction. Being compatible with the world around you is the problem here.

Back then, I couldn’t find a satisfactory solution. One extreme is to go full on FOSS, and cut at least 50% of the entire world from your life, while the other is to sacrifice your privacy at altar of corporate greed. Between the two there are numerous dissatisfying compromises, and you need to do some soul searching to figure out where you want to draw the line.

Google Pixel 8a is probably the best and most cost effective at the moment and flash GrapheneOS. Typicically a recent “a” series phone is a good choice. Google now supports them for 7 years from release. Divide price by remaining support to get annual cost estimate.

1. Element or SMS.

… 4. Yeah, manually. Osmand, Organic Maps (both have public transport now) 5. No 6. OnePlus line sucks in hardware (digitizer & fingerprint are shit, no jack or SD). Get something else.

As for other devices than the Google Pixels, it is pretty bleak since the end of DivestOS a month ago now. One basically has to decide the ROM you want to run, then see what it supports. None of the other ROMs will be as locked down as GrapheneOS and maybe not as compatible. Other ROMs to look at include CalyxOS, /e/, IodeOS, LineageOS, and crDroid. I have no personal experience with these others and not all of them have a privacy focus, but the ones I listed seem to be fairly popular. You might find this comparison of ROMs helpful: https://eylenburg.github.io/android_comparison.htm .

Hardware. I find the Fairphone interesting. Maybe some of the Moto’s since they are so common and inexpensive. One has to decide to what extent you want a Chinese phone considering the current geo-politics and your personal situation. I personally just upgraded to a new Pixel 8a and GrapheneOS myself. You can find my previous post https://beehaw.org/post/17618967 . Feel free to ask me anything.

Regarding de-googling. Keep in mind it does not have to be all or nothing. At least on Graphene you can just install Google Play and Google Play Services in either the Private Space or in one of the other Profiles (that is one of the other User or Work Profiles). When you close those down that space Google Play and the remaining apps you cannot de-google are locked up. For me, I installed Google Play into my Private Space along with the few apps that I actually needed which was really only Lyft, and Uber. Other apps that I found needed Play and Play Services included GoodRx, Google Maps, PlutoTV, and TubiTV. and Home (for Chomecast) plus any app you want to Chromecast but there are other alternatives for these.

My banking app would just not run on my new phone even with Play installed and so I just left it on my old phone even though it no longer has cell. Primarily I need the banking app to deposit checks. Everything else can be done via the web. Google Wallet at least for payments probably does not run either so I plan on playing with Venmo at some point. That should work though I do not know if it needs Play or not.

Some of this is changing patterns too. A good way to de-google is to use the web more and/or use PWAs (Progressive Web Apps) if they are offered. Native Alpha is also an interesting tool to get a PWA like experience for sites that don’t have PWAs. Some sites heavily promote their Apps to the point that they do not work well without using the Desktop site explicitly. User-Agent Switcher plugin in Firefox can set this by site. Other useful Firefox plugins may include uBlock Origin, NoScript, and Cookie AutoDelete which allow a lot of per site configuration.

Another useful strategy for de-googling is to avoid the Play store where you can and focus on your ROMs App Store (Graphene for example), F-Droid, Accrescent, and Obtainium sources. Then fetch the rest (mostly a few remaining commercial apps) via the Aurora Store with anonymous login.

Edit: Another problematic app is the UPS app. Never got that to work even with Google Play. One can just use the website for this though.

I think it’s a lot to do with developing a threat model that works for you, and understanding that, unless you’re trying to be Jason Bourne, there’s always going to be SOME compromise - the level of compromise again, depends on you.

A couple years ago when I started down this rabbit hole, I was doing EVERYTHING that I read on every privacy blog: I started using GrapheneOS, completely degoogled my phone, didn’t use any non-FOSS apps, no location apps, the whole 9 yards.

I soon came to realize I had to find a compromise. I now follow a threat model that best works for me… Naturally there are weaknesses in it, but it’s things I’m willing to risk.

1. I use Element with anyone willing to use it with me. I use QKSMS with anyone else.
2. I created a separate profile on my phone with Graphene that only has my banking apps. It still uses Aurora store and sandboxed Google services.
3. I don’t live in an area where things like Uber are available so that ones not a problem for me.
4. OSMand+. I won’t turn it on (or location) until I’m away from my house and already on the way. You can also manually download apps for offline and use it like an old school paper map.
5. Kind of unrelated but, I use Obsidian for almost everything I keep track of in my life. I document my fitness exploits on Obsidian.
6. I’m not sure what you mean by this one… I use my phone calls as per normal but usually try and text (see #1 above) my phone also has a record button when you call someone - I’ll generally record every conversation I have with anyone from any company, etc.

That’s just my little process… Hope some of it is helpful to you.

4. osm2gmaps (osm -> gmaps) and/or Geo Share (gmaps -> osm)

I only have a smartphone because a job gave me a monthly stipend to have it in the past and I don’t currently have a plan for it. that being said I am deeply in bed with google. I actually am more concerned with the fact that google could just drop all the services one day than the privacy so I am and advocate for government email (not as much in the last week or so) that would be guaranteed to not go away and allow for in person support maybe run by the post office (and run with similar independence and rights) or at the state level the secretary of state. Maybe both. Would it be my main social email? No, but I could rely on its stability. Most people are aghast at this but I really don’t get how having some corporation, no matter how well their current safeguards are, is better than a government one run similarly.

1. I’m a minimalist, I only use Signal to make others switch to it. Also use Session but its rare.
2. I use banking. Still works on GrapheneOS. Just that it pops up that it might not work as it always scans for google play store.
3. Luckily for me, I have a car. I don’t need other transports.
4. I use OSMand. Predownload a map and you don’t need an internet connection to use it. If you need directions while driving, separate it from your phone and use a GPS in your car or buy an external GPS.
5. No, no tracking of fitness
6. Never used, but look into Pine64. Have hardware switches. Careful as some people have waited like a year, two or three to get their phone. Waiting time seems to be their bottleneck.

1. The fear of missing out was something that made me double think deleting my facebook. It turned out to be unfounded fear, as none of the hypothetical “missing out” scenarios have proven to be an actual problem.

If the study group is very important to you, and the study group is on Facebook, then just have a Facebook. Deadlines and test info are not critical information that you need to receive in your pocket as soon as it is shared. You can check your anonymous Facebook account once a week through a VPN in a desktop computer and you will likely be well informed enough. If you have a friend that is both in Signal and that Facebook group, you can tell them about this and ask as a favor that they forward any critical time-sensitive info.

As for my response, mostly I use XMPP. I turn on my WhatsApp phone on every few weeks. People can message me via XMPP, e-mail, or Signal.

2. I have a little scanner. I can use the phone’s browser and log-in, using the scanner for the 2FA. But it is very rare that I use banking through the phone, as I do most of my banking via a desktop computer.

3. Bike, public transport, walking, and planning ahead.

4. On the desktop I do use Google Maps as it is quite efficient. Usually I plan ahead if I am biking somewhere new. I will often draw a path, write some street names at turns/crossings to remember, and pick some landmarks. Usually I am moving near places I know, so this is not task that comes up often.

5. At different points in time I have kept multiple fitness and nutrition logs (on websites and notebooks), but I rarely looked back at them. Now days I track rest times, hear rate, and running parameters while exercising, so I have a garmin watch and look at the output logs at the end of the exercise on the watch itself. It is not connected to any apps.

6. I make use of three devices: I. A Pixel phone running GrapheneOS has no SIM card. I have my apps, music, etc in this phone, and I use it as a mini tablet. It needs WiFi to get internet.

II. A PinePhone. I bought a large stack of the cheapest pre-paid SIM cards a while ago, and put in a new one whenever a SIM card runs out. I wrote a hook that, when I power down the device, a random IMEI is generated and written to the LTE modem. So, if I turn it off, swap the SIM, and turn it back on, I have a phone with a completely new mobile identity. This phone I can use to make calls and to share data with the GrapheneOS, but it does not have a static phone number. Usually it is off.

III. A Raspberry Pi 5 with a 4G LTE hat. This hat takes in a SIM card that is stable. So, this device is associated with a phone number and a persistent identifier, but it does not move. This is my phone number. SMS messages get sent to me via XMPP. If I am called, my XMPP also lets me know. I don’t have VoIP, so I do need to call back if I choose to. However, it is so so rare that I make a phone call that I have not bothered to implement VoIP.