Technology should help people become more independent, not more locked in. BIMNY / Be It Me Not You is a Matrix community for Calm, practical conversation around freedom tech, open source, self-hosting, decentralisation, Web3, privacy, self-sovereignty, self-custody, AI, independent publishing and the open web. It's for people who are interested in building, using, and understanding tools that give individuals and communities more ownership, resilience and control. If that sounds like your sort of conversation, you're welcome to join:

matrix.org

Matrix.org

Matrix, the open protocol for secure decentralised communications

#Matrix #BIMNY #BeItMeNotYou #FreedomTech #OpenSource #SelfHosting #Decentralisation #Web3 #Privacy #DigitalSovereignty #OpenWeb #AI #Community

Google is not just a search engine. It sits across your browser, email, maps, documents, video habits, Android devices, ads, and countless websites using Google services. This Proton video is a useful reminder that privacy is not about having something to hide. It is about not letting one company build a quiet diary of your life by default. A good starting point is to check your Google My Activity page, review Web & App Activity, Location History, YouTube History, personalisation, Chrome sync, app permissions, and auto-delete settings. Then start replacing what you can with tools that better respect you: Proton, Firefox, Brave, GrapheneOS, Organic Maps, OpenStreetMap, self-hosted services, and local-first tools where possible. You do not need to escape Big Tech overnight. Start by turning off the data taps you do not need. How much of your digital life are you comfortable letting Google remember? #Privacy #Google #DigitalSovereignty #SelfSovereignty #DataPrivacy #SurveillanceCapitalism #BigTech #OpenSource #Proton #BeItMeNotYou

Discord's age verification push should worry anyone who cares about privacy. When a chat app starts asking for face scans or government ID to unlock normal access, the trust equation changes. Safety matters, but building giant Identity pipelines is not the answer. The 5CA incident showed the obvious risk: once ID data exists, it becomes a target. Matrix is not perfect, but it points in the right direction: open Protocol, decentralised servers, and more control over where your community lives. Maybe it is time to stop building communities inside platforms that keep moving the walls closer. What would it take for you to leave Discord? #Discord #Matrix #Privacy #DigitalSovereignty #SelfHosting #Decentralisation #OpenSource #FreedomTech

Docker is everywhere in self-hosting for one simple reason: it turns messy app installs into tidy, isolated containers. Instead of one app fighting another over versions, libraries, ports, or system packages, Docker lets each service bring what it needs and run separately on the same machine. For homelabs, that is huge. One Raspberry Pi, mini PC, or VPS can run a blog, search engine, status page, media server, database, and more without everything becoming a tangled mess. It is not magic, and you still need to check what images you trust. But once Docker clicks, self-hosting feels much less scary. What was the first Docker app that made it click for you? #Docker #SelfHosting #Homelab #Linux #OpenSource #DigitalSovereignty #Privacy #Decentralisation

A survivor of the Oxford grooming scandal has spoken about being groomed and abused from the age of 12, and about the failure of police, social services and political leaders to face child exploitation honestly. The official Serious Case Review later accepted that agencies missed warning signs, misunderstood grooming, and too often saw abused children as difficult rather than exploited. That should haunt every institution involved. When Sadiq Khan is asked about grooming gangs in London, the answer should be clear evidence, open scrutiny, and full accountability, not political fog. How many more survivors have to speak before the system stops protecting reputations before children? #ChildProtection #GroomingGangs #Survivors #Accountability #UKPolitics #Safeguarding #Justice

The UK is edging closer to a possible under-16 social media ban, or at least tougher limits on addictive design features like infinite scroll and autoplay. Protecting children online matters. But a blanket ban could mean something much bigger: normalising age checks across the web, asking adults to prove who they are to use everyday services. Australia's experience already shows the problem. Kids can bypass bans, while everyone else gets pushed towards more surveillance. Do we want safer platforms, or a web where Identity checks become the price of entry? #OnlineSafety #DigitalRights #Privacy #AgeVerification #FreeSpeech #SelfSovereignty #UKPolitics

Ads are no longer just something you see before a video. They are in your feeds, your smart devices, your Kindle, your petrol pump, your inbox, your search results, and now companies are even exploring ways to push advertising into the night sky. This video nails something important: advertising has moved from "here is a product you might like" to "we will occupy every spare second of your attention." The worst part is how much of it relies on tracking, loneliness, addiction loops, and forced exposure. AI companion ads, unskippable videos, sponsored everything, digital billboards, and surveillance-based targeting are not signs of a healthy internet. They are signs of a system that treats human attention as a resource to be strip-mined. At what point do we start treating public attention and digital privacy as things worth defending? #Privacy #DigitalRights #AdTech #SurveillanceCapitalism #SelfSovereignty #OpenWeb #FreedomTech

The Broadview Six case has collapsed, and the reason should worry everyone who cares about protest rights and due process. Federal charges against the anti-ICE protesters were dismissed with prejudice after serious grand jury misconduct came to light. Judge April Perry raised concerns about improper prosecutorial conduct, including grand jury proceedings, redacted transcripts, and attempts to avoid deeper judicial review. This is not just about one protest outside an ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois. It is about what happens when the state uses prosecution as pressure; then the process itself becomes tainted. Whatever you think about the protest, the principle matters: the government must not be allowed to bend the justice system to punish dissent. Source: #BroadviewSix #CivilLiberties #DueProcess #FreeSpeech #ProtestRights #DOJ #Accountability #Privacy #Freedom

The Third-Party Doctrine is one of the biggest privacy traps of the digital age. Use a Bank's, phone company's, email host's, cloud service's, or app's services because modern life leaves you little choice, and the state argues that the moment your data touches a third party, your privacy protections weaken. That logic may have started in a different era, but in today's world, it creates a massive surveillance loophole. Your data should not lose constitutional protection just because someone else stores it for you. Should using modern Technology really mean giving up your rights? #Privacy #FourthAmendment #Surveillance #DataBrokers #DigitalRights #SelfSovereignty #Decentralisation

Big Tech is going nuclear to feed the AI data centre boom. Coin Bureau Finance breaks down the claimed $60B bet, why Wall Street slept on it, and what the “real trade” might be (utilities, uranium, SMRs, grid upgrades). Watch: What do you reckon, sensible decarbonisation move or another step towards Big Tech owning the infrastructure layer? #Nuclear #SMR #AI #DataCentres #EnergySecurity #Uranium #Investing #Decentralisation

Crypto at checkout feels like sci-fi until you see it in action. This short is a reminder that payments are shifting under our feet. The real question is not “can you pay?”, it’s what you give up in the process: data trails, KYC, and custodial rails. Watch: Would you use Crypto in a shop today, or are we still stuck in “numbers go up” culture? #Bitcoin #Crypto #Payments #FinTech #SelfCustody #Privacy #DigitalSovereignty #Stablecoins

New link in bio 🔗 If you’ve ever wondered where I actually “live” online (without relying on one big platform), this is the map. https://beitmenotyou.link Everything in one place: site, socials, projects, and the stuff I’m building around digital sovereignty. What platform did you find me on first? #LinkInBio #BeItMeNotYou #DigitalSovereignty #SelfHosting #Privacy #Decentralisation #Fediverse #Nostr #IndieWeb

Nostr: Watching Iran being cut off from the internet while women and ordinary people fight for freedom is horrifying. A blackout is a weapon, it silences evidence and isolates people. If you can: amplify Iranian voices, share verified updates, support digital rights groups, and keep your platforms talking about it. YUNGBLUD said it best in this clip: nobody is free until we are all free. #Iran #WomenLifeFreedom #InternetFreedom #HumanRights #DigitalRights #Censorship #Freedom #Solidarity

5 reasons Bitcoin could go parabolic in 2026 👀 Institutional demand keeps rising, supply keeps tightening, and the macro cracks are getting louder. Add ETFs, sovereign interest, and a public that no longer trusts fiat, and things get spicy fast. Are we early, or just finally paying attention? Watch: #Bitcoin #Crypto #Economics #Decentralisation #SoundMoney

I am trying to move my content fully onto Nostr and I could really use some guidance from people who are further along than me. I am looking for Nostr native or Nostr aligned alternatives to the following platforms: YouTube TikTok Twitch Podcasting Instagram My goal is not just to mirror content, but to make what I create work naturally within the Nostr ecosystem where identity, reach and interaction are not owned by a platform. If you know of good tools, clients, services or workflows that already support this, or are being built right now, I would love to hear about them. Even experimental projects are welcome. I am especially interested in things that respect self custody, open protocols and creator control. Any pointers, links or personal experiences would be massively appreciated. #Nostr #Decentralisation #CreatorEconomy #OpenProtocols #SelfHosting #Bitcoin

third test of relays

testing relays with quotes View quoted note →

test to with relays now

test post for all my relays now

This clip shows how working people get crushed by taxes and still struggle to afford basic living costs. You work more, earn more, and somehow end up with less. Something is clearly broken. Watch here: #CostOfLiving #Tax #WorkingClass