In the next phase of withdrawing our email data from the cloud, we’re going to download a complete archive of every email we’ve ever sent. It’s not as easy as it should be, but it’s also not that difficult. I’ll give you an overview in today’s Tip of the Week, but you should read the full blog for detailed steps.

In the news: Venmo finally makes transactions private by default; FCC extends software update window for banned routers; Meta employees push back on surveillance; Proton Mail adds post-quantum crypto; turn off ChatGPT ad tracking; AI chatbots giving out people’s real phone numbers; Canada’s updated surveillance bill is still bad; Utah wants to effectively ban anonymous VPN use; LLMs want access to your health records; Microsoft Edge is a poor password manager; Canvas hacked during finals; Chrome installing a 4GB AI model on everyone’s computers.

Article Links

Venmo privacy finally being fixed eight years after ‘alarming’ fails: https://9to5mac.com/2026/05/11/venmo-privacy-finally-being-fixed-eight-years-after-alarming-fails
US: FCC Relaxes Foreign-Made Router Ban to Allow for Security Updates: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/us-fcc-relaxes-foreign-router-ban
Meta employees launch protest against mouse-tracking tech at US offices: https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/meta-us-employees-organize-protest-against-mouse-tracking-tech-2026-05-12
Proton Mail introduces post-quantum encryption: https://proton.me/blog/introducing-post-quantum-encryption
Turn Off ChatGPT’s New Ad Tracking: https://onlinesafety.substack.com/p/turn-off-chatgpts-new-ad-tracking
AI chatbots are giving out people’s real phone numbers: https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/05/13/1137203/ai-chatbots-are-giving-out-peoples-real-phone-numbers
Canada’s Bill C-22 Is a Repackaged Version of Last Year’s Surveillance Nightmare: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/05/canadas-bill-c-22-repackaged-version-last-years-surveillance-nightmare
Utah’s New Law Targeting VPNs Goes Into Effect May 6th: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/04/utahs-new-law-regulating-vpns-goes-effect-next-week
A.I. Chatbots Want Your Health Records. Tread Carefully.: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/12/technology/personaltech/microsoft-copilot-health-ai-chatbots.html
Microsoft Edge security alert: All saved passwords unencrypted: https://proton.me/business/blog/microsoft-edge-passwords-exposed
‘The Biggest Student Data Privacy Disaster in History’: Canvas Hack Shows the Danger of Centralized EdTech: https://www.404media.co/the-biggest-student-data-privacy-disaster-in-history-canvas-hack-shows-the-danger-of-centralized-edtech
Chrome silently installs a 4 GB local LLM on your computer: https://www.theregister.com/ai-and-ml/2026/05/07/chrome-silently-installs-a-4-gb-local-llm-on-your-computer/5230893
Tip of the Week: https://firewallsdontstopdragons.com/download-all-emails/

Further Info

PG’s Data Protection Authority: https://www.privacyguides.org/en/activism/legal/dpa-directory/
Donate to Session: https://getsession.org/donate
My book: https://fdsd.me/book
My newsletter: https://fdsd.me/newsletter
Support our mission! https://fdsd.me/support
Give the gift of privacy and security: https://fdsd.me/coupons
Get your Firewalls Don’t Stop Dragons Merch! https://fdsd.me/merch

0:00:07: Intro
0:00:19: News tidbits
0:02:53: News rundown
0:05:21: Venmo finally private by default
0:08:57: Banned router updates extended
0:11:28: Meta employees protest surveillance
0:15:47: Proton Mail gets post-quantum crypto
0:19:44: ChatGPT’s new ad tracking
0:24:37: Chatbots giving our people’s phone numbers
0:28:57: Canada C-22 bill still a privacy nightmare
0:32:49: Utah VPN law delayed
0:40:47: AI wants your health info
0:48:14: Edge decrypts all saved passwords
0:53:40: Canvas hit with ransomware
0:56:08: Chrome silently installs 4GB LLM
1:01:06: Tip of the Week
1:09:28: Patron podcast preview
1:09:55: Looking ahead

Article Links

Further Info

Table of Contents