Hmm .. the author uses a hotspot connected with a SIM. Their whole argument hinges on not being tracked, but their hotspot is with them all the time. Seems like a massive hole in their privacy argument.
this post was submitted on 25 Mar 2025
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MAC addresses go brrr
Everyone conviently forgets about MAC address spoofing. Some operating systems let you set a Random MAC address on each connection. It's great.
How is it that there are people still unaware of this?
😂
Hotspot location is still tracked by the cell network though.
Android phones automatically randomize Mac addresses.
Although, if you are on Google's Android, it is possible for Google to keep a list of all Mac addressed used and then work with the hotspot owner to find out your whereabouts.
The first part of the article still holds. You can live on wifi.
Not always. Where I am, for example, it's law to KYC users of wi-fi hotspots, usually by phone number. Good news: there are a lot of places that don't bother and just have the wi-fi behind a password. Bad news: whether you find such a hotspot is very inconsistent, even within the same chain. So I don't bother and just always use my phone as a modem.
Also, apparently bypassing authentication may be as simple as stealing the MAC address of someone who has already KYCd, but that sounds like it would be even less consistent.
What a terrible law. I remember something similar when visiting Germany like 15 years ago, and for whatever reason my roaming didn't work. I think they got wiser since then because last time I visited there were plenty of hotspots.
What? I could connect to a mcdonald's wifi without needing to provide any ID, I just tap "I Agree" to whatever tos stuff they show then its good. So do the mcdonalds in your jurisdiction just request a phone number for verification? 🤔
Yeah. The big chains like this, as well as government-owned places like public transport or libraries, are pretty much guaranteed to have such KYC. It is not an ID indeed, but the numbers are required to be KYC as well so it is implied. I could just buy an illegal non-KYC number just to not give out my real one for sale, but that's a bit too bothersome for little benefit.
illegal non-KYC number? You can just get a legit one without breaking any laws my dude.
Not everywhere. In A LOT of places, KYC when getting a number is mandatory. There are still a lot of "gray" sims that are sold after being registered to someone else tho.
While some might criticize the author's methods, I did learn something cool from this article.
https://calyxinstitute.org/membership/
Unthrottled, unmetered, (supposedly) truly unlimited internet,
For not much more than I pay for my (definitely throttled) mobile service, it'd seem like a fair trade between the two. With certain considerations given to service availability and local network speed.
There is even a pixel phone given to members of certain memberships.
Something I wanted to make easily available to anyone passing through here.
I used Calyx Internet (the lowest tier) for 3 months. I get like 25-35 Mbps most of the time.
BUT like occasionally, you get dropped to less than 5 Mbps for like hours or perhaps an entire day, and when it is experiencing its low speeds, sometimes my deprioritized cellular internet is still slightly faster. Basically the point is: It's not exactly a home internet replacement.
There is even a pixel phone given to members of certain memberships.
That's not really a membership. You pay $800 upfront for the first year of the "membership", and then its $5 per month for subsequent years. Its just a nice way of wording a phone purchase. Its completely separate of the internet thing.
$33 a month even after the discount? I just don't see what the overpricing is for.
So back to burner phones every week?
The pursuit of 100% privacy will eat anyone alive, if they let it.
You're not wrong.
Threat model. It's all about the threat model.
which for most people should just start as "don't publish every detail of your life online, don't publish photos and videos of other people online, and DON'T FUCKING PUT YOUR KIDS ONLINE AAAAAAAAAA"
High five, very nice