i’m planning to switch from fairphone os to iodéos and wanted to ask, if it is worth the effort in terms of security and privacy.
i found several comparisons, but most of them are outdated.
for internet i use mainly firefox as browser and thunderbird for emails. I use hardly any google apps, but have several apps which are only available from play store. Some of them are paid. For most of the apps I will find alternatives so this is no real blocker.
the phone is only accessing the internet configured with a pi-hole, and firefox is also configured with ublock. So i think in terms of tracking i am protected in some ways.
so my questions are:
is iodéos in term of security better than fairphone os. especially for updates? i read that iodé is behind stock android but fairphone seems even worse.
are there huge advantages in terms of privacy? considering i don’t use google services, no chrome and a dns which filters tracking
Using no Google apps doesn’t save you from being watched by Google. The FP Stock ROM is based on Google services, which is closed source software. So you’ll never really know, which data go out to Google.
To avoid this, you’ll need a degoogled phone or a microG based ROM. You will still be able to use apps from Google’s Playstore via Aurora (if you want to). And microG even offers the possibility to keep using apps you’ve purchased on the Playstore.
My personal favorite is LineageOS for microG, which has microG already packed in the ROM by default. But that’s just a matter of personal preferences.
Maybe it’s not their mission, but a “blank” LineageOS without any additional Google stuff will not communicate with Google. And if you use microG, it will communicate with Google, but without transferring any personal data. Unless you login with your personal Google account, which usually will not be necessary.
Based on these information, that are partially from 2023 or earlier, I would list the alternatives
iodéOS: data protection good but updates comes late (maybe not later than FairphoneOS???)
e/OS: data protection good but updates comes late (maybe not later than FairphoneOS???)
CalyxOS: comparable to iodéOS and e/OS but updates might be worse
FairphoneOS: Bad in terms of data protection but good in terms of updates
LineageOS: Not save and data protection not good (when using microG)
GrapheneOS: Not for fairphone
DivestOS: Dead (was the best option in 2023 - maybe)
At the end I have to trust the developers of these systems. Which are for me only random names from the internet (if I had to I would vote for lineage in this aspect because they are around much longer than others).
You might say that i can look at the source code but looking at the source code doesn’t help me more than looking at the engine in my car to understand how it works.
Maybe I confused it but I read that calyx updates later than e or iodé. Sorry, can’t find the link anymore. In that case calyx might be the better option, of course.
Security updates until September 2031 is pretty much unbeatable. CalyxOS on a non-Pixel device is never going to be faster than stock/GrapheneOS on a Pixel device, but it’s as good as it gets.
I see no reason to pick anything else over CalyxOS on a non-Pixel device. It has the most users meaning the highest chance of someone being able to help you, it has an installer that works great and it has microG as an option.
I started to degoogle in 2020 when my munch loved Xperia XA2 was running slow. As I was looking for Apps to replace the big ones like Chrome and so on I discovered the wonderful world of open source APK.s I deactivated Google, Chrome, and others replacing them with Brave and brave search, Firefox Nightly , YouTube with Newpipe or recently You Tube Revanced. Gmail with thunderbird. Firefox has now the adon store open for Android. Foto, Phone and SMS are all replaced by fossify apps. Just deactivate the rooted Apps is okay for me. You can’t escape from Google tracking you completely. What annoys me is that Google keeps on telling us it just uses a minimum of our Data. Okay Google then why are Apps like digital wellbeing rooted? Just be honest about it.
