Chewy

I prefer swap files over swap partitions, because it makes it my partition layout simpler to manage.

If your using a swap partition, make sure it’s located on an encrypted partition, else it exposes data stored in RAM (encryption keys etc). With SSD’s it’s difficult to make sure this data is actually deleted, even after overwriting.

My preferred setup for a long time was LUKS with btrfs on top. Then subvolumes for /, /home and the swap file (+ /var/cache, /var/log etc.). This gives me peace of mind nothing is unencrypted except /boot.

Nowadays I simply use zram, which allows for a small part of RAM to be compressed for swap. It’s great, simple to setup and performs well. Imo it should be default for all desktops.

For swap files on btrfs COW and features like compression have to be disabled. I believe for btrfs the swap file even has to sit on a subvolume with those features disabled, so it’s not enough to only disable them for the swap file.

Online transactions require a second factor which displays the actual amount to be transferred. This works by either an app which receives the transaction data (recipient, how much) over the network, or a device which takes the bank card and is used to scan something similar to a qr code. The device then displays the transaction data.

This makes sure a fraudulent site can’t easily change the amount or the recipient of a transaction, even if they somehow made an identical website (or close enough).

For remote transactions (e.g. online payments), the security requirements go even further, requiring a dynamic link to the amount of the transaction and the account of the payee, to further protect the user by minimising the risks in case of mistakes or fraudulent attacks.

https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/intro/mip-online/2018/html/1803_revisedpsd.en.html

It’s not perfect, especially with people using a banking app and the second factor app on the same device for convenience sake.

That’s a bummer. Seems like Google Pixel and Fairphone are the only ones left. I don’t even know why manufacturers wouldn’t allow for relocking or even unlocking of their phones. I can’t imagine they make much money with user data and the phone is already paid for. Warranty claims shouldn’t be much of an issue either, as modifications can be easily detected and it’s likely not a relevant amount of people anyway.

The banking apps I’ve tried don’t require SafetyNet, instead they use Android AOSP’s basicIntegrity. The latter doesn’t require certification by Google, but also checks whether the device is rooted and the bootloader is locked.

This means custom ROM’s on most devices won’t pass basicIntegrity, as only Google Pixel, OnePlus and Fairphone allow for relocking the bootloader.

At least in the EU web browsers don’t allow for authenticating transactions (beyond a limit of e.g. 30€). Either an additional authenticator app or a standalone card reader is mandatory.

Luckily my banking apps work flawlessly on GrapheneOS and even microG, likely because of they care about the bootloader being locked again.

I notice lately that many memes origins are worse than I thought from the context they are used in. Racist, homophobic, and lying people are not something I usually accept as entertainment, but they sneak their way unnoticed into my (non-news) feed through memes. I guess most people won’t know the origins of the meme and use it according to the meaning they formed on their own. Other memes like the distracted boyfriend meme are meaningless stock photos, so I understand why many people use memes without thinking about the origins.

Anyway, thanks for pointing out who the person in the picture actually is.

Funnily enough it feely pretty natural for someone speaking german (and some other languages). E.g. Konsole is the german word for console etc. Other words like Konqueror do look like a strange mix.