Don't sacrifice your fourth amendment right to privacy while exercising your first amendment right to free speech. Here's how to stay digitally secure while protesting.
- Turn on your passcode — turning on a passcode does more than lock the casual visitor out of your device. On most smartphones, this will also enable full disk encryption.
- Download Signal — Signal is a free, open-source encrypted messenger. It will prevent the government from reading the content of your messages and knowing who you're talking to (unless, of course, they get physical access to your phone).
- Turn off fingerprint unlock — fingerprint unlock can be used to unlock your phone without your consent. Be sure to disable this feature on your phone before going to the protest.
- If you don't need it, leave it — it may be better to buy a burner phone and leave your smartphone at home. If you do this, be sure to bring a point-and-shoot camera to document the protest.