Privacy.sexy is an open-source privacy tool that helps users implement security and privacy best practices on Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems[1].
Key features include:
- Hundreds of customizable privacy and security scripts
- Free and transparent codebase
- Reversible changes if issues occur
- Web version requiring no software installation
- Desktop version with additional direct script execution capabilities
- Independent, portable scripts without cross-dependencies
- Extensive testing and community verification[1:1]
The tool comes in two versions:
- An online web version that runs without installing software
- An offline desktop version with expanded functionality for running scripts directly[1:2]
The project is built using TypeScript and Vue.js, with the desktop application created using Electron[2]. All aspects of the application, including infrastructure and deployments, are open-source and automated through a system called “bump-everywhere”[1:3].
That at least Windows need to be by default debloated and customized to the root to be an reasonable private OS, is nothing new. It is possible but pretty difficult throug advanced settings, editing of the registry (risky) and diving through infinite menus. This is the reason why there are a lot apps which can do it in the safe way, like this one or others like the Hellzerg Optimizer, Shut-up10, etc… Windows currently is an safe and stable OS, but with big issues in privacy, full of telemetries and bloatware. This in Linux naturally isn’t a big problem and the few things are easy to fix-
I feel like the days of debloating Windows has passed, it is getting far too complicated and there’s just some things you can’t turn off without breaking everything, in addition updates sometimes change those settings back or reinstall programs you thought you removed, it’s an endless cat and mouse game I’ve been playing since Windows 95. I suppose if you absolutely need to use Windows it’s good to do what you can to mitigate but I think for me it’s time to move on.
Certainly it isn’t easy to debloat Windows, but possible to have the OS as is. For all default features Windows has, there are excelent, even better FOSS alternatives, updates can be limited to neede security updates, using Portmaster you can monitor and, if needed, blocking the traffic of every app and those from Windows itself. Windows is the most used OS and because of this well known by a lot of FOSS devs and communities, which made that Windows not only has the biggest catalogue of FOSS apps of all OS, but also a lot of those to gut, mod it and to show the middlefinger to the M$ spyware and telemetries, releasing even de-microsofted forks, like Windows X, React OS and probably others.