CINXE.COM
Basics | Surveillance Self-Defense
<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <meta charset="utf-8" /> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" /> <link rel="icon" href="/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="en" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/am/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="am" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/ar/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="ar" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/es/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="es" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/fr/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="fr" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/ru/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="ru" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/tr/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="tr" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/vi/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="vi" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/pt-br/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="pt-br" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/zh-hans/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="zh-hans" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/my/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="my" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/ps/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="ps" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/th/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="th" /> <link href="https://ssd.eff.org/ur/module-categories/basics" rel="alternate" hreflang="ur" /> <link rel="publisher" href="https://www.eff.org/" /> <meta property="og:url" content="https://ssd.eff.org/module-categories/basics" /><meta property="og:title" content="Basics" /><meta property="og:type" content="website" /><meta property="og:url" content="https://ssd.eff.org/module-categories/basics" /><meta property="og:image" /><meta property="og:image:width" content="1200" /><meta property="og:image:height" content="600" /><meta property="og:description" content="If you’ve ever worried about protecting the privacy of your digital data or your conversations with others, we’re here to help. Surveillance Self-Defense is a digital security guide that teaches you how to assess your personal risk from online spying. It can help protect you from surveillance by those who..." /><meta property="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image" /><meta name="twitter:site" content="@eff" /><meta name="twitter:creator" content="@eff" /> <title>Basics | Surveillance Self-Defense</title> <meta name="csrf-param" content="authenticity_token" /> <meta name="csrf-token" content="EBFwP44WPhm6qA2GFUWWSZL8dSbuPsQUS/zdWojtZa0EW1nqd4sucZsC17HCJGmiiJCmgim2a90MxAqF21WGRA==" /> <link rel="stylesheet" media="all" href="/assets/application-42f6a7370ecadbe095d756d14d354e6064345f0cb75e22065653ec659ade0a15.css" /> </head> <body class="categories-section show-action category-10 category-basics" lang="en"> <a href="#main-content" class="sr-only">Skip to main content</a> <div id="off-canvas" class="off-canvas" role="navigation" aria-label="mobile-navigaton"> <ul> <li><a href="/pages/about-surveillance-self-defense">About</a></li> <li class="has-dropdown"> <a href="#">Language</a> <ul class="dropdown list"> <li dir="ltr" lang="en"><a class="active" href="https://ssd.eff.org/module-categories/basics"><span>English</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="am"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/am/module-categories/%E1%88%98%E1%88%B0%E1%88%A8%E1%89%B3%E1%8B%8A%E1%8B%AB%E1%8A%95"><span>አማርኛ</span></a></li> <li dir="rtl" lang="ar"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ar/module-categories/%D8%A3%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA"><span>العربية</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="es"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/es/module-categories/gu%C3%ADas-b%C3%A1sicas"><span>Español</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="fr"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/fr/module-categories/les-bases"><span>Français</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="ru"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ru/module-categories/%D0%BE%D1%81%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B2%D1%8B"><span>Русский</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="tr"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/tr/module-categories/temel-bilgiler"><span>Türkçe</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="vi"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/vi/module-categories/c%C6%A1-b%E1%BA%A3n"><span>Tiếng Việt</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="pt-br"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/pt-br/module-categories/basico"><span>Português</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="zh-hans"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/zh-hans/module-categories/basics"><span>Mandarin</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="my"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/my/module-categories/basics"><span>Burmese</span></a></li> <li dir="rtl" lang="ps"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ps/module-categories/basics"><span>پښتو</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="th"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/th/module-categories/%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%87%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%A1%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%B8%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%99%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A0%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%A2"><span>ภาษาไทย</span></a></li> <li dir="rtl" lang="ur"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ur/module-categories/%D8%A8%D9%86%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%AF%DB%8C-%D8%AD%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%82"><span>اردو</span></a></li> <li><a href="/en/other-translations">More Translations</a></li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="/#index">Index</a></li> <li class="search"> <form autocomplete="off" action="/search" accept-charset="UTF-8" method="get"> <label class="sr-only" for="q"><span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.layouts.application.keywords">Keywords</span></label> <input type="text" name="q" id="q" /> <button>Search</button> </form> </li> </ul> <div class="close-menu"><a href="#">×</a></div> </div> <div id="page"> <div id="branding-bar"> <nav id="navbar" class="top-bar" role="navigation"> <ul class="inline menu" dir="ltr"> <li><a href="/pages/about-surveillance-self-defense">About</a></li> <li class="has-dropdown"> <a href="#" onclick="return false">Language</a> <ul class="dropdown list"> <li dir="ltr" lang="en"><a class="active" href="https://ssd.eff.org/module-categories/basics"><span>English</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="am"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/am/module-categories/%E1%88%98%E1%88%B0%E1%88%A8%E1%89%B3%E1%8B%8A%E1%8B%AB%E1%8A%95"><span>አማርኛ</span></a></li> <li dir="rtl" lang="ar"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ar/module-categories/%D8%A3%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA"><span>العربية</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="es"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/es/module-categories/gu%C3%ADas-b%C3%A1sicas"><span>Español</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="fr"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/fr/module-categories/les-bases"><span>Français</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="ru"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ru/module-categories/%D0%BE%D1%81%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B2%D1%8B"><span>Русский</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="tr"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/tr/module-categories/temel-bilgiler"><span>Türkçe</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="vi"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/vi/module-categories/c%C6%A1-b%E1%BA%A3n"><span>Tiếng Việt</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="pt-br"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/pt-br/module-categories/basico"><span>Português</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="zh-hans"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/zh-hans/module-categories/basics"><span>Mandarin</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="my"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/my/module-categories/basics"><span>Burmese</span></a></li> <li dir="rtl" lang="ps"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ps/module-categories/basics"><span>پښتو</span></a></li> <li dir="ltr" lang="th"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/th/module-categories/%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%87%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%A1%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%B8%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%99%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A0%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%A2"><span>ภาษาไทย</span></a></li> <li dir="rtl" lang="ur"><a href="https://ssd.eff.org/ur/module-categories/%D8%A8%D9%86%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%AF%DB%8C-%D8%AD%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%82"><span>اردو</span></a></li> <li><a href="/pages/other-translations"><span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.layouts.application.more_translations">More Translations</span></a></li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="/#index">Index</a></li> <li class="search"> <form autocomplete="off" action="/search" accept-charset="UTF-8" method="get"> <label class="sr-only" for="q"><span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.layouts.application.keywords">Keywords</span></label> <input type="text" name="q" id="q" value="" class="hide" /> <button>Search</button> </form> </li> </ul> <a href="/">ssd.eff.org</a> <a href="#off-canvas" class="open-menu">≡</a> </nav> </div> <header class="center"> <a class="logo" href="/" title="Home"> <img alt="Home" class="img-responsive" src="/assets/logo-eba4d85a4e344c3517f7dbff8da80c517937dd9dc3bf42c3f5b77444be4487b9.png" /> </a> <div class="site-name">Surveillance<br/>Self-Defense</div> </header> <div id="main-content"> <h1 dir="ltr">Basics</h1> <div class="content"> <div dir="ltr"><div class="content"><p><span>If you’ve ever worried about protecting the privacy of your digital <a class="glossary-term" href="/glossary/data" data-term_id="163" data-description='<div class="header"> <h3><a href="/glossary/data">Data</a></h3> <button class="close" aria-describedby="tooltip-action"><span class="icon"></span></button> </div> <p>Any kind of information, typically stored in a digital form. Data can include documents, pictures, keys, programs, messages, and other digital information or files.</p> '>data <img aria-hidden="true" src="/assets/efforg/info-7ae1fb29e1e734b20023f3e3470316c82b84a7e4b9f1d1e2f49e399f1f8de2d3.png"></a> or your conversations with others, we’re here to help. </span></p> <p><span>Surveillance Self-Defense is a digital security guide that teaches you how to assess your personal <a class="glossary-term" href="/glossary/risk-assessment" data-term_id="130" data-description='<div class="header"> <h3><a href="/glossary/risk-assessment">Risk assessment</a></h3> <button class="close" aria-describedby="tooltip-action"><span class="icon"></span></button> </div> <p>In computer security, risk analysis is calculating the chance that threats might succeed, so you know how much effort to spend defending against them. There may be many different ways that you might lose control or access to your data, but some of them are less likely than others. Conducting a risk assessment means deciding which threats you are going to take seriously, and which may be too rare or too harmless (or too difficult to combat) to worry about. See threat modeling.</p> '>risk <img aria-hidden="true" src="/assets/efforg/info-7ae1fb29e1e734b20023f3e3470316c82b84a7e4b9f1d1e2f49e399f1f8de2d3.png"></a> from online spying. It can help protect you from surveillance by those who might want to find out your secrets, from petty criminals to nation states. We offer guides to the best privacy-enhancing tools and explain how to incorporate protecting yourself against surveillance into your daily routine. </span></p> <p><span>If you’re ready to take the first steps, our series of basic guides (below) will help you to understand what digital surveillance is and how you can fight it. We suggest starting with the <a href="/module/your-security-plan">Your Security Plan guide</a>. </span></p> </div></div> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/creating-strong-passwords">Creating Strong Passwords</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/keeping-your-data-safe">Keeping Your Data Safe</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/what-should-i-know-about-encryption">What Should I Know About Encryption?</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/your-security-plan">Your Security Plan</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/communicating-others">Communicating With Others</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/choosing-your-tools">Choosing Your Tools</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/seven-steps-digital-security">Seven Steps To Digital Security</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/animated-overview-how-strong-encryption-can-help-avoid-online-surveillance">Animated Overview: How Strong Encryption Can Help Avoid Online Surveillance</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/animated-overview-using-password-managers-stay-safe-online">Animated Overview: Using Password Managers to Stay Safe Online</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/animated-overview-protecting-your-device-hackers">Animated Overview: Protecting Your Device From Hackers</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/animated-overview-how-make-super-secure-password-using-dice">Animated Overview: How to Make a Super-Secure Password Using Dice</a></h2> <h2 dir="ltr"><a href="/module/why-metadata-matters">Why Communication Metadata Matters</a></h2> </div> </div> </div> <footer> <div class="center"> <a class="logo" href="/" title="Home"> <img src="https://ssd.eff.org/assets/logo-footer-216585e7032331c8163db209c6fba94ae72baee66b6d4e62ef1b67fe534d7c84.png" alt="Surveillance Self-Defense logo" /> </a> <div class="site-name"> Surveillance<br>Self-Defense </div> <div class="footer-nav" role="navigation"> <ul class="flex-parent" dir="ltr"> <li><a href="/pages/about-surveillance-self-defense">About</a></li> <li><a href="/#index">Index</a></li> <li><a href="/glossary">Glossary</a></li> <li><a href="/pages/credits">Credits</a></li> <li><a href="https://supporters.eff.org/donate">Donate</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </footer> <div id="footer-bottom" class="center" dir="ltr"> <ul class="flex-parent"> <li><a href="https://www.eff.org/copyright">Copyright (CC BY)</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.eff.org/policy">Privacy</a></li> </ul> </div> <script type="importmap" data-turbo-track="reload">{ "imports": { "jquery": "/assets/jquery-dffa084d8915bf507ac4c876f4dedea0cab68baacd9266ff82a66706ef56f264.js", "ckeditor/ckeditor": "/assets/ckeditor/ckeditor-53b7205163eeca5b511b43e34f1df6b2b0b401d11cf2c6884adfbbc4150c2881.js", "jquery-ui/jquery-ui": "/assets/jquery-ui/jquery-ui-0507eea9215b37aa68aced7033f3f0919a5f17b9a8c1ac7308e0fba7fd11e3bd.js", "railsujs": "/assets/railsujs-57c6effce760f866866bfa973534bccaa9f2ae315c8a64066bad179fa22bce0f.js", "select2/select2": "/assets/select2/select2-f79333530e65fc28b0339227e71cfc769d0229c39d7b2955c6045ad5e4f15f65.js", "sortable": "/assets/sortable-37be89ef017d92ccb51699051b444072861ad6d6593081f9935b43c601d955b6.js", "toastui-editor": "/assets/toastui-editor-b824a348e845a818ec06beadd61d1d53a267dd434b98e5fb02c9a80852b52ba2.js", "datatables.net": "/assets/datatables.net-0f394ccc57627c8f9eb6e629fe6db7e959b2cc5d2819e95f0d7fe2ba83dec8b0.js", "application": "/assets/application-48a5218f9ce75c4772ab1f2d4bd5da662eb82e8573e3ba95d4208eba9ed0cc66.js", "cms": "/assets/cms-1b0c9275141f603f9878406f671d40ac25a6cd61b47a6b12530718d687dcd80c.js", "ckeditor/otters-ckeditor": "/assets/ckeditor/otters-ckeditor-a9d8d6e2ba21bd0e980093eb169427f8ff929d81bcf0154096faf46070fdc2c9.js", "otters/cms/manual": "/assets/otters/cms/manual-86f2a686441461c7be9c9d5f8e29dad21a8a1c729cc2d2596c76c8ad1cf89121.js", "otters/cms/menus": "/assets/otters/cms/menus-410967d3575fd76437f229cf5f20e0dfb554346d059baef58f7f7e47488977aa.js", "otters/cms/nodes": "/assets/otters/cms/nodes-66e061029610ef74b7c97ecb095ae1cbf85191696a218851367af5a84a5b718e.js", "otters/cms/search": "/assets/otters/cms/search-05b89023d7b4bae4eb27c390119df904c2a2f2930b17dccd523fbd48dee474fd.js", "otters/cms": "/assets/otters/cms-aacfc3fe121fc90c1ae9907c42fd1ac96381ce40495714d410ebda6d41c3254c.js", "efforg/application": "/assets/efforg/application-17440bb0f83ef30483503814976f91b12a56e4015f179d060f215636a794a0d3.js", "efforg/cms": "/assets/efforg/cms-8e6c351a16668fe27601a562dcef4d608e38a9fadd1ae57d45a575ec1f35ab12.js" } }</script> <link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/application-48a5218f9ce75c4772ab1f2d4bd5da662eb82e8573e3ba95d4208eba9ed0cc66.js"> <link rel="modulepreload" href="/assets/cms-1b0c9275141f603f9878406f671d40ac25a6cd61b47a6b12530718d687dcd80c.js"> <script src="/assets/es-module-shims.min-d89e73202ec09dede55fb74115af9c5f9f2bb965433de1c2446e1faa6dac2470.js" async="async" data-turbo-track="reload"></script> <script type="module">import "application"</script> <noscript> <img referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" src="https://anon-stats.eff.org/matomo.php?idsite=52&rec=1" style="border:0" alt="" /> </noscript> <script type="text/javascript"> var _paq = window._paq = window._paq || []; /* tracker methods like "setCustomDimension" should be called before "trackPageView" */ _paq.push(['trackPageView']); _paq.push(['enableLinkTracking']); (function() { var u="https://anon-stats.eff.org/"; _paq.push(['setTrackerUrl', u+'matomo.php']); _paq.push(['setSiteId', '52']); var d=document, g=d.createElement('script'), s=d.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; g.type='text/javascript'; g.async=true; g.src=u+'matomo.js'; s.parentNode.insertBefore(g,s); })(); </script> </body> </html>