More people are thinking about online privacy and protecting their data these days, but how hard is it to close every potential data leak and keep your personal information secure? On a recent episode of Epicenter , Casa CTO Jameson Lopp explained the extreme measures he takes to protect his privacy in an increasingly digital world.
‘They Don’t Know My Real Name’
After discussing why online privacy is so important in the age of social media, Lopp was asked to explain the tradeoffs of trying to close up all of the potential security holes in his daily life in the aftermath of a swatting incident in 2017 . Lopp gave examples of some of the extreme measures he has taken, including the use of a fake name when interacting with the people who live near him.
“They don’t know my real name,” said Lopp. “They don’t know what I do. They just know that I’m a programmer. I’m a boring old programmer.”
Lopp added that he interacts with most of his friends remotely via the internet, and he doesn’t have “crypto friends” in the area where he lives. Having said that, he does have non-crypto friends who spend time with Lopp doing non-crypto things.
“It’s kind of like living a double life almost,” said Lopp. “Sometimes that feels kind of like James Bond spy-type stuff, and other times it’s just plain annoying.”
Seeking Privacy Can Be Annoying
In terms of specific annoyances related to his search for privacy, Lopp pointed to the fact that he has to drive pretty far away to pick up his mail at a private mailbox or sign up for any kind of membership that requires personal identification.
“I don’t want my name in any databases that are tied to location,” added Lopp.
According to Lopp, there are also services available that make it easier to sign up for things in a pseudonymous manner, which has been helpful. However, when Lopp cannot sign up for something pseudonymously, the costs of retaining his privacy can be expensive because he basically has to hire a lawyer to act as a proxy on his behalf.
In terms of being recognized in public as a Bitcoin personality, Lopp said he’s only been recognized in the real world once, and he thinks it was mostly due to the large beard he had at the time.
“Most of the time when I’m out and about [now], I keep it pretty low key and I just look like another guy,” said Lopp.
It is Lopp’s intention to prevent any of his personal information from falling into the wrong hands, which means he needs to limit the locations and companies where that data is stored.
“Information wants to be free. Any service you give your data to, over a long enough period of time, it’s almost inevitable that that data is going to leak,” said Lopp.
‘They Don’t Know My Real Name’
After discussing why online privacy is so important in the age of social media, Lopp was asked to explain the tradeoffs of trying to close up all of the potential security holes in his daily life in the aftermath of a swatting incident in 2017 . Lopp gave examples of some of the extreme measures he has taken, including the use of a fake name when interacting with the people who live near him.
“They don’t know my real name,” said Lopp. “They don’t know what I do. They just know that I’m a programmer. I’m a boring old programmer.”
Lopp added that he interacts with most of his friends remotely via the internet, and he doesn’t have “crypto friends” in the area where he lives. Having said that, he does have non-crypto friends who spend time with Lopp doing non-crypto things.
“It’s kind of like living a double life almost,” said Lopp. “Sometimes that feels kind of like James Bond spy-type stuff, and other times it’s just plain annoying.”
Seeking Privacy Can Be Annoying
In terms of specific annoyances related to his search for privacy, Lopp pointed to the fact that he has to drive pretty far away to pick up his mail at a private mailbox or sign up for any kind of membership that requires personal identification.
“I don’t want my name in any databases that are tied to location,” added Lopp.
According to Lopp, there are also services available that make it easier to sign up for things in a pseudonymous manner, which has been helpful. However, when Lopp cannot sign up for something pseudonymously, the costs of retaining his privacy can be expensive because he basically has to hire a lawyer to act as a proxy on his behalf.
In terms of being recognized in public as a Bitcoin personality, Lopp said he’s only been recognized in the real world once, and he thinks it was mostly due to the large beard he had at the time.
“Most of the time when I’m out and about [now], I keep it pretty low key and I just look like another guy,” said Lopp.
It is Lopp’s intention to prevent any of his personal information from falling into the wrong hands, which means he needs to limit the locations and companies where that data is stored.
“Information wants to be free. Any service you give your data to, over a long enough period of time, it’s almost inevitable that that data is going to leak,” said Lopp.
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