alternatives to gmail, gcalendar, personalized

[jms830]

I like my privacy, as I'm sure many do.

So it goes that google is storing all your emails etc.
http://www.gmail-is-too-creepy.com/

I use www.fastmail.fm now with pgp encryption locally, but I'm not sure exactly what their privacy policy is, and I certainly don't receive all my email encrypted.

Also, I'm looking for a way to be able to access an online icalendar that will be private, or only visible to people I allow.

If people would be so kind as to list some email services they like that have good privacy policies (pay or free) and also some online calendars they use.

Basically I want to use these services securely, if thats even possible anymore.

I'm using www.netvibes.com as a replacement for google personalized home.
You can try out www.pageflakes.com as well.

Edit: Also any services that respect your privacy and host files for you. I'm using box.net, but again, I'm not sure what the privacy policy really is.

[InetManager]

I think that you should look an ezManagement. It is a perfect tool to easily plan, organize, track, manage and share tasks of any nature: events, meetings, appointments, business tasks, personal activities, etc. You can to involve people into the activities of your interest. http://ezmanageonline.com/ Enjoy!

[LookTJ]

I too would like a new free email service

[Spr0k3t]

I hate to disappoint... on the internet, nothing is secure. All the ciphers in the world with all the encryption possible can be hacked with enough time and devotion. If you are that scared of privacy, just unplug the computer from the internet.

Most companies will boast privacy policies bulging like a fat wallet, but when met with any legal terra-firma and they cave tucking tails until the beast is satiated. The only way I've found to be 100% secure is to not use it for critical means.

Diggin up the old posts.

[InetManager]

But I think, our life can't exist without Internet now/ That's we have to find compromisses. I think, that this system may take you enogh secure.

[Xzallion]

So your asking for a free online service where they don't store your data but encrypt it and offer it to you?

I'm sorry but I'm going to have to laugh at this. Take it from a fellow privacy nut, the only way to be secure is to unplug the computer, or set everything up yourself. Your own mail server, your own app server hosting your calendar app, and layers on top of layers of security. Long passwords, everything encrypted with one encryption tool, then encrypted again by another, the list goes on and on.

Also, that google is creepy link is very badly done. In public speaking at the college I attend, they teach a list of logical fallacies. That article suffers from an Ad Hominem and Slippery Slope fallacies, and leaves out any supporting statistics. It also throws in a Red Herring with the online privacy act, which really has nothing to do with any of the authors claims on google. Everything about google except google.com has a EULA, that you must agree to in order to use it. So they aren't doing anything devious or evil, they are offering services in exchange for collecting your data, as most online services do. It seems everyone goes on a witch hunt against the biggest dog in any field, and reminds me of that episode of southpark where they try to kill walmart only to have to destroy their local stores later once they become as large as walmart.


But I think, our life can't exist without Internet now/ That's we have to find compromises. I think, that this system may take you enough secure.

large sections of the world go without the internet, and it wouldn't be that hard to deal without it. It would make things less convenient, but I wouldn't go so far as to say life can't exist without it.

[karellen]

I am thinking about this matter in this particular way: who is interested in spying me or read my mails etc, a insignificant user without much importance and knowledge? it just doesn't worth the effort

[VorDesigns]

karellen
I am thinking about this matter in this particular way: who is interested in spying me or read my mails etc, a insignificant user without much importance and knowledge? it just doesn't worth the effort

Until your credit report tells you otherwise.

[maniacmusician]

I hate to disappoint... on the internet, nothing is secure. All the ciphers in the world with all the encryption possible can be hacked with enough time and devotion. If you are that scared of privacy, just unplug the computer from the internet.

Most companies will boast privacy policies bulging like a fat wallet, but when met with any legal terra-firma and they cave tucking tails until the beast is satiated. The only way I've found to be 100% secure is to not use it for critical means.

Diggin up the old posts.
Agreed.

It's really a bit amusing how far the paranoid folks of the world take it these days. Conspiracy theories galore, the corporations are out to get us, oh heavens, what shall we do?

When Gmail offers all that storage space and lets their selling point be "you never have to delete anything", that's because they're providing services that users want. High-power online businessmen, and even teenagers, have complained for a long time about the lack of storage space offered by e-mail providers, and the small limits on their attachments. The reason Google provided so much storage and allowed 10MB attachments was because that's what the users wanted, not because they're conspiring to store the entire worlds' emails on their servers.

Google's just a corporation that likes to make money. They make a lot of money through advertising. The more users they have, the more money they'll gain from advertising. It's in their best interest to provide features that users want, and that's what they're doing.

These conspiracy theories are really starting to get on my nerves. If anyone is paranoid about security to such a great extent, they don't have any business being on the internet at all. The moment you even visit any website, you lose a little privacy. The more websites you visit, the more privacy you lose. Once you start posting in forums and online mailing lists, you've got a permanent trail on the internet. Your ISP records everything you do, the websites you visit record everything you do. There's no privacy on the internet.

edit: In summation, Google is just as "safe" or "unsafe" as any other online entity. Don't fool yourself into thinking you'll get more privacy with other tools.

[prizrak]

Here is simple fact, anything that goes over the internet is basically public domain. Just because you don't use gmail doesn't mean that your e-mail provider cannot read your e-mail without your knowledge. In fact ISP's are required to log all your communication for a certain period of time.

If you want privacy use strong encryption to encode your messages. Tell those you are in contact with to do the same. Don't just think that because your e-mail ends with isp.com you are "safe".

[InetManager]

Internet Security is a very important answer. But i think that nobody can't be insure from any trouble. For example, your cell conversations can be listened. You can find a camera in the watercloset... I can cotinue this list.
But you have a business. That's why you have to find compromisses. Now we can't get absolutely security either in real life or in the Internet. But we can find optimal decisions.

[ixus_123]

if you want to take control of your email, you could always install your own emaiol server on your Ubuntu box.

This is what I'm trying to do now so I can have IMAP - I have to admit though, I am struggling with it though

[Zdravko]

Dudes, tell me please an email that is better than gmail?