Every search, every step, every purchase — logged. You know this. Knowing changes nothing.
The common response is paranoia. VPN, Tor, burner phones, tape on the webcam. Useful tools. But paranoia is a cage too. You replaced one master with another.
Suckless
The suckless philosophy says: software should be simple, minimal, and transparent. No bloat, no abstractions you don’t need, no features you didn’t ask for.
Apply this to your life.
Your digital footprint is bloat. Social profiles are abstractions. Notifications are features you didn’t ask for. Strip them. Keep what you need. Delete the rest.
Use free software because it’s better, not because you’re afraid. Encrypt because it’s good practice, not because you’re a target. Reduce your surface because minimalism is elegant, not because you’re running.
The difference is intention. One is freedom. The other is prison with the bars facing inward.
Mu
A monk asked Zhaozhou: “Does a dog have Buddha-nature?”
Zhaozhou answered: “Mu.” — Nothing. Neither yes nor no. The question itself is wrong.
“Are you being monitored?” — Mu.
You are not your search history. Not your IP address. Not the pattern of your purchases. These are shadows. Shadows don’t suffer.
Practice
Sit in silence ten minutes a day. No phone. Notice how hard it is. That difficulty is a measurement.
Do one thing at a time. Don’t read notifications while eating.
Once a week, disappear. No internet. If the world moves on without you, maybe that email wasn’t urgent.
Surveillance has power over those who need to be seen. If you don’t need to be seen, you’re already invisible — not because you’re hiding, but because there’s no one to find.