Something I've struggled with since I started my privacy journey many years ago is just being able to find like-minded people IRL. The end goal would be to be able to socialise with them in my actual hobbies so I don't have to think about privacy concerns all the time. I don't want to find other like-minded people to discuss their favourite secure messaging tools, web browser or Linux distribution.

Privacy-conscious people don't tend to like to use privacy-invasive services so it's often hard to find others. Facebook is generally a no-go. I stopped logging into Reddit when they blocked third party apps in 2023 and I suspect many others have completely deleted their accounts. Groups on Meetup.com tend to ask for a profile picture to be uploaded. I tried Bumble BFF the other day and after, reluctantly, uploading a profile picture, the app didn't even work with my phone.

I've spent a good amount of time trying to socialise with non-privacy-conscious people and then eventually getting them over to privacy-respecting services like Signal but it's always a huge amount of effort and they never really appreciate it and are often just doing it for me. They always feel like they need to tip-toe around me because most are tech-illiterate and/or have no idea about good OPSEC.

I want to hear about any ideas on meeting like-minded people. The only idea I have is to attend things like Linux user groups which are often, ironically, hosted in Google buildings. While I'm fairly into Linux, I'd still feel like a man doing salsa classes just to meet women.

On a side-note, I recently made a post on a different subreddit where I'm looking for fellow Sydney-based hikers and the response rate has been pretty bleak so check that out if anyone here happens to be interested.