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Blog - Privacy

May 2, 2022

WIRED’s Gilad Edelman on the role of social media in propaganda

This week host Derek E. Silva joins Gilad Edelman, a senior writer for WIRED, covering the intersection of tech, politics, and law. Before that, he was executive editor of the Washington Monthly. We take a deep dive into the truth about Section 230, the battle against misinformation, social media censorship, and the future of DAOs.

Apr 18, 2022

Orchid’s Travis Cannell on VPNs, privacy, and online identity

Derek E. Silva joins Travis Cannell, Head of Product & Marketing at Orchid. A great conversation on how Travis first met Co-founder Jay Freeman at the College of Creative Studies in Santa Barbara, why Orchid’s VPN is different from other privacy tools, and his predictions on the future of the Internet.

Apr 13, 2022

Privacy

Surveillance Advertising 101: What it is, and how to stop it

Surveillance advertising has become pervasive on today’s Internet. What is it, and how can you protect yourself from it?

Apr 4, 2022

Niam Yaraghi on ‘walking the walk’ in securing personal data

When it comes to fighting for privacy rights, most people are willing to talk the talk – but are they willing to walk the walk?

Mar 28, 2022

Privacy Researcher Dr. Sara R. Jordan on Privacy and Data Ethics

Dr. Sara R. Jordan’s entrance into the online privacy and data ethics sphere happened in a rather oblique way.

Mar 21, 2022

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse on How Decentralized Tech Fights Monopolies

\“Often, people think about decentralization as a hedge against government control,\” said Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven), speaking at ETHDenver, the largest and longest-running Ethereum community event in the world.

Mar 18, 2022

How to Completely Clear Your Web Browsing History

Even if you delete history and cookies, your Internet activity leaves other footprints. Here’s how to remove them.

Mar 14, 2022

Author Dr. Elaine Kasket on What Happens to our Data When We Die

Today, most people are well aware that companies collect data from their online activities in their day-to-day lives. But what happens to our data after we die?

Mar 7, 2022

Author Isaiah Jackson on Privacy, Freedom, and Bitcoin

“I love Bitcoin, because every upgrade that we have takes us further into the future,” said Isaiah Jackson, best-selling author of Bitcoin and Black America. He was speaking on this week’s episode of the Priv8 Podcast, which features an exclusive talk between Isaiah and tech journalist Naomi Brockwell.

Mar 1, 2022

Orchid’s Dr. Steven Waterhouse and Jay Freeman Speak at ETHDenver

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) and Head of Technology Jay Freeman (Sorek) both spoke at ETHDenver, the largest and longest-running Ethereum community event in the world.

Feb 28, 2022

Ari Paul, Greg Osuri, and Christopher Jeffrey on Internet Privacy and Decentralization

Feb 23, 2022

Will Quantum Computing Impact the Blockchain Space?

Quantum computing promises the ability to perform computations at speeds that are orders of magnitude beyond those of current computers. But what does quantum computing mean for the future of blockchain?

Feb 21, 2022

DeleteMe’s Rob Shavell on Data Privacy in the United States in 2022

“I would love to see some kind of bipartisan Privacy Bill at the federal level in the United States in 2022,” said Rob Shavell, chief executive of DeleteMe, an online data protection company. He was speaking to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 Podcast.

Feb 15, 2022

Why You Should Use a VPN for Gaming

While online gaming has been around since the earliest days of the Internet, its popularity has exploded in recent years. It’s a trend that’s expected to continue: data from Fortune Business Insights shows that the global online gaming market is expected to reach a valuation of $545.98 billion by 2028. The massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) market is expected to expand at an annual growth rate of 9.5% from 2020-2025. And on top of that, blockchain-based “GameFi” and play-to-earn (P2E) games are experiencing huge amounts of growth and attention.

Feb 14, 2022

Prifina’s Markus Lampinen on Data Privacy in the Internet-of-Things

As wearable and Internet-of-Things technology becomes more prolific, vast numbers of new data sets are generated from many different sources. This presents some new and complex challenges regarding personal privacy, argues Markus Lampinen, CEO of open-app data market Prifina. He spoke to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 Podcast.

Feb 7, 2022

“What Bitcoin Did” host Peter McCormack on encryption and government surveillance

“Encryption is a problem for states who want to run surveillance programs,” said Peter McCormack, host of the “What Bitcoin Did” podcast. He was speaking to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 podcast about the importance of encryption, the threat of government surveillance, and the necessity of privacy in democratic systems.

Feb 3, 2022

The Future of Privacy Forum’s Omer Tene on Privacy Laws in the United States

“Will 2022 be the year that the United States finally introduces federal privacy legislation?” asked Omer Tene, speaking to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 Podcast. Omer is a Senior Fellow at the Future of Privacy Forum, a privacy think tank advancing principled data practices for emerging technologies.

Feb 1, 2022

Welcome to Orchid, Polygon frens!

Orchid is now running on Polygon! The OrchidLotteryV1 contract is live and streaming Orchid’s Layer 2 system of probabilistic nanopayments on the Polygon chain.

Jan 26, 2022

A Deep Dive Into U.S. Data Privacy Laws by State

While the U.S. as a whole lacks a unifying set of rules around online privacy, states and localities have begun to enact numerous, varied approaches with the potential for wildly differing outcomes.

Jan 24, 2022

Nodle’s Eliott Teissoniere on Privacy, Decentralization, and Public Safety

Eliott Teissoniere, Chief Blockchain Officer at decentralized Internet-of-Things network Nodle, knows that strategies for tracing and preventing the spread of COVID-19 have raised many concerns about the boundaries between public safety and personal privacy.

Jan 21, 2022

What Happens When a VPN Gets Hacked?

VPNs can keep us safe from surveillance and data theft when we use the Internet. But what if the VPN itself is compromised?

Jan 12, 2022

Anonymizers vs. VPNs: Everything You Need to Know

In the world of cybersecurity, people have seemingly infinite tools at their disposal – cybersecurity is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor.

Jan 4, 2022

What are Orchid “Hops” and how are they useful?

Routing traffic between multiple different VPN providers can help you explore the Internet freely by mitigating the risk of logging.

Dec 20, 2021

Digital privacy in 2022: Orchid’s top 5 privacy predictions for the coming year

2021 has been a year of major cultural shifts. The movement toward remote work and online activity that began in 2020 continued throughout the year—ultimately culminating in a fascination with new digital concepts like the metaverse. And as people spend more of their time working, playing, socializing, and falling in love in online spaces, digital privacy has never been more important.

Dec 15, 2021

How to Use a VPN on Your iPad

As societies continue to move more and more of their activity online, opportunistic companies, governments, and individuals have followed—with serious and growing implications for personal privacy. Thankfully, there are tools that can address these challenges: virtual private networks, or VPNs. These devices protect data from onlookers during its journey across the web, stop advertisers from collecting your browsing data, and allow you to access content that may have been blocked in your region.

Dec 13, 2021

Looking back on 2021: Priv8’s top ten episodes of the year

2021 has been an important year for digital privacy. Controversial policy changes, divisive political situations, and technological advances have rung in a new age of challenges and opportunities—and conversations about digital privacy and human rights have never been more crucial.

Dec 13, 2021

Dragana Kaurin and Anne Ahola Ward on Facebook and Privacy

When problems occur in society, they tend to affect “people who have less power,” said Dragana Kaurin, Founder of the Localization Lab.

Dec 6, 2021

Author Glenn Greenwald on the Critical Importance of Free Speech

“Free speech is the primary tool to combat the excesses of tyrannical power,” said best-selling author and constitutional lawyer Glenn Greenwald. He was speaking to Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) at the Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit in November.

Nov 30, 2021

What is a Multi-Hop VPN?

In a world of widespread Internet surveillance and non-consensual data collection, maintaining online privacy is more important than ever. Using a multi-hop VPN is one of the easiest and best ways to protect your personal information. These services encrypt data and route it through multiple servers to prevent tracking. In this article, we’ll explore more about what multi-hop VPNs are, why they’re so effective at maintaining privacy online, and how they work.

Nov 29, 2021

Onion Routing Inventor Paul Syverson on the Future of Internet Privacy Solutions

“When you look at the number of people working on Internet security and privacy, it’s easy to see that we are more aware of our privacy than ever,” said Paul Syverson. “It’s getting difficult to keep track of all the work that’s being done—and that’s a good problem to have. But by the same token, it's hard to be aware of all of the potential privacy concerns relevant at any given moment. It's a moving target.”

Nov 17, 2021

Highlights from Priv8, Orchid’s Virtual Privacy Summit

On Monday evening, Orchid wrapped up the second edition of the Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. The event brought together experts, academics, and evangelists from various technology, business, media, and political spheres to share their experiences, predictions, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Here are the highlights.

Nov 15, 2021

The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Matthew Guariglia on Privacy as a Human Right

“Privacy is not a philosophical issue,” said Matthew Guariglia. “Surveillance isn’t just something that white guys can sit in armchairs and wax poetic about. It can cause real harm to people’s lives.”

Nov 12, 2021

Announcing Eight New Speakers for Priv8

Eight additional speakers will join an already-deep bench of experts at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit on Monday, November 15. These leaders include tech journalist and producer Naomi Brockwell, author Shiv Malik, Rivet founder Greg Lang, blockchain researcher Jonathan Dotan, crypto journalist Leigh Cuen, and technologist Chjango Unchained. Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) and community manager Derek Silva will round out the roster of speakers.

Nov 11, 2021

Willy Woo and Greg Osuri to Speak at Priv8 on November 15

We are thrilled to announce that Bitcoin market analyst Willy Woo and Akash Network CEO Greg Osuri will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. Priv8, a first-of-its-kind event focused on digital privacy, is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Willy and Greg join a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Nov 10, 2021

OnlyFans Creator Aella Will Speak at Priv8 on November 15

We are thrilled to announce that OnlyFans creator Aella will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. Priv8, a first-of-its-kind event focused on digital privacy, is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Aella joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Nov 9, 2021

Journalist Benjamin Powers Joins Priv8’s Expanding Roster of Speakers

We are thrilled to announce that technology journalist Benjamin Powers will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. Priv8, a first-of-its-kind event focused on digital privacy, is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Benjamin joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Nov 8, 2021

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse Speaks at Web Summit 2021

On Thursday, November 4th, Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) spoke at Web Summit, an annual technology conference that brings together tech founders, thought leaders, and media outlets from around the globe. His presentation focused on the proliferation of digital currencies, and how people can safeguard their rights in the face of growing financial censorship.

Nov 8, 2021

Atakama’s Dimitri Nemirovsky on the New Era of Digital Privacy

“Recent developments in the digital space have definitely benefited individuals,” said Dimitri Nemirovsky. “But they haven’t come without risks.”

Nov 5, 2021

Secret Foundation’s Tor Bair Joins Priv8’s Expanding Roster of Speakers

We are thrilled to announce that technology journalist Tor Bair will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. Priv8, a first-of-its-kind event focused on digital privacy, is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Tor joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Nov 5, 2021

Orchid 0.9.35 Gives You More Control Than Ever When You Use the Internet

Orchid version 0.9.35 is now available, giving people even more control over how to explore the Internet in privacy, particularly when it comes to configuring multiple hops.

Nov 4, 2021

VPN Lag: It’s a Drag!

There are many good reasons to use a VPN. These privacy solutions are an excellent way to prevent sensitive information—such as browsing data, financial histories, or private communications—from being exposed to third parties. VPNs have become essential for staying safe online, offering users much stronger opportunities for censorship resistance, and for freer exploration of the web than is possible when simply browsing the Internet unprotected. Particularly in places where website blocks have been put in place by Internet service providers (ISPs) or governments, VPNs can be an essential tool for accessing the Internet.

Nov 1, 2021

Author Gian Volpicelli on the Digital Yuan and the Politics of Crypto

Most people think of cryptocurrency as technological innovation. But Gian Volpicelli, Senior Editor at Wired UK and author of Cryptocurrency: How Digital Money Could Transform Finance, sees it as a political matter.

Oct 29, 2021

Purse.io’s Christopher Jeffrey Will Speak at Priv8

We are thrilled to announce that Christopher Jeffrey of Purse.io will speak at Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit, presented by Orchid and Handshake. Priv8, a unique event focused on digital privacy, is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Christopher joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Oct 28, 2021

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse Speaks at LisCon 2021

On Wednesday, October 20th, Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) spoke at LisCon, an Ethereum community event that gathered Web3 thought leaders from around the globe. Seven’s talk focused on the evolution of the Internet from the decentralized, anti-establishment culture of its early years to today’s centralized, “walled garden” online landscape. Seven spoke on the importance of bringing decentralization back to the web—and to the world.

Oct 28, 2021

Impervious’s Matthew Zipkin Joins Priv8’s Expanding Roster of Speakers

We are thrilled to announce that Matthew Zipkin of Impervious will speak at Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit, presented by Orchid and Handshake, on November 15. Priv8, a unique event focused on digital privacy, is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Matthew joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Oct 26, 2021

Google Whistleblower Zach Vorhies Will Speak at the Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit

Google whistleblower and author Zach Vorhies will speak at Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit, a first-of-its-kind event focused on digital privacy presented by Orchid and Handshake. Priv8 is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Zach joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Oct 25, 2021

MobileCoin Founder Joshua Goldbard joins Priv8’s Growing List of Speakers

We are excited to announce that MobileCoin Founder Joshua Goldbard will speak at Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit, a unique event focused on digital privacy presented by Orchid and Handshake. Priv8 is a venue for experts to share their experiences, predictions, hopes, and advice with like-minded people around the world. Joshua joins a growing slate of distinguished speakers, including journalist, analyst, and author Glenn Greenwald.

Oct 25, 2021

SupChina’s Jeremy Goldkorn on Data Privacy Laws and Political Control in China

“Some of the privacy and data laws that the Chinese government has passed are one part of what we call the ‘Red New Deal,’” said Jeremy Goldkorn, editor-in-chief of SupChina, a China-focused news outlet based in New York. He was speaking to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 Podcast.

Oct 19, 2021

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse to Speak at LisCon 2021

We’re excited to share that Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) will speak at LisCon 2021 on Wednesday, October 20th. Seven’s talk, entitled "The Cryptopunk Ethos and the Future of Freedom,” will focus on the anti-establishment origins of the Internet, the potential ramifications of centralized digital currencies, and the role that decentralization can play in a free and open digital future. The presentation will take place at 2:10 pm local time (UTC+1).

Oct 18, 2021

Silicon Flatirons’s Amie Stepanovich on Digital Privacy and Constitutional Rights

Over the past several decades, the ways that people store and use personal data have changed significantly. But public policy has been unable to keep pace with cultural and technological shifts around personal data.

Oct 11, 2021

The Golem Foundation’s Julian Zawistowski on DAOs and Decentralized Governance

The technology behind Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, or DAOs, has been lauded for its ability to support the creation of user-defined organizational structures. But many questions remain about how DAOs can protect individual privacy while maintaining structural order.

Oct 4, 2021

Access Now’s Brett Solomon on Shifting Norms for Digital Rights

“The concept of digital rights has shifted,” said Brett Solomon, co-founder and executive director of Access Now, an organization that defends and extends the digital rights of vulnerable populations. He joined Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 podcast.

Sep 23, 2021

Orchid’s Latest Update Introduces a Dark-Native Display and More

We’re pleased to announce the release of Orchid 0.9.34, that includes updates to make Orchid’s decentralized VPN marketplace even easier to use, more flexible, and more enjoyable for everyone looking for strong privacy when they use the Internet.

Sep 17, 2021

The Revolution will be Decentralized: Privacy in the ‘dWeb’

Over the past several years, decentralization has rapidly emerged as a crucial force driving the future of digital technologies. Spurred on by the growth of blockchain applications in finance, gaming, collectibles, and many other sectors, decentralized technology is becoming more central to our economy and to the digital infrastructure that underpins it.

Sep 13, 2021

Frog Design’s Sonny King on ‘Privacy by Design’ in Intelligent Environments

“When we think about our society’s future, we're going to continue to embrace new technology,” said Sonny King, Executive Technology Director for frog design, an award-winning design studio based in San Francisco. He was speaking to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 podcast.

Sep 7, 2021

Internet Without Borders’ Julie Owono on taking Internet privacy seriously

When it comes to Internet privacy and human rights advocacy, Internet Without Borders Executive Director Julie Owono says that one of the biggest challenges is getting people to take you seriously.

Aug 30, 2021

Rest of World’s Leo Schwartz on the Challenges of Independent Journalism

“The nature of news is changing,” said Leo Schwartz, a reporter for international nonprofit media organization Rest of World. He was speaking to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of the Priv8 Podcast.

Aug 23, 2021

Privacy Advocate Dr. Gabriela Zanfir-Fortuna on Regulation Proliferation

"Everywhere you're looking on a globe, there is some tech policy or data legislation being passed," said Dr. Gabriela Zanfir-Fortuna, Director for the Future of Privacy Forum, a DC-based think tank and advocacy group focused on data privacy issue on this week's episode of the Priv8 Podcast.

Aug 16, 2021

Internews’s Berhan Taye on Digital Literacy and Misinformation

“Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and others provide options for people to speak,” said Berhan Taye, a senior advisor at Internews, a nonprofit supporting independent media in 100 countries. She joined Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of Priv8.

Aug 12, 2021

What does the new U.S. infrastructure bill mean for privacy?

On August 10, the United States Senate passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act bill. The legislation goes beyond simple roads and rails: it contains a number of new rules that stand to affect America’s approach to the Internet generally, and blockchain and crypto specifically.

Aug 10, 2021

Orchid’s Derek Silva answers questions from the CoinDCX community

In July, Orchid’s Derek Silva answered a series of questions in an ask-me-anything (AMA) session in the official Telegram channel of CoinDCX, one of India’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.

Aug 4, 2021

What do NFTs mean for privacy?

As blockchain and crypto have continued to gain attention and popularity over the past year, non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, have surged into the spotlight.

Aug 2, 2021

American Enterprise Institute’s Jim Harper on the many shades of digital privacy

“I’ve found that there are many different things that people are talking about when they use the word ‘privacy,’” said Jim Harper, a privacy expert and senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI).

Jul 28, 2021

Crypto meets the metaverse: the implications for privacy

The Internet is many different things to many different people. The Internet is a workplace; it is a source of entertainment and experiences. It is a source of connection – and division.

Jul 26, 2021

York University’s Kean Birch on “Rentiership,” the Data Economy, and Big Tech

“Assets are increasingly central to contemporary capitalism,” said Kean Birch, an expert in technoscience and professor at York University, to Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of Priv8.

Jul 22, 2021

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse Speaks at ETHcc 2021

On July 19th, Orchid co-founder and CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) spoke at ETHcc, Europe’s largest annual conference on Ethereum’s technology and community.

Jul 19, 2021

Michael Caster on Free Expression, Internet Access, & Human Rights

“Across the Asian region, from South Asia to Southeast Asia to East Asia--and from India to Vietnam to China--we see a serious backtracking in terms of human rights,” Michael Caster, co-founder of Safeguard Defenders, told Orchid’s Derek Silva on this week’s episode of Priv8.

Jul 14, 2021

Why Ordinary People Are Turning to VPNs

As governments and corporations around the world move to control our online experiences, VPN usage worldwide is growing at an astronomical pace. But along with this growth, misconceptions about what type of—and why—people are using the technology still abound.

Jul 12, 2021

John Gleeson on how decentralization enables better cloud storage

John, COO of Storj Labs, spoke to Orchid’s Derek Silva about the possibilities and potential of decentralized and distributed cloud storage services on this week’s episode of Priv8.

Jul 6, 2021

Brittany Piovesan on the Internet as a tool for human growth

“We want users to see the Internet as something that allows them to fully express [themselves] and live out their human rights,” said Brittany Piovesan of the Internet Society Foundation in this week’s episode of the Priv8 podcast.

Jun 29, 2021

The Global Network Initiative’s Jason Pielemeier on Internet Freedom

“What does it mean for an Internet company that is operating everywhere in the world simultaneously to protect users’ rights? How can the company do that in a meaningful way, despite government demands and the push-and-pull that they may be facing?”

Jun 22, 2021

Orchid’s Derek Silva Answers Your Questions in Wolfonaire Family Chatbox AMA

Earlier this month, Orchid Community Manager and Priv8 Podcast host Derek Silva answered a series of questions in an ask-me-anything (AMA) session with the Wolfonaire Family Chatbox, a Telegram “mastermind group” of investors and crypto enthusiasts.

Jun 21, 2021

Gbenga Sesan On Digital Inclusion, Entrepreneurship, & Tech Policy

Paradigm Initiative was created by Sesan in 2007 as a pan-African social enterprise working on digital inclusion. The Initiative currently focuses on providing training for underserved young people, advocating for technological policy, and digital opportunities.

Jun 16, 2021

Introducing Orchid’s Privacy Guardians Program

Earn rewards for making Internet privacy more accessible than ever

Jun 7, 2021

Privacy

Rebecca Wexler on Leveraging Tech to Create Better Criminal Justice Systems

"Who gets access to information? Who gets to withhold it, and why, and how?" These questions are at the center of the work of Rebecca Wexler, an assistant professor of law at the University of California Berkeley.

Jun 1, 2021

The Localization Lab's Dragana Kaurin on Building Tech for Marginalized Populations

"To be able to meet people's needs, you need to ask the question: 'what do you need?'" said Dragana Kaurin, human rights researcher and founder of The Localization Lab. She was speaking to Derek Silva, the host of Orchid's Priv8 podcast.

May 17, 2021

NYT’s Kara Swisher speaks with Audrey Tang on whether safety and privacy can co-exist

Kara Swisher has been described as Silicon Valley's "most powerful tech journalist.” Her opinion pieces appear regularly in The New York Times, and she is the host and co-host, respectively, of podcasts Sway and Pivot.

May 6, 2021

Edward Snowden joins Priv8 to discuss causes and solutions for a broken Internet

“The Internet is broken because it reflects a broken society.”

May 3, 2021

What is split tunneling?

No one likes a traffic jam. Whether you are in Mumbai, Moscow, or Miami, the experience is universally frustrating. But traffic jams don’t just occur on busy roads...

Apr 28, 2021

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse Speaks at Collision 2021

On April 22, Orchid co-founder and CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse spoke at Collision Conference, one of the largest tech conferences in the world.

Apr 22, 2021

Follow the White Rabbit is now the Priv8 Podcast

With new host Derek Silva, the podcast will continue to push the conversation when it comes to privacy

Apr 15, 2021

What does a VPN hide?

Many people use VPNs for Internet privacy. Do you know what they truly hide?

Apr 5, 2021

Tor Bair on Building a Better, Private Internet

Tor Bair is on a mission to make privacy an essential part of the Internet by promoting decentralized technologies that focus on keeping information private.

Mar 31, 2021

Highlights from Priv8, Orchid’s virtual privacy summit

Last Thursday marked the final day of the Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. The first-of-its-kind event brought together experts, academics, and evangelists from around the world of privacy for an eye-opening week of panels, discussions, and sharing of insights.

Mar 29, 2021

Aibek Esengulov on Keeping Control of Your Money and the Power of Blockchain

Aibek Esengulov suffered the consequences of centralized financial systems – so he decided to fix the problem.

Mar 23, 2021

Final Speakers Announced for Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit

We are thrilled to announce that Fereshteh Forough of Code to Inspire, Jeff John Roberts and Adriana Hamacher of Decrypt, Anne Fauvre-Willis of Oasis Labs, Harry Halpin of Nym Technologies, Cade Diehm of The New Design Congress and EEQJ’s Jeffrey Paul will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 22, 2021

Kevin Werbach joins Priv8’s expanding roster of speakers

We are thrilled to announce that Kevin Werbach of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 22, 2021

Marvin Tong on Battling the “Data Empire” with Privacy and Decentralization

Marvin Tong wants to revolutionize decentralized blockchain technologies by ensuring that user data is kept private on-chain.

Mar 18, 2021

Jen Zhu Scott joins Priv8’s expanding roster of speakers

We are thrilled to announce that Jen Zhu Scott of The Commons Project Foundation will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 17, 2021

FT Editor Izabella Kaminska will speak at Orchid’s Priv8

We are thrilled to announce two new speakers. Izabella Kaminska, editor of the Financial Times’s Alphaville blog, will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 16, 2021

Yele Bademosi joins Priv8’s expanding roster of speakers

We are thrilled to announce that Yele Bademosi, CEO of Bundle Africa, will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 15, 2021

Gregory Landua on Avoiding ‘Mad-Max’ and Totalitarian Futures by Incentivizing Healthy Agriculture

Gregory Landua wants to save civilization from disintegrating. How? By aligning short-term economic incentives with long-term ecological health.

Mar 11, 2021

NYT’s Kara Swisher will speak at Priv8

We are thrilled to announce that Kara Swisher of The New York Times will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 8, 2021

Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse answers users’ questions in Hillrise Capital AMA

Last month Orchid’s co-founder and CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse (Seven) answered questions in a Telegram AMA with Hillrise Capital.

Mar 4, 2021

Jorge Rios will discuss the future of the Internet at Priv8

We are thrilled to announce that Jorge Rios of Bridgefy will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 2, 2021

Peter Van Valkenburgh joins Priv8’s expanding roster of speakers

We are thrilled to announce that Peter Van Valkenburgh of Coin Center will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Mar 1, 2021

David Henkel-Wallace on Open Source and Human Motivation

David “Gumby” Henkel-Wallace recalls how on multiple occasions he was called an idiot to his face because of his pioneering work on open-source only to be given a purchase order by the same people.

Feb 25, 2021

Ryan Selkis joins Priv8 to explore the pandemic’s implications for privacy

We are thrilled to announce that Messari's Ryan Selkis will speak at Orchid's Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Feb 24, 2021

Gate.io lists OXT

OXT, the Orchid digital asset, is now listed on gate.io, a digital asset exchange that supports BTC, LTC, Ethereum, Qtum and more. Gate.io currently serves millions of users from over 130 countries around the world.

Feb 23, 2021

Zooko Wilcox will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Summit

We are thrilled to announce that Zooko Wilcox, Founder and CEO of the Electric Coin Company that leads the development of Zcash, will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Feb 23, 2021

Orchid answers the community’s questions in Binance Español AMA

Orchid’s Derek Silva recently answered questions from Binance Español in a Telegram AMA. The questions touched on Orchid’s backstory and mission, as well as recent improvements that make the app available to millions more people around the world and our plans for the coming year. For those who weren’t able to make it, here are some highlights from the event.

Feb 22, 2021

Orchid expands in Korea as OXT is listed on Bithumb

OXT, the Orchid digital asset, is now listed on Bithumb, a global digital asset exchange founded in South Korea, as Orchid expands to reach more users around the globe.

Feb 22, 2021

Lance Vick on Security Vulnerabilities and the Need for Privacy

Lance Vick has been fixing digital security risks since the age of 14. “At the time, I was just a teenager, and I didn’t have any experience,” Lance said on the latest Follow the White Rabbit podcast recounting his early exploration of program vulnerabilities.

Feb 18, 2021

Ken Liu joins Priv8’s expanding roster of speakers

We are excited to announce that award-winning author Ken Liu will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit. Priv8 is a first-of-its-kind event focused on digital privacy.

Feb 15, 2021

Leigh Honeywell on Online Harassment and How to Protect Yourself

Leigh Honeywell wants to curb online harassment by helping companies protect their employees in a balancing act at the nexus of privacy and security.

Feb 11, 2021

Sheila Warren joins Priv8’s expanding roster of speakers

We are thrilled to announce that Sheila Warren of the World Economic Forum will speak at Orchid’s Priv8 Virtual Privacy Summit.

Feb 11, 2021

Orchid learns three new languages

Orchid is now available to the more than 750 million people around the world who speak Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Feb 10, 2021

Should you leave your VPN on all the time?

Using the Internet is never completely without risk, but some functions are more sensitive than others

Feb 8, 2021

Joe Toscano on Fighting Big Tech Bias With Data Science

Joe Toscano turned the adage "if you can't beat them, join them" on its head and decided to leave his work as a Google consultant and take the fight over data privacy to Big Tech.

Feb 4, 2021

Meet Orchid (virtually) at ETHDenver 2021

The event, which takes place virtually for the first time, will feature a talk by Co-founder and CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse

Feb 3, 2021

Announcing Priv8, Orchid’s digital privacy summit, featuring Edward Snowden

The famed whistleblower will be joined by global privacy advocates, government leaders, academics and technologists

Feb 1, 2021

John Redgrave on Building Iron Man Suits for the Janitors of the Internet

John Redgrave made a decision that he didn’t want his kids growing up in a digitally native society where online abuse was prevalent. So he set out to create the tools for content moderators to battle abusive online voices while balancing the principles of privacy.

Jan 25, 2021

Nathan Wilcox on How Privacy is Essential For Economic Freedom

Nathan Wilcox is at the center of the struggle between the opportunities and risks of technology, striving to provide economic freedom to people everywhere with privacy and decentralization.

Jan 20, 2021

How we built Orchid.com without cookies or other tracking tools

With a few key steps, it’s possible to build a website that doesn’t rely on user tracking and data harvesting.

Jan 19, 2021

Pioneer Filmmaker Jamie King on Disinformation and “Reality Wars”

Jamie King’s filmmaking career crosses the arc from his pioneering distribution of the documentary “Steal This Film” to his latest project that analyzes mass manipulation around false memes such as “Stop the Steal.”

Jan 13, 2021

Orchid Integrates with WalletConnect

Orchid now supports WalletConnect, a popular open source protocol for connecting decentralised applications to mobile wallets with QR code scanning or deep linking.

Jan 11, 2021

Franck Nouyrigat on the Future of Democracy and Decentralized Elections

Franck Nouyrigat literally used to spend his weekends helping startups launch. The non-profit he helped found more than a decade ago -- Startup Weekend -- eventually established a presence in more countries than Starbucks and helped build startup communities over weekend-long events.

Jan 5, 2021

Yaniv Tal on Organizing Data To Unlock the Potential of Decentralization

Yaniv Tal first understood how decentralization could help solve the world's economic problems, especially resource allocation, during the 2008-2009 financial crisis when many of his talented graduate peers felt like giving up on even searching for a job and being forced to let their potential go to waste.

Dec 17, 2020

Andreas Antonopoulos on Privacy, Society and “Special” Ethereum

Andreas Antonopoulos has one word of advice for anyone working in blockchain -- privacy.

Dec 14, 2020

Kurt Rohloff on 9/11 Inspiring a Path to Privacy, Encryption and Military Intelligence

Kurt Rohloff was at engineering grad school during the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington in 2001 and quickly decided he wanted to play his “small part” in helping national security. It was not long before Kurt was working on projects to support the mission of DARPA, (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) and leading teams in the first implementation of a new concept in encryption.

Dec 10, 2020

Orchid’s top privacy tips of 2020

Since Orchid launched in December 2019, concerns about privacy have come to the fore. A global pandemic has upended the way people around the world live, work, learn, and more. In this unprecedented year, the surge in remote work and schooling have heightened awareness of online privacy risks and driven more people than ever to seek out solutions such as VPNs.

Dec 7, 2020

Anne Ahola Ward on SEO, Privacy and a Vindicated Science Project

Anne Ahola Ward may have received a C grade for a school science project when she sewed a watch onto a T-shirt but the CEO of CircleClick Media was vindicated years later when wearables entered the mainstream and boomed.

Nov 18, 2020

"Data Creep" and the ever-expanding universe of targeted ads

You’re not imagining it. Advertisers can now show us what we want before we know we want it.

Nov 16, 2020

Orchid’s “Follow the White Rabbit” Podcast is Hopping Onto Audius

We are thrilled that Audius, the decentralized, community-owned streaming platform, will start this month to carry our very own Follow the White Rabbit podcast.

Nov 10, 2020

What’s the best VPN for crypto users?

VPNs were developed to address users' innate desire for privacy -- and therefore, personal autonomy. And though it serves a different use case, cryptocurrency appeals to this same core need.

Nov 2, 2020

Latin America Looks to Blockchain to Improve Human Rights, Reporter Says

Felipe Erazo is an investigative journalist who researched the disappearance of 65,000 people during decades of civil war in his home country of Colombia.

Oct 26, 2020

Indian Crypto Exchange Founder on Financial Censorship

Neeraj Khandelwal co-founded CoinDCX, India's largest cryptocurrency exchange, in response to his own liquidity-starved trading challenges.

Oct 20, 2020

David Pan on China’s Impact on Blockchain and Human rights

David Pan is originally from China and moved to the United States three years ago for a masters degree in business journalism. That propelled him to becoming an international business reporter at the largest blockchain and cryptocurrency media publication, Coindesk.

Oct 14, 2020

How to make sure your VPN is working properly

VPN leaks can jeopardize users’ privacy. Here’s how to find them and fix them.

Oct 13, 2020

Orchid finishes Q3 with strong momentum and a growing global presence

The past few months have seen major disruption in nearly every sector of the global economy -- and privacy has been particularly prominent. At times it can seem like every policy and business question, from contact tracing to TikTok, touches on privacy.

Oct 13, 2020

Zero Knowledge Pioneer on Mass Adoption of Blockchain and Financial Freedom

Alex Gluchowski grew up in Ukraine where he suffered first hand the blight of hyperinflation as a whole population lost its savings and families were left scrambling to put food on the table. That experience inspired Alex to search for alternatives to the traditional financial system and led him decades later to found Matter Labs, a research and development company pioneering blockchain scalability and privacy solutions.

Oct 6, 2020

Can you protect your privacy by using a VPN to access TikTok or WeChat?

VPNs can allow people to access banned apps -- but they won’t protect you from those apps’ mass data collection

Oct 5, 2020

Oasis Labs CEO Dawn Song on Building the Responsible Data Economy

Dawn Song is ranked as the most cited scholar on computer security. So when the UC Berkeley Professor of Computer Science and CEO of Oasis Labs says she is helping to build a new data privacy paradigm, people pay attention.

Oct 1, 2020

It’s easy for enterprises to get started with Orchid

How to get your whole team set up to use the Internet in privacy with Orchid.

Sep 29, 2020

Ex-FDIC Regulator On Trust And the Battle of the Social Media Videos

When Jason Brett first arrived at the FDIC, he was greeted with the joke that he should have brought a pillow to work at the sleepy agency. Little did he know that, within a week in that summer of 2008, he would have a front-row seat to what was the largest bank collapse in U.S. history.

Sep 24, 2020

How to protect your privacy on a mobile phone

Digital privacy is elusive unless it extends to the most common gateway to the Internet: mobile devices

Sep 22, 2020

Can Technology Be Compassionate? Developer Val Mack Explains How

Val Mack, a Software Architect at Quant Five, and founder of Festival Labs, believes cryptography and blockchain have the power to do social good by protecting privacy and allowing autonomy in what she calls “compassionate technology.”

Sep 15, 2020

Open Source Elections Pioneer on Helping Voters With Technology

Dr. Juan E. Gilbert, a professor at the University of Florida, can recall the disputed U.S. presidential election 20 years ago when fiascos over counting ballots in the Sunshine State left the country in limbo.

Sep 11, 2020

How to protect students’ privacy online, from VR to VPNs

Widespread remote learning has introduced new opportunities as well as new dangers

Sep 8, 2020

Pioneer Programmer Brian J. Fox on Championing Open Source

When Brian J. Fox, Co-founder of Orchid and the original author of the GNU Bash shell, started out as a pioneer programmer, it was the free exchange of creative ideas that drove advances in computer science.

Sep 3, 2020

Privacy trends in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic

As the world continues to deal with the effects of the pandemic, combining good privacy habits with the right digital tools is the best way to preserve privacy

Sep 1, 2020

Beanstalk Ventures Managing Partner Ken Seiff on the dark side of the Internet

With a special guest appearance by Orchid CEO Dr. Steven Waterhouse on this week's episode of Follow the White Rabbit

Aug 31, 2020

What the global VPN market’s explosive growth means for Orchid

Orchid’s decentralized marketplace is positioned to meet surging demand for online privacy.

Aug 27, 2020

How to start using Orchid’s crypto VPN in seconds

Orchid’s unique VPN marketplace lets people reclaim the Internet as a place of freedom and curiosity with the highest level of online privacy. And now it’s easier than ever to get started with Orchid using in-app purchases.

Aug 24, 2020

Richard Muirhead on Blockchain and the New Decentralized Economy

Richard Muirhead has been a Bitcoin believer since as early as 2013. That has provided the partner of Fabric Ventures with a valuable perspective on blockchain and digital assets.

Aug 17, 2020

Berkeley City Council Member Ben Bartlett on civil rights and defending democracy

This week on Follow the White Rabbit, Ben speaks with Orchid’s Alex Kehaya on the fight for freedom and civil rights in the context of his own personal journey.

Aug 10, 2020

Crypto pioneer David Chaum on election security and the decline of democracy

This week on Follow the White Rabbit, Orchid’s Alex Kehaya speaks with David about the future of digital currency, and why he believes democracy is on the decline.

Aug 3, 2020

Cindy Cohn speaks with Orchid about online privacy and the Fourth Amendment

Orchid’s Alex Kehaya had a wide-ranging conversation with the online privacy advocate covering little-known laws, past victories for privacy, the future of encryption, and more.

Jul 28, 2020

How people are reclaiming Internet freedom with Orchid, from Dubai to Ukraine to Venezuela

Jun 10, 2020

Tracking pixels, building blocks of Internet surveillance, explained

The Internet has changed life in ways so profound that it's easy to lose sight of their full extent.

Jun 8, 2020

Follow the White Rabbit: Orchid’s privacy podcast

Through weekly interviews, we’re opening up a space for discussion and debate on issues related to privacy

May 26, 2020

DNS-over-https is long overdue -- but people still need Internet privacy tools

News that Chrome and Firefox will adopt default encryption of DNS requests is a step forward for privacy -- but not a panacea

May 1, 2020

Defending freedom in the time of coronavirus

The world is in the grip of a pandemic. Governments are reacting in different ways, but a common thread that’s emerging is a trend toward greater surveillance and restrictions on movement.

Apr 29, 2020

Can you be tracked using a VPN?

How Orchid can help users avoid online surveillance

Apr 28, 2020

Why Internet privacy matters more than ever

How Orchid is working to restore online privacy for people and businesses

Apr 8, 2020

How Orchid improves privacy using a public blockchain

Orchid is an incentivized privacy network, Open Source project, and consumer VPN service aimed to deliver new levels of privacy. But what does privacy mean? How private is Orchid, which relies on pseudo-anonymous payments on Ethereum?

Mar 30, 2020

Orchid's tips for protecting your privacy while working from home

Privacy is like hygiene: establishing good habits and using the right products can help keep you safe while working from home

Jan 28, 2020

It’s #DataPrivacyDay. Ethereal and Orchid are committed to realizing its promise.

As we recognize Data Privacy Day this year, we’re excited to announce that we’ve joined forces with Ethereal as their official privacy partner.

Jan 21, 2020

Get hopping faster: Making privacy easier with QR codes

At Orchid, we’re committed to growing the privacy network so anyone, anywhere can access the Orchid VPN. That’s why we’re excited to announce an improvement to our user interface that simplifies our users’ first steps to get Orchid up and running.

Dec 16, 2019

Orchid’s Privacy Network Launches

Start using the decentralized VPN at Orchid.com