Tools
A curated directory of 8 tools we use, evaluate, and recommend across the AI security landscape — with our take on each.
VPN Rankings
Mullvad
Sweden. Anonymous accounts (no email at signup). Three independent audits, cash and Monero accepted, flat pricing.
Our take
Top of our ranking for the second year running. The flat price, anonymous accounts, and repeat audit cadence put it ahead of the larger marketing-driven providers. The 5-device cap is the main user-facing limitation.
Proton VPN
Switzerland. Free tier is genuinely usable (no speed cap, US/JP/NL servers). All clients open-source, all independently audited.
Our take
Best free tier in the ranking, full stop. Paid plan competitive with Mullvad; we rank it second only because of slightly worse client polish on Linux.
IVPN
Gibraltar. Anonymous account IDs (no email). Multi-hop, AntiTracker DNS, audited no-logs policy.
Our take
Smaller server count than the top two, but the privacy story is comparable. We rank it third — the limited network is the main reason it isn't tied with Proton.
Password Manager Rankings
Bitwarden
Open-source. Free tier covers unlimited passwords and devices. Self-hostable via official server or Vaultwarden.
Our take
Top of the ranking. The combination of open-source clients, free unlimited tier, and regular third-party audits is unmatched. 1Password edges it on UX but not on privacy.
1Password
Best UX in the category. Secret Key model (per-account extra factor) adds meaningful breach resistance. Closed-source clients.
Our take
Second place. Loses points for closed-source clients; gains them back for the Secret Key model, which Bitwarden lacks. The right pick for non-technical family members.
KeePassXC
Local-first, fully offline. Sync via your choice of cloud drive or Syncthing. Maximum data minimization.
Our take
Wins on pure privacy axis (no vendor at all) but real-world friction drags the overall rank. We list it as the third option, with a strong recommendation to read the trade-off section first.
Encrypted Messenger Rankings
Signal
E2EE messenger with the most-vetted protocol (Signal Protocol). Phone-number identifiers. Open-source apps and server.
Our take
Top-ranked for everyday encrypted messaging. The phone number requirement is the standing privacy concern — sealed sender and username support partially mitigate but don't remove it.
Session
Onion-routed messenger requiring no phone number or email. Built on a fork of the Signal Protocol over the Lokinet onion routing network.
Our take
Second-ranked. Wins on identifier privacy (no phone), loses on protocol maturity and forward secrecy compared to Signal.