I have Mint installed and need to know the absolute basic way to securely use it for simple home use - first (i.e. paying bills, surfing the web, etc.) I realize there are lots of options for security but I need the BASICS to start with. Please.
Hay Karen… this video by Chris Titus helped me a lot … as do all of his work … and you will see him a lot in the LMS beginner’s class workshops … I always reduce the playback speed to .75% to follow closely The 3 Biggest Security Mistakes Linux Users Make
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First and foremost, not saving usernames/passwords in browsers., write them down and keep them someplace safe.
Using a trusted browser, such as Brave or Ungoogled Chromium. Surf with a VPN though your bank will most likely block itas well as some shopping sites, ProtonVPN is free, however limited. I use a paid version.
If you must use Google, then use the “Private Window” option in the browser so it doesn’t save see cookies, or auto-fill options.
Avoid http and go for https(soon to be a default feature of Brave from what I read).
A secure email provider, I prefer ProtonMail, Again, it is limited on the free side, 1 email, webmail access only. Paid version offers their Linux compatible Bridge that ensure secure end to end encryption as well as multiple email accounts, varying aliases and domains and can easily be configured in any modern mail clients.
HTH
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Thank you I.B. I will check it out.
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Thank you MrD, This info is a big help to me…getting back on track. I have paid Protonmail but am not using it to its full potential - user error mostly. I tired to use/ create the Linux Bridge and got completely bogged down. Eventually gave up. I will try again…
I will also try to install Brave…again. :-/
Do you have the Proton Bridge installed?
It’s really quite simple, login to bridge with same user/pass that you use on the webmail. Select the account you wish to configure from the drop down and it gives you the complete configuration. Then you just open your preferred and add a new acct with just a few copy/pastes and you should be up and going in no time.
Note the password when using Bridge to local mail client is different then when logging into the webmail page.
As for Brave there is a great little script here:
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Oh Thank you for the Proton Bridge info…I will try again. 
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I don’t have the bridge installed any longer. I will need to start from the beginning. Do you have a reference for Proton Bridge installation? I really trust your guidance.
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I should first ask if you already have the ProtonVPN added? Did you use their link below or some other avenue?
You can open a terminal and type sudo apt search proton and check in the output.
Otherwise you can follow their instructions at the link below.
I should have mentioned that following their instructions does not limit you to just the ProtonVPN app for Linux, that installs the proton repo and from which you can grab everything offered.
Thank you MrD, this info is very helpful!!!
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Hi @Karen, good question! I see @MrDeplorableUSA has shared some really good stuff. I’ll just add one more little thing you might like. I asked about Mint security once and @Vasileios said to use these extensions in a browser. Once in a blue moon I have to turn one or both of these off to get a website to let me order something (JCPenney’s website is so ridiculous 
), but otherwise, these extensions are able to do a great job. 
Btw, these extensions are available in the Google Chrome store, but they are not made or managed by Google itself. The Chrome store is just a place where people who make good extensions can put them so we all can access them.
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Thank you hannagirl - I need all the help I can get 
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karen,
From a security standpoint I also have ufw (uncomplicated firewall) installed. I have set
- allow all outgoing
- deny all incoming
This will allow you to work normally but will deny anyone attempting to hack into your computer from getting in.
To install: sudo apt install ufw
To get help: ufw --help
To get status: sudo ufw status verbose
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