As data collection by browsers and apps intensifies, more users are turning to customised tools like Brave, local storage solutions, and selective subscriptions to regain control over their digital privacy and reduce reliance on major platforms, according to Scott Lilly.
The appeal for more control over personal technology is becoming harder to ignore as browsers, platforms and apps collect more data and rely more heavily on subscriptions, according to the article by Scott Lilly. His argument is essentially that the informal bargain once associated with free online services has weakened: users now give up far more than attention in exchange for access.
To reduce that dependence, Lilly says he has shifted to Brave, a browser with built-in blocking for trackers, cross-site cookie tracking and fingerprinting. He also uses uBlock Origin, an open-source extension designed to remove ads, prevent tracking and reduce exposure to malicious advertising. That combination is increasingly relevant as Chrome and Edge move away from support for older extension standards that uBlock Origin relies on, while Firefox and Brave continue to support it in some form.
Lilly also describes building his own UnRAID NAS to keep music, films, documents and images on local hardware rather than in third-party cloud services. For readers considering a similar setup, the practical point is that a NAS does not need extreme specifications; used hardware with several drive bays can be enough, provided storage is chosen carefully and the seller is reputable. In his account, the aim is not only cheaper storage but greater independence from large platforms.
Several of the services he runs on the NAS follow the same logic. AdGuard Home blocks ads and trackers at the network level, while Thunderbird and LibreOffice replace Microsoft’s paid office suite for email and productivity tasks. For video and music, he uses Jellyfin and Navidrome as local libraries, while audiobookshelf, Paperless-ngx and Open WebUI handle books, documents and local AI access. The technical value of this approach is that it keeps more data inside the home network rather than sending it to external providers by default.
He is less absolute about paid software when the local option is not good enough. For programming assistance, he says a paid AI service still performs better than the local models he can run at home. For streaming, he uses a subscription service only when there is enough to watch, then cancels after a month. That pattern reflects the wider trade-off at the centre of his piece: keep the convenience that still matters, but reduce long-term dependence where possible.
Disclaimer: This content is intended for informational purposes only. Readers are advised to exercise their own judgement, conduct due diligence, or consult a qualified expert before acting on any information provided.
