Ultra VPNs Aviation and email, oh my

[Vref]

Howdy all,

New here, I recently got a ultra watch, I stayed away from smart watches due to the build materials and having too much money in mechanicals, but the Ti and sapphire ultra won me over, also trying to leave the iPhone in the car/home more, too many people living heads down


Anywho, for security reasons I run VPNs, I need a solution for the ultra, what’s the best VPN to run where the watch can run it stand alone?

the whole point of me getting this thing was to be able to leave the iPhone at home, ideally no logs and based in a good jurisdiction, best I could find so far was TikVPN, but it seems a little iffy compared to nord or express

The other issue is I can’t find my photo albums on this thing, tried to take a screen shot and text it, god knows where it is, under photos I have favorites and memories but I can’t find the albums?

Last one, it seems it doesn’t like to send or sometimes receive emails via the native app without the phone, any tips?


Thanks guys!

 

[Vref]

Almost forgot, I have topo maps, I can send geo refed TIFs to it for some basic VFR sectionals, is all have stratus insight, this watch won’t replace foreflight on my iPad and iPhone, but any other apps I’m missing, I wouldn’t do any serious flying just with the watch, but some VFR burger runs where I just want a basic sectional and weather/freqs, that would be awesome

 

[raab]

I doubt its changed but I don't believe there's any capability to have a VPN client on a cellular Apple Watch https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/vpn-for-apple-watch.2290842/

If you were at all concerned about security, you wouldn't use VPN's provided by a third party, you would manage your own

 

[Vref]

I doubt its changed but I don't believe there's any capability to have a VPN client on a cellular Apple Watch https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/vpn-for-apple-watch.2290842/

If you were at all concerned about security, you wouldn't use VPN's provided by a third party, you would manage your own

Between the audits of the VPNs I’ve used, and the Snowden revelations, I’ll hedge my bets with Nord or Express over any ISP or phone co

Many people in the 3rd world, and even 1st world major companies don’t allow company provided devices to connect w/o a VPN

It’s odd, for all the power this watch has it can’t do a simple VPN?

 

[Vref]

Unless there have been any random independent audits of ISPs and phone companies

Room 641A - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

The push against VPNs is silly, it’s like saving you don’t need a fire extinguisher if you don’t see a fire right at the moment

 

[Tdude96]

Unfortunately, I don't believe there's currently a way for Apple Watch to be on VPN without being on a wifi network that's protected by VPN.

Here's an older thread on the topic from 2021: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/vpn-for-apple-watch.2290842/

Apple's WatchOS System Security page makes no mention of VPN: https://support.apple.com/guide/security/system-security-for-watchos-secc7d85209d/web

 

[BenGoren]

I’m nearly certain that there’s no way to direct any watch to proxy through a VPN.

I don’t think iCloud Private Relay is yet supported on the Watch. If not, when it is, that should satisfy any realistic security concerns you might have.

I should further add, though, that, in this era of ubiquitous end-to-end encryption, all your ISP can know is with whom you’re communicating; they can’t know anything about the content of your communication.

The real spying these days is by the sites you visit. If you’re logged into Facebook, they’ll happily sell anything anybody wants to know about what you do. (The solution to that problem involves judicious use of private browsing and ensuring that you have no saved Website data.)

All a VPN is useful any more, realistically, is to evade geotagging-based content blocking. And, even then, it’s not very strong; I’m sure China, for example, is going to prevent anybody in China from connecting to a VPN. And, of course, this is after Customs has demanded you hand them your phone for inspection, during which the physical access lets them roger your phone any which way they please.

I’d close with an observation. Any state-level actor that wishes to infiltrate any particular publicly-available VPN service long since has done so. There are just sooooo many ways to do so, not a one of which involves network intrusion. They can bribe an employee; they can send James Bond through the air ducts; they can intercept a package of equipment destined for the server room; they can get one of their agents hired as a janitor; they can use Pegasus on an employee’s phone … if they want in, they’re in and have been in for a loooooong time.

b&

 

[Vref]

I’m nearly certain that there’s no way to direct any watch to proxy through a VPN.

I don’t think iCloud Private Relay is yet supported on the Watch. If not, when it is, that should satisfy any realistic security concerns you might have.

I should further add, though, that, in this era of ubiquitous end-to-end encryption, all your ISP can know is with whom you’re communicating; they can’t know anything about the content of your communication.

The real spying these days is by the sites you visit. If you’re logged into Facebook, they’ll happily sell anything anybody wants to know about what you do. (The solution to that problem involves judicious use of private browsing and ensuring that you have no saved Website data.)

All a VPN is useful any more, realistically, is to evade geotagging-based content blocking. And, even then, it’s not very strong; I’m sure China, for example, is going to prevent anybody in China from connecting to a VPN. And, of course, this is after Customs has demanded you hand them your phone for inspection, during which the physical access lets them roger your phone any which way they please.

I’d close with an observation. Any state-level actor that wishes to infiltrate any particular publicly-available VPN service long since has done so. There are just sooooo many ways to do so, not a one of which involves network intrusion. They can bribe an employee; they can send James Bond through the air ducts; they can intercept a package of equipment destined for the server room; they can get one of their agents hired as a janitor; they can use Pegasus on an employee’s phone … if they want in, they’re in and have been in for a loooooong time.

b&

Some issues

It’s nice to have my IP on servers not link up with your trackable ISP

It’s all just layers of armor, I’d rather have more than less, and apples destine for VPNs is troubling

Per Facebook, I haven’t been on there for years, at someone try to destroy my life for making a 2/10 spicy level comment once, thankfully my name and where I worked was but fictions, but yeah I view anythin Zuck and Co make as a virus/spyware