Where do you go when you’ve had enough of tech bros?
You’ll find a Danish Version of this post her
(Scroll down if you just want to read the alternatives and not all the details)
In recent weeks, it has become clear that the largest tech companies prioritize economic and political interests over data security, user interests, and data ethics. It’s not the most surprising revelation in the world, but it’s becoming increasingly hard to ignore.
I believe we’re facing the realisation that the digital public sphere will likely not take place in just one location in the future. This will be challenging for communications professionals and journalists and, at times, frustrating for the rest of us, as we’ve grown accustomed to Meta, Google, and Twitter serving as central hubs for large parts of the population. But as long as we lack EU legislation or similar frameworks to ensure free speech, open algorithms, and transparency, we as users need to reconsider our behavior.
In recent days, there have been examples of Instagram hiding specific words, like “Democrats,” when users searched for them. This isn’t new—it’s just been less obvious before. Algorithms on various social media platforms have long worked to amplify or suppress certain political viewpoints, and there has been “shadow banning,” where no one sees your posts if you write about specific topics.
At the same time, some users have reported being made to follow or unfollow certain accounts against their will, primarily Trump and Vance (though I haven’t seen concrete evidence of this). Other users have experienced having their profile pictures removed if they included pride flags as part of the image, particularly on TikTok.
So, what do we do now? We work tirelessly for legislation in this area, we equip our politicians with the knowledge they need to understand what’s happening, and we seek alternatives.
Side note: At some point, I’ll write a post solely about how we need to respect the fact that, especially for young people, these platforms foster significant communities. There’s a tendency for “adults” to dismiss them as “silly dance videos,” which is both ignorant and condescending. We must acknowledge that these platforms serve as meaningful, identity-shaping communal spaces—sub-public spheres that play a huge role in people’s lives. This isn’t easy. Decentralising those spaces can be painful; people lose communities that feel like family.
Several people have written insightful pieces about alternatives to Facebook (for example, see this post by Henrik Føhns and this commentary by Astrid Haug). I agree that we should continue searching for, developing, and demanding better from new platforms. But while we wait for them to be established, where can we go in the meantime?
The two most important components are:
1. Critical mass – there need to be enough active users for it to be engaging and enjoyable to be there.
2. The platform must be decentralized, so there isn’t a single owner who might lose their mind *waves at Elon, Zuckerberg, and Bezos*
Unfortunately, these two elements are often difficult to combine.
Side note: Decentralised means that the social media platform consists of many independent servers, each often with its own rules and administrators. Users can create an account on one server but still interact with users from other servers. No single entity or person has full control over the entire network.
The following list is by no means complete and is very much “what I could think of at the moment,” so feel free to share any other suggestions you might have!
Text/Chat
The best thing you can do is replace WhatsApp, Messenger, iMessage, etc., with Signal.
Signal is open source (meaning you can look under the hood), messages are encrypted, and it collects minimal data. You can create groups of up to 1,000 people, but you need a phone number to use Signal.
Telegram is often mentioned as an alternative to Messenger, and one of its advantages is that you can subscribe to groups and aren’t required to link the service to a phone number.
I personally prefer Signal because it’s open source and non-profit-owned. Additionally, Telegram’s groups don’t always attract the most well-behaved users (there’s room for debate about whether Telegram’s owner, Pavel Durov, should be held accountable for what happens on his platform, but rather than diving into that, I’ll just say that I prefer Signal).
Browser
Good old Firefox is a great alternative to Google Chrome, as are Brave and DuckDuckGo. All three focus on data security and protecting user privacy.
Microblogging (aka Twitter)
It’s been about 15 years since anyone last used the term “microblogging,” but… in the absence of a better umbrella term:
The best alternative is Mastodon, a decentralised platform where you choose the server on which to create your account. You can still interact with other servers, but the server you choose may have specific rules, such as those regarding moderation or data security. It’s all very well-organised and ethical, though it can feel a bit tricky for new users at first—but you’ll get the hang of it quickly. Mastodon’s biggest challenge is critical mass: in some areas, there are plenty of users, but for most people, it can be hard to find a community.
Bluesky is currently a very promising alternative to Twitter/X, but it’s still owned by individuals who could potentially be compromised. The network is built on technology that allows for decentralization, but I haven’t yet heard of anyone who has made that part fully functional.
In Denmark, Bluesky is starting to reach a critical mass. It feels a bit like Twitter during its most fun era, but on quieter days, it can still feel empty.
The barrier to getting started on the platform is low. There are helpful “starter packs,” such as Danish journalists or the labor movement, which make it easier to find interesting people to follow.
This one’s tricky. The sheer number of users and a relatively functional platform make it tempting to stay. However, there are significant challenges with Instagram’s algorithm, how it uses your data, and the way it suppresses or promotes specific topics and users. Good old Zuckerberg.
Alternatives are emerging, but none are truly established yet:
• In the past, I would have suggested Flickr, but after being sold multiple times, I know very few people who actively use it.
• Bluesky has launched a new app called Flashes. The downside here is that there’s still a single owner. While they’re acting reasonably for now, we’ve learned that power tends to corrupt.
• pixelfed.org is a decentralized alternative, similar to Mastodon, with no single owner. I hope they win the race, but unfortunately, it’s not quite a seamless user experience yet.
Facebook and LinkedIn
There isn’t really a single alternative to Facebook, which remains its biggest strength. Other platforms can replace parts of what Facebook does, but in the long run, the replacement is likely a combination of newsletters and decentralized social media.
The same applies to LinkedIn, which is owned by Microsoft.
Search Engines
DuckDuckGo is still your best alternative to Google. For some reason, the digital development in this space hasn’t been significant—maybe people have just resigned themselves to Google owning their souls.
Video Platforms
Another challenging area. When the U.S. temporarily enforced its TikTok ban, most users migrated to Instagram Reels and YouTube, which brings us back to Meta/Google.
In the past, Vimeo would have been a good alternative, but like Flickr, it has been struggling for years. Vimeo also lacks the social aspect that TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram provide.
Many gamers use Twitch (owned by Amazon) or Discord as video streaming platforms, but these are focused on live streaming rather than sharing videos as you would on TikTok or Reels.
Blogging (/Websites)
This isn’t my area of expertise, so if you have ideas about where we should move if WordPress collapses, feel free to share!
Email Services
Again, not a strong suit of mine. The best-known secure-ish alternative to Gmail seems to be ProtonMail. However, like Telegram, it has faced challenges when it comes to government demands (see here, here, and here).
Other alternatives include Tutanota, Hushmail, Mailfence, etc. You can read more here: Secure Email Services.