Digital Protection Guidelines

For Messaging: Signal

Signal is a private messaging app that uses end-to-end encryption to ensure only the sender and recipient can read messages, not even Signal itself. It's safe because it prioritizes user privacy, doesn't collect data, and is open-source, allowing security audits.
Update Signal to the latest version.
Privacy Settings: Phone Number: Set to 'Nobody'.
Add a non-identifying username.
Share username or QR code, not phone number.
Enable Registration Lock.
Turn on Incognito Keyboard.
Set Default Disappearing Message Time.
Limit notifications to just arrival alerts (no sender or message contents).
Change display name infrequently and choose a distinguishing but non-unique pseudonym.
Set disappearing message time during group creation.
Ensure at least 2-3 admins in the group.
Change group permissions to 'Only admins' for member approvals.
If using a group link, ensure 'Admin Approval' is turned on after creation.

For Video-Conference: Jitsi

All around passwords: First, use a password manager

Weak passwords are an invitation to be hacked. A password manager like LastPass, 1Password or KeePass makes it easy to create unique, strong passwords for every account you have.
Pro tip: It's a myth that strong passwords must contain every character. In fact, length is what matters:
- At least 13 characters in length
- Add numbers and special characters
- Use both uppercase and lowercase letters
Easy to remember, hard to crack:
- Address (not linked to you!)
- Mantra or intention
- Passphrase
Do not use information publicly available about you:
- Name of your partner, child, or pet
- Favorite sports team
- Favorite food
Change passwords frequently: Ideally every 3-6 months
Prioritize accounts for complex passwords: Use one password per account

Mobile device security

Make sure your mobile PIN is at least 6 digits, it is much easier to crack a phone with only 4.
Make sure you keep auto-update of your applications switched on and ensure they are kept up to date. For Android, only download applications from the Google Play Store. If this is not possible, you can first upload APK files to www.virustotal.com.
Take extra care when accessing organisational information over public wifi - if you need to do this regularly then invest in a VPN.
For groups that have more acute security concerns, a factory reset of mobile devices is recommended every few months to make sure any malicious tracking is wiped out (but this presents the inconvenience of re-configuring devices)

Make sure all of your devices are encrypted.

This makes it much harder for law enforcement or hackers to access the data on your devices.
iPhones are already encrypted.
Android phones are not (unless you have a Google Pixel), so you should go into the the Security settings and enable encryption.
On Mac computers, go into System Preferences, then Security & Privacy, and turn on FileVault
On Windows, you should use the BitLocker application (preinstalled) to encrypt your drive.
If you want to encrypt specific information / files on your device then you can use an open source program like VeraCrypt.

Update your Apps, Softwares and Operating System

Use a so-called VPN (Virtual Private Netwowrk)

Turn on two-factor authentication for every cloud service you use, work and personal.