Running Completely Anonymous Meetings
Do you know how many ways your activities online can be tracked? Every click, login, video teleconference, and conversation leaves a digital footprint that companies, governments, and even bad actors can follow. When privacy matters most, completely anonymous meetings offer a way to communicate without leaving a trace. Whether discussing sensitive topics, protecting personal information, or avoiding surveillance, these meetings create a space where identity stays hidden. With the right tools and practices, you can talk freely without worrying about who's watching.
Yes, it has come to this. The Bondi memo criminalizing DEI will force many activists underground to protect themselves and their allies. Governments and institutions are ramping up their surveillance, targeting those advocating for equity and justice. Every email, every meeting, every online conversation is being watched, logged, and potentially weaponized against those fighting for change. The days of organizing in public without fear of reprisal are over. While the First Amendment is still the law of the land, it appears less and less certain that courts will uphold it and more certain that the government will erode it at every opportunity.
When privacy is critical, hosts and participants must take many technical, proactive steps to prevent tracking. Governments and other entities often monitor online activity, making it essential to eliminate identifiable traces when conducting confidential meetings. If you host or attend meetings that challenge oppressive systems, you must assume someone is trying to track you. Protecting yourself and your fellow activists is no longer optional. It may become essential to staying employed and out of jail. This guide provides the tools and tactics to keep meetings anonymous and identities safe.
Why might you want to do this?
Political and Legal Risks: In this political arena where federal employees are being fired en mass for taking DEI training more than four years ago, which the head of their department recommended, it might be better to be safe than sorry.
Reputational Concerns: More than one company has faced repercussions from anti-DEI stakeholders. If your activities are made public, employees, customers, or investors with different views may react negatively.
Employment Security: Individuals may face job loss or workplace retaliation if their DEI activities outside the workplace are discovered.
Cybersecurity and Harassment: Right-wing groups are now doxxing federal employees for activities considered pro-diversity. Untraceable activities can help protect personal safety and prevent threats against employees or organizations.
Take these precautions seriously. The risks are real.
Of course, you do not have to do all of these. This summarizes what is currently available to ensure everyone knows the available options, especially those without technical backgrounds.
1. Host Guidelines: Keeping Meetings Secure and Untraceable
The host is responsible for crafting a meeting that attendees can keep private. The host must ensure that no identifiable information is collected, no logs are stored, and no digital footprints are left behind. The choice of platform, access method, and security settings keep attendees safe from exposure.
TL;DR
Choose a secure, encrypted platform that does not require sign-in or personal data.
Use a VPN, Tor, or an anonymous virtual machine to prevent tracking.
Disable recording, participant lists, and automatic transcripts to avoid leaving evidence. Understand that you cannot prevent people from attending on one device and recording on a second device. Instruct your audiences that they should use a third-party app like Whisper if they need captions.
Set up anonymous access with disposable accounts, pseudonyms, and passphrase entries instead of trackable links.
If possible, avoid government-compliant hosting providers and self-host on an encrypted, log-free server.
Use an incognito browser and anonymous search platform like Duck Duck Go when researching.
1.1 Choose a Secure, Anonymous Platform
Not all meeting platforms are created equal. Mainstream options log user data and may comply with government requests for information. A secure platform must have anonymous access, strong encryption, and no tracking.
TL;DR
Avoid Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, as these platforms log user data.
Use Jitsi (self-hosted), BigBlueButton (self-hosted), or peer-to-peer tools like Tox or Jami. If you choose a self-hosted solution, host in a country outside the US, preferably one without an extradition treaty. If they don’t extradite people, they likely won’t respond to a subpoena for data.
Use voice-only or text-based encrypted chats like Signal, Matrix/Element, or Session. Meta owns WhatsApp, so you can no longer assume it is a safe platform.
1.2 Use a VPN and Privacy-Focused Tools
A secure platform cannot protect the host’s identity if their connection is traceable. Using privacy tools prevents IP tracking.
Always connect through a VPN like Mullvad, IVPN, or ProtonVPN.
Host the meeting via a virtual machine running Tails OS or Whonix, if possible, for added anonymity.
Never register an account using identifying details, including phone numbers, email, or identifying your geography. Definitely use an encrypted email provider like ProtonMail or Tutanota. Someone I know uses Mike Pence’s name for all Planned Parenthood donations. This is your chance to poke fun at this.
1.3 Require Anonymous Access
Hosts must prevent identifiable user information from being logged by the meeting platform.
Disable participant lists to prevent attendees from seeing each other’s identities.
Disable chatting if your platform displays a complete list of participants.
Turn off recording and automatic transcription features if available.
Use a shared passphrase or rotating access codes instead of links that could be intercepted.
Require pseudonyms and burner accounts instead of real names or emails.
1.4 Set Up Secure Hosting and Prevent Logs
Hosting on a government-compliant server poses tracking risks. If self-hosting, ensure it is done securely.
Utilize a virtual private server (VPS). If you are crowdsourcing money, use anonymous payment options like Njalla or 1984 Hosting (note the Orwell reference).
Conduct the meeting through a VPN-protected, anonymous cloud instance or host it on a Tor-hidden service. Guarantee automatic log deletion for any necessary server-side tracking.
2. Participant Guidelines: Staying Undetected in Meetings
Participants must ensure they cannot be identified before, during, or after the meeting. This means using secure networks, hiding personal information, and preventing metadata leaks. Turning off video, using a voice changer, and stripping metadata from shared files add additional protection.
TL;DR
Always use a VPN or Tor to mask your IP address.
Join the meeting with a pseudonym and burner account instead of real credentials tied to a traceable identity
To prevent identification through facial recognition or background noise, disable video and mute audio. If you attend a meeting that supports video, use a stock image or a visual distortion. If you want to speak at a meeting that supports audio, use an audio distorter.
Strip metadata from shared files and avoid mentioning personal details in discussions.
After the meeting, clear your browser history, delete temporary files, and power down your device to remove traces. Use tools like CCleaner with secure deletion enabled (for Windows), SRM or BleachBit (for MacOS) and SRM or Shred for Linux
2.1 Use a VPN or Tor for Anonymity
Participants should never connect to a meeting directly from a network associated with their identity.
Use a VPN like Mullvad, IVPN, or ProtonVPN to hide your IP address.
If extreme anonymity is required, use Tor or Tails OS instead of a VPN.
Connect to a public Wi-Fi network. Never use home or work Wi-Fi. For extreme privacy, rotate the public Wi-Fi you connect from.
2.2 Use a Pseudonym and Burner Accounts
To prevent linking your real identity to a meeting:
Develop a fictitious identity using a pseudonym and use it consistently for anonymous interactions.
Register with a burner email from services such as ProtonMail, Tutanota, or SimpleLogin if a login is required.
If SMS verification is required, use an anonymous temporary phone number from TextNow or Hushed.
2.3 Disable Identifying Features
Prevent visual and audio recognition by disabling trackable elements.
Turn off your camera to avoid facial recognition.
Mute your microphone when not speaking to prevent background noise tracking.
If you need to use your voice, use a voice changer like Voicemod or Clownfish.
2.4 Strip Metadata from Shared Files
If you need to share documents or images, ensure they contain no identifying metadata.
Use MAT2 or Exiftool to remove metadata before sending files.
Avoid using cloud storage services like DropBox that are tied to your identity. Instead, use anonymous file-sharing platforms like OnionShare or Lufi.
2.5 Exit Safely and Remove Traces
After the meeting, clear any remaining digital footprints.
Disconnect from the VPN or Tor before closing your device to prevent tracking.
Clear browser history and delete temporary files from the meeting.
Power down the device to clear volatile memory traces. Rebooting alone is insufficient.
Final Thoughts
Keeping a hard copy of this information and executing each step identically every time is essential to prevent forensic recovery and government discovery. Digital copies can be altered, deleted, or compromised. Multiple physical copies in secure locations ensure the steps remain unchanged and available even if systems are wiped or compromised. Any deviation from the prescribed process can leave recoverable traces, exposing sensitive data to forensic tools used by government agencies. Secure deletion requires precision. Missteps like forgetting to overwrite files multiple times or failing to clear metadata can leave a digital footprint that authorities can exploit. Following a documented and consistent protocol eliminates variability and reduces the risk of accidental exposure. Standardizing this process ensures that each deletion is thorough, leaving no room for error or oversight. Also, one must keep track of tool alternatives if the government shuts one of them down.
Hosts and participants must work together to keep meetings untraceable for true privacy. Hosts should set up an encrypted, log-free environment, while participants should use anonymous access methods and remove identifying traces. With these precautions, meetings can stay private and secure.
In the US, our leaders have made it painfully clear that they will do whatever it takes to suppress dissent. They are tracking, infiltrating, and weaponizing digital footprints against those who dare to advocate for equity and justice. That means activists must be smarter, more careful, and more intentional about security than ever.
Privacy is not paranoia. Anonymity is not a luxury. Protecting yourself and your community is an act of resistance. Every secure meeting, every encrypted conversation, and every burner account is another step toward safeguarding the movement.
Stay safe. Stay anonymous. Stay untraceable.
#Resist