2. Use of more secure, open source applications and software. Despite the risks
involved in having a VPN or an application like Signal on one’s phone, the use of digital
security tools among journalists was high. Some are required by their office to use a
VPN when going online. The use of Facebook Messenger was deemed unsafe by nearly
all journalists we spoke to, due to its direct link to their Facebook profiles, which serve
as the locus of their online presence. They expressed concerns over the possibility of
their digital footprints being traced via their Facebook profiles. There is also a vague,
general apprehension that Meta might misuse their data—seemingly reflecting
broader scepticism towards big tech companies, especially after the Amnesty
International (2022) report on Facebook’s role in the Rohingya genocide.
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3. Altering professional identification on ID cards. To reduce the risk of identification
as journalists, some journalists (#1, #2, and #6) have acquired means for
replacement documents and opted for alternative documentation methods to
circumvent military scrutiny, particularly at checkpoints.
4. Local language use. Various journalists (#4, #10) reported that the military could
not follow their conversations if they used local languages. Karen State for instance
has three distinct local languages.
5. Avoidance of group chats. Information shared in a group chat is as safe as the
weakest link in that group. Journalists are aware of this and many reported that they
avoided group chats for communication and preferred point-to-point communication
instead. In instances where group chats cannot be avoided, employing features such
as disappearing message timers can help enhance privacy and security.
6. Pseudonyms. Most journalists do not use their real names when operating in the
field. Regularly changing pseudonyms, to prevent a journalist from being identifiable,
was often mentioned.
9. From our observations, the promotion of open source platforms is a common theme in digital security training,
which may have strongly influenced this line of thought. While open source does not guarantee greater security, it
is often preferred by digital security experts, and thus there may have been a conflation of open source with
security among journalists, especially when coupled with scepticism toward big tech companies.
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