From ed14e7840f7115c6ff0a024e3ccd265165bb1f8e Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Andrew David Wong Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2022 15:00:36 -0700 Subject: [PATCH] Improve text presentation --- .../how-to-organize-your-qubes.md | 366 +++++++++--------- 1 file changed, 191 insertions(+), 175 deletions(-) diff --git a/user/how-to-guides/how-to-organize-your-qubes.md b/user/how-to-guides/how-to-organize-your-qubes.md index 9ba132f6..951b2deb 100644 --- a/user/how-to-guides/how-to-organize-your-qubes.md +++ b/user/how-to-guides/how-to-organize-your-qubes.md @@ -56,28 +56,29 @@ the other. Alice's setup looks like this: ![[Alice's system: digram 1](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_alice_1.png)](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_alice_1.png) -- Several qubes for writing code. Here's where she runs her IDE, commits code, - and signs her commits. These qubes are based on different templates depending - on which tools and which development environment she needs. In general, Alice - likes to have a separate qube of this type for each client or each project. - This allows her to keep everything organized and avoid accidentally mixing up - any access credentials or client code, which could be disastrous. This also - allows her to truthfully tell her clients that their code is always securely - isolated from all her other clients. She likes to use the [Qubes - firewall](/doc/firewall/) to restrict these qubes' network access to only the - code repositories she needs in that qube in order to avoid accidentally - interacting with anything else on her local network or on the internet. Alice - also has some qubes of this type for personal programming projects that she - works on just for fun when she has "free time" (whatever that is). +- **Several qubes for writing code.** Here's where she runs her IDE, commits + code, and signs her commits. These qubes are based on different templates + depending on which tools and which development environment she needs. In + general, Alice likes to have a separate qube of this type for each client or + each project. This allows her to keep everything organized and avoid + accidentally mixing up any access credentials or client code, which could be + disastrous. This also allows her to truthfully tell her clients that their + code is always securely isolated from all her other clients. She likes to use + the [Qubes firewall](/doc/firewall/) to restrict these qubes' network access + to only the code repositories she needs in that qube in order to avoid + accidentally interacting with anything else on her local network or on the + internet. Alice also has some qubes of this type for personal programming + projects that she works on just for fun when she has "free time" (whatever + that is). -- Several qubes for building and testing. Again, Alice usually likes to have - one of these for each client or project in order to keep things organized. - However, this can become rather cumbersome and memory-intensive when many - such qubes are running at the same time, so Alice will sometimes use the same - qube for building and testing, or for multiple projects that require the same - environment, when she decides that the marginal benefits of extra - compartmentalization aren't worth the trouble. Here's where she pulls any - dependencies she needs, compiles her code, runs her build toolchain, and +- **Several qubes for building and testing.** Again, Alice usually likes to + have one of these for each client or project in order to keep things + organized. However, this can become rather cumbersome and memory-intensive + when many such qubes are running at the same time, so Alice will sometimes + use the same qube for building and testing, or for multiple projects that + require the same environment, when she decides that the marginal benefits of + extra compartmentalization aren't worth the trouble. Here's where she pulls + any dependencies she needs, compiles her code, runs her build toolchain, and tests her deliverables. In some cases, she finds it useful to use [standalones](/doc/standalones-and-hvms/) for these so that it's easier to quickly [install different pieces of software](/doc/how-to-install-software/) @@ -95,9 +96,9 @@ the other. Alice's setup looks like this: ![[Alice's system: diagram 2](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_alice_2.png)](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_alice_2.png) -- Several email qubes. Since Alice is a command-line aficionado, she likes to - use a terminal-based email client, so both her work and personal email qubes - are based on a template with +- **Several email qubes.** Since Alice is a command-line aficionado, she likes + to use a terminal-based email client, so both her work and personal email + qubes are based on a template with [Mutt](https://github.com/Qubes-Community/Contents/blob/master/docs/configuration/mutt.md) installed. The email qubes where she sends and receives PGP-signed and encrypted email securely accesses the private keys in her PGP backend qube @@ -105,41 +106,43 @@ the other. Alice's setup looks like this: Mutt to open all attachment files in [disposable qubes](/doc/how-to-use-disposables/). -- Several qubes for communication tools, like Signal, Slack, Zoom, Telegram, - IRC, and Discord. This is where she teleconferences and chats with clients. - She uses [USB passthrough](/doc/how-to-use-usb-devices/) to attach her webcam - to each qube as needed and detaches it afterward. Likewise, she gives each - qube access to her microphone while it's needed, then removes access - afterward. This way, she doesn't have to trust any given video chat program's - mute button and doesn't have to worry about being spied on when she's not on - a call. She also has a qube for social media platforms like Twitter, Reddit, - and Hacker News for networking and keeping up with new developments (or so - she claims; in reality, it's mostly for feuds over programming language - superiority, Vim vs. Emacs wars, and tabs vs. spaces crusades). +- **Several qubes for communication tools,** like Signal, Slack, Zoom, + Telegram, IRC, and Discord. This is where she teleconferences and chats with + clients. She uses [USB passthrough](/doc/how-to-use-usb-devices/) to attach + her webcam to each qube as needed and detaches it afterward. Likewise, she + gives each qube access to her microphone while it's needed, then removes + access afterward. This way, she doesn't have to trust any given video chat + program's mute button and doesn't have to worry about being spied on when + she's not on a call. She also has a qube for social media platforms like + Twitter, Reddit, and Hacker News for networking and keeping up with new + developments (or so she claims; in reality, it's mostly for feuds over + programming language superiority, Vim vs. Emacs wars, and tabs vs. spaces + crusades). -- A GPG backend vault. Vaults are completely offline qubes that are isolated - from the network. This particular vault holds Alice's private keys (e.g., for - code signing and email) and is securely accessed by several other "frontend" - qubes via the [Split GPG](/doc/split-gpg/) system. Split GPG allows only the - frontend qubes that Alice explicitly authorizes to have the ability to - request PGP operations (e.g., signing and encryption) in the backend vault. - Even then, no qube ever has direct access to Alice's private keys except the - backend vault itself. +- **A GPG backend vault.** Vaults are completely offline qubes that are + isolated from the network. This particular vault holds Alice's private keys + (e.g., for code signing and email) and is securely accessed by several other + "frontend" qubes via the [Split GPG](/doc/split-gpg/) system. Split GPG + allows only the frontend qubes that Alice explicitly authorizes to have the + ability to request PGP operations (e.g., signing and encryption) in the + backend vault. Even then, no qube ever has direct access to Alice's private + keys except the backend vault itself. -- A password manager vault. This is another completely offline, +- **A password manager vault.** This is another completely offline, network-isolated qube where Alice uses her offline password manager, KeePassXC, to store all of her usernames and passwords. She uses the [secure copy and paste](/doc/how-to-copy-and-paste-text/) system to quickly copy credentials into other qubes whenever she needs to log into anything. -- Personal qubes. One of the things Alice loves the most about Qubes is that - she can use it for both work *and* personal stuff without having to worry - about cross-contamination. Accordingly, she has several qubes that pertain to - her personal life. For example, she has an offline vault that holds her - medical documents, test results, and vaccination records. She has another - offline vault for her government documents, birth certificate, scans of her - passport, and so on. She also has some personal social media accounts in a - separate qube for keeping up with family members and friends from school. +- **Personal qubes.** One of the things Alice loves the most about Qubes is + that she can use it for both work *and* personal stuff without having to + worry about cross-contamination. Accordingly, she has several qubes that + pertain to her personal life. For example, she has an offline vault that + holds her medical documents, test results, and vaccination records. She has + another offline vault for her government documents, birth certificate, scans + of her passport, and so on. She also has some personal social media accounts + in a separate qube for keeping up with family members and friends from + school. When she finishes her work for a given client, Alice sends off her deliverables, [backs up](/doc/how-to-back-up-restore-and-migrate/) the qubes @@ -171,18 +174,18 @@ for work, which contains: ![[A diagram of Bob's system](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_bob.png)](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_bob.png) -- One offline qube for writing. It runs only LibreOffice Writer. This is where - Bob does all of his writing. This window is usually open side-by-side with - another window containing research or material from a source. +- **One offline qube for writing.** It runs only LibreOffice Writer. This is + where Bob does all of his writing. This window is usually open side-by-side + with another window containing research or material from a source. -- Multiple email qubes. One is for receiving emails from the general public. - Another is for emailing his editor and colleagues. Both are based on a - [minimal template](/doc/templates/minimal/) with Thunderbird installed. He's - configured both to open all attachments in +- **Multiple email qubes.** One is for receiving emails from the general + public. Another is for emailing his editor and colleagues. Both are based on + a [minimal template](/doc/templates/minimal/) with Thunderbird installed. + He's configured both to open all attachments in [disposables](/doc/how-to-use-disposables/) that are offline in case an attachment contains a beacon that tries to phone home. -- Whonix qubes. He has the standard `sys-whonix` service qube for providing +- **Whonix qubes.** He has the standard `sys-whonix` service qube for providing Torified network access, and he uses disposable `anon-workstation` app qubes for using Tor Browser to do research on stories he's writing. Since the topic is often of a sensitive nature and might implicate powerful individuals, it's @@ -195,8 +198,8 @@ for work, which contains: with have said that they can't take a chance with any other form of communication. -- Two qubes for - [Signal](https://github.com/Qubes-Community/Contents/blob/master/docs/privacy/signal.md). +- **Two qubes for + [Signal](https://github.com/Qubes-Community/Contents/blob/master/docs/privacy/signal.md).** Bob has two Signal app qubes (both on the same template in which the Signal desktop app is installed). One is linked to his own mobile number for communicating with co-workers and other known, trusted contacts. The other is @@ -204,7 +207,7 @@ for work, which contains: confidentially. This is especially useful for individuals who don't use Tor but for whom unencrypted communication could be dangerous. -- Several data vaults. When someone sends Bob material that turns out to be +- **Several data vaults.** When someone sends Bob material that turns out to be useful, or when he comes across useful material while doing his own research, he stores a copy in a completely offline, network-isolated vault qube. Most of these files are PDFs and images, though some are audio files, videos, and @@ -213,14 +216,14 @@ for work, which contains: different vaults (usually one for each story or topic) just in case. This has the side benefit of helping to keep things organized. -- A [VPN +- **A [VPN qube](https://github.com/Qubes-Community/Contents/blob/master/docs/configuration/vpn.md) - and associated qubes for accessing work resources. The servers at work can + and associated qubes for accessing work resources.** The servers at work can only be accessed from the organization's network, so Bob has certain qubes that are connected to a VPN qube so that he can upload his work and access anything he needs on the local network when he's not physically there. -- A password manager vault. Bob stores all of his login credentials in the +- **A password manager vault.** Bob stores all of his login credentials in the default password manager that came with his offline vault qube. He [securely copies and pastes](/doc/how-to-copy-and-paste-text/) them into other qubes as needed. @@ -254,22 +257,26 @@ cybercrime policies, rarely, if ever, do they explicitly guarantee reimbursement in the event that a *customer* gets hacked (rather than the institution itself). -Carol looked into how thieves might actually try to steal her hard-earned -wealth and was surprised to learn that they have all sorts of ploys that she -had never even considered. For example, she had assumed that any theft would, -at the bare minimum, have to involve transferring money out of her account. -That seems like a safe assumption. But then she read about "pump and dump" -attacks, where thieves buy up some penny stock, hack into innocent people's -brokerage accounts, then use the victims' funds to buy that same penny stock, -"pumping" up its price so that the thieves can "dump" their shares on the -market, leaving the victims with worthless shares. No money is ever transferred -into or out of the victims' account; it's just used to buy and sell securities. -So, all the safeguards preventing new bank accounts from being added or -requiring extra approval for outbound transfers do nothing to protect victims' -funds in cases like these. And this is just one example! Carol realized that -she couldn't assume that existing safeguards against specific, known attacks -were enough. She had to think about security at a more fundamental level and -design it into her digital life from the ground up. + After learning about all this, Carol decided that it was ultimately up to her to take care of her own cybersecurity. She couldn't rely on anyone else to do @@ -289,7 +296,7 @@ her setup looks like this: ![[A diagram of Carol's system](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_carol.png)](/attachment/doc/howto_use_qubes_carol.png) -- One qube for each investment firm and bank. Carol has a few different +- **One qube for each investment firm and bank.** Carol has a few different retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and bank accounts. She treats each qube like a "secure terminal" for accessing only that one institution's website. She makes her transactions and saves any statements and @@ -300,40 +307,41 @@ her setup looks like this: based on a [minimal template](/doc/templates/minimal/) with just a web browser (which doubles as a PDF viewer) and a file manager installed. -- One qube for all her credit card accounts. Carol started to make a separate - qube for each credit card account but ultimately decided against it. For one - thing, the consumer protections for credit card fraud in her country are much - better than for losing assets to theft or fraud in a bank or brokerage - account, so the security risk isn't as high. Second, there's actually not a - whole lot that an attacker could do with access to her credit cards' online - accounts or her old credit card statements, since online access to these - generally doesn't allow spending or withdrawing any money. So, even the worst - case scenario here wouldn't be catastrophic, unlike with her bank and - brokerage accounts. Third, she's not too worried about any of her credit card - company websites being used to attach each other or her qube (As long as it's - contained to a single qube, she's fine with that level of risk.) Last, but - not least: She has way too many credit cards! While Carol is very frugal, she - likes to collect the sign-up bonuses that are offered for opening new cards, - so she's accumulated quite a few of them. (However, she's always careful to - pay off her balance each month, so she never pays interest. She's also pretty - disciplined about only spending what she would have spent *anyway* and not - being tempted to spend more just to meet a spending requirement or because - she can.) At any rate, Carol has decided that the tiny benefit she stands to - gain from having a separate qube for every credit card website wouldn't be - worth the hassle of having to manage so many extra qubes. +- **One qube for all her credit card accounts.** Carol started to make a + separate qube for each credit card account but ultimately decided against it. + For one thing, the consumer protections for credit card fraud in her country + are much better than for losing assets to theft or fraud in a bank or + brokerage account, so the security risk isn't as high. Second, there's + actually not a whole lot that an attacker could do with access to her credit + cards' online accounts or her old credit card statements, since online access + to these generally doesn't allow spending or withdrawing any money. So, even + the worst case scenario here wouldn't be catastrophic, unlike with her bank + and brokerage accounts. Third, she's not too worried about any of her credit + card company websites being used to attach each other or her qube (As long as + it's contained to a single qube, she's fine with that level of risk.) Last, + but not least: She has way too many credit cards! While Carol is very frugal, + she likes to collect the sign-up bonuses that are offered for opening new + cards, so she's accumulated quite a few of them. (However, she's always + careful to pay off her balance each month, so she never pays interest. She's + also pretty disciplined about only spending what she would have spent + *anyway* and not being tempted to spend more just to meet a spending + requirement or because she can.) At any rate, Carol has decided that the tiny + benefit she stands to gain from having a separate qube for every credit card + website wouldn't be worth the hassle of having to manage so many extra qubes. -- One qube for credit monitoring, credit reports, and credit history services. - Carol has worked hard to build up a good credit score, and she's concerned - about identity theft, so she has one qube dedicated to managing her free - credit monitoring services and downloading her free annual credit reports. +- **A qube for credit monitoring, credit reports, and credit history + services.** Carol has worked hard to build up a good credit score, and she's + concerned about identity theft, so she has one qube dedicated to managing her + free credit monitoring services and downloading her free annual credit + reports. -- Two qubes for taxes. Carol has a [Windows +- **Two qubes for taxes.** Carol has a [Windows qube](https://github.com/Qubes-Community/Contents/blob/master/docs/os/windows/windows.md) for running her Windows-only tax software. She also has an offline vault where she stores all of her tax-related forms and documents, organized by year. -- One qube for financial planning and tracking. Carol loves spreadsheets, so +- **A qube for financial planning and tracking.** Carol loves spreadsheets, so this offline qube is where she maintains a master spreadsheet to track all of her investments and her savings rate. She also keeps her budgeting spreadsheet, insurance spreadsheet, and written investment policy statement @@ -341,16 +349,19 @@ her setup looks like this: software, like LibreOffice and Gnumeric (so that Carol can run her own Monte Carlo simulations). -- Various email qubes. Carol likes to have one email qube for her most +- **Various email qubes.** Carol likes to have one email qube for her most important financial accounts; a separate one for her credit cards accounts, online shopping accounts, and insurance companies; and another one for personal email. They're all based on the same template with Thunderbird installed. -- A password manager vault. A network-isolated qube where Carol stores all of - her account usernames and passwords in KeePassXC. She uses the [Qubes global - clipboard](/doc/how-to-copy-and-paste-text/) to copy and paste them into her - other qubes when she needs to log into her accounts. +- **A password manager vault.** A network-isolated qube where Carol stores all + of her account usernames and passwords in KeePassXC. She uses the [Qubes + global clipboard](/doc/how-to-copy-and-paste-text/) to copy and paste them + into her other qubes when she needs to log into her accounts. + + +## Bonus: Carol explores new financial technology The vast majority of Carol's assets are in broad-based, low-cost, passively-managed indexed funds. Lately, however, she's started getting @@ -365,9 +376,9 @@ she has the self-discipline to invest only what she can afford to lose, so she's decided to dip her toe in the water by allocating a small portion of her portfolio. This has led her to add the following to her Qubes setup: -- A standalone qube for running Bitcoin Core and an offline wallet vault. Carol - finds the design and security properties of Bitcoin very interesting, so - she's experimenting with running a full node. She also created a +- **A standalone qube for running Bitcoin Core and an offline wallet vault.** + Carol finds the design and security properties of Bitcoin very interesting, + so she's experimenting with running a full node. She also created a network-isolated vault in order to try running a copy of Bitcoin Core completely offline as a "cold storage" wallet. She's still trying to figure out how this compares to an actual hardware wallet, paper wallet, or @@ -377,12 +388,12 @@ portfolio. This has led her to add the following to her Qubes setup: Qubes](https://github.com/Qubes-Community/Contents/blob/master/docs/security/split-bitcoin.md) and is interested in exploring that further. -- Whonix qubes. Carol read somewhere that Bitcoin nodes should be run over Tor - for privacy and security. She found it very convenient that Whonix is already - integrated into Qubes, so she simply set her Bitcoin Core "full node" qube to - use `sys-whonix` as its networking qube. +- **Whonix qubes.** Carol read somewhere that Bitcoin nodes should be run over + Tor for privacy and security. She found it very convenient that Whonix is + already integrated into Qubes, so she simply set her Bitcoin Core "full node" + qube to use `sys-whonix` as its networking qube. -- Various qubes for DeFi and web3. Carol has also started getting into DeFi +- **Various qubes for DeFi and web3.** Carol has also started getting into DeFi (decentralized finance) and web3 on Ethereum and other smart contract blockchains, so a friend recommended that she get a Ledger hardware wallet. She downloaded the Ledger Live software in an app qube and [set up her system @@ -396,8 +407,8 @@ portfolio. This has led her to add the following to her Qubes setup: this qube so she can use Metamask in conjunction with her Ledger to interact with smart contracts and decentralized exchanges. -- Various qubes for research and centralized exchanges. Carol uses these when - she wants to check block explorer websites, coin listing and market cap +- **Various qubes for research and centralized exchanges.** Carol uses these + when she wants to check block explorer websites, coin listing and market cap sites, aggregation tools, or just to see what the latest buzz is on Crypto Twitter. @@ -421,16 +432,21 @@ everyone will want to use the same email client. On the other hand, almost everyone will need a password manager, and it pretty much always makes sense to keep it in an offline, network-isolated vault. -As you gain experience with Qubes, you may find yourself disagreeing with some -of the decisions our fictional friends made. That's okay! There are many -different ways to organize a Qubes system, and the most important criterion is -that it serves the needs of its owner. Since everyone's needs are different, -it's perfectly normal to find yourself doing things a bit differently. -Nonetheless, there are some general principles that almost all users find -helpful when they're first starting out. As you're designing your own Qubes -system, keep in mind some of the following lessons from our case studies: + -- You'll probably change your mind as you go. You'll realize that one qube +As you're designing your own Qubes system, keep in mind some of the following +lessons from our case studies: + +- **You'll probably change your mind as you go.** You'll realize that one qube should really be split into two, or you'll realize that it doesn't really make sense for two qubes to be separate and that they should instead be merged into one. That's okay. Qubes OS supports your ability to adapt and @@ -438,7 +454,7 @@ system, keep in mind some of the following lessons from our case studies: eventually settle down, and you'll find your groove. Changes to the way you organize your qubes will become less drastic and less frequent over time. -- [Make frequent backups.](/doc/how-to-back-up-restore-and-migrate/) Losing +- **[Make frequent backups.](/doc/how-to-back-up-restore-and-migrate/)** Losing data is never fun, whether it's from an accidental deletion, a system crash, buggy software, or a hardware failure. By getting into the habit of making frequent backups now, you'll save yourself from a lot of pain in the future. @@ -451,53 +467,53 @@ system, keep in mind some of the following lessons from our case studies: anymore without having to worry that you might need them again someday, since you know you can always restore them from a backup. -- Think about which programs you want to run and where you want to store data. - In some cases, it makes sense to run programs and store data in the same - qube, for example, if the data is generated by that program. In other cases, - it makes sense to have qubes that are exclusively for storing data (e.g., - offline data storage vaults) and other qubes that are exclusively for running - programs (e.g., web browser-only qubes). Remember that when you make backups, - it's only essential to back up data that can't be replaced. This can allow - you to achieve minimal backups that are quite small compared to the total - size of your installation. Templates, service qubes, and qubes that are used - exclusively for running programs and that contain no data don't necessarily - have to be backed up as long as you're confident that you can recreate them - if needed. This is why it's a good practice to keep notes on which packages - you installed in which templates and which customizations and configurations - you made. Then you can refer to your notes the next time you need to recreate - those qubes. Of course, backing up everything is not a bad idea either. It - may require a bit more time and disk space upfront, but for some people, it - can be just as important as backing up their irreplaceable data. If your - system is mission-critical, and you can't afford more than a certain amount - of downtime, then by all means, back everything up! +- **Think about which programs you want to run and where you want to store + data.** In some cases, it makes sense to run programs and store data in the + same qube, for example, if the data is generated by that program. In other + cases, it makes sense to have qubes that are exclusively for storing data + (e.g., offline data storage vaults) and other qubes that are exclusively for + running programs (e.g., web browser-only qubes). Remember that when you make + backups, it's only essential to back up data that can't be replaced. This can + allow you to achieve minimal backups that are quite small compared to the + total size of your installation. Templates, service qubes, and qubes that are + used exclusively for running programs and that contain no data don't + necessarily have to be backed up as long as you're confident that you can + recreate them if needed. This is why it's a good practice to keep notes on + which packages you installed in which templates and which customizations and + configurations you made. Then you can refer to your notes the next time you + need to recreate those qubes. Of course, backing up everything is not a bad + idea either. It may require a bit more time and disk space upfront, but for + some people, it can be just as important as backing up their irreplaceable + data. If your system is mission-critical, and you can't afford more than a + certain amount of downtime, then by all means, back everything up! -- Introspect on your own behavior. For example, if you find yourself wanting to - find some way to get two qubes to share the same storage space, then this is - probably a sign that those two qubes shouldn't be separate in the first - place. Sharing storage with each other largely breaks down the secure wall - between them, making the separation somewhat pointless. But you probably had - a good reason for wanting to make them two separate qubes instead of one to - begin with. What exactly was that reason? If it has to do with security, then - why are you okay with them freely sharing data that could allow one to infect - the other? If you're sure sharing the data wouldn't cause one to infect the - other, then what's the security rationale for keeping them separate? By - critically examining your own thought process in this way, you can uncover - inconsistencies and contradictions that allow you to better refine your - system, resulting in a more logical organization that serves your needs - better and better over time. +- **Introspect on your own behavior.** For example, if you find yourself + wanting to find some way to get two qubes to share the same storage space, + then this is probably a sign that those two qubes shouldn't be separate in + the first place. Sharing storage with each other largely breaks down the + secure wall between them, making the separation somewhat pointless. But you + probably had a good reason for wanting to make them two separate qubes + instead of one to begin with. What exactly was that reason? If it has to do + with security, then why are you okay with them freely sharing data that could + allow one to infect the other? If you're sure sharing the data wouldn't cause + one to infect the other, then what's the security rationale for keeping them + separate? By critically examining your own thought process in this way, you + can uncover inconsistencies and contradictions that allow you to better + refine your system, resulting in a more logical organization that serves your + needs better and better over time. -- Don't assume that just because *you* can't find a way to attack your system, - an adversary wouldn't be able to. When you're thinking about whether it's a - good idea to combine different activities or data in a single qube, for - example, you might think, "Well, I can't really see how these pose a risk to - each other." The problem is that we often miss attack vectors that +- **Don't assume that just because *you* can't find a way to attack your + system, an adversary wouldn't be able to.** When you're thinking about + whether it's a good idea to combine different activities or data in a single + qube, for example, you might think, "Well, I can't really see how these pose + a risk to each other." The problem is that we often miss attack vectors that sophisticated adversaries spot and can use against us. After all, most people don't think that using a conventional monolithic operating system is risky, when in reality their entire digital life can be taken down in one fell swoop. That's why a good rule of thumb is: When in doubt, compartmentalize. -- On the other hand, compartmentalization --- like everything else --- can be - taken to an extreme. The appropriate amount depends on your temperament, +- **But remember that compartmentalization --- like everything else --- can be + taken to an extreme.** The appropriate amount depends on your temperament, time, patience, experience, risk tolerance, and expertise. In short, there can be such a thing as *too much* compartmentalization! You also have to be able to actually *use* your computer efficiently to do the things you need to