This was originally posted on Reddit /r/privacy, but I saw fit to post it here since these issues seem to apply to privacy-oriented communities as a whole.

This sub is about privacy. Every day we get people who are just realizing for the first time just how much of their information is out there beyond their control. They come here looking for help and advice and sometimes to share their successes. Often times they have little or no technical knowledge, let alone an advanced understanding of information security or how to compile their own apps from source, but they want to learn.

So it absolutely fucking pains me when I see gatekeepers shitposting all over newbies. People get downvoted into oblivion for suggesting that it might be difficult for grandma to compile her own Android app instead of installing from the Play store. Comments like "you're a slave if you have a Facebook account" get circle-jerked. Within the past week I've witnessed:

OP: "Where can I find a privacy-respecting news app?" Redditor: "Ugh, why would you even want an app? That's so stupid."

OP: "I'm so happy, I just deleted my Google data!" Redditor: "You're cute, you think they actually deleted it? Guess again, moron."

OP: "I'm leaving Gmail. What do you think of ProtonMail?" Redditor: "Anything less than self-hosted is a waste of time. Why don't you just go back to AOL?"

This attitude does nothing to further privacy. It just makes the redditor look like a jackass gatekeeper. Worse, it makes the community toxic. People come here to learn about privacy. Everyday, regular, not-tech-savvy people. Instead of mocking them for being a "noob", let's welcome them into the fray and help them improve their privacy posture.

Every "noob" we scare off runs back to Google. Report gatekeeping and shitposting when you see it.