Your computer is tracking you.
Our privacy computer does not

No. Linux Mint isn't immune to all threats, but the things antivirus is designed to catch — Windows malware, drive-by infections, ransomware payloads — are written for Windows and don't run on Linux. The firewall comes pre-configured. Software comes from a verified repository, not random websites. If you really want to run a scanner, ClamAV is free, open-source, and built for Linux — but most users go years without ever needing it.

Quietly. Every few weeks the Update Manager pops up a small notification, you click it, type your password, and it installs in the background while you keep working. No reboot for most updates. No forced restarts in the middle of a presentation. Major version upgrades — the kind where Apple makes you buy a new Mac and Microsoft makes you buy a new Windows licence — are free, and the same machine keeps running.

No. Adobe doesn't make Linux versions of Photoshop, Lightroom, Premiere, or anything else in their suite, and they never have. If your work depends on Adobe specifically, a privacy computer isn't the right machine for you. If you're a hobbyist or enthusiast, the Linux alternatives — GIMP, Darktable, Inkscape, Kdenlive — cover almost everything Adobe does, and they're all free. Try Darktable on your current machine at darktable.org before you order, so you know whether the workflow suits you.

Some yes, some no. Steam runs on Linux and a huge chunk of the Steam catalogue runs through a compatibility layer called Proton — including most of the big single-player titles. Where Linux struggles is competitive multiplayer games with anti-cheat software that refuses to run on anything but Windows. If gaming is your main use for the machine, a privacy computer isn't the right pick. If you game on the side, most of what you play will work.

Yes, as many as you want. Each person gets their own login, their own files, their own desktop, and their own browser history. Nobody else sees your stuff. No licence fees, no per-user subscriptions, no Microsoft account or Apple ID required for any of them. A household of four runs on one Linux Mint machine the same way it'd run on four separate ones — except you only paid for one.

Linux Mint is built on Ubuntu LTS, which means long support runways and a huge community behind it. The Cinnamon desktop is the closest thing in the Linux world to what a Windows user already knows — menu in the corner, files where you expect them, no surprises. We've tested the alternatives. Arch is too technical for most people. Ubuntu has been pushing Snap packages and corporate decisions we don't like. Pop!_OS and Zorin are niche. Linux Mint hits the right balance of usability, control, and stability for a privacy computer.

Configured, tested, and packed carefully here in Australia. Most builds — standard privacy computers and crypto computers — ship within about five working days after payment clears. That gives us time to get the machine in from Dell and configure it properly. The exception is the small number of Dell models Dell doesn't keep in stock, which they assemble to order before sending to us. Those builds take around three weeks. Every machine is checked end to end before it leaves us. Open the box, plug it in, sign in, get to work.

There's no subscription, no ongoing fee, no account hanging over the machine. You buy the computer, you own it. Linux Mint keeps getting free updates for years, the hardware lasts as long as the hardware lasts, and you're not on your own after delivery — our setup notes answer most questions, and if they don't, you can email us. If you want the deeper read on why Australians are making the switch, our Linux laptop guide covers it. We charge for our labour, not for margin.