Profile: confidential roles and public office
Do you work with professional secrecy, client data or politically sensitive information? This profile covers the digital basics for lawyers, notaries, politicians and sensitive civil service roles.
Profile: confidential roles and public office
Who this guide is for
This profile is for roles where confidentiality, authority, file access, or public responsibility create extra harm if something leaks or is compromised.
This profile is meant for roles where one of these things is central:
- professional secrecy or client trust — for example lawyers and notaries
- public responsibility or politically sensitive information — for example politicians and civil servants
The overlap is not that these groups do the same work. The overlap is that a mistake does not only harm your own privacy, but also clients, citizens, files or policy work.
If your main risk comes from confidential client material, focus on the lawyers and notaries section. If your main risk comes from public visibility, foreign interest or policy information, focus on politicians and civil servants.
First: which threat model fits you?
| Situation | What is at stake? | Start here |
|---|---|---|
| Lawyer / notary | client confidentiality, file integrity, liability | This profile |
| Local councillor / local office holder | doxxing, harassment, account abuse | Journalist/activist + this profile |
| MP / senior office holder / sensitive civil servant | state actors, policy information, targeted phishing | This profile + possibly high risk |
| Minister / secretary of state / role with state-level sensitivity | sustained targeting by advanced adversaries | Profile: High Risk |
So this is not a universal profile for everyone with a formal title or public role. It is an overlay profile for people where confidentiality, authority or file access can create extra harm.
When this is overkill
If your work is public-facing but not confidential, or your role has status without meaningful access to sensitive files or decisions, this profile may be heavier than necessary. It matters when a mistake affects clients, citizens, case files, policy work, or regulated trust duties.
What you gain, and what it costs
If you apply this profile seriously, you typically gain:
- less chance that one careless tool choice leaks client data or policy information
- clearer separation between personal, work and public-facing identities
- better-documented choices when facing a regulator, disciplinary body or legal challenge
- less damage if an account or device is compromised, because the blast radius is contained
But it costs something:
- more discipline around separate accounts, devices and communication channels
- more friction in daily work — separate tools for different contexts
- sometimes extra cost for hardware keys, encrypted storage or professional portals
For this profile that is usually a reasonable trade. A confidentiality breach here harms more than just you.
Path 1 — Lawyers and notaries
Legal framework
Professional secrecy (attorney-client privilege) The duty of confidentiality for lawyers is extremely strong in most jurisdictions. What a client tells you cannot be shared — not in court, not with law enforcement (with narrow exceptions). This protects clients, but it also makes you a target for adversaries who want that information.
In the Netherlands, the NOvA (Dutch Bar Association) governs this right. Notaries are governed by the KNB and handle financial data, property transfers, and wills — valuable information for criminals and business adversaries.
Where the real risk sits
Adversaries in litigation Lawyers are sometimes targeted by opposing parties who want insight into defence strategy or prosecution plans. This doesn’t require a state actor — a well-motivated party in a civil case is sufficient motivation.
Organised crime Lawyers defending clients in serious criminal cases sometimes face pressure from criminal parties. This ranges from intimidation to targeted surveillance and phone tapping.
Data breaches and liability A leak of client data harms not only the client — it can lead to disciplinary action, damages claims, and reputational harm.
Metadata and documents: the quiet leak
Documents leak more than you think, even without the content being compromised.
Word and PDF metadata: Microsoft Office files contain by default the author’s name, organisation, edit history, and sometimes deleted text fragments through revision history and tracked changes. PDFs can preserve revision data and comments. Remove metadata explicitly before sending documents: in Word via File → Info → Check for Issues → Inspect Document. For PDFs, use exiftool -all= document.pdf followed by qpdf --linearize document.pdf document-clean.pdf because ExifTool alone is reversible for PDFs without that second step. See also: metadata removal from documents.
Printer steganography: most colour laser printers print invisible yellow dots on every page — a pattern encoding the printer’s serial number and timestamp. This can be traced back to the printer, and indirectly to its location or owner. Relevant if you work with anonymous sources or if documents must not be traceable to your office.
Email headers: even encrypted email contains metadata (From, To, timestamp, subject). If communication must remain completely confidential, an end-to-end encrypted messaging app is better than email for sensitive discussions.
Checklist for lawyers and notaries
Communication with clients
- Regular email is not sufficient for privileged communication — use encrypted email (PGP) or a secure legal portal
- Signal for messaging with clients — enable disappearing messages
- For high-risk clients where your phone number must not be visible: consider SimpleX Chat (no phone number required, no central server) — see SimpleX guide
- Verify the identity of new contacts out-of-band before sharing sensitive information (call on a known number)
Documents and metadata
- Remove metadata from Word/PDF documents before sending them
- Use LibreOffice or a PDF printer with limited metadata for sensitive documents
- Be aware of printer steganography if documents could be traced back to you
Files and storage
- Client files stored encrypted — VeraCrypt guide or encrypted cloud (Proton Drive, Tresorit)
- No client data on personal devices without encryption
- Restrict access rights: staff should only see files they’re involved with
Physical security
- Privacy screen on laptop at court hearings and in public spaces
- Lock screen whenever leaving the workspace
- Strong passwords — biometrics can be compelled under duress, a password cannot
- Be careful with printouts — paper leaks too, and printers log print jobs
Path 2 — Politicians and civil servants
Your position changes your adversary
| Position | Primary threat | Profile to follow |
|---|---|---|
| Local council member | Doxxing, online harassment | Journalist/activist |
| Regional politician | Business conflicts of interest | Journalist/activist |
| National MP | State actors, foreign intelligence | Journalist/activist + this profile |
| Minister / secretary of state | Full state-level threat | High risk |
| Civil servant (sensitive policy) | Espionage, insider threat | This profile |
Where the real risk sits
Intelligence services in multiple countries have warned about state actors targeting politicians:
- China: economic policy, technology transfer, positions on Tibet/Xinjiang
- Russia (APT28, APT29): geopolitical positioning, NATO, sanctions
- Iran: foreign policy, human rights activists in diaspora
You don’t need to sit on a committee dealing with Russia or China to fall within their sphere of interest. Trade policy, technology regulation, or a position on a relevant committee is enough.
The Dutch AIVD has specifically warned Dutch parliament members about these threats on multiple occasions.
But state actors are not the only problem. For many public roles, doxxing, account takeover, leaks through personal devices and digital harassment are more likely than advanced espionage. So do not start with exotic scenarios. Start with strict separation between public, private and work.
Checklist for politicians and civil servants
Public presence
- Minimise personal information on public profiles — home address, family info, daily schedule
- Separate email addresses for public contact and internal work
- Be careful about publicly announcing travel schedules
Digital hygiene
- No sensitive work-related communication via personal accounts or devices
- Strict separation of personal/work — on your phone too
- Password manager with unique passwords per system
- Hardware security key (YubiKey) for accounts you cannot afford to lose
Travel
- In countries with high state actor threats: treat devices as potentially compromised after returning
- Consider a temporary device for foreign travel to high-risk regions
- Disable Bluetooth and WiFi auto-connect when travelling
Digital harassment
- Document threats and hate messages — for reporting and pattern recognition
- Police have specific procedures for threats against public figures
- Civil liberties organisations do policy and rights advocacy, but for individual legal help after intimidation you should use local legal aid or report it to the police
Tools
| Purpose | Tool | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Messaging (standard) | Signal | For all sensitive communication |
| Messaging (highest risk) | SimpleX Chat | No phone number required, no central server |
| Email encryption | GnuPG + Thunderbird | For privileged communication — see also Thunderbird review |
| Password manager | Which password manager should you choose? | Essential; choose the route deliberately |
| Hardware 2FA | YubiKey | Phishing-resistant |
| Encrypted storage | VeraCrypt guide / Proton Drive | Files and sensitive documents — VeraCrypt review for product details |
| Secure phone | GrapheneOS on Pixel | For high-risk positions |
| Secure phone (alternative) | iPhone with maximum hardening | If GrapheneOS isn’t an option — see iPhone privacy settings |
Next step
Start here
- iPhone privacy settings — if GrapheneOS isn’t an option
- Android privacy without a custom ROM — hardening for regular Android
- WhatsApp privacy explained — why WhatsApp is not suitable for privileged communication
- SimpleX Chat guide — messaging without a phone number
- PGP practical guide — encrypted email step by step
Also relevant
- Profile: Journalist or Activist — similar threats, similar tools
- Profile: High Risk — for ministers and senior officials
Reviews and further reading
- YubiKey vs Nitrokey review — hardware authentication
- Signal and Molly review — secure messaging
- Thunderbird review — email client for PGP