# Cutting the Digital Fat: My Weekend Spent Pruning Online Services

Let’s face it—as ops/cybersecurity professionals, we tend to accumulate and forget online subscriptions like they’re Pokémon. This weekend, I decided to confront the issue: what am I actually using, what’s just driven by FOMO, and what’s quietly draining my wallet while expanding my attack surface?

## Scorecard: Services Kept vs. Chopped

### **Kept: Core Tools and Occasional Joys**

| **Service** | **Annual Cost** | **Notes** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Google Fi | $600 | Might downgrade if I’m not traveling as much. |
| Amazon Ad-Free Video | $36 | Cheap and easy ad-free video, which I can enable/disable on a whim as needed (traveling). |
| Perplexity | $200 | Invaluable for research/ops efficiency. As Gemini grows this may end up being a swap but I do love Perplexity. |
| Amazon Prime | $139 | Shopping, streaming, and occasional tech deals. |
| Spotify | $99 | Could swap to YT Music next year to get YouTube ad free also; weighing value. |
| Microsoft 365 | $70 | Productivity, cloud—I absolutely need Powerpoint so there’s not really a choice here. I could buy the software but the storage is nice, though I did just buy a lifetime license to Internxt that may factor in next year. |
| Others (Oura, Fastmail, Trakt, etc.) | $20–$70 ea | Used regularly or improve daily life. |

### **Chopped: What Got the Axe and Why**

| **Service** | **Annual Cost** | **Why It’s Gone** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Strava | $80 | Free tier ≈ everything I use, so bye for now. |
| Tesla Premium Conn. | $99 | Handy, but the car functions fine without it via bluetooth. |
| Monarch Money | $99 | Like it, but more informational than necessity after years of use. |
| YouTube Premium | $140 | Was redundant after keeping Spotify…which I just renewed. I don’t watch much Youtube so Spotify will remain until next year, then likely swapped out for this. |
| Netflix | $300 | Great, but not worth it for my low usage. I learned that I can do Amazon Prime Video ad-free for $3/mo. A swap here is a no-brainer. |

## Surprises, Trends & Lessons Learned

* **Annual Cost Sat Higher Than Expected:** Did the math—total recurring “online services” bill hit $2,400/year before cuts. *That’s $200/mo…a real chunk of tech budget.*
    
* **Redundancy Crept In:** Had both Spotify and YouTube Premium. Killed one—plan to swap next time for more value.
    
* **Niche Services Add Up:** Even a few $5/month utilities and “specialty” apps tally into real money over a year.
    
* **Security/Privacy Decides Some “Kept” Services:** Fastmail, 1Password, M365 —no-brainers for someone in cybersecurity, but always revisited for alternative pricing.
    

## Security Wins

* **Lowered Attack Surface:** Closing unnecessary accounts means fewer breach alerts, less password rotation, and a tighter digital footprint.
    
* **Annual “Purge” Is a Must:** This is going to be a yearly ritual. Next year: even more ruthless.
    

## Results

* By the end of the weekend, I had:
    
    * Reviewed all my paid and unpaid online services
        
    * Kept about a dozen truly valuable tools (see table)
        
    * Lowered my annual online service spend by ~$1,200
        
    * Cut my digital attack surface by closing accounts and eliminating duplicate logins
        

## Closing Thoughts

Decluttering digital life is more than budgeting—it’s opsec in action. Tools and subscriptions should serve you…not the other way around. My advice: audit ruthlessly, and let the data (not nostalgia) decide.