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Should I use Elias's Substack | Substack?

My personal Substack. Click to read Elias's Substack, by Elias Mwangi, a Substack publication. Launched 3 months ago. - eliasmwangi.substack.com

Depends. Worth following free if Elias's data-security and dev-tooling posts interest you; there's no cost and low risk. Skip it if you want an established publication or avoid platforms with recent breaches.

Confidence

Low. Based on 30+ public sources; several concern other 'Elias's Substack' publications by different authors, so publication-specific evidence is thin.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

Free (Substack default)

Free subscription

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • Readers into data security
  • Readers tracking dev-team tooling like Waydev
  • Casual free newsletter reading

Not for

  • Anyone wanting an established writer — it's 3 months old
  • Privacy-sensitive readers wary of Substack's 2025 breach
  • Teams shopping for software — this is a blog, not a tool
  • Buyers expecting support or SLAs — none exist

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Substack breach exposed reader emails and phone numbers for months before disclosure

medium

Trustpilot reviewers report frustration with platform support and overall experience

low

Publication is new; posting cadence and longevity unproven

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Free to subscribe; posts arrive by email and web
  • Covers practical data-security topics like incident response
  • Dev-tooling angle, including Waydev alternatives coverage
  • Distraction-free reading experience

Cons

  • Launched only 3 months ago; no track record
  • No security page published for the publication
  • Platform Trustpilot is just 1.4/5 across 73 reviews
  • Platform suffered Oct 2025 breach exposing ~697,000 users

Sources & method

Analyzed 10/01/2026 - 10 sources - Substack platform disclosed an Oct 2025 breach exposing ~697,000 users' emails and phone numbers; this publication has no security page.

official x3review x4security x3
  • Substack data breach (Oct 2025, disclosed Feb 2026), Unauthorized access exposed email addresses, phone numbers, and metadata of nearly 697,000 users; disclosure came months after the incident.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 4/5

    Rating

  • Free (Substack default)

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 4/5. Free to read; content unproven at 3 months
  • Ease of use: 4/5. Reviewers praise simple setup and clean reading
  • Feature depth: 2/5. Critics call early Substack bare-bones
  • Support quality: 2/5. Trustpilot 1.4/5; frustration common
  • Security posture: 1/5. Oct 2025 platform breach exposed 697k accounts
  • 3 months Publication age Launched recently
  • 4.4/5 Platform G2 rating G2 reviewers
  • 1.4/5 Platform Trustpilot 73 reviews
  • Free Cost to read No paid tier shown on the page

Pricing

Free subscription

Free (Substack default)

  • New posts by email and web
  • Paid tiers optional at writer's discretion

Security

Substack platform disclosed an Oct 2025 breach exposing ~697,000 users' emails and phone numbers; this publication has no security page.

  • Substack data breach (Oct 2025, disclosed Feb 2026)Unauthorized access exposed email addresses, phone numbers, and metadata of nearly 697,000 users; disclosure came months after the incident.⁸

What users say

Users like Substack's simplicity for writers and readers, but Trustpilot skews sharply negative on support and experience.

“Substack is very simple to set up, and it offers a way for writers, journalists”
G2 review
“Yes, very easy. People actually read what you've written which”
Substack creators Facebook group
“Substack was barely a publishing tool. You could write an email, send”
WriteBuildScale newsletter review
Full analysis

Based on 30+ public sources; several concern other 'Elias's Substack' publications by different authors, so publication-specific evidence is thin.

Free 3-month-old personal newsletter on Substack; fine to read, but the platform leaked 697k emails in Oct 2025.

Methodology

Based on 30+ public sources; several concern other 'Elias's Substack' publications by different authors, so publication-specific evidence is thin.

Sources

  1. Elias's Substack homeeliasmwangi.substack.com
    official
  2. Elias's Substack security pageeliasmwangi.substack.com
    official
  3. Protect, Respond, Recover posteliasmwangi.substack.com
    official
  4. Substack Reviews — G2g2.com
    review
  5. Substack Reviews — Trustpilottrustpilot.com
    review
  6. Substack Review — Email Software Insightsemailsoftwareinsights.com
    review
  7. 2 Years on Substack — Honest Reviewwritebuildscale.substack.com
    review
  8. Substack Breach — Have I Been Pwnedhaveibeenpwned.com
    security
  9. Substack Discloses Security Incident — SecurityWeeksecurityweek.com
    security
  10. Substack Data Leak — Guruculgurucul.com
    security

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