Policy Acceptance: Fill & Download for Free

Raspbian includes iptables, the standard Linux firewall. By default, out of the box, it’s configured to accept all from all:Chain INPUT (policy ACCEPT) target prot opt source destination  Chain FORWARD (policy ACCEPT) target prot opt source destination  Chain OUTPUT (policy ACCEPT) target prot opt source destination  Basically, it’s there but it’s off. You can enable it using the iptables command, or if you’re a normal human being who thinks iptables has basically the worst user interface ever created (and in the world of Linux, that’s saying a lot!), you can install ufw.

I went to a fast-food place one time and ordered at the drive-up lane. When I got to the window, the clerk told me that the man in front of me had paid for my meal. It was nice of him to do that for me, and it would have been difficult to turn it down. I already had my $$$ out, so I put it in the charity bin at the window...Some departments may have very strict "you shall not accept gratuities, such as free or discounted meals" policies. Accepting an offer for a free meal might create some conflicts for the officers involved. Other departments may not have such a policy, so the officers could enjoy your show of appreciation.I think Rick Bruno 's got a good answer. Just walk up and say, "Thanks for what you do," and let the officers know in person.(You'll probably notice how surprised some of them are, and one or two might surreptitiously follow you out to run your license plate and check for warrants -- Anyone being nice to us is obviously hiding something!)Edit 03-26-16:There have been a couple comments which called me out for the last paragraph in the answer. I apologize to all of the sensitive readers who felt the statement was unnecessary or otherwise "ruined" my answer. While the paragraph was intended as a bit of humor, there is some truth to the matter that criminals will occasionally be over-the-top in how they deal with police, including fawning over the officer(s) or being extra-sugary-sweet-with-a-cherry-on-top "nice." It is also a sad truth that police officers may become more jaded as they go through their careers. I have half-jokingly said, "I'm not cynical -- I'm experienced," many times.So...that's the way life is. The downvote button is available any time you want to use it....

I tend to advocate for multiple anonymity services, so if one fails you’ve still got the next one.However, some VPN providers (including one I’ve mentioned on Quora a number of times, but will skip naming here lest people think I’m shilling for it) not only support modulating IP’s (the IP you had five minutes ago may not be the IP you have now), but also keep no logs *and* have no way of tying an IP back to a specific user.This would largely (but not totally) render a hack useless. Other VPN’s, such as HideMyAss make the process much simpler by just handing over your data when asked. Finding the right one can take a lot of Googling.It’s ultimately up to the user to do due diligence when selecting a VPN - reading privacy policies, acceptable use statements, asking questions about logging and security of such documents don’t address those issues, and not being timid in going after answers in the face of evasion. I could make suggestions, but this is a static document I am unlikely to revisit frequently, whereas companies change policies to reflect the political environment.Always remember that no one cares more about your privacy than you do. Good luck, & stay safe.