I first used Linux about 5 years ago (Ubuntu). Since then, I have tried quite a few distros:
Kali Linux (Use as a secondary)
Linux Mint (Used for a while)
Arch Linux (Could not install)
Tails (Use this often)
Qubes OS (Tried it twice, not ready yet)
Fedora (Current main)
For me, it has been incredibly difficult to find a properly privacy oriented Linux distro that also has ease of use. I really enjoy the GNOME desktop environment, and I am most familiar with Debian. My issue with Fedora is the lack of proper sandboxing, and it seems as though Qubes is the only one that really takes care in sandboxing apps.
Apologies if this is the wrong community for this question, I would be happy to move this post somewhere else. I've been anonymously viewing this community after the Rexodus, but this is my first time actually creating a post. Thank you!
UPDATE:
Thank you all so much for your feedback! The top recommended distro by far was SecureBlue, an atomic distro, so I will be trying that one. If that doesn't work, I may try other atomic distros such as Fedora Atomic or Fedora Silverblue (I may have made an error in my understanding of those two, please correct my if I did!). EndeavourOS was also highly recommended, so if I'm not a fan of atomic distros I will be using that. To @[email protected], your suggestion for Linux Mint Debian Edition with GNOME sounds like a dream, so I may use it as a secondary for my laptop. Thank you all again for your help and support, and I hope this helps someone else too!
As far as privacy goes, it's nothing you can't change up later, they just don't focus specifically on privacy, that's why they use chromium instead of a privacy oriented Chromium/FireFox fork or something like Tor. It's already quiet private as is; more so than most distros; just not so much as privacy specialized tools like TailsOS.
But for security it implements some things that are pretty difficult and time consuming to do yourself.
It's a really good base to start with, and only take a few small steps to lock down the privacy aspect.
It's a really good option if you're not ready for a QubesOS workflow, and still want the most security you can out of a somewhat* traditional workflow.
Thank you for some clarification! Will it set me up to better understand Qubes OS later on?
Maybe a bit more compared to other distros, but the whole VM "profiles" workflow is essentially solely unique to QubesOS. I'd recommend learning a bit more about KVMs and Reading up on the QubesOS docs.
If Tails wasn't amnesiac and implemented strong sandboxing, it would be perfect for me. Whonix has been (very, VERY) slowly developing their own independent ISO, which I will be quick to try when (after an eternity) it releases to the public.