this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2023
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There's way too much hype over VPN Providers, but do not forget, you are routing all your traffic through their servers

As a general advice, if a VPN provider keeps logs of your activity, does not allow you to pay with crypto, and generally spends way too much on youtube ads is probably not an ideal choice.

Do not follow any advice/recommendation blindly, do your own research on which one offers the best service for your own needs.

TorrentFreak Q&A with VPN Providers

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[–] [email protected] 55 points 2 years ago (1 children)

If someone starts his list with NordVPN you know its complete and utter bullshit

[–] [email protected] 54 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (5 children)

Something that people need to realize: If you want a VPN for PRIVACY, Mullvad (edit: also maybe IVPN) is the only good option on this list. They make it very easy for you to maintain complete anonymity, they don't even WANT your email address, you can use crypto, or you can literally mail them an envelope of cash with a note inside containing your unique ID and they'll load up your account with that value. It's ridiculous how seriously they take this stuff. And if you're really concerned about privacy, you should also be taking extra steps like using a hardened OS and browser, and using disposable virtual machines. But I suspect that most of us here aren't that concerned with actual privacy.

If you want a VPN for PIRACY, any of these options are probably fine as long as they don't block or slow torrent traffic. Just use the fastest one here that you can afford. The only thing you're really doing in this case is blocking your torrent traffic from your ISP. Remember, if you give them a credit card and your email address, then that's not private! It's just for piracy. It's important to look at your priorities and pick a VPN accordingly.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 years ago (3 children)

IVPN and Mullvad are probably the only two that give a shit about privacy. Neither require email or credit cards, and accept cash.

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[–] [email protected] 45 points 2 years ago (6 children)

I still highly recommend Mullvad, they are generally an awesome company and havent had many issues with them beyond a few random sites blocking them which is to be expected.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (7 children)

Mullvad used to be the no-brainer choice until they stopped supporting port forwarding. I kinda need it for seeding. ProtonVPN seems like a good idea for now.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

I switched to Torguard and have gotten MUCH better speeds than I do with Proton and marginally better speeds than Mullvad. I had issues setting up port forwarding, but it was user error and Torguard customer support is next fucking level so I got that taken care of.

Overall, no complaints so far.

They also accept crypto payments, however there is an email requirement.

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[–] [email protected] 18 points 2 years ago (1 children)

They recently got visited by officers of the country they’re in. The officers didn’t find shit (no logs, no ips, nothing)

[–] [email protected] 9 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I fully believe this is true, however do you have an article or anything about it?

[–] [email protected] 9 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I use Mozilla VPN, which I believe is just a rebranded Mullvad

never had any issues!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

I use it for 2 years unfortunately from July 1 port forwarding will be removed. Had to switch to another vpn.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

Yeah, I would still be using mullvad if they hadn't removed port forwarding -- it's too damn bad but I get why they needed it. Switched to Proton but I imagine they'll run into the same issue down the road and will need to find a more permanent solution.

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 2 years ago (5 children)

Wasn’t PIA bought out by a company that keeps logs a couple years ago? Interesting it made it on this list.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 2 years ago

The list are not recommended VPN Providers, they are anything but private since they are using Google services etc

[–] [email protected] 9 points 2 years ago (3 children)

I've been using PIA for years. I didn't know about that. If I were to switch to a new company, any recommendations?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 years ago

It was a whole hoopla but to what I know they still don't keep logs. I believe one of the times they were asked to appear in court (and gave nothing) was since the purchase.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

Yes they were bought by an Israeli spyware company.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I've been using Proton VPN for years without issue. They don't keep any logs.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

I switched all my stuff to proton and I am very happy with them.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 2 years ago (3 children)

I think not taking crypto currency is ok, on the other parts i agree.

Thing is crypto currency is relatively unstable.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 years ago (3 children)

Paying with credit cards etc deanonymizes you

I'm not a fan of using crypto as an investment tool, but since I cant pay with cash via the internet crypto is the next best option.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 2 years ago (6 children)

Eh your bank just knows you pay for a VPN.

I would like to be able to send a mail with the exact money in cash... But that remains a dream...

[–] [email protected] 24 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Mullvad accepts cash in the mail.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 years ago

Doesn't Mullvad allow you to pay via mailed money?

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I don't understand the downvotes. Crypto is ideal way of paying if you want to stay anonymous. Even Mullvad says that if you pay with Paypal that there's some data they are required to keep on file.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Crypto isn't anonymous though from my understanding. Since every transaction gets recorded, you can be identified through your transaction history.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

It's true and not true. If you're not careful, you can get identified even while using cryptocurrency because the ledgers are all public. If anyone can figure out that you're tied to a single one of your historical transactions, they can trace everything your "wallet" has ever done. But if you use single-use wallets, crypto shufflers, whatever else the kids have going these days, you can be untraceable. The easiest way to do private crypto is to use Monero, which automatically handles most privacy concerns.

Edit: A small vid on monero: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7sLnmlZ-kU

I'm not immersed in the cryptocurrency world day-to-day so if anything has changed lmk

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 2 years ago (6 children)

I use Mullvad. They have you buy time upfront at a fixed price, have lots of payment options, and at one point were subpoenaed and proved to the Swedish government they don't store any user data and therefore have nothing to turn over. They have a nice app too, I like them.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

Mysterium Network

If you want privacy and great speeds better to use a dVPN.

[–] Trung0246 6 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Anyone used ProtonVPN before? What's your thought?

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I recently made the switch from Surfshark to Mullvad. No real complaints about the actual VPN service with Surfshark, but the desktop app was constantly advertising their other products and was becoming bloated. Mullvad just does what I want it to do with little fuss.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago (1 children)

So how bad is nord vpn seeing as that is all over YouTube?

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