Vpn

[Arab Nights (imported)]

I was talking to a computer about a VPN. He said they were a snap, sign up, download and away you go, but be sure to get one that stores nothing so any data policy is meaningless. Somebody wants your data and they have nothing. Any suggestions of a good VPN from the whizzes here?

[grapesoda19 (imported)]

You talk to computers? Sorry, couldn't resist.

Anywho, I currently Mullvad VPN (https://mullvad.net/en/), which is based out of Sweden, but has thousands of serves worldwide. They charge €5 (or $5.49 USD at the current rate of exchange) a month. The entire process is run via an app you download onto your computer. When it's off, your IP address is for your hometown. When it's on, it's for whatever city you choose, and that city's IP will show as your own.

The speeds are fast, no issues with throttling, no issues with torrent sites being blocked (even in EU countries) or their speeds being throttled. Payment is easy, mine comes out of my bank account via PayPal (extra layer of security), but you can use any payment you wish, even BitCoin. Support is very fast (if you need it), as I had a question at the beginning and I had an answer within minutes.

I'm using Mullvad right now. If you could look at my IP right now, you'd see it as Tokyo. I'm actually in the US.

[JessicaH (imported)]

I use Nord VPN and it is well recommended.

[Arab Nights (imported)]

You talk to computers?

Ouch, but deserved. Obviously I am going to blame it on the new laptop. Or Windows 10. But honestly I was talking to the techie at the computer shop.

[TopManFL (imported)]

I think a VPN is a must when surfing the Net. A well-versed and determined hacker can get past a VPN. However, it's like putting in an alarm system for your home. A thief who knows what they are doing can get passed your alarm but, the house without the alarm is even easier. So, the idea is to make it more difficult for them, not to make it impossible.

I use Express VPN and have no problems with it.

VPN, as discussed above, can hide your location and your IP number.

Also, consider these items:

"A WebRTC leak is a vulnerability that can occur in multiple web browsers (Firefox, Google Chrome, Brave, Opera) which can leak your real IP address when you are connected to a VPN service. Luckily, it’s pretty easy to detect WebRTC leaks, and you can quickly fix the problem on all browsers. "

"WebRTC (RTC stands for Real Time Communications) is a recent technology which allows voice and video communication directly through a web browser. It’s a technology that allows unified communications vendors to stream conversations through a web browser without the need for locally installed software."

I put the above paragraphs is quotes because I just copied them from the answer the google machine gave me when I asked the questions.

Using a VPN may or may not stop Web RTC from giving out your real IP number. Also, if you use apps like facetime, it's possible that a VPN that is blocking WebRTC might disable those apps. You can find many different sites that check your IP number and your WebRTC IP number by just asking the google machine "Am I leaking WebRTC".

One further consideration is this. Many VPN providers correctly claim that they do not log any activity. Since all your ISP sees is the tunnel to the VPN, nobody is keeping any records on you. Sort of anyway. If you are paying your VPN service with a credit card, they know if your bill is current. So, the do have a record of your name, address, phone, etc. If a warrant is served, they could provide that information. They would not be able to give your browsing history, only your billing information.

[JessicaH (imported)]

With Nord, I don't get any leaks from the multiple times I've tested it and have no issues with using FaceTime over VPN on my iPad. I've used VPN in China (get VPN before you go), Saudi, Bahrain, Oman and Russia. Only problem is I have to log off VPN to use my online banking so I'm very careful where I log onto that.

[fhunter]

One further consideration is this. Many VPN providers correctly claim that they do not log any activity. Since all your ISP sees is the tunnel to the VPN, nobody is keeping any records on you. Sort of anyway. If you are paying your VPN service with a credit card, they know if your bill is current. So, the do have a record of your name, address, phone, etc. If a warrant is served, they could provide that information. They would not be able to give your browsing history, only your billing information.

The browsing history - it depends. Do you really believe 'no logs' policy?It is impossible to prove - so it can be anything.

PS. As for VPN - check also for potential DNS leak

[Losethem (imported)]

You found a (V)oluntary (P)enectomy (N)etwork?

[TopManFL (imported)]

The browsing history - it depends. Do you really believe 'no logs' policy?It is impossible to prove - so it can be anything.

PS. As for VPN - check also for potential DNS leak

Hey fhunter!

I knew you'd be along in this thread pretty soon.

No, I don't know if I believe the "no logs" VPN provider story. But, I have no way to prove it.

I'm not paranoid but, I figure if someone wanted to get my browsing history it wouldn't be that difficult. Luckily, anyone reading my browsing history would be very bored.

Hope you are doing good.

[grapesoda19 (imported)]

Ouch, but deserved. Obviously I am going to blame it on the new laptop. Or Windows 10. But honestly I was talking to the techie at the computer shop.

I blame everything on Windows 10...I hate Windows 10. I had my last computer for almost 16 years. Loved that thing. Windows XP, worked perfectly! Never an issue, but it was showing it's age....BAD! So, I had to get a new one. Wanted Windows XP on that one, but couldn't. Oh well. Already had to reinstall Windows 10 on this one after it completely locked up and somehow overwrote the operating system in an update and corrupted itself. No idea how it did that. Amazingly, Microsoft walked me through the entire setup of Windows (sent me an entire Windows 10 copy on a flash drive) after 3 days of trying to get it to work.

Anywho, everything everyone is saying is right. WebRTC leaks and DNS leaks are something you should check. Mullvad has a page (https://am.i.mullvad.net/) just for WebRTC and DNS leak checks while you are on Mullvad's network.