Which VPN providers really take anonymity seriously? (ARTICLE)

Discussion in 'privacy technology' started by firefox2008, Oct 17, 2011.

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  1. firefox2008

    firefox2008 Registered Member

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  2. DasFox

    DasFox Registered Member

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    Nice article for the VPNs it lists, they mentioned BolehVPN later on, but someone should of redone the article over to give them a logo with a link to their site...

    BolehVPN is a really good VPN provider for Torrents and P2P and I'm sure there must be a lot more of them too...

    To bad there wasn't around 30-50 VPN providers listed, that would of really been nice...

    P.S. Nice questions...

    1. Do you keep ANY logs which would allow you or a 3rd party to match an IP address and a time stamp to a user of your service? If so, exactly what information do you hold?

    2. Under what jurisdictions does your company operate and under what exact circumstances will you share the information you hold with a 3rd party?
     
    Last edited: Oct 17, 2011
  3. bryanjoe

    bryanjoe Registered Member

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    wonder why no Hidemyass and witopia
     
  4. J_L

    J_L Registered Member

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    Useful information, thanks. Are any of them free?
     
  5. Pryvate

    Pryvate Registered Member

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    I just have to ask, why do you think any of them would be free?

    Maybe the FBI could advertise free a VPN, undercover, with funding from the CIA, to kiddie porn (whoops..... teenie porn, actually) areas of the internet. Then, all the left-wingers and Iraqi sympathisers and Palstininian sympathisers might get to hear about this, and jump to it cause it's free.....then the CIA get logs....etc., etc

    Seriously, are you expecting anyone to provide heavy-duty anonymous bandwidth for free?:blink:

    I'm only a junior poster here, I know, but I think you might be expecting a bit much.

    Just my opinion, for reasons I have given above.:oops:
     
  6. dw426

    dw426 Registered Member

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    Actually a few are free, and no, they aren't all sting operations. And they sure aren't funded by the CIA. 1. The F.B.I doesn't really deal with the CIA. 2. The CIA doesn't give a damn about kiddie porn and isn't going to waste resources on it.

    The CIA doesn't need the help of the F.B.I. The F.B.I is quite limited in what it can and can't do, along with jurisdictional issues. The CIA has no such issues. Your obvious political biases I just won't bother with.
     
  7. CasperFace

    CasperFace Registered Member

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    There's one thing you have to remember: Not all VPN providers are cut from the same cloth. It's not always about the money. Some of the founders of these companies are people who are very passionate about things like civil liberties, and whose motives for profit (if any) are entirely secondary to their desire to provide a quality anonymity/privacy service. Personally, if I had the means (financially) to do so, I would absolutely be interested in helping to provide such a service to others, simply based on principle and because it's something that's very near and dear to me.

    As for the FBI, I do recall one case in recent history where a VPN was set up specifically to nab suspects involved in a credit card fraud ring. This was only after one of the suspects got caught, and agreed to work with the federal agents to help set up a honeypot VPN in an FBI field office. This is usually the way law enforcement operations work: very targeted and specific; NOT broad-reaching such as the manner in which you're suggesting. Simply put, they would not have the inclination to set up such a general-purpose VPN honeypot. For one thing, law enforcement can barely keep up with the plethora of ongoing cybercrime activity that is already KNOWN to them. They don't have the time or the resources to go on wild goose chases. Then there's the various legal/constitutional ramifications which could potentially render any gathered "evidence" as utterly useless in court. And then, of course, there'd be obvious red flags that would prevent most sensible people from falling for the trap in the first place (looks too good to be true, servers only located in the U.S., etc). :p
     
  8. dw426

    dw426 Registered Member

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    Not sure if you were directing your response at me specifically, but I never argued that VPN providers were only out for money and what have you. I was disagreeing with the previous post. They certainly can put up "fronts", so to speak, to nab people like the case you mentioned. But, those are increasingly rare these days, and they're nowhere near capable in resources, manpower, technology or legal powers of very broad surveillance like higher agencies can pull off.

    You honestly have more to fear from a VPN provider getting the shakes the moment LEA storms in waving warrants, than you do of a VPN being a front for the FBI or another agency.
     
  9. CasperFace

    CasperFace Registered Member

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    Nope; I agree with what you posted. In that case, I probably should have just quoted Pryvate's comment instead of both. Sorry for any confusion. ;)
     
  10. Pryvate

    Pryvate Registered Member

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    Thank you, CasperFace, for explaining everything regarding the honeypot issues I had in mind and free VPN providers so very well. :cool:
     
  11. caspian

    caspian Registered Member

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    I think you must have meant to say "right-wingers" since they are the ones who don't care about children or human rights.
     
  12. caspian

    caspian Registered Member

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    I agree with you 100% on this. I would love to have the resources to be helpful in this way.
     
  13. DasFox

    DasFox Registered Member

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    I will certainly share a name some of us already know, but doesn't seem to be getting the recognition it deserves for SERIOUSNESS ----> PRQ!
     
  14. Pryvate

    Pryvate Registered Member

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    Thank you, DasFox:), for this contribution (as well as for your many other valuable contributions).
     
  15. DasFox

    DasFox Registered Member

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    PRQ is certainly not a secret in the VPN world of computing, far from it, that's like trying to keep PirateBay private, LOL...

    And any VPN that wanted to maintain a low profile, I would certainly not share it out in the open either...

    Someone seems to have me confused as a noob around here, who also doesn't know much about forum etiquette as a new member...:blink:
     
  16. dw426

    dw426 Registered Member

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    Don't you chuckle when you get a gel-brained idiot that thinks there are still some secret little cubby holes and they feel special because they happen to know about them? And isn't it equally hilarious when they start bawling because you spoke of it? No, wait, the most side-splitting funny part is that these "secret places" are well known by every intel agency, competent hacker and security researcher in the world.

    So pathetic, and, someone hasn't been doing their homework it seems, lol. Gotta get a kick out of trolls calling people trolls too :D Ahh, Wilders, you do so entertain me.
     
  17. luciddream

    luciddream Registered Member

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    That's the part that I find irritating. People would rather greedily horde information than share it and help others out, so they can have that warm, fuzzy "I know something you don't know" feeling.

    I guess some people never grow out of that mentality of belonging to some exclusive "secret spy club" in their youth, that they won't let other underprivileged kids into.

    Good eye Das. I'd love to hear some feedback from somebody that tries them out. Wonder if they accept Visa Gift Cards?
     
  18. dw426

    dw426 Registered Member

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    But that's the thing, there are no "secret places", not on the net at least. So it makes these people look even more stupid. As far as PRQ, if I may "Bob Dylan" this up a bit, "Times, they will be 'a changing."
     
  19. LockBox

    LockBox Registered Member

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    PRQ doesn't even offer pure VPN plans do they? I think of them as a rogue hosting company more than anything. "Rogue," in the sense that they'll seemingly host anything. They've got some...err...interesting clients. Pirate Bay is tame compared to some of what they host.
     
  20. Spooony

    Spooony Registered Member

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    Connectivity services
     
  21. DasFox

    DasFox Registered Member

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    Well they say that as long as it's legal under Swedish law they'll host it.

    PRQ is the freedom fighter type you want to look for and use.

    Right now they lack certificates and are working on it, once they provide those, they will be good to try...

    There was also a big investigation into some VPNs in Europe by authorities and PRQ didn't crack, nor could they get anything out of them, because they don't log, keep records and keep it private, so this shows us this is a VPN that has stood the test against government!

    http://www.thelocal.se/28826/20100907/

    http://www.disinfo.com/2010/09/poli...s-of-prq-webhost-of-pirate-bay-and-wikileaks/


    CHEERS
     
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2011
  22. CasperFace

    CasperFace Registered Member

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    No, your local ISP is a "connectivity" service. A VPN would be more accurately described as an internet traffic relay service or network-layer proxy. In any case, I don't see how this classification is relevant to the topic being discussed.
     
  23. mag1c

    mag1c Registered Member

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    Does anyone know if:

    -nVPN [dot] net

    Keeps logs, they say they don't but lots of company's say "they don't" when indeed they do, or keep them for a few days.
     
  24. nightrace

    nightrace Registered Member

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    There is no way for a VPN provider to prove they don't keep logs. The nVpn guys are from the warez/hacker underground community and have a long running thread on Hack Forums. This question has been asked and answered so many times that they will no longer even respond to it.
     
  25. LockBox

    LockBox Registered Member

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    Well, if you could do a VPN through PRQ, they would be the last to buckle, I'm sure. I just wonder if they would let you since they own iPredator. At least Pirate Bay does and I'm guessing that Gottfrid Svartholm and Fredrik Neij have a piece of the iPredator pie.

    Just so people understand, in case you don't know and coming into the discussion....Gottfrid Svartholm and Fredrik Neij (The Pirate Bay) own PRQ Hosting out of Sweden and host just about anything....well, really anything.
     
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