A VPN is Not Magic
<MISSIVE /08>
A VPN is Not Magic
A VPN is a virtual private network. A VPN service provides an encrypted tunnel between your device and a server they own or rent. You then connect to the internet from this server thus making your IP address appear to the wider internet as the server IP. That's it. That's all it does.
Your Device -> VPN -> Website
Your Device sees that you are connecting to a website through a VPN.
Your ISP sees that you are connecting to a VPN server but nothing after.
The website sees that someone from a VPN is connecting to them but doesn't know who.
The VPN sees your device connected to their server and that you then connected to a website.
VPN Anonymity and Privacy
VPNs do a lot to protect your privacy, they keep your ISP from seeing and logging every single thing you do online and they spoof your location and IP to any website that you visit. Although this website protection isn't 100% anonymous because of cookies, trackers, and if you have to log into a site with your information. If you are using a VPN on a mobile phone then you are still broadcasting your location to the cell towers even if you are not telling the website you are browsing.
Then there is the elephant in the room. The VPN knows all and sees all. How much do they log? How long do they save it? Can you trust them? This is going to vary VASTLY between VPN providers. I always prefer if they are setup where they cannot know the information in the first place and limit what I tell them in the first place by paying through the use of bitcoin or monero. Just because they have a no log "policy" in place it doesn't always fill me with confidence.
VPN Security
How much security does a VPN give you? Some in certain circumstances but not a lot. A VPN is not going to stop malware or viruses. A VPN can provide some protection from a man in the middle or evil twin attack as it provides a encrypted tunnel between your device and the VPN server, so always use a VPN when joining public WIFI spots. Just remember a VPN cannot protect you downstream on the connection between the VPN server and the website, always use secure encrypted connections and be aware that MITM attacks can still happen on the backside. A VPN can prevent DDoS attacks since the attacker doesn't know your real IP address and a fantastic use of VPNs is to protect IoT devices. Those smart devices around your home love to scream out all their data insecurely and a VPN can change their IP and encrypt their data in transit protecting them from hacking.
VPN Legality
In many countries VPNs are banned, blocked, or outright illegal:
Bahrain
Belarus
China
Cuba
Egypt
Iran
Iraq
Libya
Myanmar
North Korea
Oman
Russia
Syria
Turkey
Turkmenistan
UAE
Uganda
Venezuela
Vietnam
Published at
2024-09-16 16:20:13Event JSON
{
"id": "a7aff3c799c792d153e322cd44257996407489ba306b999f2a2d640c8a20909e",
"pubkey": "a03b38f8433a456381cd58295fac33aeac97101eee604fbc21d084072c7ce1f0",
"created_at": 1726496413,
"kind": 30023,
"tags": [
[
"client",
"YakiHonne",
"31990:20986fb83e775d96d188ca5c9df10ce6d613e0eb7e5768a0f0b12b37cdac21b3:1700732875747"
],
[
"d",
"e1813af05fff3bb9"
],
[
"image",
"https://image.nostr.build/6197536a75556d60aabd97513097e5b64ccbc3269651075bbf4eaf152e4e92ef.jpg"
],
[
"title",
"A VPN is Not Magic "
],
[
"summary",
"\u003cMISSIVE /08\u003e"
],
[
"published_at",
"1726496413"
],
[
"t",
"privacy"
],
[
"t",
"Vpn"
]
],
"content": "\u003cMISSIVE /08\u003e\n\nA VPN is Not Magic\n\nA VPN is a virtual private network. A VPN service provides an encrypted tunnel between your device and a server they own or rent. You then connect to the internet from this server thus making your IP address appear to the wider internet as the server IP. That's it. That's all it does.\n\nYour Device -\u003e VPN -\u003e Website\n\nYour Device sees that you are connecting to a website through a VPN.\nYour ISP sees that you are connecting to a VPN server but nothing after.\nThe website sees that someone from a VPN is connecting to them but doesn't know who.\nThe VPN sees your device connected to their server and that you then connected to a website.\n\n\nVPN Anonymity and Privacy\n\n\nVPNs do a lot to protect your privacy, they keep your ISP from seeing and logging every single thing you do online and they spoof your location and IP to any website that you visit. Although this website protection isn't 100% anonymous because of cookies, trackers, and if you have to log into a site with your information. If you are using a VPN on a mobile phone then you are still broadcasting your location to the cell towers even if you are not telling the website you are browsing.\n\nThen there is the elephant in the room. The VPN knows all and sees all. How much do they log? How long do they save it? Can you trust them? This is going to vary VASTLY between VPN providers. I always prefer if they are setup where they cannot know the information in the first place and limit what I tell them in the first place by paying through the use of bitcoin or monero. Just because they have a no log \"policy\" in place it doesn't always fill me with confidence.\n\n\nVPN Security\n\n\nHow much security does a VPN give you? Some in certain circumstances but not a lot. A VPN is not going to stop malware or viruses. A VPN can provide some protection from a man in the middle or evil twin attack as it provides a encrypted tunnel between your device and the VPN server, so always use a VPN when joining public WIFI spots. Just remember a VPN cannot protect you downstream on the connection between the VPN server and the website, always use secure encrypted connections and be aware that MITM attacks can still happen on the backside. A VPN can prevent DDoS attacks since the attacker doesn't know your real IP address and a fantastic use of VPNs is to protect IoT devices. Those smart devices around your home love to scream out all their data insecurely and a VPN can change their IP and encrypt their data in transit protecting them from hacking.\n\n\nVPN Legality\n\n\nIn many countries VPNs are banned, blocked, or outright illegal:\n\nBahrain\nBelarus\nChina\nCuba\nEgypt\nIran\nIraq\nLibya\nMyanmar\nNorth Korea\nOman\nRussia\nSyria\nTurkey\nTurkmenistan\nUAE\nUganda\nVenezuela\nVietnam\n\n",
"sig": "589743734b39d97c56f7c7823966b82b1f09c9986a223fed366e13b80260637993f47806130c4da6ea8c4c01d13d802b6536507c47f85d1b7150edf810253d86"
}
