Which product is the best for VPN?

[phenomlab]

Some good information here around Cyber Ghost
https://www.security.org/vpn/cyberghost/#:~:text=How much is CyberGhost VPN,two-year subscription period expires.

And this from the FAQ

Based on the last highlighted section, it appears that Cyberghost do truly respect privacy and full anonimity.

The only thing I’m not keen on in relation to this offering is that it’s closed source in terms of code. And that view is clearly justified here

https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/cyberghost-vpn-review-competitive-features-but-its-parent-company-gives-me-the-creeps/#:~:text=While CyberGhost was given a,any independent audits since 2012

And lastly (there are several other points, but I don’t want this to look like I’m singling out CyberGhost)

That’s enough for me to look elsewhere. Sure, things change, but words like “shady” cut deep into any security organization, and that image is difficult to shake once the rumor spreads. What makes this so much worse is the clear evidence of traffic leak (in the sense that it can be seen by an internet provider) - this isn’t how a real VPN operates.

My verdict ? Avoid this one.

[phenomlab]

And now removing Private Internet Access from the list, because they are based in the US

Not that I or anyone else (I hope) reading these reviews is going to be conducting anything illegal, or partaking in other nefarious activity - but wants true anonymity and privacy, but the entire purpose of a VPN is to remain truly anonymous, and not be subjected to 5-eyes (for example)

https://restoreprivacy.com/5-eyes-9-eyes-14-eyes/

So, because of this, Private Internet Access…
https://c.tenor.com/Y5oY3MPNbM0AAAAC/simon-cowell-thats-a-no.gif

[JAC]

@phenomlab said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

@JAC well, this is interesting. A “limited time” deal that appears to have extended itself by 21 hours…

I’m guessing they just keep repeating the same “limited deal”. Something pretty fishy about that.

Absolutely mate yes, they’ll keep running these all the time trying to grab your attention but in all honesty mate in realistic terms if they offered a very good VPN or a top 3 VPN then they wouldn’t be selling it that cheap. I understand they need to sell it cheap to grab your attention but it just doesn’t cut if for me.

I’d rather pay the £81 per year for Express VPN until I find something that beats it that’ll do for me .

[phenomlab]

@JAC And I’m inclined to do the same with NordVPN

[JAC]

@phenomlab said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

And now removing Private Internet Access from the list, because they are based in the US

Not that I or anyone else (I hope) reading these reviews is going to be conducting anything illegal, or partaking in other nefarious activity - but wants true anonymity and privacy, but the entire purpose of a VPN is to remain truly anonymous, and not be subjected to 5-eyes (for example)

https://restoreprivacy.com/5-eyes-9-eyes-14-eyes/

So, because of this, Private Internet Access…
https://c.tenor.com/Y5oY3MPNbM0AAAAC/simon-cowell-thats-a-no.gif

Absolutely yes, definitely take that off the list.

[JAC]

@phenomlab said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

@JAC And I’m inclined to do the same with NordVPN

For me this is what it’s all about, if you know something works for you and you like it then it’s worth sticking with it.

I’d certainly give Express VPN a go mate if you are still looking at others.

[phenomlab]

@JAC Yes, am still comparing two (final) two - NordVPN, and ExpressVPN

[phenomlab]

I’ve opted to renew NordVPN for another 2 years. Bottom line is that it’s the best out there (for my needs), and certainly one of the very few that has actually had an independent audit to confirm that they have a no logging policy in place.

[JAC]

@phenomlab said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

I’ve opted to renew NordVPN for another 2 years. Bottom line is that it’s the best out there (for my needs), and certainly one of the very few that has actually had an independent audit to confirm that they have a no logging policy in place.

Great to hear mate, it’s absolutely the best ranked so it’s a wise choice. .

[JAC]

@JAC said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

@phenomlab said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

I’ve opted to renew NordVPN for another 2 years. Bottom line is that it’s the best out there (for my needs), and certainly one of the very few that has actually had an independent audit to confirm that they have a no logging policy in place.

Great to hear mate, it’s absolutely the best ranked so it’s a wise choice. .

Just out of interest how much was that mate for the two years? I presume because you’ve stuck with them they’ve given you a good deal?

[phenomlab]

@JAC Not really. Turned out to be over £70 by the time VAT was added, but it doesn’t expire until November 2024, so I’m happy with that. Makes the overall deal as below

Essentially, £1.48 per month so a bargain in the sense that I don’t need to worry about it for another 2 years !

[JAC]

@phenomlab said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

@JAC Not really. Turned out to be over £70 by the time VAT was added, but it doesn’t expire until November 2024, so I’m happy with that. Makes the overall deal as below

Essentially, £1.48 per month so a bargain in the sense that I don’t need to worry about it for another 2 years !

Looks like an absolute bargain matey .

[phenomlab]

@JAC Absolutely.

[phenomlab]

Anyone following this thread and on a budget, Windscribe offers a completely free VPN client. If course there are limitations, but it’s functional for the most part
https://windscribe.com/features/use-for-free

[qwinter]

One thing I just realized is that you have to trust your VPN provider, and that there’s not much of a reason to trust them more than say your internet provider (which I guess you are trying to avoid).

So I’m not sold on the idea of using a VPN for everything.

Beyond that, in practical terms, I had problems with both NordVPN and wireshark for day to day activities. Zoom for example didn’t work with them.

[phenomlab]

@qwinter Odd. Zoom works fine for me and I’m using NordVPN. After extensive research, I found that NordVPN are the only ones to survive and pass an independent audit to attest that they do not keep logs, or sell your browsing history.

[JAC]

I no longer trust Express VPN, my IP appeared to be showing 3 different IPs basically.

Nord keeps logging me out and sending notifications all the time to purchase other products?

Surfshark is a good alternative but their kill switch is so unpredictable, sometimes you have to disconnect and reconnect the internet twice to get Surfshark to make a connection again.

So for the last few weeks I’ve switched to Proton, something kept taking me back there ;).

So far so good, it just simply does the basics well, always connects as it should, always shows the correct IP and I feel a greater trust in Proton VPN.

The only thing I would say is there’s no kill switch and a lack of features on the Android TV & FireTV apps as it’s fairly new on them devices, I believe this is in the pipeline to be added so it isn’t really too much of an issue.

[phenomlab]

@JAC interesting you should mention this again. I never was completely happy with ExpressVPN, so never pursued it beyond a one-month trial. My go-to product still remains as NordVPN, although I have noticed some unexpected behaviour around suddenly logging out of the VPN itself, or simply disconnecting, which is a concern.

Having said that, I am also seriously looking at Proton VPN. The Android implementation just works without issue, but NordVPN has secure file transfer and VPN for TOR browser, which sets it apart from others.

I’ll be raising these issues with NordVPN support shortly.

[JAC]

@phenomlab The thing is I’ve tried what they say are the top 3 VPNs - Nord, Express & Surfshark.

All perform differently as you’d expect but overtime I have seen little things with each that do raise concerns.

Express VPN as mentioned above seemed to show three different locations for the one supposed IP that I was connected to.

Nord keeps logging me out randomly and disconnections are becoming more and more frequent.

Surfshark i[censored] and miss whether it actually connects or not, so you put your mobile data on or WIFI, if set to Auto-connect ideally Surfshark or any other VPN should be connecting pretty much straight away when connection is established. I didn’t see this, I saw it work great and then other times it wouldn’t connect, I’d have to go into the app then it would connect.

So as above in thread, I’m not with Proton. Don’t get me wrong it won’t be perfect and is always improving but so far it just does the basics well which is what I wanted out of the VPNs mention above.

Proton just feels that much more like they care about Privacy, you get the sense it’s not false but genuine and I see no reason not to put my trust in them, with scepticism of course but a brand you feel you can trust over let’s say Kape.

All in all, so far so good

[phenomlab]

@JAC said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

Nord keeps logging me out randomly and disconnections are becoming more and more frequent.

This is EXACTLY my issue - very annoying.

@JAC said in Which product is the best for VPN?:

Proton just feels that much more like they care about Privacy, you get the sense it’s not false but genuine and I see no reason not to put my trust in them, with scepticism of course but a brand you feel you can trust over let’s say Kape.

Yes, being a Swiss based firm, privacy is #1 on their agenda. The pricing doesn’t appear too steep in my view. I have a subscription (paid in advance) with NordVPN until November 2024, so over a year’s worth yet to use. However, I may try Proton VPN on my Android device. My only observation with the free plan is 3 locations - Netherlands, US, and Japan - obviously, the UK is the primary choice for latency reasons alone.