4 ms·

I understand Mullvad has historically been a leader in privacy among the big VPN options. What are some other equally affordable and user friendly options that

I understand Mullvad has historically been a leader in privacy among the big VPN options. What are some other equally affordable and user friendly options that you all have been satisfied with? Think for someone who saw Mullvad advertised during the Super Bowl but looking to leave because of this news.

cassianoleal 3mo ago
I've been quite satisfied with AirVPN [0]. [0] https://airvpn.org/ https://airvpn.org/
- khriss 3mo ago
  +1 on AirVPN. They are amongst the handful of companies which successfully resisted the war on torrenting (targeting VPNs that allowed persistent ports) and still allow for port reservation. Mullvad, like most other VPNs gave in in the end and removed port reservations.
  - microgpt 3mo ago
    I wonder how AirVPN doesn't run out of ports since you reserve a static port number across all nodes (which is also a fingerprint). They seem to be almost all allocated. Do they just plan to never have more than 64512 customers?
    - khriss 3mo ago
      I believe the ports reservation is tied to a specific node, not globally. The config is via a Wireguard config file you download.
leumon 3mo ago
ivpn
Insanity 3mo ago
I haven’t used Mullvad, so can’t say how it compares to ProtonVPN but I’m happy with Proton. It is super easy to set up, even on Linux and iOS devices.
- newtonianrules 3mo ago
  Does Proton keep logs? I’ve heard good things.
  - greyb 3mo ago
    They don't keep logs but they've been transparent that if they ever receive a lawful court order to intercept new communications, they must comply. I honestly don't think this is unique to any VPN provider. Even if a VPN provider refuses to comply, authorities can simply backdoor or facilitate lawful interception however they'd like.
    - newtonianrules 3mo ago
      Thanks that makes sense.
- sudonem 3mo ago
  It’s worth noting that Proton’s CEO is also known to be a supporter of right-wing causes. There is no ethical consumption under capitalism. I keep along the effort, but it just continues to be impossible.
  - Insanity 3mo ago
    Could be, I don't follow the CEOs closely lol. Any source on this?
    - sudonem 3mo ago
      Yeah. It’s trace now because many of the tweets and Reddit posts have since been (unsurprisingly) purged but it looks basically the same as what we’re discussing regarding Mullvad right now. - https://theintercept.com/2025/01/28/proton-mail-andy-yen-trump-republicans/ https://theintercept.com/2025/01/28/proton-mail-andy-yen-tru... - https://medium.com/@ovenplayer/does-proton-really-support-trump-a-deeper-analysis-and-surprising-findings-aed4fee4305e https://medium.com/@ovenplayer/does-proton-really-support-tr... - https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-ceo-endorses-trump-nominee-for-assistant-attorney-general/24020 https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-ceo-endorses-trum... - https://tildes.net/~society/1ldg/proton_ceo_tweets_support_for_donald_trumps_department_of_justice_pick_and_the_us_republican_party https://tildes.net/~society/1ldg/proton_ceo_tweets_support_f...
wasfgwp 3mo ago
By any chance are you using any Apple products and are you a supporter of Donald Trump? Because if the answer is yes and no singling out Mullvad seems be rather hypocritical? Based on his actions Tim Apple openly is an ardent supporter of Trump. So effectively everyone here who has a MacBook was supporting a company run by by a pro MAGA ceo... Of course greed and corruption might be considered a mitigating factor by some people (instead of seemingly doing it purely due to one's personal convictions and without any coercion which is presumably the case here
- microgpt 3mo ago
  [flagged]
  - wasfgwp 3mo ago
    I don’t remember Tim Apple or any other tech CEOs almost literally groveling at the feet of any other president besides Trump. > They don't have to also be the main supporter of some ethnic cleansing party True OTH that party is mostly inconsequential and has no direct power. Tech companies enabling and legitimizing MAGA by openly supporting the movement arguably results in way more damage on aggregate even if they are only financing through outright bribery.
    - SpaceNoodled 3mo ago
      Because no other president has demanded tribute.
    - microgpt 3mo ago
      Corruption isn't limited to literal foot-grovelling.
    - netsharc 3mo ago
      The other presidents were law-abiding and weren't going to throw random tariffs or executive orders that could ruin these CEOs' businesses. Pathetically the CEOs' concern was their company's market value/stockholder satisfaction, they "couldn't afford" any principled stance against tyranny, small or large. "Oh you're commiting genocide with our SaaS? Well, if we do anything against that, your lobbyists will tell our government to fuck us; So, would you like any API changes to help with your work?"
solid_fuel 3mo ago
What is the general consensus on NordVPN? They are frequent sponsors on youtube but I haven't heard much substantial about them either way.
- netsharc 3mo ago
  I think they're relying on the fact that "Nord" sounds like "Nordic", so consumers think "they must be a Swedish company, I hear some Swedish techies are hardcore on freedom, e.g. the PirateBay is Swedish!". In reality they're based in Panama, and their parent company is Dutch: https://support.nordvpn.com/hc/en-us/articles/19441152966161-Where-is-NordVPN-based https://support.nordvpn.com/hc/en-us/articles/19441152966161...
- deleted 3mo ago
  [deleted]

cassianoleal 3mo ago

I've been quite satisfied with AirVPN [0]. [0] https://airvpn.org/ https://airvpn.org/

khriss 3mo ago
+1 on AirVPN. They are amongst the handful of companies which successfully resisted the war on torrenting (targeting VPNs that allowed persistent ports) and still allow for port reservation. Mullvad, like most other VPNs gave in in the end and removed port reservations.
- microgpt 3mo ago
  I wonder how AirVPN doesn't run out of ports since you reserve a static port number across all nodes (which is also a fingerprint). They seem to be almost all allocated. Do they just plan to never have more than 64512 customers?
  - khriss 3mo ago
    I believe the ports reservation is tied to a specific node, not globally. The config is via a Wireguard config file you download.

leumon 3mo ago

ivpn

Insanity 3mo ago

I haven’t used Mullvad, so can’t say how it compares to ProtonVPN but I’m happy with Proton. It is super easy to set up, even on Linux and iOS devices.

newtonianrules 3mo ago
Does Proton keep logs? I’ve heard good things.
- greyb 3mo ago
  They don't keep logs but they've been transparent that if they ever receive a lawful court order to intercept new communications, they must comply. I honestly don't think this is unique to any VPN provider. Even if a VPN provider refuses to comply, authorities can simply backdoor or facilitate lawful interception however they'd like.
  - newtonianrules 3mo ago
    Thanks that makes sense.
sudonem 3mo ago
It’s worth noting that Proton’s CEO is also known to be a supporter of right-wing causes. There is no ethical consumption under capitalism. I keep along the effort, but it just continues to be impossible.
- Insanity 3mo ago
  Could be, I don't follow the CEOs closely lol. Any source on this?
  - sudonem 3mo ago
    Yeah. It’s trace now because many of the tweets and Reddit posts have since been (unsurprisingly) purged but it looks basically the same as what we’re discussing regarding Mullvad right now. - https://theintercept.com/2025/01/28/proton-mail-andy-yen-trump-republicans/ https://theintercept.com/2025/01/28/proton-mail-andy-yen-tru... - https://medium.com/@ovenplayer/does-proton-really-support-trump-a-deeper-analysis-and-surprising-findings-aed4fee4305e https://medium.com/@ovenplayer/does-proton-really-support-tr... - https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-ceo-endorses-trump-nominee-for-assistant-attorney-general/24020 https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/proton-ceo-endorses-trum... - https://tildes.net/~society/1ldg/proton_ceo_tweets_support_for_donald_trumps_department_of_justice_pick_and_the_us_republican_party https://tildes.net/~society/1ldg/proton_ceo_tweets_support_f...

wasfgwp 3mo ago

By any chance are you using any Apple products and are you a supporter of Donald Trump? Because if the answer is yes and no singling out Mullvad seems be rather hypocritical? Based on his actions Tim Apple openly is an ardent supporter of Trump. So effectively everyone here who has a MacBook was supporting a company run by by a pro MAGA ceo... Of course greed and corruption might be considered a mitigating factor by some people (instead of seemingly doing it purely due to one's personal convictions and without any coercion which is presumably the case here

microgpt 3mo ago
[flagged]
- wasfgwp 3mo ago
  I don’t remember Tim Apple or any other tech CEOs almost literally groveling at the feet of any other president besides Trump. > They don't have to also be the main supporter of some ethnic cleansing party True OTH that party is mostly inconsequential and has no direct power. Tech companies enabling and legitimizing MAGA by openly supporting the movement arguably results in way more damage on aggregate even if they are only financing through outright bribery.
  - SpaceNoodled 3mo ago
    Because no other president has demanded tribute.
  - microgpt 3mo ago
    Corruption isn't limited to literal foot-grovelling.
  - netsharc 3mo ago
    The other presidents were law-abiding and weren't going to throw random tariffs or executive orders that could ruin these CEOs' businesses. Pathetically the CEOs' concern was their company's market value/stockholder satisfaction, they "couldn't afford" any principled stance against tyranny, small or large. "Oh you're commiting genocide with our SaaS? Well, if we do anything against that, your lobbyists will tell our government to fuck us; So, would you like any API changes to help with your work?"

solid_fuel 3mo ago

What is the general consensus on NordVPN? They are frequent sponsors on youtube but I haven't heard much substantial about them either way.

netsharc 3mo ago
I think they're relying on the fact that "Nord" sounds like "Nordic", so consumers think "they must be a Swedish company, I hear some Swedish techies are hardcore on freedom, e.g. the PirateBay is Swedish!". In reality they're based in Panama, and their parent company is Dutch: https://support.nordvpn.com/hc/en-us/articles/19441152966161-Where-is-NordVPN-based https://support.nordvpn.com/hc/en-us/articles/19441152966161...
deleted 3mo ago
[deleted]