4 ms·

For $20 LESS per year than this "poor man's VPN", I can get an actual VPN that I don't have to maintain, has multiple world-wide POP's, and doesn't log customer

For $20 LESS per year than this "poor man's VPN", I can get an actual VPN that I don't have to maintain, has multiple world-wide POP's, and doesn't log customer usage: https://www.privateinternetaccess.com https://www.privateinternetaccess.com

chime 13y ago
True. However, the idea with this is that you probably have a spare low-end VPS that you can use for VPN also.
- tlongren 13y ago
  Exactly the point of the article.
- nissehulth 13y ago
  You can get a low-end VPS for even less if you look at some VPS companies special offers, like $15/year for 1GB RAM, 20GB disk, 1TB transfer/month. Yes, low-end and most likely overbooked servers, but still decent enough for a proxy.
  - rahimnathwani 13y ago
    You don't need so much RAM for a VPN sever with a few users. You can get by with 128MB (or even less if you're ruthless), and get such servers for $7.50-$15.00 per year. Check out: http://www.lowendstock.com/ http://www.lowendstock.com/ http://www.lowendbox.com/ http://www.lowendbox.com/ http://www.lowendtalk.com/categories/offers http://www.lowendtalk.com/categories/offers
    - Istof 13y ago
      wow, I never knew you could get a vps for that cheap, thanks.
MikeCapone 13y ago
After some research, I ended up going with IVPN (https://www.ivpn.net/ https://www.ivpn.net/). It's pretty affordable too.
- heliostatic 13y ago
  What led you to decide on IVPN?
  - MikeCapone 13y ago
    It's hard to truly compare, but I started from VPN review sites and just disqualified most of the sites that seemed to care more about torrenting than about privacy, and of the remaining ones I went with the one with the best reviews and official policies.
canvia 13y ago
Does PrivateInternetAccess being located in the US have any impact on the security of their service? They are heavily promoted and that makes me skeptical of their motivations.
- colinbartlett 13y ago
  My understanding is that, in some ways, it gives them an advantage since many countries in the EU and elsewhere have mandatory data retention laws. The US does not. They also go out of their way to accept anonymous payment sources, something most VPN providers don't bother with.
- dotBen 13y ago
  Yes, see Lavabit. The FBI can compel a US company to add a wiretap to their infrastructure.
  - BillFranklin 13y ago
    That's why we built Lavaboom overseas and out of US jurisdiction. The same applies to many secure email providers.
sitkack 13y ago
Interesting article on that company http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/10/how-one-small-american-vpn-company-is-trying-to-stand-up-for-privacy/ http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/10/how-one-small-ame...
rakoo 13y ago
> and doesn't log customer usage Come on. As always, naivete is dangerous: until you can't rely on anything but promises, whatever they say can't be trusted.

chime 13y ago

True. However, the idea with this is that you probably have a spare low-end VPS that you can use for VPN also.

tlongren 13y ago
Exactly the point of the article.
nissehulth 13y ago
You can get a low-end VPS for even less if you look at some VPS companies special offers, like $15/year for 1GB RAM, 20GB disk, 1TB transfer/month. Yes, low-end and most likely overbooked servers, but still decent enough for a proxy.
- rahimnathwani 13y ago
  You don't need so much RAM for a VPN sever with a few users. You can get by with 128MB (or even less if you're ruthless), and get such servers for $7.50-$15.00 per year. Check out: http://www.lowendstock.com/ http://www.lowendstock.com/ http://www.lowendbox.com/ http://www.lowendbox.com/ http://www.lowendtalk.com/categories/offers http://www.lowendtalk.com/categories/offers
  - Istof 13y ago
    wow, I never knew you could get a vps for that cheap, thanks.

MikeCapone 13y ago

After some research, I ended up going with IVPN (https://www.ivpn.net/ https://www.ivpn.net/). It's pretty affordable too.

heliostatic 13y ago
What led you to decide on IVPN?
- MikeCapone 13y ago
  It's hard to truly compare, but I started from VPN review sites and just disqualified most of the sites that seemed to care more about torrenting than about privacy, and of the remaining ones I went with the one with the best reviews and official policies.

canvia 13y ago

Does PrivateInternetAccess being located in the US have any impact on the security of their service? They are heavily promoted and that makes me skeptical of their motivations.

colinbartlett 13y ago
My understanding is that, in some ways, it gives them an advantage since many countries in the EU and elsewhere have mandatory data retention laws. The US does not. They also go out of their way to accept anonymous payment sources, something most VPN providers don't bother with.
dotBen 13y ago
Yes, see Lavabit. The FBI can compel a US company to add a wiretap to their infrastructure.
- BillFranklin 13y ago
  That's why we built Lavaboom overseas and out of US jurisdiction. The same applies to many secure email providers.

sitkack 13y ago

Interesting article on that company http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/10/how-one-small-american-vpn-company-is-trying-to-stand-up-for-privacy/ http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/10/how-one-small-ame...

rakoo 13y ago

> and doesn't log customer usage Come on. As always, naivete is dangerous: until you can't rely on anything but promises, whatever they say can't be trusted.