That seems to be the general argument. The more hops the harder it is to track you. That is indeed what privacy advocates are saying.
But, you hear something different from
security advocates. With every node, you have to deal with handshakes of servers that you don't know that may or may not cache/backup/log and that have different vulnerabilities. You cannot know if they might attach something to the packet that allows it to be tracked.
E.g. A direct HTTPS connection to your banking website is far more secure than an indirect connection through your VPN which could or might decrypt your HTTPS package. Because now you only have data on you, your ISP and the bank.
Connecting to the same bank with a VPN you now have data between you, your ISP, your VPN and the bank. If the ISP is out of country, it's even more problematic because now the NSA keeps a record of that connection as they collect data in bulk at all major web nodes that your connection has to pass. They don't know what is in the packages sent, but they know that this connection was established and they can trace it back to you. Remember VPN hides what is in the packages, but it cannot hide where it is going because everything always goes through your ISP at the end of the day.
And this is my problem. If your VPN takes your connection out of country across several nodes, it is more likely that your information will be recorded by intelligence agencies than if you have a direct connection.
In other words, the more you try to become invisible, the more suspicious you become. It is better to blend in by using the same programs and tools everyone else does. Imagine someone standing in the middle of Times Square wearing a mask. Yes, nobody knows who you are, but more people will pay attention to you because you're the only one wearing a mask and they will try to figure out what you are all about. However if you look like everyone else at Times Square nobody notices you.
That brings me to my final point: There are many other ways to track users than IP and they all reveal enough information (e.g. browser signature, computer signature,
audio fingerprint, cache e-tags,
canvas fingerprint, user agent, local time vs VPN time, telemetry data,
Chrome DNS cache):
IP check
Whether you use a VPN or not that information will be attached to you unless you:
1. Use a completely different computer in a completely different location,
2. Run Qubes or Tails OS on that computer using a live USB/CD,
3. Use Tor browser which hides your browser/canvas/audio/cache e-tag fingerprints &
4. Don't log into any services that you regularly use.
How to (actually) be anonymous online – Windscribe
Don't use VPN services. · GitHub
Streisand effect - Wikipedia
All of this made me realize if you really want to be private, you will have to sacrifice the way you use the Internet right now for the rest of your life and nobody is willing to do that so I gave up on all of it and just focus on security and blocking trackers via hosts files/Adblock etc. That is just my opinion however.