Advice Request How to choose VPN provider | Guide by blacksheep

Please provide comments and solutions that are helpful to the author of this topic.

blacksheep

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I like MalwareTips and I think it's time to give for this awesome community something back. This is my very first guide, so it won't be ideal.

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I've been using VPN since 2014. It happened then I discovered that ISP can see what you are browsing and sell the data to 3rd parties. I started small and used some popular VPN providers, but the quality of service overall was quite bad.

Later I tried to deploy OpenVPN myself and used it for some time. It was an easy task to deploy it, but I didn't have enough time and skills to maintain, update, and secure it.

So, as time passed I started to come up with my strategy and how I use VPN. I've been using it successfully for several years and I think it's worth sharing.

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  1. Avoid popular VPN providers. They do oversell their resources which end up with slow speed.
  2. Always rotate your VPN provider. This way you reduce risks, if one of VPN providers logs or will enable logging. You never know and it's better to be safe. You have to do this at least once in 6 months.
  3. Choose lowkey VPN providers with the next requirements. I will also add my personal recommendations with mini-reviews at the end of the post.
  4. Do not use their apps. Only opensource apps such as OpenVPN and WireGuard to establish a connection.

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  • No logs (even though it's impossible to check).
  • Transparency reports.
  • Zero trackings. No trackers/analytics on the website.
  • Alteast native support for OpenVPN and WireGuard.
  • Based in the EU or country with strong privacy laws.
  • Avoid the USA, Russia, Asia, and offshore based VPN providers. People open companies in offshores to avoid taxes, they don't care about your privacy.
  • This VPN provider has been on the market at least for +2 years.
  • Accepts Bitcoin or Monero.
  • No long terms and fair price (max 5-6 euros per month).
  • Does not have affiliate marketing/unethical marketing (like TOP 10 BEST VPN PROVIDERS and other nonsenses)

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Before I start I want to say that I am not affiliated with listed VPN providers in any way. I am not getting paid for this and this is my own experience with various VPN. This list is based on the requirements above and tested by me.

Mullvad, Sweden
Even though they are not lowkey provider and speed do vary a lot, it's worth mention, because they stand for privacy and have fair pricing.

Xeovo, Finland
Lowkey VPN provider with a strong privacy focus. Overall good speeds and flexible generators for WireGuard and OpenVPN. One of the early WireGuard supporters. Cheap.

BunkerVPN, Switzerland
Ethical VPN provider who seems to care about privacy and support strongly open source products. Good speeds, but lack of locations.

WireVPN, Estonia
This is more or less an honorable mention. This VPN provider does not operate anymore and had only WireGuard. Overall it was fast. Sad to see them fade away.

Cryptostorm, Iceland
I think this VPN provider is paranoid but does provide the same things as all previous ones. Speed varies a little bit more, but overall it's okay. The device limit hurts.

Finale:

There are more providers that I might add in the future because I am testing them right now. If community members are interested I can make a full in-depth review about listed providers and show all cons and pros.

Hopefully this was helpful.

This guide was made especially for MalwareTips, if you copy it, please share the link to the original. Stay safe!
 

HarborFront

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I think those VPN providers you mentioned definitely cannot work in China especially on android handphones

And considering the limited servers in the East they won't be suitable to be used there
 
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blacksheep

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I think those VPN providers you mentioned definitely cannot work in China especially on android handphones

And considering the limited servers in the East they won't be suitable to be used there
People in China are using Shadowsocks most of the time. It's easier for them to deploy it, instead of using VPN providers, because they get blocked too fast.
 

blacksheep

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Have you seen this list? It's from av-comparatives.org
Nice list and I am actually surprised that there is no affiliate links, but none of the VPN's in the list meets mine criteria. Check my requirements list.
 

Moonhorse

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Xeovo, Finland
Lowkey VPN provider with a strong privacy focus. Overall good speeds and flexible generators for WireGuard and OpenVPN. One of the early WireGuard supporters. Cheap.
Never heard of these guys, thanks for posting.. i probably will try some of my friends to try this out...its same price as f secure freedom wich is finnish aswell , but being lowkey is kinda nice
 

blacksheep

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Mar 8, 2020
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Good video, never heard about this guy. Thanks for sharing.
Never heard of these guys, thanks for posting.. i probably will try some of my friends to try this out...its same price as f secure freedom wich is finnish aswell , but being lowkey is kinda nice
No problem! Your welcome, if you want I can make in-dept review for Xeovo VPN.
 

blacksheep

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Mar 8, 2020
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Avoid Cryptostrom. I was in making review and found next information. Wish I could remove it from the list, but I can't edit my messages.

Except for it’s most likely an FBI honeypot. Case in point – Douglas Spink, Cryptostorm’s owner and a convicted zoophile, who got busted smuggling $34 million worth of cocaine and released after having served only three years out of a 17-year sentence. The security community believes the grace has befallen on Spink after he agreed to give the FBI a backdoor to Cryptostorm VPN servers.

In the meantime, Cryptostorm refuses to comment on the Spink matter, or shed some light onto how the company complies with the Canadian data retention laws. The tale of a decentralized company with anonymous people running it just doesn’t make the cut.
 

Cheeseman

Level 1
Jun 10, 2020
15
Avoid Cryptostrom. I was in making review and found next information. Wish I could remove it from the list, but I can't edit my messages.

Except for it’s most likely an FBI honeypot. Case in point – Douglas Spink, Cryptostorm’s owner and a convicted zoophile, who got busted smuggling $34 million worth of cocaine and released after having served only three years out of a 17-year sentence. The security community believes the grace has befallen on Spink after he agreed to give the FBI a backdoor to Cryptostorm VPN servers.

In the meantime, Cryptostorm refuses to comment on the Spink matter, or shed some light onto how the company complies with the Canadian data retention laws. The tale of a decentralized company with anonymous people running it just doesn’t make the cut.
Mind if I ask where did you find it?
 

davisd

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Jan 27, 2019
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Happy Mullvads client here, havent seen a single random disconnect in two months since using, no ping spikes in online games to the closest vpn server and can safely do job over TeamViewer without worry, also supports "dual hop" when OpenVPN protocol is chosen and Bridge mode is set in the client. I highly recommend it.
 
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blacksheep

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Mar 8, 2020
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Happy Mullvads client here, havent seen a single random disconnect in two months since using, no ping spikes in online games to the closest vpn server and can safely do job over TeamViewer without worry, also supports "dual hop" when OpenVPN protocol is chosen and Bridge mode is set in the client. I highly recommend it.
I did some tests during peak hours and during less active time. Severs are usually more crowned and speeds do drop significantly. It is really noticeble then you are streaming. Also, the amount of captcha is just insane sometimes. Otherwise, I do agree, Mullvad is a good choice.
 

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