Episode 38: iVPN on Virtual Private Networks (eg, what protection they do and don't provide), the Tor network, surveillance states, and how bitcoin'ers can improve their privacy

Discount link (get 6 months of bitcoin Auto-Send withdrawals for free): https://www.hardblock.com.au/join/ozbitcoinpod

Thanks to our guest: Viktor from https://ivpn.net

Host: https://twitter.com/mission_bitcoin

Sponsored by HardBlock: https://www.hardblock.com.au

Notes

- iVPN's history and mission

- Australia becoming a surveillance state (eg, laws related to metadata retention, key disclosure, and intercept & disrupt police provisions)

- Benefits of using a VPN generally (eg, dragnet ISP surveillance, Man in the Middle attacks on public networks, and bypassing censorship and geo-restrictions)

- What doesn't a VPN protect you from?

- What's the definition of privacy versus anonymity? Note that VPNs won't make you anonymous!

- Be mindful of what can de-anonymise you online beyond your IP address (eg, entering personally identifying information into websites, tracking cookies, and browser fingerprinting)

- Generally speaking, Tor is designed more for anonymity and censorship-resistance, while a VPN is focused on privacy

- Be aware of your threat model and what (or who) you are trying to protect yourself from, otherwise your privacy journey will become overwhelming

- iVPN versus other VPN providers (i.e., how to choose a good VPN provider: who is on the team, open source, no logging or tracking policies, regular audits, privacy-friendly jurisdiction (and jurisdiction with good consumer protection), clear profit model, established history, warrant canary, honest advertising and helpful guides, device compatibility, do they install and maintain their own server infrastructure, etc)

- VPN providers worth considering: iVPN, Mullvad, Proton, TunnelBear, and Windscribe

- Dive down the NordVPN Lithuanian data mining rabbit hole if you want an example of why you shouldn't trust most mainstream-marketed VPN providers

- Privacy benefits of multi-hop VPNs (eg, to protect against data correlation attacks and to disburse your trust across jurisdictions), built-in anti-tracker features (eg, to bypass common online tracking methods), Mullvad's "system transparency" initiative, and new obfuscation techniques to protect against censorship and Deep Packet Inspection

- iVPN is looking for content writers to help update their VPN and online privacy educational guides (contact viktor@ivpn.net)

- What might bitcoiners use a VPN for? 

- Contact viktor@ivpn.net if you'd like a free trial of their VPN service

Resources

https://www.ivpn.net/blog/why-you-dont-need-a-vpn/

https://www.ivpn.net/blog/privacy-issue-real-vpns-alone-cant-solve-it/

https://www.ivpn.net/privacy-guides/advanced-privacy-and-anonymity-part-1/

https://coveryourtracks.eff.org/

https://www.privacyguides.org/