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@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<hr>
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<h1 id="criteria" class="anchor"><a href="#criteria"><i class="fas fa-link anchor-icon"></i></a> Our Email Provider Criteria</h1>
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<p><strong>Please note we are not affiliated with any of the providers we recommend. This allows us to provide completely objective recommendations.</strong> We have developed a clear set of requirements for any Email provider wishing to be recommended, including implementing industry best practices, modern technology and more. We suggest you familiarize yourself with this list before choosing an Email provider, and conduct your own research to ensure the Email provider you choose is the right choice for you.</p>
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<p><b>Please note we are not affiliated with any of the providers we recommend. This allows us to provide completely objective recommendations.</b> We have developed a clear set of requirements for any Email provider wishing to be recommended, including implementing industry best practices, modern technology and more. We suggest you familiarize yourself with this list before choosing an Email provider, and conduct your own research to ensure the Email provider you choose is the right choice for you.</p>
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<div class="container">
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<div class="row">
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@ -21,13 +21,13 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<p>Operating outside the five/nine/fourteen-eyes countries is not necessarily a guarantee of privacy, and there are other factors to consider. However, we believe that avoiding these countries is important if you wish to avoid mass government dragnet surveillance, especially from the United States. Read our page on <a href="/providers/#ukusa">global mass surveillance and avoiding the US and UK</a> to learn more about why we feel this is important.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Operating outside the USA or other Five Eyes countries.</li>
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</ul>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Operating outside the USA or other Fourteen Eyes countries.</li>
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<li>Operating inside a country with strong consumer protection laws.</li>
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@ -39,14 +39,14 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<p>We regard these features as important in order to provide a safe and optimal service to users. Users should consider the provider which has the features they require.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Encrypts account data at rest.</li>
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<li>Integrated webmail encryption provides convenience to users who want improve on having no <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/End-to-end_encryption">E2EE</a> encryption.</li>
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</ul>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Encrypts account data at rest with zero-access encryption.</li>
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<li>Allow users to use their own <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name">domain name</a>. Custom domain names are important to users because it allows them to maintain their agency from the service, should it turn bad, be acquired by another company which doesn't prioritize privacy etc.</li>
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@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<p>We prefer our recommended providers to collect as little data as possible.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Protect sender's IP address. Filter it from showing in the <code>Received</code> header field.</li>
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<li>Don't require personally identifiable information (PII) besides username and password.</li>
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@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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</ul>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
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<ul>
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<li>Accepts Bitcoin, cash, and other forms of cryptocurrency and/or anonymous payment options (gift cards, etc.)</li>
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</ul>
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@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<p>Email servers deal with a lot of very sensitive data. We expect that providers will adopt best industry practices in order to protect their users.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Protection of webmail with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-factor_authentication">two-factor authentication (2FA)</a>, such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time-based_One-time_Password_algorithm">TOTP</a>.</li>
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<li>Encryption at rest, (e.g. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/dm-crypt">dm-crypt</a>) this protects the contents of the servers in case of unlawful seizure.</li>
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@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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</ul>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
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<ul>
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<li>Support for hardware authentication, ie <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_2nd_Factor">U2F</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WebAuthn">WebAuthn</a>. U2F and WebAuthn are more secure as they use a private key stored on a client-side hardware device to authenticate users, as opposed to a shared secret that is stored on the web server and on the client side when using TOTP. Furthermore, U2F and WebAuthn are more resistant to phishing as their authentication response is based on the authenticated <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name">domain name</a>.</li>
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<li>Zero access encryption, builds on encryption at rest. The difference being the provider does not have the decryption keys to the data they hold. This prevents a rogue employee leaking data they have access to or remote adversary from releasing data they have stolen by gaining unauthorized access to the server.</li>
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@ -122,13 +122,13 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<p>You wouldn't trust your finances to someone with a fake identity, so why trust them with your email? We require our recommended providers to be public about their ownership or leadership. We also would like to see frequent transparency reports, especially in regard to how government requests are handled.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
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<ul>
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<li>Public-facing leadership or ownership.</li>
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</ul>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Public-facing leadership.</li>
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<li>Frequent transparency reports.</li>
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@ -140,7 +140,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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<p>With the email providers we recommend we like to see responsible marketing.</p>
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</div>
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<div class="col-md-6">
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||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
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<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
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<ul>
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<li>Must self host analytics (no Google Analytics etc). The provider's site must also comply with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Do_Not_Track">DNT (Do Not Track)</a> for those users who want to opt-out.</li>
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</ul>
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@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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</ul>
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</div>
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||||
<div class="col-md-6">
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||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
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||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
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||||
<ul>
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||||
<li>Clear and easy to read documentation. This includes things like, setting up 2FA, email clients, OpenPGP, etc.</li>
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</ul>
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@ -223,14 +223,14 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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alt="AnonAddy">
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||||
</a>
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||||
<br>
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||||
<p><strong><a href="https://anonaddy.com">AnonAddy</a></strong> lets users create aliases that forward to their email address. Can be self-hosted. <a href="https://github.com/anonaddy/anonaddy">Source code on GitHub</a>.</p>
|
||||
<p><b><a href="https://anonaddy.com">AnonAddy</a></b> lets users create aliases that forward to their email address. Can be self-hosted. <a href="https://github.com/anonaddy/anonaddy">Source code on GitHub</a>.</p>
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||||
<a href="https://simplelogin.io">
|
||||
<img src="/assets/img/svg/3rd-party/simplelogin.svg"
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width="180rem" class="img-fluid float-left mr-3"
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||||
alt="SimpleLogin">
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||||
</a>
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||||
<br>
|
||||
<p><strong><a href="https://simplelogin.io">SimpleLogin</a></strong> allows you to easily create aliases for your email. Can be self-hosted. <a href="https://github.com/simple-login/app">Source code on GitHub</a>.</p>
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||||
<p><b><a href="https://simplelogin.io">SimpleLogin</a></b> allows you to easily create aliases for your email. Can be self-hosted. <a href="https://github.com/simple-login/app">Source code on GitHub</a>.</p>
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||||
</div>
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||||
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||||
<h1 id="selfhosting" class="anchor"><a href="#selfhosting"><i class="fas fa-link anchor-icon"></i></a> Self-hosting Email</h1>
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||||
@ -243,13 +243,13 @@ description: "Find a secure email provider that will keep your privacy in mind.
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||||
alt="Mail-in-a-Box">
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||||
</a>
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||||
<br>
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||||
<p><strong><a href="https://mailinabox.email">Mail-in-a-Box</a></strong> is an automated setup script for deploying a mail server on Ubuntu. Its goal is to make it easier for users to set up their own mail server.</p>
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||||
<p><b><a href="https://mailinabox.email">Mail-in-a-Box</a></b> is an automated setup script for deploying a mail server on Ubuntu. Its goal is to make it easier for users to set up their own mail server.</p>
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||||
<a href="https://mailcow.email/">
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||||
<img src="/assets/img/svg/3rd-party/mailcow.svg"
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||||
width="80rem" class="img-fluid float-left mr-3"
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||||
alt="Mailcow">
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||||
</a>
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||||
<p><strong><a href="https://mailcow.email">Mailcow</a></strong> is a more advanced mail server perfect for those with a bit more Linux experience. It has everything you need in a Docker container: A mailserver with DKIM support, antivirus and spam monitoring, webmail and ActiveSync with SOGo, and web-based administration with 2FA support. <strong><a href="https://mailcow.github.io/mailcow-dockerized-docs/">Mailcow Dockerized docs</a></strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b><a href="https://mailcow.email">Mailcow</a></b> is a more advanced mail server perfect for those with a bit more Linux experience. It has everything you need in a Docker container: A mailserver with DKIM support, antivirus and spam monitoring, webmail and ActiveSync with SOGo, and web-based administration with 2FA support. <b><a href="https://mailcow.github.io/mailcow-dockerized-docs/">Mailcow Dockerized docs</a></b></p>
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||||
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||||
<p>For a more manual approach we've picked out these two articles.</p>
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||||
<ul>
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||||
|
@ -9,10 +9,10 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
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||||
<div class="card border-danger">
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||||
<div class="card-header text-danger"><i class="fas fa-exclamation-circle fa-fw"></i> Warning</div>
|
||||
<div class="card-body">
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-danger">Using a VPN will <strong>not</strong> keep your browsing habits anonymous, nor will it add additional security to non-secure (HTTP) traffic.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-danger">If you are looking for <strong>anonymity</strong>, you should use the Tor Browser <strong>instead</strong> of a VPN.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-danger">If you're looking for added <strong>security</strong>, you should always ensure you're connecting to websites using <a href="/providers/dns/#icanndns">encrypted DNS</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTPS">HTTPS</a>. A VPN is not a replacement for good security practices.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-secondary">If you're looking for additional <strong>privacy</strong> from your ISP, on a public Wi-Fi network, or while torrenting files, a VPN may be the solution for you as long as you understand <a href="#info">the risks involved</a>.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-danger">Using a VPN will <b>not</b> keep your browsing habits anonymous, nor will it add additional security to non-secure (HTTP) traffic.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-danger">If you are looking for <b>anonymity</b>, you should use the Tor Browser <b>instead</b> of a VPN.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-danger">If you're looking for added <b>security</b>, you should always ensure you're connecting to websites using <a href="/providers/dns/#icanndns">encrypted DNS</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTPS">HTTPS</a>. A VPN is not a replacement for good security practices.</p>
|
||||
<p class="card-text text-secondary">If you're looking for additional <b>privacy</b> from your ISP, on a public Wi-Fi network, or while torrenting files, a VPN may be the solution for you as long as you understand <a href="#info">the risks involved</a>.</p>
|
||||
<a href="https://www.torproject.org/" class="btn btn-danger">Download Tor</a>
|
||||
<a href="https://write.privacytools.io/my-thoughts-on-security/slicing-onions-part-1-myth-busting-tor" class="btn btn-outline-danger">Tor Myths & FAQ</a>
|
||||
<a href="#info" class="btn btn-outline-secondary">More Info</a>
|
||||
@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<hr>
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||||
<h1 id="criteria" class="anchor"><a href="#criteria"><i class="fas fa-link anchor-icon"></i></a> Our VPN Provider Criteria</h1>
|
||||
|
||||
<p><strong>Please note we are not affiliated with any of the providers we recommend. This allows us to provide completely objective recommendations.</strong> We have developed a clear set of requirements for any VPN provider wishing to be recommended, including strong encryption, independent security audits, modern technology, and more. We suggest you familiarize yourself with this list before choosing a VPN provider, and conduct your own research to ensure the VPN provider you choose is as trustworthy as possible.</p>
|
||||
<p><b>Please note we are not affiliated with any of the providers we recommend. This allows us to provide completely objective recommendations.</b> We have developed a clear set of requirements for any VPN provider wishing to be recommended, including strong encryption, independent security audits, modern technology, and more. We suggest you familiarize yourself with this list before choosing a VPN provider, and conduct your own research to ensure the VPN provider you choose is as trustworthy as possible.</p>
|
||||
|
||||
<div class="container">
|
||||
<div class="row">
|
||||
@ -33,13 +33,13 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<p>Operating outside the five/nine/fourteen-eyes countries is not a guarantee of privacy necessarily, and there are other factors to consider. However, we believe that avoiding these countries is important if you wish to avoid mass government dragnet surveillance, especially from the United States. Read our page on <a href="/providers/#ukusa">global mass surveillance and avoiding the US and UK</a> to learn more about why we feel this is important.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Operating outside the USA or other Five Eyes countries.</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Operating outside the USA or other Fourteen Eyes countries.</li>
|
||||
<li>Operating inside a country with strong consumer protection laws.</li>
|
||||
@ -48,10 +48,10 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
|
||||
<div class="col-12">
|
||||
<h3>{% include badge.html color="info" text="Technology" %}</h3>
|
||||
<p>We require all our recommended VPN providers to provide OpenVPN configuration files to be used in any client. <strong>If</strong> a VPN provides their own custom client, we require a killswitch to block network data leaks when disconnected.</p>
|
||||
<p>We require all our recommended VPN providers to provide OpenVPN configuration files to be used in any client. <b>If</b> a VPN provides their own custom client, we require a killswitch to block network data leaks when disconnected.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>OpenVPN support.</li>
|
||||
<li>Killswitch built in to clients.</li>
|
||||
@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>OpenVPN and WireGuard support.</li>
|
||||
<li>Killswitch with highly configurable options (enable/disable on certain networks, on boot, etc.)</li>
|
||||
@ -74,14 +74,14 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<p>We prefer our recommended providers to collect as little data as possible. Not collecting personal information on registration, and accepting anonymous forms of payment are required.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Bitcoin or cash payment option.</li>
|
||||
<li>No personal information required to register: Only username, password, and email at most.</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Accepts Bitcoin, cash, and other forms of cryptocurrency and/or anonymous payment options (gift cards, etc.)</li>
|
||||
<li>No personal information accepted (autogenerated username, no email required, etc.)</li>
|
||||
@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<p>A VPN is pointless if it can't even provide adequate security. We require all our recommended providers to abide by current security standards for their OpenVPN connections. Ideally, they would use more future-proof encryption schemes by default. We also require an independent third-party to audit the provider's security, ideally in a very comprehensive manner and on a repeated (yearly) basis.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Strong Encryption Schemes: OpenVPN with SHA-256 authentication; RSA-2048 or better handshake; AES-256-GCM or AES-256-CBC data encryption.</li>
|
||||
<li>Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS).</li>
|
||||
@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Strongest Encryption: RSA-4096.</li>
|
||||
<li>Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS).</li>
|
||||
@ -115,13 +115,13 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<p>You wouldn't trust your finances to someone with a fake identity, so why trust them with your internet data? We require our recommended providers to be public about their ownership or leadership. We also would like to see frequent transparency reports, especially in regard to how government requests are handled.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Public-facing leadership or ownership.</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Public-facing leadership.</li>
|
||||
<li>Frequent transparency reports.</li>
|
||||
@ -133,7 +133,7 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<p>With the VPN providers we recommend we like to see responsible marketing.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Minimum to Qualify:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Minimum to Qualify:</b></p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>Must self host analytics (no Google Analytics etc). The provider's site must also comply with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Do_Not_Track">DNT (Do Not Track)</a> for those users who want to opt-out.</li>
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
@ -150,7 +150,7 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
</ul>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<p><strong>Best Case:</strong></p>
|
||||
<p><b>Best Case:</b></p>
|
||||
<p>Responsible marketing that is both educational and useful to the consumer could include:</p>
|
||||
<ul>
|
||||
<li>A accurate comparison to when Tor or other <a href="https://www.privacytools.io/software/networks/">Self contained networks</a> should be used.</li>
|
||||
@ -172,35 +172,35 @@ breadcrumb: "VPN"
|
||||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<h3>Should I use a VPN?</h3>
|
||||
<p>The answer to this question is not a particularly helpful one: <strong>It depends.</strong> It depends on what you're expecting a VPN to do for you, who you're trying to hide your traffic from, and what applications you're using.</p>
|
||||
<p><strong>In most cases, VPNs do little to protect your privacy or enhance your security</strong>, unless paired with other changes.</p>
|
||||
<p>The answer to this question is not a particularly helpful one: <b>It depends.</b> It depends on what you're expecting a VPN to do for you, who you're trying to hide your traffic from, and what applications you're using.</p>
|
||||
<p><b>In most cases, VPNs do little to protect your privacy or enhance your security</b>, unless paired with other changes.</p>
|
||||
<p>VPNs cannot encrypt data outside of the connection between your device and the VPN server. VPN providers can see and modify your traffic the same way your ISP could. And there is no way to verify a VPN provider's "no logging" policies in any way.</p>
|
||||
<h3>What if I need encryption?</h3>
|
||||
<p>In most cases, most of your traffic is already encrypted! Over 98% of the top 3000 websites offer <strong>HTTPS</strong>, meaning your non-DNS traffic is safe regardless of using a VPN. It is incredibly rare for applications that handle personal data to not support HTTPS in 2019, especially with services like Let's Encrypt offering free HTTPS certificates to any website operator.</p>
|
||||
<p>In most cases, most of your traffic is already encrypted! Over 98% of the top 3000 websites offer <b>HTTPS</b>, meaning your non-DNS traffic is safe regardless of using a VPN. It is incredibly rare for applications that handle personal data to not support HTTPS in 2019, especially with services like Let's Encrypt offering free HTTPS certificates to any website operator.</p>
|
||||
<p>Even if a site you visit doesn't support HTTPS, a VPN will not protect you, because a VPN cannot magically encrypt the traffic between the VPN's servers and the website's servers. Installing an extension like <a href="https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere">HTTPS Everywhere</a> and making sure every site you visit uses HTTPS is far more helpful than using a VPN.</p>
|
||||
<h4>Should I use encrypted DNS with a VPN?</h4>
|
||||
<p>The answer to this question is also not very helpful: <strong>it depends</strong>. Your VPN provider may have their own DNS servers, but if they don't, the traffic between your VPN provider and the DNS server isn't encrypted. You need to trust the <a href="/providers/dns/#icanndns">encrypted DNS provider</a> in addition to the VPN provider and unless your client and target server support <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/09/esni-privacy-protecting-upgrade-https">encrypted SNI</a>, the VPN provider can still see which domains you are visiting.</p>
|
||||
<p>However <strong>you shouldn't use encrypted DNS with Tor</strong>. This would direct all of your DNS requests through a single circuit, and would allow the encrypted DNS provider to deanonymize you.</p>
|
||||
<p>The answer to this question is also not very helpful: <b>it depends</b>. Your VPN provider may have their own DNS servers, but if they don't, the traffic between your VPN provider and the DNS server isn't encrypted. You need to trust the <a href="/providers/dns/#icanndns">encrypted DNS provider</a> in addition to the VPN provider and unless your client and target server support <a href="https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/09/esni-privacy-protecting-upgrade-https">encrypted SNI</a>, the VPN provider can still see which domains you are visiting.</p>
|
||||
<p>However <b>you shouldn't use encrypted DNS with Tor</b>. This would direct all of your DNS requests through a single circuit, and would allow the encrypted DNS provider to deanonymize you.</p>
|
||||
<h3>What if I need anonymity?</h3>
|
||||
<p>VPNs cannot provide strong anonymity. Your VPN provider will still see your real IP address, and often has a money trail that can be linked directly back to you. You cannot rely on "no logging" policies to protect your data.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="col-md-6">
|
||||
<h3>Shouldn't I hide my IP address?</h3>
|
||||
<p>The idea that your IP address is sensitive information, or that your location is given away with all your internet traffic is <strong>fearmongering</strong> on the part of VPN providers and their marketing. Your IP address is an insignificant amount of personal data tracking companies use to identify you, because many users' IP addresses change very frequently (Dynamic IP addresses, switching networks, switching devices, etc.). Your IP address also does not give away more than the very generalized location of your Internet Service Provider. It does not give away your home address, for example, despite common perception.</p>
|
||||
<h3>Should I use Tor <em>and</em> a VPN?</h3>
|
||||
<p>The idea that your IP address is sensitive information, or that your location is given away with all your internet traffic is <b>fearmongering</b> on the part of VPN providers and their marketing. Your IP address is an insignificant amount of personal data tracking companies use to identify you, because many users' IP addresses change very frequently (Dynamic IP addresses, switching networks, switching devices, etc.). Your IP address also does not give away more than the very generalized location of your Internet Service Provider. It does not give away your home address, for example, despite common perception.</p>
|
||||
<h3>Should I use Tor <i>and</i> a VPN?</h3>
|
||||
<p>By using a VPN with Tor, you're creating essentially a permanent entry node, often with a money trail attached. This provides 0 additional benefit to you, while increasing the attack surface of your connection dramatically. If you wish to hide your Tor usage from your ISP or your government, Tor has a built-in solution for that: Tor bridges. <a href="https://write.privacytools.io/my-thoughts-on-security/slicing-onions-part-2-onion-recipes-vpn-not-required">Read more about Tor bridges and why using a VPN is not necessary</a>.</p>
|
||||
<h3>Are VPNs ever useful?</h3>
|
||||
<p>A VPN may still be useful to you in a variety of scenarios, such as:</p>
|
||||
<ol>
|
||||
<li>Hiding your traffic from <strong>only</strong> your Internet Service Provider.</li>
|
||||
<li>Hiding your traffic from <b>only</b> your Internet Service Provider.</li>
|
||||
<li>Hiding your downloads (such as torrents) from your ISP and anti-piracy organizations.</li>
|
||||
</ol>
|
||||
<p>For use cases like these, or if you have another compelling reason, the VPN providers we listed above are who we think are the most trustworthy. However, using a VPN provider still means you're <em>trusting</em> the provider. In pretty much any other scenario you should be using a secure<strong>-by-design</strong> tool such as Tor.</p>
|
||||
<p>For use cases like these, or if you have another compelling reason, the VPN providers we listed above are who we think are the most trustworthy. However, using a VPN provider still means you're <i>trusting</i> the provider. In pretty much any other scenario you should be using a secure<b>-by-design</b> tool such as Tor.</p>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
</div>
|
||||
<div class="row">
|
||||
<div class="col">
|
||||
<p><strong>Sources and Further Reading</strong>:
|
||||
<p><b>Sources and Further Reading</b>:
|
||||
<ol>
|
||||
<li><a href="https://schub.io/blog/2019/04/08/very-precarious-narrative.html">VPN - a Very Precarious Narrative</a> by Dennis Schubert</li>
|
||||
<li><a href="https://gist.github.com/joepie91/5a9909939e6ce7d09e29">Don't use VPN services</a> by Sven Slootweg</li>
|
||||
|
Reference in New Issue
Block a user