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Most of them are using your connection to sell access to residential proxies: oxylabs (NordVPN), luminati (Holla) etc.
https://medium.com/@derek./how-is-nordvpn-unblocking-disney-...
Earlier quoted context omitted.
You load a list of rules into it, and the only thing it is allowed to do is make a classification of where the URL should go (if you're paranoid, make this classification strictly binary). It cannot write any state out, nor connect to the internet itself.
What you are describing is not a VPN extension, and it's not a MitM proxy.
This is literally, one among many reasons (ha!), why I use Firefox. Every other browser vendor is a for-profit entity, and as such will limit good ad-blocking measures as Safari and Chrome have done recently with their new "security" policies. This is also why I don't use a VPN I don't run (or certainly not one that hasn't been audited with a good reputation), and I certainly would never fucking dream of using a free…
It does seem like a bit of a flaw that removing the app on iOS doesn't automatically remove the profile such apps install: https://support.apple.com/en-au/HT205347
I'm pretty sure Apple will remove the VPN profile, which is why leaving a root certificate seems dangerous for users who don't know what they're for.
There can, of course, be legitimate uses for this tech. https://www.charlesproxy.com/documentation/ios/ or maybe opting out of certificate transparency reports, but they do seem like edge cases.
Most of them are using your connection to sell access to residential proxies: oxylabs (NordVPN), luminati (Holla) etc.
Wow that's misleading.
Oxylabs and Luminati are both residential proxy networks.
Hola is a VPN that sells access to Luminati.
NordVPN is a VPN that does not sell access to anyone. It is not sending anyone else's data through your connection. There's an accusation that it shares ownership with Oxylabs, and that's about it. NordVPN might be buying, not selling, residential proxy access from someone, but it's very unclear if that's true and either way doesn't have a negative impact on their customers.
Most of them are using your connection to sell access to residential proxies: oxylabs (NordVPN), luminati (Holla) etc.
Good related article, in case anyone still thinks well of NordVPN: https://medium.com/@derek./how-is-nordvpn-unblocking-disney-...
This is basically a MITM proxy, which I'd say is really essential for true adblocking and content filtering, especially on the locked-down mobile platforms and with the rise of HTTPS. The question is then who runs the proxy and whether you trust them. I've been doing the same with Proxomitron for years, although in that case I run the proxy, I certainly trust myself, and --- I'm not sure about whether these apps even…
It should be entirely possible to run the MITM proxy completely on-device, in which case you don't need to trust anything.
This is literally, one among many reasons (ha!), why I use Firefox. Every other browser vendor is a for-profit entity, and as such will limit good ad-blocking measures as Safari and Chrome have done recently with their new "security" policies. This is also why I don't use a VPN I don't run (or certainly not one that hasn't been audited with a good reputation), and I certainly would never fucking dream of using a free…
> ... How many of these things install root certs where even after you've canceled your subscription you're still accepting their bullshit? It does seem like a bit of a flaw that removing the app on iOS doesn't automatically remove the profile such apps install: https://support.apple.com/en-au/HT205347 I'm pretty sure Apple will remove the VPN profile, which is why leaving a root certificate seems dangerous for users…
AFAIK only system apps can install profiles. These apps work by getting the user to install a separate profile via Safari.
> I'm pretty sure Apple will remove the VPN profile, which is why leaving a root certificate seems dangerous for users who don't know what they're for.
If these aren't enterprise profiles then Apple may not have an easy mechanism to block them (other than blocking their semantics).
Apple has a ton of variants of profiles, I keep expecting them to deprecate swaths of types/installation methods to help this be more understandable.
And there is a huge difference between what they can do and what they actually do. In coffee shops and other places, surveillance systems can be used to steal your passwords and logins etc. But I strongly suspect each and everyone has entered their personal details while been recorded bt the surveillance system for many times. Or just in public place where someone can see, etc.
This is literally, one among many reasons (ha!), why I use Firefox. Every other browser vendor is a for-profit entity, and as such will limit good ad-blocking measures as Safari and Chrome have done recently with their new "security" policies. This is also why I don't use a VPN I don't run (or certainly not one that hasn't been audited with a good reputation), and I certainly would never fucking dream of using a free…
The Mozilla foundation is a non-profit.
The Mozilla Corporation is a for-profit entity with hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.