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Latest Mozilla VPN features

blog.mozilla.org

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Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on the VPN. ExpressVPN is HK/CCP owned, so I wouldn't worry too much about my privacy being violated for petty copyright infringements (BitTorrent).

VPNPro doesn't list ExpressVPN as having Chinese ownership. Wikipedia[1] claims it operates in the British Virgin Islands, and Quora claims the same. That written, a comment on Quora claims that it's owned by the CIA. Ha ha! [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExpressVPN [2] https://www.quora.com/Who-owns-Express-VPN

The company in the British Virgin Islands is a shell company with HK ownership, AFAIK.

With the CCP taking over HK, ExpressVPN could be used to gather information on domestic dissidents and foreign visa holders. Assuming it's not already.

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on the VPN. ExpressVPN is HK/CCP owned, so I wouldn't worry too much about my privacy being violated for petty copyright infringements (BitTorrent).

VPNPro doesn't list ExpressVPN as having Chinese ownership. Wikipedia[1] claims it operates in the British Virgin Islands, and Quora claims the same. That written, a comment on Quora claims that it's owned by the CIA. Ha ha! [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ExpressVPN [2] https://www.quora.com/Who-owns-Express-VPN

You don't need to be based in BVI to be registered as a business there.

(Weather or not they are owned by CCP or anything like that I have no idea, I'm just saying that being registered in BVI doesn't mean it's not possible for them to be owned by a CCP or anyone else)

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#83
post #74

I genuinely don't understand what is the incentive for using Mozilla VPN? I'm a Mozilla and Firefox fanboy, but this new product had me sceptical since the beginning. They literally bring nothing to the table except their brand name. They don't even do the server side, but just resell Mullvad's infrastructure with their brand. I'm already a Mullvad customer, and if I were to switch to Mozilla VPN: * It would not be a…

I signed up for Mozilla VPN instead of Mullvad for a two reasons:

1. It was priced in USD.

2. The price is a flat monthly $5. They don't offer discounts for longer contracts.

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#85
post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I absolutely love your service and will definitely renew it considering my one-year license is close to expiry. Any reason why you don't use a PPA or something to auto-release updates? I've postponed an update quite a few times because the friction of going to your website, downloading it, and then upgrading the package is just a bit too much in certain situations. Other than that my only gripe with the app is that I…

Hi! I'm glad to hear that! Regarding PPA etc I can't say for sure since I don't lead the app team and don't want to interrupt their work day. I'll relay your comment though. I hope that's OK.

This is great to see. I highly recommend your team look into it. Setting up a PPA (or even just your own APT repo on S3) is extremely simple and is a robust way to push out updates. I would be happy to do a few hours of consulting for your team to help get this done.

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#86
post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. A VPN should only ever be used for the following: - Shifting traffic over a VPN when using untrusted/sketchy wifi hotspots - Spoofing your geo-location to use geo-specific content And that's it. If privacy is your goal, Tor is much more suitable since it's not a single-hop proxy like a VPN and compartments all your traffic. (But of course Tor is not a silver bullet and there are caveats).

What about tunnelling into a trusted network? That's what a VPN is really for. The other uses are more side effects exploiting the encryption and tunnelling properties of VPN rather than the original intended purpose of a VPN.

I think hes talking about VPN's in the context of these companies selling vpn services under the guise of "privacy" or "security". ProtonVPN, Nord, Mozillas, Mullvad and there are a ton others, many with less than stellar reputations and some that outright lie.

Thats a bit separate from a road warrior, corporate vpn or even one that one may host on a VPS that they have full control over and are willing to allow the hosting provider still see the traffic. As in, they trust the hosting provider more than the transit provider. Think University/Campus networks, public gov networks, or even some ISP's or corp networks.

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#87
post #74

I genuinely don't understand what is the incentive for using Mozilla VPN? I'm a Mozilla and Firefox fanboy, but this new product had me sceptical since the beginning. They literally bring nothing to the table except their brand name. They don't even do the server side, but just resell Mullvad's infrastructure with their brand. I'm already a Mullvad customer, and if I were to switch to Mozilla VPN: * It would not be a…

I signed up for Mozilla VPN instead of Mullvad for a two reasons: 1. It was priced in USD. 2. The price is a flat monthly $5. They don't offer discounts for longer contracts.

> 2. The price is a flat monthly $5. They don't offer discounts for longer contracts.

This is something Mulvad has been doing since 2009..

https://mullvad.net/en/pricing

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on the VPN. ExpressVPN is HK/CCP owned, so I wouldn't worry too much about my privacy being violated for petty copyright infringements (BitTorrent).

> ExpressVPN is HK/CCP owned Thank you for this callout. Had no idea. Comparing VPN services, I’ve found ExpressVPN to be highly rated. The aforementioned callout means ExpressVPN may not be the best service for me. In lieu of specific technical criteria regarding VPN services, who are the go-to (aka “top of mind” or “A list”) providers that privacy conscious, technically adroit (e.g. web dev with some sysadmin knowl…

I personally use ProtonVPN.

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#89
post #84

Why would anyone trust Mozilla with their private browsing data? https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2021/01/08/we-need-more-than-d...

Supporting the transparency of politics has nothing to do with user privacy. Mozilla has an excellent track record on the latter and they put up a great fight in a seemingly lost battle.

Re: Latest Mozilla VPN features

#90
post #74

I genuinely don't understand what is the incentive for using Mozilla VPN? I'm a Mozilla and Firefox fanboy, but this new product had me sceptical since the beginning. They literally bring nothing to the table except their brand name. They don't even do the server side, but just resell Mullvad's infrastructure with their brand. I'm already a Mullvad customer, and if I were to switch to Mozilla VPN: * It would not be a…

If you're using mullvad you have likely already done a lot of research on which provider you want to use. A lot of consumers are interested in a quality VPN but wouldn't do this kind of research. Mozilla provide additional eyeballs and billing support, and mullvad provides the service itself. It's a mutually beneficial transaction. They're not in competition for your money, they're targeting different demographics.

> they're targeting different demographics

This is the question though: who are these demographics?

I know Mozilla likely have a lot more data on this than I, but who is using Firefox / interested enough in Mozilla to read their marketing & research their VPN offerings, but is simultaneously not someone who would research VPN providers in general / use Mullvad? What is this techie/non-techie interested/not-interested hybrid person?

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