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ProtonVPN

protonvpn.com

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Re: ProtonVPN

#41

Post by rbritton »

fao_ wrote: post #15
saintfiends wrote: post #6

How does this compare to TunnelBear [1]? - TunnelBear is a bit more expensive (4.99$/mo, paid annually vs 4$/mo). - TunnelBear supports up to 5 connections per account vs 2. I use TunnelBear regularly for my browser and phone. Both works great. My subscription is going to expire soon and I'll be open to try other VPN providers, not that there is anything wrong with TunnelBear. Any recommendations? This site [2] has f…

private internet access appears to be good, but I do not think they are very transparent about their operation.

A large portion of PIA's endpoints are blacklisted due to their popularity and related abuse. I found it somewhat annoying to try and use.

Re: ProtonVPN

#42

Post by sr2 »

boomboomsubban wrote: post #34
sr2 wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found malware in the PIA installer. Not sure if it was planted by PIA themselves or I was subjected to a MITM attack, and so I would never use any bespoke VPN software again. Best just downloading the OpenVPN config files and plug them into something like Viscosity[0] (which I trust over the more bespoke VPN clients made by the VPN providers themselves). [0]: https://www.sparklabs.com/viscosity/

What so you mean "found malware?" You checked the installer and found that some aspect was malicious or some software you are running said it found malware? As the installer seems likely to cause false positives. You're still better using independent VPN clients, but I would not trust them at all if the installer actually has malware.

I spotted loads of malicious network traffic, and using the Sysinternals Autoruns[0] utility I was able to spot attempts at persistence. I also checked the outbound connections and they were C&C servers. I can't remember if the installer was digitally signed or not, but there was definitely malware in it. I always make sure to opt-out of any AD ware that might be bundled with an installer, but this seems to have been injected surreptitiously, and installed with very little interaction.

Just be careful with the bespoke VPN clients as they are very juicy targets for MITM attacks. I know I would be going after VPN software if I wanted to do ex-filtration for a small subset of users trying to hide their tracks from governments and ISPs.

[0] https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb963902.as...

Re: ProtonVPN

#43

Post by balladeer »

hedora wrote: post #9

I have mixed feelings about protonmail. On the one hand, they tend to be on the right side of political / legal issues, and this transparency report is nice: https://protonmail.com/blog/transparency-report/ On the other hand, they recently reduced the level of detail in the transparency report. There is also the fact that they are Swiss, and their privacy laws were severely weakened by a recent referendum. In particu…

Switzerland was one place people use the name of as the hallmark of their service being free from surveillance while still residing in a developed country.

So which will be that new country now, since apparently Swizterland isn't that option anymore? And what if that new country does something similar? Then next? And then? I don't think there will be many countries left to go to in that case. Or any, after some time?

So, aren't user privacy and fight against surveillance running towards a wall which is the deadend?

Re: ProtonVPN

#44

Post by throwawaymanbot »

jorvi wrote: post #28
daxorid wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it's prudent to assume (even if not accurate in every case) that any VPN provider that reaches PIA scale has already been compromised by the relevant State Actor working its jurisdiction. It's the tragedy of success in the privacy industry.

Except for the fact that PIA has been subpoenaed by the FBI and state police multiple times and PIA could give them dick all. Yes, their servers could be compromised illicitly, but if the NSA or GCHQ is willing to go to that much trouble just to monitor you, you have bigger problems.

They say theres nothing to give, but how do you really know for sure?

Re: ProtonVPN

#45

Post by middleclick »

sr2 wrote: post #26
fao_ wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

private internet access appears to be good, but I do not think they are very transparent about their operation.

I found malware in the PIA installer. Not sure if it was planted by PIA themselves or I was subjected to a MITM attack, and so I would never use any bespoke VPN software again. Best just downloading the OpenVPN config files and plug them into something like Viscosity[0] (which I trust over the more bespoke VPN clients made by the VPN providers themselves). [0]: https://www.sparklabs.com/viscosity/

As a general rule of thumb, I have used various VPN services and made sure to never use their clients. Downloading an OpenVPN configuration file IMO seems the best way to go about it.

Re: ProtonVPN

#47

Post by elmigranto »

drdaeman wrote: post #36
jbeales wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unless they've changed their policy in the last few months, TunnelBear won't let you use SSH over any port other than 22, so if you need to SSH into a server with a non-standard port you're out of luck.

Wait. Do you mean they actually inspect traffic and tear down the connection if they see an SSH handshake on any port other than tcp/22?

They whitelist ports, I believe. That's the reason torrents don't work, for example.

Re: ProtonVPN

#48

Post by blacksmith_tb »

throwawaymanbot wrote: post #44
jorvi wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except for the fact that PIA has been subpoenaed by the FBI and state police multiple times and PIA could give them dick all. Yes, their servers could be compromised illicitly, but if the NSA or GCHQ is willing to go to that much trouble just to monitor you, you have bigger problems.

They say theres nothing to give, but how do you really know for sure?

If they have your data but won't give it to the authorities, the result is the same, isn't it? Unless you're suggesting the authorities aren't fooled, and will pry it out of them? That hasn't been the case so far.

Re: ProtonVPN

#49

Post by elmigranto »

sr2 wrote: post #42
boomboomsubban wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What so you mean "found malware?" You checked the installer and found that some aspect was malicious or some software you are running said it found malware? As the installer seems likely to cause false positives. You're still better using independent VPN clients, but I would not trust them at all if the installer actually has malware.

I spotted loads of malicious network traffic, and using the Sysinternals Autoruns[0] utility I was able to spot attempts at persistence. I also checked the outbound connections and they were C&C servers. I can't remember if the installer was digitally signed or not, but there was definitely malware in it. I always make sure to opt-out of any AD ware that might be bundled with an installer, but this seems to have been…

> I spotted loads of malicious network traffic

Care to provide anything substantial (e.g. net dumps or screenshots at least)?

> and they were C&C servers

How do you know that, have you MITMD your connection? Do you have anything besides generic spooky words?

Re: ProtonVPN

#50

Post by mantra2 »

vgfgtffcf wrote: post #10

I would be interested in hearing what the security pros think about this..tptacek, grugq, dguido, idlewords. At this point, these are the guys I trust with security advice. Worth mentioning their VPN recommendations: algo by trailofbits and freedome. There is another paid service they recommend but I can't recall the name.

I believe the other was Cloak - could be wrong though.
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