Something Interesting that Happened with a VPN Service

Since my last couple of posts have been about VPNs, I decided to share a recent experience I had with a paid VPN service (not going to give out the name).

I have a website I have been working on for a little while now (brand new; only two friends know about it; Google had not listed it yet).

I tested my new website by browsing to it from a remote location (via a paid VPN service) to see if it came up fine.

Unexpectedly, later on that day, a computer from France suddenly accessed my website (Quick Note: the VPN IP address I used was not located in France).

Soon after, Google suddenly knew about my website and the next day indexed it.

Now I admit I did not have the website password protected before launch (I should have), but what I find strange is that there was no real web traffic to my website until I used the VPN service.

I am not the type of person to become paranoid, but I find that to be quite a coincidence. I was left wondering if my VPN service was in fact spying on me. As I said, there was practically no traffic to my new website, and that was the case for around a week.

Please keep in mind I have no proof that my VPN service was spying on me. It may have been Google (and the other random computer from France) just happened to find out about the website the same day I used the VPN.

I guess I am left with an unsolved mystery. 🙂


Posted in Computers, Internet and Servers, Security, VPN

Should You Setup Your Own VPN Server?

In this post, I am going to go through the different ways a VPN can be hosted.

I am just going to talk about VPNs in the context of people using them to secure their connection and/or hide their IP address (not about using a VPN for connecting two company networks together).

Should you setup your own VPN server? Only if you just require security not privacy. Otherwise I recommend going with a reputable VPN service.

Self-Hosted VPN

This is when you run your own VPN server from your home/office. The main advantage of going this route is that you control your network, and you completely control your computer that runs the VPN server.

The Good:  You get the advantage of extra security when connecting over a potentially hostile network (e.g., coffee shops, hotels, etc.).

The Bad:  You get no privacy what so ever, since your online activity is under the IP address you have been assigned by your ISP (Internet Service Provider).

VPN on a Virtual Private Server

Many online companies offer virtual server hosting solutions. Many of these companies allow their users to setup their own OpenVPN server. You technically are running your own VPN server, but the server itself is being hosted elsewhere.

The Good:  You get some privacy since the IP address of your server is owned by your web hosting company, not your ISP. In addition, you still get the extra security when connecting over a potentially hostile network.

The Bad:  Since you are the only one using the assigned IP address from the web hosting company, there is very little “wiggle room” in-case someone wanted to track you down for some reason (e.g., for posting “offensive” comments or something).

In addition, since you do not operate the network your server is on, you can never be sure if your web hosting company is spying on you (always assume that they are). They can even spy on your virtual server too.

VPN via a VPN Service

This is when you go to an actual VPN service and pay to make use of their vast array of servers that they have specifically setup for people to use for privacy.

I am not going to recommend any particular VPN service. You must make that decision for yourself.

The Good:  Going this route is usually quick and easy to get setup. Most VPN companies focus on your privacy (that is what they are supposed to be in business for anyway). This is the best way for someone to get started with using VPNs when they have never used one before.

In addition, since many other people are using the same VPN server you are on (hence, the same IP address), you “blend into the crowd”.

The Bad:  VPN servers can get overloaded, since VPN companies usually have thousands of customers using their services at any given time.  In addition, not all “no logging” VPNs are really doing what they say. I am not going to point any fingers, but just be careful when choosing a VPN service.

The following chart is my opinions for each type of VPN hosting.

Security Level – Determined by how much control you have over the VPN server and its network.

Privacy Level – Determined by how much the VPN hosting will protect your privacy.

Self-Hosted at Home/Office VPN on a Virtual Private Server VPN Service
Security Level High Low None
Privacy Level None Medium High

Things to Keep in Mind

  • VPNs cannot keep you completely anonymous. All you are doing by using a VPN is making the VPN your “new” ISP. They can potentially mess with your data that you are sending through their servers. In addition, someone could be tapping the Internet link that your VPN provider is using. This may compromise your privacy.
  • Doing something malicious. No VPN will completely protect you if your are doing something to attract the attention of a large, well-connected organization (e.g., a government agency).
  • Using a VPN because of “no logs” is not a good idea. I am sure there are some that really do not log, but even if they didn’t at some point, how do you know that they will not start logging without your knowledge?
  • A VPN will not protect you from viruses. A virus (e.g., from a file download) can still infect your computer even if your are using a VPN.
  • A VPN will not completely protect you from hackers either.

( Click here to read my “Popular Misconceptions About VPNs” article. )


Posted in Computers, Internet and Servers, Security, Software, VPN

Good and Bad Reasons to Use a VPN

Everyone who is security conscious online has probably heard about VPNs. To those who do not know, a VPN is a way to connect two separate networks over the Internet as if they were in the same building. The connection is usually (and should be) encrypted so that third-parties cannot easily snoop on your data.

Other people use VPNs for the purposes of securing their connection / hiding their IP address when they surf online by sending all of their Internet traffic over a company’s VPN server. There are several companies that offer VPNs for a low cost to their users.

In this post, I am just going to talk about VPNs in the context of people using them to secure their connection and/or hide their IP address. I am not recommending any particular VPN service. You must make that decision for yourself.

Online privacy is important to many people. While people can (and do) use VPNs for malicious reasons, there are many people who legitimately use VPNs for privacy.

Good Reasons for VPNs

  1. VPNs can secure your connection over risky Internet links (e.g., coffee shop, hotels, airports, etc.).
  2. Access websites that only serve a particular country (e.g., someone in the UK could use a US VPN to access US-only content on a website).
  3. Prevent websites (and online advertisers) from knowing who is really accessing their content.  Please note that browser fingerprinting makes it much harder to prevent websites from knowing who you are, and a VPN will not prevent a website from fingerprinting your web browser.

Bad Reasons for VPNs

  1. VPNs cannot keep you completely anonymous. All you are doing by using a VPN is making the VPN your “new” ISP. They can potentially mess with your data that you are sending through their servers.  Also, someone could be tapping the Internet link that your VPN provider is using. This may compromise your privacy.
  2. Doing something malicious. No VPN will completely protect you if your are doing something to attract the attention of a large, well-connected organization (e.g., a government agency).
  3. Using a VPN because of “no logs” is not a good idea. I am sure there are some that really do not log, but even if they didn’t at some point, how do you know that they will not start logging without your knowledge?
  4. A VPN will not protect you from viruses. A virus (e.g., from a file download) can still infect your computer even if your are using a VPN.
  5. A VPN will not completely protect you from hackers either.

Posted in Computers, Internet and Servers, Security, VPN

What are DNS Resolvers and How Do They Work?

This short post is about how a DNS resolver works. I also quickly cover the best way to obtain a DNS resolving service.

Please note that I am not going into the specifics on how to setup a DNS resolver. There are plenty of online tutorials for you to follow if you wish to pursue that option.

What is a DNS resolver? Simply put, a DNS resolver contacts a domain name’s DNS server and asks it for information.

A DNS resolver will also do something called caching. When a DNS resolver caches, it is “remembering” the information it previously obtained from a DNS server.

A DNS resolver that caches can save a lot of time that would be wasted looking up a domain name that had just been looked up earlier.

DNS caching is like writing down information on a sticky note, so you can quickly look at it later, instead of having to ask the person for the info all over again.

Here is a simplified example of how a DNS resolver works:

1.   Alex types into his web browser example.com

2.   Alex’s web browser then contacts the DNS resolver (that his computer is set to use).

3. The DNS resolver goes to a root server and get the IP address for the TLD (e.g., com, net, org, etc.) server it needs to access.

3.   The DNS resolver then goes to ns1.example.com (the DNS name-server that the TLD server provided), and asks the name-server for the IP address of example.com

4.   The DNS resolver then relays the information it receives to Alex’s computer. In addition, the DNS resolver caches the retrieved information for later use.

5.   Alex’s web browser now knows where example.com is located (the IP address), and starts retrieving the website.


Posted in Computers, Internet and Servers, Operating Systems

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