What are TOR and VPN? When should I use each?
There are so many articles and videos online compare Tor and VPNs side by side as if they are competing products. This is not an accurate way of looking at them. Neither is better than the other, they are just different. Sometimes VPN is more suited to what you are doing, and sometimes Tor would be better. You can even use both together very effectively, but keep in mind that will slow you connection speed down.
So, my purpose here is to break down each one separately, so that we can see which one to use at any given time.
How Tor Works
Tor is an acronym for the original project, which was called "The Onion Router". This is a very good name for it, as it explains how it works. The data routed through the Tor network is routed through multiple layers of security before it reaches it's destination.
Go here to download Tor Browser and while you are there read about their other projects, such and Tails. You can also setup a Tor node to help the network even more if you wish.
Tor is very good at protecting about 'traffic analysis' that can give up your location and personal identity by monitoring your data at different points between your device and the websites you visit.
With Tor, each node that is passes through only knows the IP of the node before it and the node after it. The full path of the information, nor the information itself, is never known.
Additionally, on top of the nodes passing the information back and forth, there is more encryption. Everything you are sending and receiving is being encrypted several times as it is transferred between the nodes.
Pros:Pros and Cons of Tor
- Free to use.
- Anonymizes your IP and activity making it impossible to trace.
- Complete anonymity.
- Easy to use.
- A distributed network, similar to blockchain, that is impossible to destroy by destroying a single node, Tor will simply route around the broken node.
- Full data encryption at multiple levels.
- Portable. You can use Tor anywhere, including your cell phone, or over public wifi.
- Speed can be lacking due to the multiple jumps between nodes.
- If browsing no SSL sites, the last node could be compromised, although not likely.
- Some governments monitor Tor because of it's reputation and it's having been used for illegal purposes. The governments believe "good honest people don't need privacy."
- Tor will only work with customized browsers.
When to Use Tor?
Tor, as we have learned, has a high level of anonymity, but at the expense of speed. If your threat level is high, and there is a possibility that very capable individuals may try to deanonymize you, such as law enforcement, then you need to use Tor.I am not referring to, nor condoning outright illegal activities. However, if you are a whistleblower, journalist, political activist, or you live in an oppressive area like communist china, or Russian, then VPN is not enough. Although, you should never assume Tor cannot be cracked. Given time and a good reason, agencies such as the NSA could possibly find a way to track you. They won't waste their time unless you give them a very good reason to do so.
This doesn't mean that you should not use Tor for other traffic. Not only is it free to use and does not slow traffic down significantly for static content, but you are directly providing cover for those who need it to survive. Tor requires diversity to survive, but do no use it for torrenting, restrict that to VPN
So, What is VPN
A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is a service that allows you to 'borrow' an IP address for the VPN server and encrypts the connection between your computer and the VPN server.
The VPN server is basically acting as a middle man, that makes it appear that you are connecting from a completely different location than you really are.
When your VPN is connected, no one knows what you are doing on the web, nor what websites you are visiting. All your ISP or anyone else sees is a stream of encrypted data.
When Would I Use VPN?
There are many possibilities. Perhaps you live in a country where certain services are not available. Let's say Netflix hasn't come to you country yet. With a VPN you can connect to a US based VPN server and then Netflix sees you are being in the US.
There are many times where a VPN provides as much security as you need. If you are just trying to access geographically restricted content, torrenting, or just looking for everyday web privacy, security, and general anonymity. A VPN is perfect for you.
There are numerous VPN services, and I have tried several. I am not going to review them, as which is the best is all subjective and will depend on where you are, and what location you want to access.
I personally use :
I am not saying this is the best service available, I am only saying it is the one I have used for the past several years and I have been happy with them.
Pros and Cons of VPN:
Pros:
- Much faster than Tor, since you can always connect to a server in an optimal location.
- Encrypts all your internet traffic and hides it from anyone wanting to take a quick peak.
- Protects your IP and makes it difficult to identify you.
- Great is you just want to access Netflix, Facebook, Torrent, or any other P2P.
- You can unblock most (if not all) geographically restricted websites through 'geo-spoofing'. (simply selecting a VPN server in a country the is allowed access.)
- Can be used in any location, not restricted to access from home.
- Easy to setup on most devices.
- Protects your whole web activity, not just web browsing.
- The VPN still knows who you are, so you are not totally anonymous.
- While there are free VPNs, they are a bad idea to use. The paid services are not very expensive and both faster and more inclined to protect your identity.
- Some VPNs store logs, which defeats the idea of anonymity. They can be handed over to the authorities.
- Some VPNs limit your bandwidth, which can cause issues with streaming or downloading.
- Connection speed depends highly on the quality of the servers that your VPN offers in the country.
- You have to pick a VPN with a good reputation, that you can trust.
At the end of the day, your level of privacy protection and security depends on the specific VPN’s standards and ways of conduct. With Tor, things are distributed – there are multiple nodes – so there’s no such problem per se. With a VPN, though, the quality of the VPN itself means the world.
In a nutshell, and I couldn’t stress this enough(!), make sure to choose a VPN that’s reputable, that has a good track record, that has good reviews on the web. Again, this is paramount!
I will never do a side by side comparison of VPNs, there are too many of those online already. I have chosen one after trying a few others first. I suggest you do the same, take advantage of trial offers and other promos. Try out some that offer what you are looking for.
As for the VPNs storing logs. I personally connect through TorGuard's Canadian servers, because Canada does not require logging, and they do not log anything. This is true of other countries also, but at my location I get good speed through these servers.
Conclusion
Use Tor- If you are dealing with something of high importance... business, scientific, or national security.... Or if you are like be an just very paranoid because you don't trust the government or much of anyone else.
Use VPN- For Torrenting and streaming services not available in your area.
This is where many may disagree with me, but I recommend using Tor for general web browsing, web privacy, and anonymity. It is free and by using it you are helping the network to increase the anonymity of those who are using it for sensitive information that could be a matter of life or death to them.
Yet to come, I would like to write about the Tails operating system and other means of ensuring you are anonymous online.
I do tend to be a bit on the paranoid side and likely worry about things that will never happen, but I think it's better to be safe than to look back and wish you were.
If you find anything I write useful and interesting, please upvote and I would love your vote for witness. I plan on providing quality content for the long term on Steemit, and am proud to provide my witness server to help strengthen the network. I also run a Tor Node because that is a project I fully believe in as well.
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For Future Articles:
Using Tor and VPN together?
Tails Security OS?
Kali Linux vs Parrot OS?
Any suggestions will be entertained. I love a lot of topics, but privacy and hacking are my favorites. Seconded by fishing, camping, and hunting. I am a well rounded geek.
Steem on Steemians. I love You.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://mrunderstood.com/index.php/2018/07/10/what-are-tor-and-vpn-when-should-i-use-each/
Nice breakdown! We never used Tor but VPN's on our network. Worked a charm.
Cheers
Thank you. I work in IT and run into so many people who want security and don't know the difference. Even more who think Tor is only for "bad people", that don't understand what it is. I am glad you found it useful :)
Do you actually have Tor installations you run? It's not something that is used in South Africa much
I use tor browser on my laptop quite often. I do also have a tor node that I run on a Linode vps. Did you have specific questions about how to do either?
Not specifically, its just something that isn't used much. In actual fact I don't know of an application of Tor in my experience.
Routers have the capability of doing what you say the servers would do, so can you not set them up for that type of routing of traffic?
Perhaps my explanation was not so good, I will have to go back and read. The Tor nodes are computers all over the world. The information is bounced around through several different nodes with different IPs to mask the originating IP.
As for application. The technology was originally created by the United States Navy as a way for its overseas operators to relay information back without being tracked.
Journalists use the Tor network quite often for anonymity. Intelligent whistleblowers like Edward Snowden have used Tor for anonymity.
The most beneficial uses are not by just average persons surfing the internet. Although Tor is the only way to access the .onion sites, otherwise know as the infamous “Dark Web”.
As for my customers and using tor. I have helped a few individuals who work in some touchy fields set it up for communication when they are out if the country, but not for a business enviroment normally.
That's interesting. Yeah so if they are going through servers all over the world with different IP's and they only know if the origins of the previous IP's then that woukd work a treat.
Of course this would only work with data as any multimedia would suffer with the delays of such a setup.
Media would not only suffer, but it can clog up the network. You can find a lot more information at https://www.torproject.org altough I enjoy the conversation.
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