What is Peerblock and how does it work?

Peerblock is software that is available for free and BitTorrent and P2P users often use it to make downloads anonymous by preventing peer connections from specific IP addresses.

The software enables users to select blocklists provided by 3rd party. The thought behind this is that if you’re able to identify specific IP addresses that are undesirable, such as those being used by monitoring agencies, governments, or malicious users, who may sell the data to third parties, these connections can be blocked, supposedly making torrents downloading safer.

Is Peerblock good for torrenting?

Downloading torrents may be dangerous: your activity may be tracked, your computer may get infected with malware, spyware, ransomware. That is why you need to learn how to torrent safely.

Using Peerblock is a good idea, but it is not enough. There are a number of shortcomings when using Peerblock.

Data is not encrypted

Peerblock does not encrypt data, which means your Internet Service Provider (ISP) will have full access to your data stream and will be able to monitor what you’re doing.

They can see which websites are being visited and which protocols are being used, including BitTorrent. 

It is not possible to block all undesirable IP addresses

Peerblock uses blocklists that contain different types of IP ranges. Some ranges belong to the government, some to research institutions, etc. The reality is however that blocking every potentially malicious peer means you’ll have to block all IP addresses available, as you can never be certain who is using which IP, especially which IP addresses are used to monitor torrent activity. This would leave you with no peers to connect to.

Peerblock blocks too many IP addresses

If the 3 most popular blocklists available for Peerguard are used, more than 1.1 billion IP addresses would be blocked. This is more than 25% of all available IPv4 addresses globally.

As a vast number of these peers will actually not be undesirable or malicious, users are left with a relatively small number of peers to choose from, reducing download speeds substantially.

Peerblock vs VPN

Peerblock is clearly not an alternative for a VPN. It is more a complementary solution.

VPNs hide internet traffic

A VPN encrypts online traffic meaning it can’t be monitored to see what is being done on the Internet – not by any torrent monitoring agency, ISP, or government.

PeerBlock does however not offer any encryption, meaning your torrent traffic is not secure against surveillance. It can also not block ISPs to prevent them from monitoring traffic.

A VPN hides your real IP address

Although PeerBlock blocks unwanted IP addresses, it does not hide your own IP address to keep it safe.

On the other hand, VPNs replace your address with the server’s IP address the moment you connect to the service.

Peerblock can be circumvented 

If you, for example, use PeerBlock to block a copyright agency, there is nothing stopping them from simply using a different IP address to evade that ban, and then tracking you.

PeerBlock hasn’t been updated regularly

The last update for PeerBlock was apparently done in 2014 and there have been no improvements since.

The good VPNs, however, are updated regularly ensure there are no potential bugs or issues that may ruin your torrenting experience.

Peerblock alternatives

There are several alternatives to PeerBlock available:

VPNs

A VPN is a far better option than PeerBlock. 

Using a VPN while downloading torrent is, in my opinion, a must. Even though they come with a price (as there are no good free VPN services that you can use for torrenting), the benefits are far more important. Here is a list of recommended torrent VPN providers.

As VPNs hide the user’s real IP address, they don’t have to always worry about hackers and cybercriminals finding personal information. (Don’t forget to check your torrent IP while downloading in order to make sure your VPN is running properly.)

Simplewall

Simplewall is an open-source firewall that blocks incoming and outgoing and traffic based on the user configuration.

It is more lightweight than Peerblock and offers better capabilities for network monitoring, even blocking Windows spying and telemetry by default.

BeeThink IP Blocker

BeeThink IP Blocker is a firewall that is user-friendly and offers more control over the IP addresses to be blocked compared to PeerBlock. 

Summary

In theory, Peerblock sounds like a good option to make downloading torrents safe, as it will prevent undesirable IP addresses from connecting to you and then being able to see what you’re doing online.

In practice, however, Peerblock has many flaws that in reality makes the software unsuitable for its intended purpose. There are a number of alternatives to PeerBlock available that will, in fact, help you make torrenting safer by preventing monitoring agencies from being able to see what you’re doing online.

Of these, using a VPN is probably the best and safest option (see the arguments presented above in the Peerblock vs VPN section) as it encrypts your data and hides your IP address.

This post was written by Danny Carpenter, the creator of CheckMyTorrentIp, an excellent torrent tool.

If you’re a BitTorrent user who subscribes to anonymizing services like VPNs or proxies, how do you verify your IP address is always hidden?  If you’re using a web browser to check your BitTorrent IP address, this may leave you exposed in the long run.

How to check my torrent IP?

CheckMyTorrentIp offers a novel approach to accurately monitoring your IP; it’s a torrent tracker that hands out a legal torrent to each user.  Because no one else has your torrent, the CheckMyTorrentIp tracker can monitor and display your BitTorrent IP address directly in your torrent software:

Your IP history is also available on the site, and you can delete your data with a single click:

And since there are 0 seeders, you don’t download anything else so you can leave the torrent active for as long as you wish.

Why is checking your IP address with a web browser not good enough?

For starters, you can’t check your IP continuously all day long, and if you’re using a proxy or firewall, your torrent software may use a different IP address then your browser.

There are various ways your IP address can leak. VPNs all suffer from the same weakness, the connection will drop at some point, and this may expose your personal IP address.  Unless you’re next to your PC when this happens, you may not even realize this is occurring.

With proxies, they can be incorrectly configured or unknowingly unset, and if you’ve left DHT and UPnP turned on, your personal IP address will leak even if your proxy is configured correctly. Another common way is if you have other people using your PC.

They may not be familiar with your setup and inadvertently expose your connection. Another way is in firewalls that route torrent traffic through a secure connection. The configuration can be faulty or become un-set.  Bugs in torrent software and public/private P2P networks can also play a role in exposing your IP address.

About CheckMyTorrentIp.com

The FAQ on CheckMyTorrentIp.com outlines in detail the items above and covers steps you can take to resolve them.

I created CheckMyTorrentIp after my best friend kept asking me to debug his VPN setup. After realizing there didn’t exist a service like this, I slapped together some code and put it online. When it comes to privacy, I believe anything below 100% protection is as good as no protection, and I thank how-to-hide-ip for allowing me to disseminate this helpful tool to a broader audience.

CheckMyTorrentIP alternatives [Update]

Unfortunately, CheckMyTorrentIp download is no longer available. But, there are other online services that you may use to check if your VPN is working:

• IPLeak
• TorGuard
• UpCoil TorrentIP Check

Also, if you frequently download torrents, you would want to read our recent article on how to torrent safely. Also, you should look for a P2P torrent VPN service to protect your downloads.

Let us know what you think. How do you check your torrent IP? How do you protect your online privacy?

Most VPN providers have a disclaimer or clause in their TOS to forbid the use of their services for P2P traffic of any nature (illegal or not). Learn how to find the proper P2P VPN provider and secure your downloads.

What is a DMCA complaint?

A DMCA complaint or Digital Millennium Copyright Act notice is a notification to a company that they are either hosting or linking to copyright-infringing material. The notice asks for the removal of the copyrighted works.

When a VPN user downloads copyrighted materials (movies, books, etc.), then the IP of the VPN server can be seen by those who monitor illegal downloads (it’s another story who these persons/companies are) as the source of the download. Next, a DMCA notice is sent to the hosting provider of the specific VPN server. Finally, the complaint is forwarded to the VPN provider.

When a VPN provider receives a DMCA complaint, it needs to reply with the proper response and needs to take action to prevent these kinds of actions. In the case of repeated DMCA complaints, the hosting provider may terminate the contract with the VPN company.

Many VPN servers got suspended by server hosting providers due to DMCA complaints. That is why VPN providers are cautious when it comes to P2P downloading traffic.

What is a P2P VPN service?

A P2P VPN or torrent VPN provider is a VPN service that allows its users to download torrents while connected to VPN servers. These services are also called “VPNs for torrents.”

How does such a provider deal with the DMCA complaints? It is not a simple question to answer. Some of the VPN companies use their servers and somehow ignore the DMCA notices. Others have contracts with hosting providers from countries (Netherlands, Lithuanian, Ukraine, Luxembourg, Russia) where the legislation is more relaxed regarding the torrent downloads, or it is not strictly applied. The fact is that, in a way or another, the DMCA complaints don’t affect the users and neither the VPN providers.

>> Is torrenting with VPN legal?

A must-have: KillSwitch

An essential feature when it comes to VPN torrent downloads is the KillSwitch. You need to make sure the provider has it to protect your online identity.

The KillSwitch is a fail-safe mechanism that disables your Internet connection or closes downloading apps when the VPN connection drops. Thus, even if the VPN fails your real IP address will not be exposed.

The best torrent VPN services

Are there free VPN providers right for torrenting anonymously? The answer is … NO.

Thus, you need to take into consideration premium services. Take a look below to 7 VPN services that can be used for anonymizing your torrent traffic, torrent VPN services. They all offer fast download speed, unlimited bandwidth, simultaneous connections, access to SOCKS proxies, advanced protection against leaks (WebRTC leak, DNS leak, IPv6 leak), money-back guarantee.

PureVPN

PureVPN is a top VPN provider with hundreds of servers located all over the World. The torrent traffic is allowed on certain servers. The PureVPN Kill Switch is available for the Windows client and closes down all Internet activities if the VPN fails for any reason.

ibVPN

ibVPN is an excellent VPN for torrent as it offers P2P friendly servers located in the Netherlands, Ukraine, Luxembourg, Canada, Sweden, Lithuania, Russia, and Hong Kong. They even have a special package called “Torrent VPN.” Also, you may benefit from their StealthVPN, Double VPN and Onion over VPN servers. You may try it with the 6-hour free trial account and read our complete ibVPN review.

The ibVPN Kill Switch function is available to their Windows and macOS VPN apps. It closes certain apps from a has to be defined (e.g., torrent apps).

PrivateInternetAccess

Another good provider for torrent downloading protection is PIA or PrivateInternetAccess (read our complete PIA review). They have an interesting approach regarding p2p traffic: it is redirected to certain servers located in the Netherlands.

The Private Internet Access Kill Switch completely stops the Internet connection if you are disconnected from the VPN. The smart feature is that it reactivates regular internet access when you deactivate the Kill Switch mode or exit the application.

HideIPVPN

HideIPVPN provides a smaller number of servers in locations like the Netherlands, Canada, Poland. But they are fast and good for downloading. Application Killer option (Kill Switch) is also available.

NordVPN

An advanced approached for those interested in anonymizing their downloads is to use Tor over VPN. NordVPN is a VPN service that makes this approach accessible. Thus, you will not only be protected by the VPN but also bu the Tor network.

NordVPN comes with kill switch technology that instantly shuts down any site or software you specify in advance. No worries about the accidental exposure of sensitive data.

TorGuard

TorGuard is a highly secure VPN service with servers optimized for the best possible performance when downloading torrents. It works on any OS, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS and more.

IPVanish

Last but least, IPVanish can help you with the torrent downloads. It provides a lot of server locations and, as a top-tier VPN service provider, it provides very fast connection speeds.

Conclusion

If you are a regular user of BitTorrent or other torrent apps you surely need to get access to a VPN service. As mentioned above, not all VPN services allow torrenting through their servers. That is why I have compiled the above list. Also, there are other rules that you should keep in mind to download torrents safely. Enjoy!

Do you know other P2P VPN services?

Are you using a VPN while downloading torrents or another protection tool (like Peerblock)? Feel free to join the discussion below.

SOCKS5 is a proxy protocol ideal for torrent downloading. This post explains how you can use SOKCS5 and presents the best VPN providers that offer access to SOCKS5 VPN servers.

What is SOCKS5?

SOCKS or Secure Sockets is an Internet protocol that exchanges data packets between a client computer and a proxy server. SOCKS5 adds authentication to the SOCKS protocol such that only authorized users can access the proxy server.

More technically, SOCKS5 uses proxy servers to form TCP or UDP connections to arbitrary IP addresses, providing a mode for transportation of UDP packets. It sounds complicated, but the good news is that you don’t need to remember this.

SOCKS5 protocol benefits

The SOCKS5 proxy protocol provides better performance than other proxy protocols. Here are some of the most common uses:

• Downloading torrents and P2P. SOCKS5 proxy servers offer faster download speeds and overall performance.
• Bypass internet restrictions and firewalls as your IP address are hidden.
• Combine SOCKS5 proxy with VPN for enhanced security and encryption.
• Access Tor via SOCKS5.

SOCKS5 vs. VPN

It is essential to understand the differences between VPN and SOCKS proxy:

• VPN (Virtual Private Network) changes the IP address and also creates a secure tunnel between the computer and the VPN server. When the VPN has connected all the applications from the computer are using the encrypted tunnel.
• SOCKS5 is faster as it does not encrypt the Internet traffic, but it changes the visible IP address. And, critical, only selected applications are using it (for example, browsers or torrent apps). Learn how to set up SOCKS proxies on different browsers.

Downloading torrents using SOCKS5

For many torrent down-loaders, SOCKS5 proxy servers are the best option for anonymizing their activities. The main reason is that there is no download speed loss and SOKCS5 does not encrypt the traffic.

Another advantage is that some torrent apps stop downloading if the SOCKS5 connection is not active. Thus, in case of connection drop the user is protected. For VPN services you need to use the Kill Switch feature.

Also, you may set up the SOCKS5 connection only for the torrent app and let the other apps on the computer work without a proxy.

The best VPN providers with SOCKS5 proxy

At this time you can choose from the following SOCKS5 VPN proxy providers (torrent-friendly VPN services). They are all top VPN providers with a large number of servers, money-back guarantees, good support, easy to use VPN apps.

NordVPN

The number of SOCKS5 servers offered by NordVPN is impressive. Practically, every VPN server also allows SOCKS proxy connections.

IPVanish

IPVanish provides SOCKS5 on servers located in the Netherlands (ams.socks.ipvanish.com). The IPVanish SOCKS5 proxies offer excellent speed, and there are no frequent disconnections.

Private Internet Access

PIA is the first VPN provider that also offered access to SOCKS5 proxies. The servers are located in the Netherlands (proxy-nl.privateinternetaccess.com) and work on port 1080. The speed is excellent. Read our complete PrivateInternetAccess review.

ibVPN

ibVPN offers SOCKS5 on servers that can also be used for P2P/Torrent downloading, located in Netherlands, Ukraine, Luxembourg, Canada, Bulgaria, Sweden, Lithuania, Russia. Read our complete ibVPN review.

How to configure SOCKS5 VPN on uTorrent

The setup of SOCKS5 on torrent clients is straightforward. After you get the username and the password for the authentication look for the Proxy Server settings. Next, fill in the required info (take a look at how they look like for uTorrent).

Conclusion

To sum up, SOCKS5 is ideal for torrent downloading. Beside specialized paid SOCKS services, several good VPN providers offer access to SOCKS5 servers. Besides the info presented above, here are some more tips on how to get the best one for you:

• If you are looking for the best deal, go for Private Internet Access. The annual subscription is only $36.95!
• Do you want the best quality? Choose IPVanish. The servers are great, and the connection is continuously good.
• NordVPN also is a good option for those looking for complete VPN service (VPN via Tor, Double VPN, etc.).

Do you know other SOCKS5 VPN and proxy provider? Let us know in the comments below!

Are you downloading torrents frequently? Then, you must read the tips listed below on how to torrent safely!

As you probably know, the torrent P2P protocol (BitTorrent) is a file-sharing technology that provides users with access to virtually unlimited content. This protocol is one of the most popular for peer-to-peer torrent file sharing in the world. Torrenting is almost entirely decentralized, except for trackers that enable users to search and download magnet links and p2p files. Magnet links and torrent files are used to find users on the network who host the needed files, although they don’t host those files.

Torrent users do, however, face many security threats each time they download or share a file, and before you start torrenting, you should take the time to learn how to torrent safely.

Are torrents legal?

Yes, BitTorrent file-sharing technology is legal. Although the technology is legitimate, how you use it might not be. Whether P2P downloads are illegal or legal depends on which files are being downloaded, who holds the rights reserved to these files, and where you are located. Different laws apply to different countries regarding torrent file sharing and copyright issues.

If a user chooses to download files that are copyright protected, whether or not it is illegal will depend on the country’s laws.

Tips on how to torrent safely

The tips below will show you how to torrent safely.

Tip #1 – Take care when choosing your torrent client

Torrent clients range from the simple, straightforward to the extremely powerful. Many clients, e.g., Vuze, have extra features, including add-ons, plugins, and additional functionality. These features do, however, often mean that performance and security are sacrificed.

The more popular p2p clients such as Vuze, BitTorrent, and uTorrent are monetizing the software through embedded software, advertisements, and ‘pro,’ paid-for versions. This can have detrimental effects as was the case when uTorrent installed bitcoin mining software without its users being aware, or have given their consent.

Before deciding on which client to use, make sure that you really want all the extra features, or whether a secure, lightweight, and open-source solution will work just as well for you. This was the first tip on how to torrent safely.

Tip #2 – Ensure maximum privacy by configuring your torrent software properly

When you’re learning how to safely torrent, one of the steps you need to take is to use a VPN or a proxy, or both. If you use a VPN-only option, you don’t need to do any configuring. Connect to the VPN server, open the torrent client, and start torrenting.

You might want to check the IP address of the torrent when the VPN is used for the first time to ensure that everything is working as it should.

If you are using a Proxy service, it takes 5 minutes to configure when you use it for the first time, but the p2p client will save these settings and apply them whenever you use the p2p/torrent software. If you use a VPN plus a Proxy, it will give you the best possible protection, and this is a good option for those who are very conscious of privacy.

Tip #3 – Use a VPN or proxy that does not log your activities

To hide their internet activity from an ISP (Internet Service Provider), p2p users often use virtual private networks (VPNs), or proxy services to protect their torrent traffic. Using a VPN while torrenting is legal!

As VPNs can be used for a wide range of applications, some are more suitable for torrenting than others. Beware of the VPN disadvantages and always select a VPN that:

• It does not log your activity.
• It is fast enough not to slow down streaming content.
• It is not based in a country where customer records can be demanded legally.

Here are several VPN services that you may use for safe torrenting: NordVPN, Private Internet Access, ExpressVPN.

>> Recommended reading: Is there such a thing as a free torrent VPN?

Tip #4 – Avoid IP Leaks

Vulnerabilities are exposed to VPN software all the time. Some affect entire VPN protocols, while others affect specific providers.

The main issue related to torrenting is getting your real IP address exposed while connected to VPN and get the torrent traffic associated with your location. To minimize your risk, do the following:

• Update your VPN software as soon as a new update is released.
• Install a VPN Kill Switch – this will kill your internet connection as soon as the VPN drops and protect your real IP address.
• Use a site such as IPLeak.net to check for IP address leaks.

Tip #5 – Use a good antivirus program that includes live monitoring

The 5th tip on how to torrent safely: Installing a good antivirus will help you detect malicious scripts when you browse dangerous sites. Many of these, including Mcafee, Avast, Bitdefender and AVG, have live monitoring that warns you before accessing a website that’s known or suspected to be dangerous.

Tip #6 – Use a search engine that does not track your details

Google tracks every search you make and tracks you through browser cookies. For private searches, use an anonymous search engine such as DuckDuckGo.

Tip #7 – Make sure your web history stays private

Your web history is NOT private when you switch on Incognito Mode in Chrome or Private Browsing mode in Firefox.

Google is still able to track your search history, even if you are connected to a VPN server. ISPs also track your web history if your Internet connection uses their DNS servers (it is always a good idea to use no logs DNS servers). These leaks can be prevented by using the Tor Browser for browsing the internet anonymously.

Tip #8 – Choose torrents carefully and avoid “hot” items

When figuring out how to harmlessly download torrents, don’t use the most popular torrents on KickassTorrents and ThePirateBay, as these are closely monitored by copyright trolls. Don’t use unpopular torrents as there is probably a reason why they are not used often. Avoid hot items, such as movies or anything else that has been released recently.

Additionally, you may use a solution that filters “dangerous” IP addresses (the ones uses to spread malware, spyware, etc.), like Peerblock.

Tip #9 – Read all the comments on a torrent before downloading it

If copyright holders are monitoring a torrent, you will often find comments on it, mentioning that a user received a letter when downloading a specific torrent. One of the first rules on how to securely download a torrent is not to download that torrent! Look for comments that say things like “Great quality” or “I will seed.” That is some indication that there are no problems with that torrent.

Tip #10 – Never download installable or executable files

A torrent file can harm your computer and it may steal your private data. P2P files that install software on your PC by using a .bat or.exe file are the most dangerous. Your infection risk is likely to drop by as much as 90% if you don’t install these files from a p2p site.

Although scripts can be embedded in other file types such as PDF and some video formats, this happens less often, and these file types usually are less dangerous. Also, be careful of FLV files (flash video).

Tip #11 – Never click on ad banners and use an ad-blocker

Although this is obvious, many people still fall for interactive and gamified banners.

The free Adblock will completely remove ads from the websites you visit. It does not replace the ads with blank space, but rather reformats the space, so you don’t even notice that there were ads there.

Tip #12 – Get invited to a private torrent community

One way to decrease the likelihood of getting a torrent with a virus is to get an invite to a private torrent community. These torrents are much more trustworthy because the members of that community create and share all the torrents. It is, however, tricky to find and get into a private community because you need to know someone who can invite you.

The best way to achieve this is by being active in online communities and make friends with a person that has access to a private torrent community.

How to torrent safely – Summary

Although the BitTorrent protocol is entirely legal, it can be used illegally by downloading content that is copyright protected. Whether or not this is the case will depend on the ownership of the content, how it is licensed, and the laws of the country in which you reside. Many reputable torrent sites will only share legal content.

Torrenting has many security threats when files are shared or downloaded. We hope that the tips shared in this article have shown you how to torrent safely. Apply them diligently, and you should not experience any problems with either legal or security issues.

Free torrent VPN is not easy to find these days and for good reasons. The costs for maintaining such a service are high, and even some of the premium VPNs ban the P2P traffic. So, is there such a thing as a free torrent VPN? Let’s find out.

What is a Torrent VPN?

A torrent VPN is a VPN (Virtual Private Network) service that you may use for downloading torrents. The main reason for using torrent VPN is anonymizing your online identity and hiding your public IP address. Another reason is to avoid bandwidth throttling and use the full capacity of your regular Internet connection.

It is important to underline that not all VPN providers allow P2P/torrent traffic. Only top providers are willing to spend lots of money on powerful VPN servers capable of handling torrent traffic and providing large bandwidth. Also, torrent VPN providers have to manage DMCA complaints, copyright violations, copyrighted material reports, abuse reports from different organizations (copyright holders) that are monitoring the P2P file downloads. Some of the VPN providers are simply not willing to.

Torrent VPN main features

To be able to use it for downloading torrents, a VPN service has to fulfill several vital requirements.

Downloading speed

Probably the main criteria when it comes to VPNs for torrents is speed. It has to be as high as possible to have decent download/uploads rates.

Unlimited bandwidth

When it comes to torrent downloading, the unlimited bandwidth is vital. Metered VPN services are of no use for P2P file sharing.

Servers nearby

The server locations are important. The closer the VPN server, the higher the speed. At least in theory. Anyway, a good (free) torrent VPN provider should have P2P servers on all continents to provide fast speed VPN connections to torrent users all over the World.

KillSwitch

The VPN Kill Switch mechanism prevents the exposure of your real IP address in case of unwanted VPN disconnects. Thus, when the VPN drops the Internet connection is disabled, or the torrent application is closed preventing any undesired leaks. The Internet Kill Switch is a must for all heavy downloaders. Other useful features are the VPN auto-reconnect, NAT firewall, DNS leak protection.

Shared IPs

By using shared IP VPN servers, you are more protected as you are exposing the same public IPs as other tens or hundreds of VPN users.

Examples of torrent VPN providers

In a previous post, I have listed several premium torrent VPN services, provided more details on each of them and explained why there are good for P2P filesharing. From that list, I strongly recommend NordVPN, ibVPN, and Private Internet Access VPN. Another plus for these premium VPN providers is that they are also offering access to SOCKS5 proxies. Moreover, you may benefit from their money-back guarantees, try the services and, if you are not happy, as for a refund.

Is a free VPN for torrenting safe?

Let’s take another look at the Torrent VPN main features I have listed above: speed, servers all over the World and Kill Switch. Can a free VPN provider achieve this? Is there such a thing as a free VPN for torrent?

In my opinion, it is unlikely. Even if ads monetize the P2P VPN service, the revenue will not cover the server costs and bandwidth. A heavy torrent user would merely set up the downloads and let the computer running for hours, even days. How many times would such a user click on ads?

Another scenario is the one when a VPN provider is launching its services and offers free accounts to build a name and reputation. Unfortunately, I have not heard of such services for a while.

Instead, I encountered some time ago a free VPN service that was saying loud and clear that was selling the user data to ad (to be read “spam”) agencies. Would you use such a service as your free torrent VPN provider?

Do you know any free torrent VPN providers?

This question is for you: do you know any free VPN for torrenting anonymously?  If you do, please share their names in the comments below and let our readers know about them.

This article briefly presents I2P Darknet and explains why it is a good option for hiding your IP address while sending an email or downloading torrents.

What is I2P?

I2P is a vast anonymizing network, similar to Tor, with some distinct differences. The I2P network is often used as the backbone of a part of the Darknet (or Dark Web). The Dark Web is defined as a small portion of the Internet that has been intentionally hidden and is inaccessible through standard web browsers.

The Invisible Internet Project (I2P) was launched in 2003 as an anonymizing network focused on securing the internal connections between users. By connecting to the I2P a device or computer becomes part of a distributed and decentralized network that allows secure and anonymous communications.

As a side effect, I2P bypasses filters and governmental restrictions.

How does it work?

I2P is designed such that users can communicate with each other anonymously, meaning that both sender and recipient are unidentifiable to each other as well as to third parties.

The communication is message-oriented. Each message is encrypted and passed through several network nodes from the source to the destination.

The I2P Darknet network uses a significant number of cryptographic techniques and algorithms, including 2048bit ElGamal encryption and 256bit AES in CBC mode with PKCS#5 padding. This is important for the security and anonymity of the messages sent through the network. As they are passed through several nodes, they need to be strongly encrypted.

What can you do with I2P?

This is probably the thing you are most interested in. Yes, it may hide your IP address while browsing the Internet, but there are other more specific tasks you may perform.

Using the I2PTunnel application, it is possible to stream TCP/IP applications over I2P, such as SSH, IRC, a squid proxy, and even streaming audio. Most people do not use I2P directly. The I2P enabled apps are the way to go.

You may find below the most common uses for the I2P network.

Email/Messaging – This is the main reason for building I2P: sending messages in total privacy and anonymity. There are a few messaging services on I2P. The built-in mail application lets you email the regular internet to, and from I2P.

IRC (Internet Relay Chat) – The I2P is the perfect manifestation of the freedom of speech. If you end up using I2P, you should check out the IRC.

Eepsites – Eepsites are websites hosted on the I2P network, whose operators can be anonymous. Like hidden services, these sites cannot be accessed from outside the I2P network. Their web addresses are actually readable, with the domain of .i2p at the end.

Torrents – I2P has the Postman Tracker and I2PSnark. The tracker is essentially the Pirate Bay, and I2PSnark is essentially uTorrent. By using I2P, torrenting is secure and anonymous.

How to install I2P? I2P Tutorial.

1. The first step is to download and install Java as I2P is written in the Java programming language. It is possible that you already have this on your computer, but if not, then download the latest version and install it.

2. Next, download the I2P installer. A console window will open. It shows the installation log.

3. A browser window will open on the I2P Router Console page to let you know that you have connected successfully to the IP2 network. You may initially have to wait a few minutes while the software finds peers and connects tunnels to them.

4. Next, the Router Console will show that you are fully connected.

5. Then, you now need to configure your browser to connect through I2P. You can do it in any browser, but you should probably go for Firefox or install Tor Browser. In Firefox, you may try a proxy configuration add-on, like FoxyProxy, or proceed with the manual setup:

• Go to Firefox -> Options -> Advanced tab -> Network tab -> Connection Settings
• Check the Manual proxy configuration box and enter the following values: HTTP Proxy: 127.0.0.1, Port: 4444. Also add localhost, 127.0.0.1 to the No Proxy for the box.

6. Welcome to the I2P darknet! You may now access the Dark Web and I2P websites that have the .i2p suffix. Enter the address of any eepSite. A good place to start finding interesting eepSites is the eepsite.com search engine.

A lot more info (including info on configuring firewall ports) is available on the I2P Darknet site.

I2P vs. Tor

Is I2P better than Tor? What are the differences between the two networks? Let’s find out.

They both are anonymity tools, capable of hiding your public IP address. On both I2P and Tor users connect to each other using peer-to-peer encrypted tunnels. That is the basic principle, but there are some key technical differences:

• I2P is able to put multiple messages into one encrypted packet (Garlic routing), making it harder for an outside observer to find out what’s going on.
• Unlike the Tor network, which uses a centralized directory to manage the network, I2P uses a distributed peer-to-peer model.
• I2P uses packet switching instead of Tor’s circuit switching, which means transparent load balancing of messages across multiple peers.
• Unlike Tor, I2P tunnels are uni-directional, so incoming traffic and outgoing traffic are completely separate, which improves anonymity.
• I2Ps uses their own API rather than SOCKS which is used by the Tor network. This helps to make I2P more secure than Tor.
• I2P is much faster than using Tor, more secure, and more robust.

Thus, we may say that, yes, I2P is better than Tor when it comes to anonymizing your online presence, downloading torrents and sending secure emails. At the same time, Tor is an excellent tool for bypassing geo-restrictions.

What do you think about I2P Darknet? Do you use it? What about Tor? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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This week, at Pittsburgh-based startup incubator AlphaLab, InnomiNet has presented BitBlinder, a tool that allows users to anonymously browse the web and transfer files using BitTorrent.

It is a free and open source project that mixes your Internet traffic with the traffic of everyone else in the BitBlinder network.

With this app you can:

• Download files quickly and anonymously via BitTorrent.
• Browse the web privately and bypass any filters.
• Protect your privacy by hiding your IP address.

How does it work

BitBlinder creates a network of a computer similar to Tor in order to achieve online anonymity. It works by having a peer in the network acting as a proxy for you. Instead of requesting a page from the website itself, BitBlinder asks the peer to get the page and send it back to you. The connection is encrypted so nobody will be able to see or know you visited a website.

Installation and Setup

Firstly, you have to download the 17.5 MB setup. After the installation, you’ll be prompted with the below screen asking for a username and password.

In order to be able to use it, you have to join the network. This way, while others will use your computer as a proxy, you’ll be able to use their computers to hide your online activity.

Next step is to create an account here. Then enter the username and password and login.

You can use it to anonymize your downloads (BitTorrent tab) or for anonymous browsing (Browser tab).

In order to browse anonymously Launch Anonymous Browser. This is a Firefox browser that uses their network and drives your traffic through different peers.

InnomiNet Interview about BitBlinder

Jia Ji interviewed the founders of InnomiNet about BitBlinder during the 2009 Innovation Works annual meeting. Here is the video that explains how it works:

BitBlinder Community

The app is still in beta. There are still problems to be solved and features to be added. If you are interested in the project you can join the community. Get involved!