PureVPN logging policy

As I have explained several times on this blog, it is hard to tell if “no logging” really means that no (to be read zero) logs are kept for each user or connection. I believe that “No logs” is more likely a marketing strategy and that most of the VPN (Virtual Private Network) providers are maintaining (some) logs for their protection. Logs that can, in some cases, be handed out to authorities.

A few days ago, the news about PureVPN helping the FBI with logs for catching a cyberstalker came as a surprise. The service was advertised as “zero logging,” but it seems that it was not the case.

Was it a surprise?

The PureVPN privacy policy starts with “We Do Not monitor user activity nor do we keep any logs.“, but if you look closer you may find out that “Our servers automatically record the time at which you connect to any of our servers. From here on forward, we do not keep any records of anything that could associate any specific activity to a specific user. The time when a successful connection is made with our servers is counted as a ‘connection,’ and the total bandwidth used during this connection is called ‘bandwidth.’“. Thus, some logs are kept for ALL users. Are these all logs that are stored on the PureVPN servers? Well, who knows?

Anyway, PureVPN did what most of the companies would have done in the same situation: provided the info requested by the FBI.

It is debatable if what they did was wrong or not. The question is: what can you, as a PureVPN user, do? And the answer is simple: if you don’t care about logs you don’t need to do anything, but if you do, you need to start looking for alternatives.

Is PureVPN a good VPN service?

Yes, it is! PureVPN is one of the top VPN providers with some excellent features:

• Large VPN server network.
• Great VPN applications.
• Kill switch, split tunneling.
• Competitive pricing.

How to look for PureVPN alternatives?

Take a look at the list below or search Google. You will find plenty of PureVPN alternatives for surfing anonymously and unblocking restricted websites. Do not jump to the first one that looks good! Take your time and look for user reviews and reviews written by bloggers. These will help you make an informed choice.

7 PureVPN alternatives – Top VPN (Virtual Private Networks) providers

I have selected seven excellent VPN alternatives to PureVPN that may offer what you need: an extended number of server locations, unlimited bandwidth, excellent support, and good connection speed. Make sure you also read the additional tips.

Is there such a thing as the best VPN? In my (humble) opinion, no. You need to find the VPN service (Virtual Private Network) that is suitable for you and that fulfills your needs.

Additional tips

Before you proceed to the alternatives, here are some additional tips:

• Start with ibVPN. It is an excellent alternative to PureVPN. It offers a free trial, and it is somehow similar to PureVPN. It also provides SmartDNS (with plenty of channels – not a VPN solution!), access to Softether VPN protocol, great apps, and excellent support, DNS leak protection, IP address leak protection. However, ibVPN’s servers network is smaller (United States, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, etc.). You may read our complete ibVPN review here.
• If you are not interested in SmartDNS, then go for NordVPN or ExpressVPN. They have plenty of servers, good connections, excellent support, kill switch, leak protection, great data encryption, good Internet security options.
• Are you using split tunneling? Then ExpressVPN is your alternative to PureVPN.
• Private Internet Access is also an excellent VPN service, a PureVPN alternative when it comes to VPN server speed! Take a look at our PIA speed tests.
• If you are interested in free alternatives to PureVPN, you may try Hotspot Shield. But don’t expect much in terms of online security and privacy. Free, means well … that you are the product!

My advice is to create a subscription for the smallest period available (one or 3 months). Thus, you will be able to thoroughly test the alternative service before committing to a more extended billing agreement.

Please share your experience with alternatives to PureVPN in the comments below.

Double VPN allows you to increase your security while connecting to a VPN. Learn about this VPN approach and its advantages.

What is Double VPN or VPN chains?

Double VPN (VPN chain or multihop VPN) is a VPN technology allowing you to browse securely and anonymously by connecting to a chain of servers interconnected via a VPN tunnel. When the user connects to a Double VPN server, the first server redirects the Internet traffic to a second server, with all the traffic subjected to several encoding steps. Thus, the intermediate server is only used to ensure pass-through traffic but not the connection to an external network.

The working principle is rather simple. Firstly, the VPN client/app connects to a VPN server which then routes all your Internet traffic to another VPN server from where it reaches the destination. The traffic is encrypted within the two VPN layers before getting to the desired website.

Your computer >> First VPN server >> Second VPN server >> Destination

Advantages and disadvantages of using the Double VPN technology

You may not need using a VPN chain if you want to unlock remote services in your country (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, etc.). But, when it is about a high level of anonymity, double VPN can be of great help.

The main advantage of this approach is that the traffic between your device or computer to the desired destination is doubled encrypted. Thus, it is harder to be detected and decoded. Plus, your public IP address is supplementary protected.

You may already guess the disadvantage: the double encryption slows the Internet connection. However, in some cases, the multihop connection between the chain VPN servers can be so well optimized that it compensates the time lost due to the VPN encryption/decryption process. Thus, the Double VPN connection speeds may depend on the VPN provider.

To sum up, multihop VPN is suitable for high security, but I do not recommend it for unblocking restricted websites.

How to get it?

There are two ways to get and use it: use two VPN services (preferably from different providers) or use a VPN service that offers Double VPN technology as a service.

Setup your DoubleVPN

You may find a possible scenario for setting up your VPN chain. You need two VPN accounts and a router. If you are looking for right VPN providers here are some that I recommend: HideMyAss and ibVPN.

1. Set up the first VPN on your router. It will be your hardware VPN.

2. Start the second VPN from your device or computer (using your Windows/macOS/iOS/Android Internet Connection settings, or a VPN software). It will be your software VPN.

3. By connecting to the software VPN, your VPN connections will also be encrypted by the hardware VPN, obtaining the VPN chain.

Double VPN providers

There are VPN services that offer Double VPN or VPN chains as a service. They use inter-connected VPN servers, which double encrypt the traffic. The advantage of this approach is that, firstly, you need to purchase only one VPN service and secondly, you connect to it in the same way you connect to the single VPN.

NordVPN DoubleVPN – One such provider is NordVPN with the following nodes (entry/exit):

• Lithuania – Latvia -> lt-lv1.nordvpn.com
• Netherlands – Russia -> nl1-ru1.nordvpn.com
• Netherlands – United Kingdom -> nl-uk1.nordvpn.com
• Russia – Netherlands -> ru-nl1.nordvpn.com
• Taiwan – Hong Kong -> tw-hk1.nordvpn.com
• United Kingdom – Netherlands -> uk-nl1.nordvpn.com

ibVPN DoubleVPN – Another one is ibVPN the offers access to the following server locations:

• Netherlands – Singapore -> nl2sg.ibvpn.com
• Netherlands – United States -> nl2us.ibvpn.com
• Singapore – Netherlands -> sg2nl.ibvpn.com
• Singapore – United States -> sg2us.ibvpn.com
• United States – Netherlands -> us2nl.ibvpn.com 
• United States – Singapore -> us2sg.ibvpn.com

You may read more about the ibVPN multihop VPN here. It is available for all major operating systems, including Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. You may set up the chain VPNs servers from the VPN apps, or you may set them up manually.

How to check your DoubleVPN?

To check if you are connected to a double-hop VPN, you may perform a simple test: click Start-Run, type the cmd. In the window that opens, enter tracert google.com. You will see the entire route that passes traffic, including through the servers you have selected. After you do the test without being connected to the VPN, you should do it again when connected. Check the differences. You should see additional entries corresponding to the two chain VPN servers that route your Internet traffic.

What do you think about it?

Do you use it? Do you consider it secure? Let us know in the comments below.

OpenVPN protocol uses an RSA handshake to secure communication when a VPN connection is created. Learn why it is essential to know the type of the OpenVPN RSA handshake key used by your VPN provider.

What is the RSA handshake encryption?

RSA is a public-key encryption system (aka cryptosystem) used for securing the data transmission. In such a system the encryption key is public and the decryption key is kept secret (private key).

A user of RSA creates and publishes the public key. Anyone can use the public key to encrypt a message, but the message can be decrypted only by those that have access to the private key.

When an OpenVPN VPN connection is created, the negotiation between the server and the client is done using SSL implemented with the RSA handshake keys. This handshake occurs at the very beginning of an OpenVPN session, not for all OpenVPN connections.

RSA-1024 cracked, RSA-2048 considered safe

The length of the keys (1024-bit, 2048-bit, 4096-bit) is crucial as it determines the level of security. But, it may also slow down the connection speed. The larger the key, the slower the connection.

It was demonstrated that the 1024-bit RSA handshake key could be cracked and it probably has been by different organizations (NSA alike). After the demonstration was published, most of the providers in the security industry have upgraded their RSA handshake keys to RSA-2048 or RSA-4096 that are considered secure.

OpenVPN RSA handshake keys and the VPN providers. Why are they important?

RSA-2048 is considered the minimum standard VPN encryption for commercial VPN providers.

If a VPN provider uses RSA-1024 than the communication between your computer/device and the VPN server may be compromised. It is not something you want!

Important! You should check the length of the OpenVPN RSA handshake key of your current VPN provider or before you subscribe to a new one.

VPN providers & the RSA key length

I have checked the level of encryption (the length of OpenVPN RSA handshake key) used by the providers I use regularly and that I keep an eye on it. Here are the results:

What do you think?

What do you think of the RSA key size? Is it important?

Do you look at the length of the RSA encryption key when you choose your VPN provider? What VPN service or VPN client do you use? Do you use different encryption methods for Windows and Mac?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.