We noticed that most of the models, camming at different sites, are not using a VPN Internet Connection or are aware that they could be tracked, traced and possible hacked due to the use of a regular connection from the ISP (Internet Service Provider). Using a Wi-Fi or LAN connection can compromise the security in a couple of ways:
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Without a VPN:
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Without a VPN Connection using Wi-Fi with an open hot spot means you are browsing unencrypted and unencrypted means that an attacker can pick up the waves easily.
Malware could be installed to your laptop without your knowledge.
Free Wi-Fi could also be a trap - a not existing, fake Internet - this is called a phishing scam
Using secured Wi-Fi or LAN without a VPN provides also everything you do on the internet to your ISP, they can see where you are at a certain time, which websites you are visiting and were you are broadcasting to!
Your ISP tracks every single IP address you contact.
They can further see and read everything which you are sending over the internet which is not encrypted.
Also, they know what you download or upload from the web.
The Worst case is, if someone finds out your IP address over your ISP or from accessing a general site. If they have your IP, they can track you down easily and pretty close to the location where you are at.
Your IP Address gives Hackers the opportunity to try "breaking into your system". This is managed regularly with open ports on your computer.
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....but you are still safe!
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Just to calm you down, if someone finds out your IP Address it does not provide any personal information about your name, address or any other personal information.
Now to the VPN Connection (Virtual Private Network) and I mean if you are using a "GOOD" VPN service, then you get automatic protection from all the above points.
Your ISP does only see a connection to the VPN, after that he is blind! So everywhere you are going after that is only managed by the VPN Sever which you are connected to. A VPN Service regularly has a lot of Servers in different countries where you can connect to. This way you could use a server close to your streaming site or a complete different country from your present location.
If you check your IP after successful connection to the VPN you will see its different and will tell you also a complete different location from where you are at.
Now to the VPN Connection Provider itself. There are a lot of them out there which are free and also available at a monthly fee. If you go with the free VPN you will certainly have problems broadcasting due to bandwidth limitations and a lot of people using the same server. It might also be that those free servers are blacklisted due to some "illegal" activity and you will have problems accessing sites who use Cloudflare for example.
Going with a paid subscription (monthly or yearly) is the best way.
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The 2 major points
for a good VPN Connection are:
You get a fast VPN connection
The VPN Provider does not keep any logs, which means he does not record anything what you make on the net. Please note that at this point the VPN provider can see what you make.
Now, all of them will tell you that they don't keep any records of log files or the log files will be deleted in so many hours ....
Please also be aware of the data security - each country has different laws and regulations so also if they promise you not to keep log files they still have them on file and, in case that the authorities want to have a look at them, they will provide those files!
The biggest ones like ExpressVPN (claims to operate out of the British Virgin Islands but maybe a Hongkong based company) or NordVPN (claims to operate out of a Panama Offshore location but based in Lithuania) are hiding their real location to get away from the "mandatory data retention laws". You even don't find a contact phone number or address on those websites. I would not trust those guys at all! Thus, the pricing they are providing are the same as a discounter but not the image of a reliable company and service.
If you use a VPN Connection for your business, you should use a professional company to provide you excellent service, a secure and fast line and the fulfillment and not a promise, to not keep any log files.
You can also have a look at our previous post "Country or Geo Blocking - does it really work?"
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Our recommendation:
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We will just recommend 2 and possible the best VPN Providers you can find.
Both of them are based in Switzerland, have many Servers in different countries, have easy to connect software, you can see their address and phone numbers on their website and best of all, they really do not keep any log files. A proof from Perfect Privacy was that 2 Servers were seized in 2016 at the Amsterdam Server location and no data was ever found on that servers which means "no log files".
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Hello! Moment Switzerland - don't they have any data retention laws?
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Here some information copied from the Swiss VPN Hosts:
Under Swiss law, it is not obligated to save connection logs, and we adhere to a strict no-logs VPN policy. Therefore, we are unable to comply with requests for user connection logs, even if they are legally binding. Furthermore, under Swiss law, a Warrant Canary is not meaningful, because under Swiss law, the target of a surveillance or data request must always be eventually notified, so they have the opportunity to contest the data request.
Or here another one:
Perfect Privacy built its infrastructure on this philosophy: All our services are running within strongly encrypted RAM disks so that it is technically impossible for data to be stored on hard drives. That also means that no data can be recovered if the power is disconnected.
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Nobody can force us to log your data. If that were the case, we would rather discontinue Perfect Privacy than to record your data and compromise your privacy.
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Now you can decide
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They are not cheep in comparison with the "normal ones" - between $8,00 to $10,00 per month based on a 1-year plan. There are discounts for longer terms of usage. We have tested both of them for broadcasting to different Cam Sites with good success. The Upload speed slows down a bit but does not interfere with the quality of the stream itself. We tested them over the duration of 1 month at around 20 days in total.
Just check each VPN Connection Provider out yourself and if you have technical questions or concerns you can drop them a line, and they will respond to your request.
Just remember, the most famous VPN Providers are not always the best and not all reviews are trustworthy. Carefully investigate yourself and make the right decission!
Thanks for reading and "be safe on the net"
If you want to dig deeper into the VPN Stuff you can get additional information here:
VPN Wikipedia