We are dedicating a series of in-depth studies to VPNs (Virtual Private Networks), and in this article, we will focus on these types of network Torrents. As we will see, these files, which represent the extension of a peer-to-peer protocol, potentially expose us to a whole series of risks. For this reason, protecting your connection from possible external attacks takes on an important specific weight, especially when sharing files (as happens with torrents). Let’s proceed in order.
We have analyzed many torrent VPN services, comparing their speed and security, log policies, and encryption protocols. Here, we list the best VPNs on the market.
First, let’s try to understand what a VPN is, what its applications are, and why it is used in certain cases. As already mentioned, the acronym VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. In essence, through a VPN, you can create your private network within the Internet and locate it worldwide by masking your IP address and current location. You can essentially become invisible on the web.
There are essentially two types of VPNs, Trusted VPNs and Secure VPNs, although a third has emerged called Hybrid VPN, which combines the first two. Essentially, in Trusted VPNs, the service manager decides the data path, thus ensuring the fastest one to guarantee the high quality of the connection and also protects against external access. This ensures that the data arrives quickly at its destination, but there is little attention to security. Secure VPNs work differently, placing the focus on data security. They create direct, private connections between your computer and the VPN server via tunneling.
To explain tunneling, it must be clarified that all the information that passes through the Internet travels via packets, data containers that connect any device with servers for data exchange. Many of these packets are encrypted, others are not, but in general, the transit of packets is visible to everyone as the internet is public, even if you cannot see what is inside each packet. The tunneling technique excludes all network nodes from communication except the channel with the server, creating a tunnel between your PC and the server. In essence, it is now a server worldwide that transmits and receives your data, which is then transferred via the private tunnel to your computer, making you invisible to the network because you formally do not send or receive any data packets.
The problem with Secure VPNs is that they do not guarantee high connection quality since they do not choose the best path for the data. This has led to the birth of a new type of VPN, called Hybrid VPN, which combines the security of Secure VPNs with the connection speed of Trusted VPNs.
The reasons for using a Virtual Private Network are many; it can help in many areas:
Anyone can see your IP address when using an unsecured torrent client. This makes it very easy to identify you and find your real location, thus making you vulnerable to hackers and identity thieves. Given how visible the traffic is, hackers can also intercept downloads, infect your device with malware, and steal personal information.
Similarly, torrenting can cause your Internet Service Provider (ISP) to block or limit your connection. Without forgetting how easy it is to come across copyrighted files whose download, it should be remembered, is illegal.
Therefore, it is clear how useful a VPN can be regarding torrent files. For this reason, we have identified the best VPNs designed for this purpose.
Let us move on to our selection, which, it is worth underlining, we will continue to update constantly based on the new services that gradually appear on the market.
The first question you’re probably asking is what NordVPN is. It is a Panamanian company with over 12 million users worldwide; therefore, it is one of the most popular companies for VPNs. Thanks to a proposal that aims to build a complete suite concerning the protection and protection of privacy, NordVPN is one of the most popular companies for VPNs.
The company’s strong point is certainly the VPN service it can offer, which comprises 6200 servers in 104 countries. It is certainly not the only peculiarity of NordVPN, as we will see in the following paragraphs. First, let’s analyze its operation and the cryptographic tool it guarantees.
NordVPN offers three pricing plans. The first is the monthly one: it offers a complete subscription for 12.99 euros per month. In truth, this is the least convenient plan. With the annual plan, things have become more interesting: the cost drops to 4.69 euros per month, decidedly more affordable than the first. In terms of convenience, however, nothing can beat the two-year package for 3.69 euros per month.
In essence, NordVPN intends to incentivize long-term subscriptions at a remarkable price. It is no coincidence that it is cheaper than many other top competitors. There are no clauses of any kind nor requests for personal data and the like. Regarding active payment methods, there are PayPal, credit/debit cards and various cryptocurrencies.
Surfshark VPN is a virtual private network offered by a company based in the British Virgin Islands. The service guaranteed by the company is reliable, fast, and safe, and its quality-price ratio immediately made it one of the most interesting in the market. It is no coincidence that Surfshark VPN is recognized as one of the most convenient solutions: it costs little and works well. It can unblock over 15 streaming sites, has fast speeds globally, offers easy torrent VPN usage, and has a strict no-logs policy.
In addition to this, its strong point is undoubted that it does not apply any limitation to the number of simultaneous connections: it is, therefore, possible to establish a connection with the Surfshark network from any device simultaneously. It uses AES 256-bit encryption to protect all traffic sent through its servers. An encryption level of this type is not exposed to decoding through direct attacks; even government and military agencies use this standard to protect their information.
Surfshark VPN offers three security protocols, including OpenVPN. The MultiHop functionality is also excellent. It encrypts the user’s data twice by passing it through as many servers, a layer of additional privacy that makes tracking one’s position more complex. MultiHop is particularly suitable for those who live in a country that applies strong web censorship or research particularly sensitive topics.
At the moment, Surfshark VPN offers three subscription plans: the least convenient one is the monthly plan at 12.95 euros per month, and the annual one at 3.99 euros per month is already more attractive. However, the 2.30 euro two-year plan is truly unbeatable: finding something cheaper on the market is generally impossible.
The two-year plan also provides the possibility of a refund within 30 days of signing up.
CyberGhost VPN is a private virtual network based in Romania, founded in 2011. It is one of the best because it remarkably combines an excellent range of tools offered at a truly advantageous price. In summary, it has one of the most interesting quality-price ratios, along with Surfshark VPN. There are several reasons: it is a safe VPN, absolutely legal, fast thanks to its network of optimized servers, and therefore ideal for watching streaming content, playing online, and using torrents. But let’s see in more detail how it works and the features it can boast.
We could summarize CyberGhost’s performance: excellent functioning at a low price. It guarantees excellent speeds for streaming, VPN torrents and online gaming, is capable of unblocking over 35 streaming sites, has a high level of security and privacy and has a strict no-logs policy. In addition, its offer also includes native apps for Android and iOS, and it is even possible to download free browser extensions for Chrome or Firefox.
CyberGhost uses the 256-bit AES encryption module on all its servers. This encryption is impossible to decipher and is used by military and government agencies to protect confidential information.
As we said, this VPN service’s pricing policy is one of the reasons it is worth buying. At the moment, CyberGhost offers four subscription plans: the least convenient one is the monthly plan for 11.99 euros, then there is the annual one for 3.75 euros per month, the biennial one for 3.19 euros per month, and the best three-year one for 2 euros per month, which also offers three extra months free. Only Surfshark VPN can compete in this regard.
As the name suggests, PrivateVPN is a service focused on protecting your privacy and personal data, which can often be compromised online. By opting for this virtual private network, recognized as among the best on the market, users benefit from reliable servers supported by a strict no-logs policy, advanced security protocols such as OpenVPN, L2TP/IPsec, and IKEv2, and mechanisms to optimize and stabilize connections.
Among the most interesting features is Stealth VPN, designed to evade government filters in countries with severe censorship but is also an ally for masking internet connections in different countries. The kill switch is only available for Windows. A significant lack is split tunneling.
The network includes over 200 servers in 63 countries, ensuring global coverage. PrivateVPN allows simultaneous connection of up to 10 devices, does not record data on the connection or server use, and is particularly safe thanks to Sweden’s favorable legislation. Without specialized streaming servers, those with dedicated IPs offer hassle-free access to the most popular streaming platforms. And they all support the P2P protocol.
Regarding customer support, PrivateVPN goes beyond live chat and email by offering remote support via TeamViewer. This tool allows operators to manage the user’s desktop and resolve issues directly.
By subscribing to a three-year subscription, the cost is only €2.08 per month, a very competitive price compared to other well-known services. PrivateVPN accepts payments via credit, debit, PayPal, and Bitcoin cards and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on all plans.
ExpressVPN has over 3,000 servers in 160 locations across 94 countries. The user then has a wide choice to visit censored sites (e.g., in China ) or bypass geo-restrictions of streaming services (e.g., Netflix ) while hiding the device’s true IP address. Key features include unlimited bandwidth, 256-bit AES encryption, no connection logs, a kill switch, and split tunneling. TrustedServer technology guarantees maximum privacy, as the data is stored only on RAM (no hard disks or SSDs).
ExpressVPN works via extension on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Chrome OS, Apple TV, smart TVs, PlayStation, Xbox, routers, and browsers (Chrome, Firefox, and Edge). With a single subscription, you can use five devices simultaneously.
Currently, the most convenient plan is the annual one at 7.12 euros/month, which allows a 35% savings. Payment can be made by credit card, PayPal, or Bitcoin. The company also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
A discreet VPN at a super advantageous price: Private Internet Access VPN is one of the most interesting solutions and is best equipped for this type of proposal. Its strong points are certainly the reliability, security, and privacy it guarantees.
We are talking about one of the best VPNs within its price range. It is equipped with high-level encryption, DNS leak protection, a server network of over 3300 units, and many other features relevant to the VPN landscape. These include SOCKS5 compatibility, a kill switch, and support for every protocol apart from IKEv2 and VPN torrent. Additionally, up to 5 simultaneous connections are included. The speeds are decent (but certainly not its strong point) and the customer service could be improved.
PIA VPN is a virtual private network equipped with military-grade encryption. The protocol is, in fact, AES-256, which is the one approved by the NSA to encrypt Secret documents and is also used in many cases by government and military agencies. It is encryption that is impossible to decipher, which, therefore, guarantees an impeccable level of security.
At the moment, Private Internet Access VPN offers three plans. The first is the monthly one, which is also the least convenient: it costs 9.29 euros per month. The second plan is the middle ground: an annual subscription costs 3.19 euros per month. Finally, the most convenient plan is a two-year package for 2.50 euros per month, giving you two months free.
HMA (HideMyAss) has a large network, fast speeds, and robust security. Its global network includes over 1,000 servers in over 190 countries, but only eight are optimized for P2P connections. P2P servers are in France, Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Data and IP addresses are protected by military-grade 256-bit AES encryption, supporting multiple encryption protocols. Connection leak protection provides additional security. The Mac, Windows, and Android apps have an automatic kill switch. Excluding iOS apps, all HMA clients are also equipped with the IP Shuffle function, which automatically assigns a new IP address after a certain period. This can help you avoid online tracking and surveillance.
HMA has been reported to have caved into claims related to US copyright infringement by providing authorities with user-identifying data. Since then, HMA has updated its data policy, and now the only information recorded about the user is the date of connection and the amount of data transferred. So, torrent activity with HMA is now completely confidential.
This provider, recently acquired by Avast, offers several customer support methods. You can receive support via social networks, consult detailed guides and tutorials on the website, or contact agents via 24/7 fast-response live chat. Five devices can be connected to HMA simultaneously, and there are no restrictions on data usage. Try it risk-free thanks to its 30-day money-back guarantee.
We have already partly addressed this topic. Peer-to-peer file sharing inevitably exposes you to potential privacy issues. Therefore, the use of Torrent is not safe from this point of view unless it is coupled with a Torrent VPN, as fully explained in this article.
The answer is no, although a clarification needs to be made. Free VPNs are tools that can be more than adequate for certain uses. In this case, however, the point revolves around all those features (encryption, dedicated servers, etc.) reserved for the paid versions and which are crucial for using torrents in complete safety.
Torrent downloading programs are not illegal. Downloading BitTorrent, uTorrent or similar programs is not an activity that breaks the law. They are very often software distributed free of charge and, therefore, usable by everyone. However, what is illegal is the use that is very often made of these means. These programs are just a means of sharing files, which is perfectly legal. However, if Torrents are used to share pirated material and files protected by copyright, you are breaking the law and risk receiving hefty fines.
Malaysia, Australia, Portugal, and China are the countries where torrenting is regulated by the strictest regulations. However, torrenting and access to geo-blocked programs are not taken lightly. In 2015, our country launched its most significant blocking of torrenting sites. This resulted in over 120 international torrent sites being blacked out by local ISPs. Since then, dozens of domains and sites have been censored inside and outside the country. If found guilty of illegal torrenting, you could face a prison term of six months to three years and a financial fine.
You've been hearing about Torrent for some time but never really explored what it is. If you are now looking for some more information, this is the right place.
Let's answer your question right away: Torrent is a network that is one of the most used P2P systems in the world. And .torrent files, in short, are documents of a few KB that allow applications such as uTorrent, qBitTorrent, and Transmission (i.e., BitTorrent clients) to download and share files on the BitTorrent network.
These links direct clients to the files that the user wants to download to their device. Alternatively, there are also magnet links, i.e., special links that allow you to download data from the network without using any file as an intermediary.
But this is yet another matter. First, we advise you to find a search engine capable of finding files hosted on all the main Torrent sites and providing detailed information regarding the number of sources that share them online.
Among the search engines for Torrent files that we would recommend most, we would like to point out Zooqle, TorrentSeeker, and BTDigg. That said, when using an unsecured torrent client, anyone can see your IP address, making it easier to identify the user. You will be vulnerable to attacks from hackers and identity thieves, who can intercept downloads and steal personal information.
And that's not all: in the Torrent system it is very easy to come across copyrighted files (the download of which is illegal). For all these reasons, relying on a good VPN seems very useful.
Generally, no. There are free VPNs for Torrents, too, but we do not recommend them. The reasons are easy to explain: they have major limitations.
Of course, they are tools that may prove adequate for certain uses. However, the point is that not all the features in the premium versions are in the free ones. We are referring to features such as encryption, dedicated servers, high performance, etc.
These are all elements reserved for the paid versions, and which are crucial for using Torrents in complete safety. Not to mention that connection speeds in free VPNs are halved or worse.
There are many reasons why we recommend a paid private virtual network, which is more reliable and efficient. As far as free VPNs are concerned, we recommend them only for users who want to try the service, test it in its free version, and then possibly move on to the premium one.
All VPNs slow down your connection speed a bit. This is a side effect of encrypting data and sending it to servers worldwide.
Some even reside a few thousand km away. However, the answer to the question, with reference to Torrent, is negative: you will not notice any major slowdowns in your connection. Despite a minimal slowdown, the many other positive aspects make using the VPN particularly attractive.
The use of a VPN for torrent files is obvious. There are many reasons why a virtual private network service can help in various areas. Firstly, a VPN protects your communications, making data practically inaccessible thanks to a real encryption system.
In addition to this, it avoids tracking and recording browsing sessions through connection to a dedicated server, bypasses the blocks of any censored DNS (thanks to the possibility of connecting to servers located anywhere in the world), guarantees maximum security when it uses public WiFi, eliminates geographical restrictions using streaming services and finally makes the use of torrent files safe thanks to the non-traceability of the IP address.
We first answer this question by telling you that several interesting VPN solutions for torrent use are on the market.
However, if we really have to recommend a particular provider, we would lean towards CyberGhost VPN. Thanks to its network of optimized servers, it is a safe, absolutely legal, fast VPN that is, therefore, ideal for watching streaming content, playing online, and using torrents.
It allows you to unlock many features that would otherwise be unavailable with the traditional connection while maintaining anonymity while browsing. It also guarantees a strict no-logs policy and has military-grade AES 256-bit encryption.
Performance-wise, it provides really good browsing speed. Maybe not at the level of NordVPN or Surfshark in this respect, but it makes up for it with a truly impressive server network dedicated to streaming (it can unblock over 35 streaming sites). It allows you to access all the most popular services, including Netflix and Disney.
Cyberghost servers are present in more than 90 countries. Its offer also includes native apps for Android and iOS, and it is even possible to download free browser extensions for Chrome or Firefox.
Finally, the prices are truly advantageous: we particularly recommend the three-year plan.
See also our guide to the best VPN services.