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Tag Archives: VPN

UK VPN usage explodes as Digital Economy Bill progresses

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The use of virtual private networks (VPNs) has increased dramatically in the UK as the controversial Digital Economy Bill and Investigatory Powers Bill have progressed through parliament. In the case of some VPNs, UK customers have more than doubled, with many concerned for their privacy and access to content. The …

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Netflix HQ besieged by anti-VPN-blocking van advert

In an effort to hammer home to Netflix how much it dislikes geoblocking and the streaming service's crackdown on people getting around it using virtual private networks (VPNs), pro-privacy campaigners at OpenMedia, have been driving a truck around Netflix's headquarters, protesting the move. The van in question features a large …

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Netflix insists its VPN blockade isn’t hurting business

It has been a few months since Netflix officially announced that it would be taking a harder stance against VPN users and those trying to circumvent geographical content restrictions. This has been a fairly controversial move but apparently, it isn't having an effect at all on the company's pocket. During …

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VPN users say Netflix crackdown will make pirates of them

The fact that Netflix offers different content to different users in different regions, has always meant people have tried to find ways around that geoblocking. One popular method has been to use a virtual private network (VPN) service, but with Netflix's recent crackdown, a lot of users are now considering …

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PayPal to start cutting off payments to VPN services

PayPal is already known for its stance against Torrent sites and file-hosting services but now it seems that the payment processor has an issue with VPN and SmartDNS services too. This week, PayPal began refusing to accept payments for a company providing users with VPN or SmartDNS tools to bypass …

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Apple to pay $625 million over infringing Messenger patents

Apple has found itself on the wrong end of a patent infringement suit, with a US judge ordering the company to shell out $625 million over infringing patents with the iMessage and FaceTime services/apps. A jury ruled in favor of a company known as VirnetX, finding Apple guilty of infringing …

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Soldiers given go-ahead to bypass Netflix geoblocking

Under the pressure of movie studios and politicians, Netflix has become much more interested in cracking down on those circumventing its content geo-blocks, forcing people to only watch what's available in their home country. However the streaming service is giving a pass to all army base users, allowing soldiers to …

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Netflix has begun its assault on proxies and VPNs

A couple of weeks back, Netflix formally announced for the first time that it would be actively going after and blocking proxy/VPN services in an effort to stop users getting passed region blocks on content and now, we are starting to see the results of that. Over in Australia, a …

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Netflix confirms plans to shut off proxy access

Netflix is a decent enough service but due to geographic content restrictions and licensing issues, the US tends to have the best overall library of content, causing many subscribers across the world to use VPNs or proxy services to spoof their location. In the past, Netflix hasn't really done much …

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EU Commission may make geo-blocking invalid in Europe

As much as digital streaming companies like Netflix and Amazon have offered us more content in the past few years than has ever been so easily accessible before, one major frustration remains: geo-blocking. However in the future we may all have the same content available, as the European Commission (EUC) …

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VPN flaw could allow anyone to view users’ real IPs

In the wake of the Edward Snowden revelations, obfuscating systems like encryption, the Tor browser and virtual private networks (VPN) have been championed by privacy advocates the world over as the best ways to protect your data online. However, that latter step may not be as useful as initially thought, …

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Canadian ISP owner calls her own child a ‘VPN thief’

Restricting content to certain parts of the world always seems like a bizarre choice for media companies. In the hope of securing licensing deals in different continents for the same content, they limit where in the world it can be viewed, leaving those that want to watch it two options: use …

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Hola speaks out on recent botnet accusations

Last week, it was revealed that one of the most popular VPN extensions for Google Chrome, Hola, had been caught out selling its user's bandwidth via a separate company in order to allow attackers to send DDOS attacks to other sites or services. At the time, it was 8Chan that …

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NZ VPN providers set to be sued by TV networks

Two steadfast VPN and internet providers based in New Zealand, which refused to comply with demands set by media corporations are set to be hit by legal action in the coming few days. While they have technically done nothing illegal by offering the service, it's being argued by both TVNZ …

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Russia may be set to ban VPN and TOR usage

In a move that sounds an awful lot like David Cameron's recent announcement that he would go after effective encryption standards in the event of his re-election, a member of parliament in Putin's government is pushing for a ban on VPN and TOR access, in an attempt to stop people …

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Piracy warning letters increase interest in VPNs

The effectiveness of warning letters sent to households that are thought to have downloaded media that's copyright protected is pretty much unknown. Some people pay up if money is demanded to make the whole thing go away, some ignore it and others fight it saying that it certainly wasn't them. However …

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Netflix reveals that VPN crackdown claims are false

Netflix has come out to deny recent reports stating that the company is ‘cracking down' on customer VPN use. The company said that its existing policy on regional restrictions and VPN use shall remain in-tact and no changes are being made. Netflix's Chief Product Officer, Neil Hunt, said at CES …

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Netflix is blocking VPNs and proxies

If you've been used to accessing Netflix's vast library of North American content while living outside of the continent, by using a proxy or VPN, you may be out of luck, as the streaming media company has now begun blocking methods of circumventing its geographical limiters. This is a real …

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Swedish ISP protecting customer privacy with free VPN

Leading Swedish internet service provider, Bahnhof, is making an effort to protect its customer's privacy by supplying a free to use, no-logging VPN service. The new privacy protection measure comes shortly after the Swedish Telecoms Regulator, PTS, ordered Bahnhof to start monitoring and storing communications data under local data retention …

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Kickstarter suspends anonymous router project

August Germar recently launched a project on Kickstarter, Anonabox. The aim was to raise $7500 to build and create a tiny custom router that would send all browsing traffic across the Tor network, ensuring anonymity and traffic encryption. The project made $585,000 in its first five days but it looks like …

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