Rebel Tech AllianceVPNs
Alternatives to: showing your IP address to Big Tech
A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a way to send your internet traffic through an encrypted tunnel. Your activity will look like it's coming from the IP address used by the VPN, not your real IP address. This will hide your online activity from Big Tech snooping.
Some people use VPNs to access streaming media in different territories, e.g. seeing the US version of Netflix while you're in Europe. This fine but we also recommend them for everyday use, on the condition that they are from a provider with a 'no logs' policy and regular security and privacy audits. This means they do not store any information about you or your activity, and an external body can verify this.
All the VPNs in this list have a 'no logs' policy, and regular security audits:
| VPN name | Open Source | Browser extension | Use on router | Best Features | Country of Origin | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nord | Linux client only | All browsers | Yes | Large amount of servers; Fastest in this list; Other Nord apps | Netherlands / Lithuania / Panama | Nord VPN |
| Mullvad | Yes | Firefox-based only | Yes | Anonymous signup; €5 per month flat rate; Split tunneling on Linux; European; Fast | Sweden | Mullvad VPN |
| Proton | Yes | All browsers | Yes | Swiss privacy laws; Other Proton apps; Fast; Good with streaming services | Switzerland | Proton VPN |
| Surfshark | No | All browsers | Yes | Unlimited devices; Low prices | Holland | Surfshark VPN |
RTA's choice
Our team uses Nord and Mullvad VPNs for day to day use.
An honourable mention goes to Windscribe, who also have a no logs policy but we could not find evidence that they undergo regularly security audits. They do, however, provide a Transparency Report to claim that they have never complied with law enforecment request because they do not have the data in the first place.
Missing from the list above is ExpressVPN. They do have a no logs policy but they are headquartered in China (Hong Kong). Filtering out Chinese products is a personal choice of RTA and may be acceptable to others.
N.B. Surfshark is owned by Nord Security, the company that makes NordVPN, but is run as a separate company.