A VPN service provides you with the potential to enjoy completely anonymous surfing, but you have to make sure you’re set up right on your end. Even if you’re using one of the clients provided by a VPN service to set up your network, you could be vulnerable. Here are some things you can check to enhance your privacy.
PPTP Needs a Fix
There is a known security flaw with PPTP and IPv6. To fix it, you have to enter commands into a command line on both Windows and Linux. For Windows computers, log on as the administrator and type the following command at a command line prompt:
netsh interface teredo set state disabled
This security risk also applies to Ubuntu users on builds 10+. Type the following commands in your terminal:
echo “#disable ipv6″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo “net.ipv6.conf.all.disable_ipv6 = 1″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo “net.ipv6.conf.default.disable_ipv6 = 1″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf
echo “net.ipv6.conf.lo.disable_ipv6 = 1″ | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf’
These commands prevent your IP from being accidentally revealed due to a security shortcoming.
Use a Utility
There are several utilities out there that you can use to enhance your security. VPNCheck and VPNNetMon both monitor your connection and, if your real IP starts leaking, they shut down your main network connection. They do this by making sure that your VPN provider is always there. VPNCheck only works over PPTP and L2TP/IPsec connections.
Check Your DNS
You may be encrypting all your traffic and, at the same time, querying your ISP’s DNS server for pages. This creates an obvious security hole. Go to DNSLeakTest.com to see if you are suffering from this security risk. Fixing the problem is not terribly difficult and, if you prefer, there are tools available that will do it for you.
Payment Services
If you’re positively convinced that you need the utmost in privacy, private payment options are great ways to make sure that you’re as untraceable as possible. You can user services such as Bitcoin or other services that allow you to purchased net based product in complete anonymity. Doing so makes the transaction as untraceable as a cash transaction.
Securing your VPN is something you have to do some work to accomplish. If you’re ready to take Internet privacy to the next level, make sure you check your computer from the above-listed security flaws and make sure you use a VPN provider that does not keep records of your traffic!
Leave a Reply