VPN

NordVPN – Multihop With TOR

This article has been updated 15 April 2018


Nord VPN is based in and operates under the jurisdiction of Panama. Roberto Vega Senior Support Manager for Nord VPN explains how their VPN service and  encryption works:

For OpenVPN protocol we allow peers to authenticate each other using username and password, certificates, or a pre-shared secret key. When used in a multi-client server configuration, it allows the server to launch an authentication certificate for every user using certificate authority and signature. It uses the OpenSSL encryption library broadly as well as TLSv1/SSLv3 protocols and consists of many control and security features.
Transport Layer Security (TLS) and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) use cryptography to secure connections over the Internet. Both protocols use a “handshake” authentication method that involves a negotiation of network parameters between server machines and the client. An authentication process involving certificates is used in order to initiate connection successfully. Certificates as cryptographic keys and they are stored on the client and the server.

NordVPN offers a multihop (Double VPN) option. Double VPN fixed routes are added often. The two hop VPN routes are static and are not user configurable. You  cannot choose an entry and exit point, like you can with the IVPN service.
Once you sign up for the service, you will log into your account and download the VPN software for your device. Notice below NordVPN offers support for a wide array of devices, operating systems, routers, and cell phones which includes: All Windows operating systems from Windows XP and up, Mac OS X, Linux, Android and iPhones, iPads, Rasberry Pi, DD-WRT and Tomato routers:
nord-device-support

Here is a compete list of NordVPN supported devices


Countries and Servers

NordVPN currently has 26 countries of VPN servers exit points for you to choose from. The countries include: Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy,Japan, Lativa, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and the USA.
The options of your VPN route can be selected from the VPN software once installed. You will be able to connect to servers which support P2P, dedicated Netflix streaming servers, servers for various countries for specific news and TV channels etc. Connection speeds are also shown allowing you to choose the fastest servers for your region. Here you are able to connect by a visual map to any of Nord’s worldwide VPN servers:

Nord VPN Connect by Map Region

You can also connect by a list of country specific VPN exit points.

Clicking on the countries will give you the ability to see each VPN server’s load and choose among them.

Below is your options for Nord VPN you can customize:

You can easily add apps and programs to be automatically shutdown if for some reason the VPN fails by using the VPN kill switch option as seen above. When clicking Add more applications you can then choose applications from those installed on your computer or device:

 

Below is a list of the advanced options:


TOR over VPN

Nord has the option of using TOR over VPN:

Our unique Tor over VPN solution sends encrypted traffic over the Tor network. From there, it goes on a convoluted trip around the world, making it impossible to trace back to the source. And because there are no logs, there’s no record on our end. Want even more? Use our custom-designed DoubleVPN with Tor over VPN for double-encrypted, multi-hop, maximum protection.

Basically your NordVPN endpoint accesses the TOR network. Your TOR access point would only see the NordVPN IP. This option a significantly slows browsing speeds compared to using a direct VPN tunnel, however this does offer a unique level of security on top of VPN.
A TOR over VPN route would look like this:

nord-tor-over-vpn


Privacy Policy

NordVPN’s privacy policy states:

NordVPN does not monitor, store or record logs for any VPN user. We do not store connection time stamps, used bandwidth, traffic logs, IP addresses.We do not get related in any form of censorship, give away your personal information to any third party. We do not fulfill any information request unless it comes with a court order of competent jurisdiction. NordVPN does not keep or store any logs about its users. However, we need to keep some information about the users:
-User e-mail – to send the latest NordVPN news and to retrieve a lost password.
-Username – it is necessary to make a VPN connection.
-Payment information – we store billing information in case of a refund request.

DMCA, Bittorrent, and subpoenas

When questioning a NordVPN representative about what information would they provide if being served with a DMCA subpoena for user information, their response was this:

Our special server configuration allows us to do not log anything because all data goes to /dev/null directory which is like a black hole in the server. All datacenters have an ability (if they have configured their service in that way) to see the requests sent from the server to the website and the other way round. However, it is not possible for them to see the content of those requests. Nevertheless it could not be associated with the respective user.
We will answer the DMCA claim and if needed will take down the server for an hour or so, however these cases are rare since not all servers / countries we provide have P2P enabled.

At the moment you can torrent by connecting to Netherlands / Sweden / New Zealand / Luxembourg / Germany #5-65 / US #16. 23, #25-300 servers. These P2P servers change somewhat often but are visible to users when hovering the mouse over the server list in the VPN software.


List of NordVPN Features

  • Strict no log policy
  • Connect 6 devices at the same time
  • SSL-based 2048-bit encryption
  • Use VPN with iPhone, iPad, Android, router, Windows mobile
  • Firewall pass-through
  • Support (24/7) via live chat, email, and Facebook
  • Servers in 28 countries and growing regularly
  • Encrypted chat
  • OpenVPN, PPTP, L2TP, IPSec protocols
  • Secret notes
  • OpenVPN on SSL ports
  • Convenient server map & custom software
  • Free proxy list and up to 3000 free proxies
  • Tor over VPN server
  • Supports Windows, Mac OS, iOS, Linux, and Android
  • Double VPN for increased anonymity
  • Shared IP (static/dynamic) and Dedicated IP
  • Web proxy extension for Google Chrome
  • Pay using Bitcoin, PayPal, Paysera, Webmoney, or credit card
  • Custom software for Windows and OS X
  • iPhone & iPad apps, Android app coming soon
  • Own DNS servers

Conclusion

NordVPN has many useful features and excellent support. I was able to reach support chat almost instantaneously, which is available 24hours a day.
The cost is significantly less than our other reviewed service IVPN. NordVPN has more servers to choose from while offering more location options. With Nord, the user really only has to designate weather to use the app kill switch; shutting down only specific apps in the event of a VPN disconnection or the Internet kill switch; shutting down your entire connection to the internet in the event the VPN disconnects. This is a very important step to configure so your privacy will not be compromised if your VPN gets disconnected. I have seen this happen more often on the cell phone apps rather than the desktop VPN. IVPN on the other hand automatically protects all processes without user configuration.
NordVPN allows for up to six devices to use the service simultaneously. If you need more than three you will have to purchase another license.
NordVPN takes your privacy serious and offers its users a system which enhances users privacy and protection while online. If you are looking for a reputable VPN service NordVPN is worthy of your consideration.
If this was article was helpful for you, please consider clicking on our affiliate button below to signup & install NordVPN. We receive a small commission for your referral. Thank you!

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