Enhancing Online Privacy: Choosing Between Tor and VPN

Our lives mostly revolve around the internet. We chat with friends, shop, research illnesses, and do countless other things online. But how much of this can the ISP see? For instance, can ISP know what a file I downloaded from a torrent is? Or can ISP see my shopping history? Can ISP track the websites I visit?

Let’s start with the scenario of browsing the internet. First, consider a simple situation: I open Google and search for information about my illness. Can my internet service provider (ISP) see this? The answer is no. While your ISP can detect that you are connected to Google, it cannot see the specific search query or the search results. Now, imagine clicking on a blog post from a hospital’s website. In this case, your ISP can see that you connected to the hospital’s website, but it cannot determine which specific blog post you read. How does this work? The answer lies in DNS (Domain Name System).

When you want to visit a website, your computer needs to find out the website’s IP address. Think of DNS as the registry of IP addresses. When your computer wants to find the IP address of a website, it queries a DNS server. This request is sent unencrypted so your ISP can see which IP address you accessed and, consequently, which website you visited. Currently, your ISP knows you’re on YouTube, but it doesn’t know which specific video you watched. Why? Because when you connect to a website using HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure), the data transfer between you and the site is encrypted, preventing your ISP from seeing the content.

However, if you connect to an HTTP (unencrypted) website, your browser warns you that the site may not be secure. When you access an HTTP website, your ISP can see all your content and actions. So, pay attention when your browser warns you about this.

Let’s move on to the second scenario: downloading files and using torrents. Your ISP cannot see the content of files you download unless you use HTTP. For example, if someone sends you a link via file-sharing platforms to download a zip file, clicking the download button uses HTTPS. Therefore, your ISP knows you’re on file-sharing platforms and that you downloaded a file, but it cannot see the file’s content. To see the content, you’d need to download via HTTP.

What about torrents? Unfortunately, your ISP can see what you download via torrents. Although it can’t directly view the content, it can identify which torrent file you downloaded and its name. After that, they could download the torrent file themselves and access the content. We’ll discuss how to prevent this using VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) later.

Our third scenario involves online shopping. In this case, as mentioned earlier, your ISP can see that you are connected to shopping platforms, but it cannot determine exactly which products you purchased.

Lastly, in our fourth scenario, let’s discuss emails and messaging apps like WhatsApp and Telegram. Nowadays, emails are sent in an encrypted format. If you use services like Gmail through their websites, you don’t need to worry. Even if you use email clients like Thunderbird, your messages are encrypted in the background.

How can you enhance your privacy and prevent your internet service provider (ISP) from monitoring your online activities?

Here are some options:

1. Virtual Private Network (VPN):A VPN encrypts your internet traffic by routing it through a third-party server. When you use a VPN, your ISP can only see that you’re connected to the VPN, but they cannot decipher the content of your data.However, keep in mind that the VPN provider itself can see which websites you visit and which services you use. Choose a reputable VPN service, as free VPNs may compromise your privacy.
2. Tor (The Onion Router):Tor is even more secure and anonymous than VPNs. It relies on a network of volunteer-operated computers.When you send a request through Tor, it passes through three separate computers. The first computer knows only your IP address. The second computer doesn’t have information about you; it only forwards encrypted data. The third computer knows only the website you want to visit.None of these three computers has complete information about you. The second and third computers don’t even know your IP address. Tor provides stronger anonymity than VPNs.

Remember that while both VPNs and Tor enhance privacy, no solution is perfect. Choose the one that aligns with your needs and risk tolerance.

Choosing between Tor and VPN depends entirely on your threat model. Let’s explore the considerations for each:

1. Virtual Private Network (VPN):Use a VPN if you want to hide your activities while downloading torrents. VPNs are faster and well-suited for torrent usage.Your ISP will only see that you’re connected to the VPN, but not the specific content you access. Be cautious about free VPNs; choose a reputable service.If you’re concerned about your ISP monitoring which websites you visit, a VPN is a good choice.
2. Tor (The Onion Router):Tor provides stronger anonymity. It routes your traffic through a network of volunteer-operated computers.When using Tor, no single computer has complete information about you. The first computer knows only your IP address, the second forwards encrypted data, and the third knows only the website you want to visit.Tor is free and doesn’t require payment.Avoid using Tor for scenarios like logging into your YouTube account or accessing websites that could potentially de-anonymize you.Tor is ideal when you want to visit a few specific websites without your ISP knowing.

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