Off Topic VPN recommendations

  • Please bear with us on the new site integration and fixing any known bugs over the coming days. If you can not log in please try resetting your password and check your spam box. If you have tried these steps and are still struggling email [email protected] with your username/registered email address
  • Log in now to remove adverts - no adverts at all to registered members!
Kalman said:
I don’t know. It’s a bit like asking “if you had a bicycle, would you need a car?”.

If you live outside the UK, then obviously you don’t need a VPN to watch iFollow because you’re not beholden to British broadcasting regulations of 3pm Saturday kick-offs.
Click to expand...

I live in the UK, but have access to the things mentioned, hence my question.
 
DMD said:
Same question really, if you have access to that through other means, is there any real need to get a VPN?

I'm not trying to be awkward or anything, I'm just trying to understand.
Click to expand...
The MAIN reason for using a VPN is for information security. It reduces the ability for parties to snoop on/steal your internet traffic by encrypting your data, and also offers a degree of anonymity by hiding your ip address from the world. It's the internet equivalent of having a password on your device.

A minor side benefit of this, but far from the most important reason to use a VPN, is that you can spoof your location to sign up for things like iFollow, but as you say, there are plenty of ways to get content for free.

You may want to use a VPN to hide the fact that you are illegally accessing certain internet services though. Some ISPs block these sort of sites. KCom are really lax in that though.

One word of warning though. Never use a free VPN as they may sell your activity on which is how they can give you it free. Also, some paid providers will give your data to the government/police on request. Research which ones don't before signing up if this is important to you.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ric Glasgow and DMD
Kalman said:
How, if you don’t mind me asking?
Click to expand...
There are numerous sites offering sports.

For TV, whether it be HBO, Hulu, Netflix, Prime, BBV, AppleTv, it is really easy to set up automated download processes from the internet and then display on a media server, say, like Plex.
 
Kalman said:
I don’t know. It’s a bit like asking “if you had a bicycle, would you need a car?”.

If you live outside the UK, then obviously you don’t need a VPN to watch iFollow because you’re not beholden to British broadcasting regulations of 3pm Saturday kick-offs.
Click to expand...
... unless you wanted to watch something like BBC i-player, or UK Netflix.
BTW, what was the answer to your question? I have a car but no bicycle.
 
John Ex Aberdeen now E.R. said:
I find it occasionally happens, but you try again a short while later and it works.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your input John. FYI , which may help if it happens again at your end:

I sent them an e-mail describing the issue, and amazingly they responded within 3 hours with some suggestions.
I think the techie help desk may have been in France somewhere given his name. Impeccable English - may have been an AI based techie working on keywords?

I'd already told him I could stream live ITV and UK ch4 ok & that the BBC recognized I was using a VPN because my IP address was "masked"- whatever that means?

- He first suggested trying the other UK servers available on the setup - there are 4 server locales in the UK on the VPN service I use. None would let me stream any of the Beeb channels on iPlayer. I'd already done that before I contacted them initially.

- His other suggestion was to clear cache & cookies, which I also had done a couple of times after rebooting my system (Win 10 desktop) before my request to them. I then, after his response, cleared cache a couple of times after a reboot and this time it worked !!

It's still a mystery as to exactly what really happened - especially as the message on the BBC about a VPN "masking my IP " was the first time I had ever seen it ??

Odd to say the least.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: John Ex Aberdeen now E.R.
tigerscanada said:
Thanks for your input John. FYI , which may help if it happens again at your end:

I sent them an e-mail describing the issue, and amazingly they responded within 3 hours with some suggestions.
I think the techie help desk may have been in France somewhere given his name. Impeccable English - may have been an AI based techie working on keywords?

I'd already told him I could stream live ITV and UK ch4 ok & that the BBC recognized I was using a VPN because my IP address was "masked"- whatever that means?

- He first suggested trying the other UK servers available on the setup - there are 4 server locales in the UK on the VPN service I use. None would let me stream any of the Beeb channels on iPlayer. I'd already done that before I contacted them initially.

- His other suggestion was to clear cache & cookies, which I also had done a couple of times after rebooting my system (Win 10 desktop) before my request to them. I then, after his response, cleared cache a couple of times after a reboot and this time it worked !!

It's still a mystery as to exactly what really happened - especially as the message on the BBC about a VPN "masking my IP " was the first time I had ever seen it ??

Odd to say the least.
Click to expand...
Not an expert in this, but I believe that the sites which work hard to stop VPN use (not many do) will sometimes detect an IP address of a VPN server then block use of it which is why switching to others will sometimes work. Also, I had read that the BBC were one of the most active at trying to detect VPN usage.
 
  • Like
Reactions: tigerscanada
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back