Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 31

Thread: Newsgroup download security question

  1. #1
    Is SSL encryption to the Usenet provider enough to stay safe, or is purchasing a VPN to cover traffic, which still transmits through the ISP and modern firewalls can do packet inspection, leading me to believe that a simple port mirror would allow them to capture anything necessary to rebuild a downloaded collection. Does the VPN completely secure and negate those concerns? Thanks for any advice. I'm sure it's been asked 1000 times already.

  2. Newsgroups   -   #2
    A VPN should prevent your ISP from knowing what you are downloading. I'm sure they know what you are doing.

    VPN is mandatory for Torrent, unless you live in a country that couldn't care less.

  3. Newsgroups   -   #3
    SSL and/or VPN help avoid protocol throttling and easy monitoring. Nothing is 100% safe. Every ISP and network operation is required to have Lawful Intercept that when the authority demand, they can direct all incoming/outgoing traffic from any user to a server to be captured and analyzed.

  4. Newsgroups   -   #4
    "I just remembered something that happened a long time ago."

  5. Newsgroups   -   #5
    I've been using usenet for more than 10 years, without a VPN, and even without activating SSL encryption (though my usenet provider has this option)...
    Today I have a VPN subscription, that I only activate for BT - never for NZB...
    The risk depends on what country you live in, I guess.

  6. Newsgroups   -   #6
    Usenet has no "risk" in the first place, since you only download from a single server and don't have to upload anything back. Without encryption, your ISP is fully able to see all data you exchange with the news server, but since they won't be struck with copyright letters in the first place, they have better things to do.

    Note that this only applies to downloading from newsgroups. Uploading (posting articles) is a different thing and has been prosecuted in the past.
    "I just remembered something that happened a long time ago."

  7. Newsgroups   -   #7
    That's why a lot of stuff is password protected now.

  8. Newsgroups   -   #8
    I have never had any issues with usenet downloading but did have an email for uploading by the provider, even though there terms of use stated they didn’t monitor uploads, however someone had reported me to them, since changed provider and gone with one that genuinely doesn’t monitor uploads. But downloading is absolutely fine, I do use ssl though

  9. Newsgroups   -   #9
    shaina's Avatar Poster
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Posts
    7,850
    Quote Originally Posted by anon View Post
    Usenet has no "risk" in the first place, since you only download from a single server and don't have to upload anything back. Without encryption, your ISP is fully able to see all data you exchange with the news server, but since they won't be struck with copyright letters in the first place, they have better things to do.
    Really i don't agree with you here Anon, the SSL feature that pretty much every Usenet Provider gives you it for a reason, In the older Usenet Posts the actual movie or TV show name was used in the upload, or the NFO file matched the upload, so your ISP could actually see what you were downloading. With the SSL that blocks/scrambles/stealth's, the actual files, and your ISP only sees the physical download size not the name or files itself. Now is that really relevant today?? No, because most of the Uploads are either scrambled/obfuscated/or password protected. And the same with SABnzbd being one of the most used/popular programs for Usenet, and most of the bigger NZB private sites promote it, and have input on the program, to keep up with there stealth protocols or how the uploaders try to hide there stuff, or how you can extract the files/information........
    I agree with you ,VPN's are useless when it comes to Usenet, but SSL does help with blocking what you are downloading from your ISP.....

    Quote Originally Posted by anon View Post
    Note that this only applies to downloading from newsgroups. Uploading (posting articles) is a different thing and has been prosecuted in the past.
    No shit Sherlock, again that is literately piracy right

    Strange tho, if you go back and think that Usenet was really a service of communication and having the ability to transfer files anywhere in the world and with some sort of security, kind of like Email today. And if you think about this, in the beginning when i started using Usenet, it was pretty much the same few uploaders/group and really all they did was move around in different Binary Groups to hide, now you got way more uploaders....

    Quote Originally Posted by MacGyverSG1 View Post
    That's why a lot of stuff is password protected now.
    Just to elaborate more on your statement, it is not just password protection, but stealth/obfuscation, and also extractor programs designed by the uploaders/NZB private sites etc. Again i think it is great for these things, but one problem i have is it forces you to use there programs and not one you choose, be it ease of use or more control for yourself.....
    But i guess that is a sacrifice for getting sort of free things, even know really they are not completely free
    Last edited by shaina; 09-05-2019 at 07:33 AM. Reason: Automerged Doublepost
    The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money

  10. Newsgroups   -   #10
    Quote Originally Posted by anon View Post
    Without encryption, your ISP is fully able to see all data you exchange with the news server, but since they won't be struck with copyright letters in the first place, they have better things to do.
    Quote Originally Posted by shaina View Post
    Really i don't agree with you here Anon, the SSL feature that pretty much every Usenet Provider gives you it for a reason, In the older Usenet Posts the actual movie or TV show name was used in the upload, or the NFO file matched the upload, so your ISP could actually see what you were downloading. With the SSL that blocks/scrambles/stealth's, the actual files, and your ISP only sees the physical download size not the name or files itself.
    In other words... we're thinking the same thing
    "I just remembered something that happened a long time ago."

Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •