Home users often use “virtual private networks” (VPNs) to establish a secure Internet channel to an office network. Recently some home users have found another reason to use a VPN. Many wireless networks are not configured to encrypt any of their traffic, especially those in public such as hotels and coffee shops. Some people have begun using VPNs when connected, simply to encrypt the information that’s sent over the wireless network. Google even offers a free VPN service for anyone connected to Google’s citywide wifi network in Mountain View, California.
I’ve been worried about Internet security myself recently, so I started trying to set up my own VPN using the free OpenVPN software. My goal was simply to encrypt the traffic between my laptop and a computer I run on a wired network. This wouldn’t encrypt all my communications on the Internet backbone, but at least it would prevent snooping on wireless networks.
OpenVPN is designed to handle an incredibly wide variety of networks, and as a result it’s very difficult to configure to do something “simple” like this. I spent an hour reading instructions and generating encryption keys, but when I first tried to run the OpenVPN software on my MacBook, it crashed the computer. I quickly decided this wasn’t for me.
Instead I tried PureVPN, which was a low-cost VPN service open to the public. PureVPN is a pay-as-you-go service and offers a variety of inexpensive service plans. I paid $2.50 and received ten hours of VPN use. This would be a great deal—if the service worked as promised.
PureVPN doesn’t require any software beyond what’s built into Mac OS X or Windows. It was very easy to set up and when I tested it from home, it seemed to work fine. I confirmed that all of my Internet traffic was sent over the encrypted VPN, which ensured that I’d be protected from nosy neighbors. I tried it from a coffee shop once and it worked fine from there as well.
However, the real test occurred when I went on vacation in Las Vegas, Nevada. Away from home for a week, I wanted to use PureVPN over many insecure wireless networks—at hotels, at cafés, and at at my sister’s house. But when I got to Las Vegas, I found that PureVPN was down! It was down the entire week that I was gone, and only came back a few days after I returned home.
I hadn’t invested much money in my PureVPN subscription, so I haven’t contacted them about the downtime. At $2.50 I figure “you get what you pay for.” But unfortunately I can’t recommend PureVPN to anyone else, simply because I don’t trust I can rely on them when I need them.
8 comments ↓
Hi,
PureVPN did not work at first for me, because I missed an auto install feature in the email I received after my order was processed. I tried a manual setup, and the options I encountered in XP Pro were different than expected. As a result, the service did not work. I tried some tech support suggestions, but the app never worked. I gave up and forgot about it.
A couple of weeks later, I decided to email PureVPN to be certain that I would not be re-billed. A guy named Uzair followed up with me and assured me about the billing not being automatic. He asked to see the error messages and see what went wrong on my install. I sent him some text files of the error messages and he said that I had missed the auto-install option. I tried that with a trial username and password that he emailed me, and PureVPN hooked right up and stayed connected.
Uzair gave me a free month because of the failed installation, [my fault]. I am using PureVPN right now and have been doing so daily for about a week at T-Mobile Hotspots and libraries as well as at home. I have had 2 brief disconnects. The last one was due to the laptop battery dying. The service starts almost instantly, seems to have a minimal impact on system resources, and simply works all the time, every time
I have used Hotspot Shield [HSS] for 3 years. It has become ad-laden and buggy to start. Many times it will not start and stay started. Many library routers wont allow it through. PureVPN routes well so far, and is very reliable.
I have also used Relakks for about a year with more recent success than HSS; but it still does not always start and remain connected. PureVPN does.both quite well.
I can now say that PureVPN is the best of the VPN apps that I have tried to date. They have worked with me when I screwed things up. They charge a reasonable fee. The service I received from Uzair was very gratifying to me as a consumer.
I highly recommend this product. It does take a day or so to get the executable by email once payment has been made. It is not instant gratification; but the performance and follow up have been all that I could ask for and more.
Sincerely [and not a PureVPN employee],
RAC
Hi,
PureVPN did not work at first for me, because I missed an auto install feature in the email I received after my order was processed. I tried a manual setup, and the options I encountered in XP Pro were different than expected. As a result, the service did not work. I tried some tech support suggestions, but the app never worked. I gave up and forgot about it.
A couple of weeks later, I decided to email PureVPN to be certain that I would not be re-billed. A guy named Uzair followed up with me and assured me about the billing not being automatic. He asked to see the error messages and see what went wrong on my install. I sent him some text files of the error messages and he said that I had missed the auto-install option. I tried that with a trial username and password that he emailed me, and PureVPN hooked right up and stayed connected.
Uzair gave me a free month because of the failed installation, [my fault]. I am using PureVPN right now and have been doing so daily for about a week at T-Mobile Hotspots and libraries as well as at home. I have had 2 brief disconnects. The last one was due to the laptop battery dying. The service starts almost instantly, seems to have a minimal impact on system resources, and simply works all the time, every time
I have used Hotspot Shield [HSS] for 3 years. It has become ad-laden and buggy to start. Many times it will not start and stay started. Many library routers wont allow it through. PureVPN routes well so far, and is very reliable.
I have also used Relakks for about a year with more recent success than HSS; but it still does not always start and remain connected. PureVPN does.both quite well.
I can now say that PureVPN is the best of the VPN apps that I have tried to date. They have worked with me when I screwed things up. They charge a reasonable fee. The service I received from Uzair was very gratifying to me as a consumer.
I highly recommend this product. It does take a day or so to get the executable by email once payment has been made. It is not instant gratification; but the performance and follow up have been all that I could ask for and more.
Sincerely [and not a PureVPN employee],
RAC
Hi
I also used Purevpn.com for almost 6 months without any problem.
Just few times they may down maybe for server maintenance but up to 99% of time I used it without any problem
Maybe the problem was with your router or configuration I usually open a ticket when I have any question
Hi
I also used Purevpn.com for almost 6 months without any problem.
Just few times they may down maybe for server maintenance but up to 99% of time I used it without any problem
Maybe the problem was with your router or configuration I usually open a ticket when I have any question
Virtual private networks are too easy to use..so that not only offices now home owners are like to use vpn..
Cruise vacation
Virtual private networks are too easy to use..so that not only offices now home owners are like to use vpn..
Cruise vacation
I love what you guys are always up too. Such clever work and reporting!
Turkey Travel Guide and Photos
Austria Travel Guide and Photos
i've used vpn for over a year now and have been quite happy.. i missed the automatic dialer at first, but when i contacted them, they responded with a link to the dialer… worked like a charm after that.
i use it everytime i go away and need to use skype (some countries block skype on their networks to get you to use their phones instead) and also to access my email servers, etc.
tried a few others like ipig etc, but i found this was the simplest and easiest one to use, because they have servers in germany, us, uk, etc (again, good for skype)
Leave a Comment