Just seen IPVanish offered for a ridiculously low price of $27.99 (approx. £21.69) for 1yrs subscription for new users. A $52 discount!
As I use Kodi a lot, I've seen it mentioned quite a lot to also use a VPN. Trouble is, it blocks BBCi Player and Sky Go on my iPad and iPhone.
I've discovered how to prevent it happening on my Amazon Fire TV stick. There is an option called "split tunnelling" in the menu and you add Apps that you want IPVanish to ignore.
However, there is no such option on my iPad and iPhone. Not the end of the world, but I'd sooner not have to keep toggling IPVanish on and off, depending on what it blocks. I'd sooner just leave it switched on and forget about it.
I've changed the server settings to the UK and best matches so the VPN has a UK IP address, but BBCi Player and Sky still refuse to work. I've tried Googling for an answer, but to no avail.
Has anyone got a work around?
No FM2R perhaps, or anyone else watching UK TV from overseas?
Last edited by: VxFan on Thu 31 Dec 20 at 03:33
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Google "ipvanish iPlayer" and you will find out why it is cheap.
It does not and cannot work and hasn't done for more than a year. Ditto for Sky.
Not a disaster for you, just an irritation, but you're stuck with it.
Sorry.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Thu 31 Dec 20 at 04:00
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P.s. I think I recall it not working with ITV Hub either.
I'd look into how much protection you're getting on Kodi with it. Depends if you're trying to hide your traffic from your ISP, which I'd guess is probably ok, or trying to hide your location, which it obviously doesn't.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Thu 31 Dec 20 at 04:05
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I dont think many consumer type people use a VPN all the time for safety reasons, its simply overkill. Most of us use one for a matter of subterfuge, ie appearing to be from somewhere else to get material, or to stop your IP provider from deciding what material you cannot get.
This usually means hiding your country of origin or changing it to something else, or bing easy to disable if your source refuses to play VPN games. To make it automatic would mean changing country or on/off by URL used, clearly impractical.
So I use Zenmate, mostly for historical reasons, ie I was offered an incredible deal years ago, and because its easy to switch country and disable as required. You can run different browsers set to different VPN configurations.
Last edited by: Zero on Thu 31 Dec 20 at 09:11
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You could try something like pfsense and a VPN for it.
Though you will probably get what you want, when you want it, at a device/time level, it will take forty eight million years of setting up.
If however you are looking for a lockdown project, more power to you. Pfsense will give you a zillion things to try and play with, if you want to do anything interesting on your network. It's a bit techy, but it's free and well supported.
www.pfsense.org/
To give you a flavour, here's someone who wanted to access the iplayer via pfsense, had a problem, and resolved it. If the language and concepts they use are meaningful to you, off you go.
www.reddit.com/r/PFSENSE/comments/5r3hqh/adding_an_iplayer_exception_to_vpn_rules/
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I use NordVPN which does everything I want and is easy to switch on/off, change country etc. etc.
But my needs are different and it's rare I need no VPN. Mind you it's not that often I need to use a VPN either.
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I also use NordVPN but the problem is that their servers eventually seem to get "found out" and blocked by some providers. E.g. I couldn't get BBC in Portugal on any device (laptop or Firestick this year. They do have a few different classes of server (e.g. obfuscated) but I didn't try too hard to see if they'd help.
Oh, and I have also been blocked from another forum site as an email spammer but I suspect this is because they have blocked an upper level domain of NordVPN rather than anything I've done.
I looked around for another product and Unlocator was very good and didn't take much setting up. It may be more expensive than some but I just had a month's worth while I was away. It has a free trial, 7 days I recall. So that was great for re-locating and I presume it'd be good for hiding too.
www.unlocator.com
btw a week or so back you could apparently get NordVPN for free because they had 100% back on Quidco!!!
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>>I also use NordVPN but the problem is that their servers eventually seem to get "found out"
It goes in phases, ITV Hub seems to be very enthusiastic lately but usually it is iPlayer who get all keen.
However, it is rare that a change in server doesn't make the problem go away.
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Thanks guys.
It's primary use is for Kodi, and like I said earlier, there is a setting in IPV to add certain Apps on the Firestick so it ignores them. iPlayer, ITV, etc.
It's easy enough to enable / disable on my "I" devices, but would obviously just like it to be running in the background all the time.
I'll see how I get on with IPV, as part of the offer came with a money back guarantee if cancelled within 30 days.
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If you're primary goal is simply to hide your traffic from your ISP to avoid throttling or to avoid the traffic being attributed to you, then I am sure IPV will be just fine.
There are better ones for hiding your location, but I think they are generally more expensive as well.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Fri 1 Jan 21 at 17:15
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>>you're
That's annoying. I just love auto correct.
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>> There are better ones for hiding your location,
I can change my location just by changing the server location. When I check my IP address, it used to say Didcot, now it says London (or wherever I change the server location to). So I guess it is hiding my real location?
I'm not sure why I'm bothering to be honest though as I've used Kodi for the last 4 or 5 yrs without a VPN and never had a problem, but wherever I search to get another Repository or update an existing one, there are constant reminders to use a VPN. Not paid sponsorship adverts I might add.
I just saw IPVanish at a ridiculously reduced price of £1.80 per month, I thought why the hell not. I had tried a couple of free ones previously, but wasn't impressed. Full of adverts and really slowed my connection speed down.
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There was a time (and probably still is) where your ISP would monitor the data on your connection.
I think I've related before that my neighbour and I share a connection, and he was a reasonably heavy Torrent user, downloading TV programmes and films. The default settings in the Torrent software he was using meant you were a seed as well as a downloader.
As the connection owner, I had two separate and distinct formal warnings from the ISP, telling me exactly what film was being shared and the time etc. I think there are agencies which monitor that stuff, maybe on behalf of the production companies or distributors, who then alert the ISPs who have to take action.
The threat from them was that they would cut off my line, but of course there can be much greater sanctions for illegal downloading, but I tend to think it's like illegal drugs - users get off reasonably lightly whereas people dealing (sharing) would have the book thrown at them.
Given that Kodi is often used to access illegal TV feeds that's why there are warnings about getting a VPN, as your ISP can no longer see what you are doing.
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I haven't looked at this in a while but I don't think the situation has changed. As far as I could ever see simply downloading copyright material freely available on the internet is not against the law, sharing it is, enabling others to do it is and making money from it or paying to do it definitely is.
Simply downloading content, even illegally copied films, is not illegal on the part of the downloader and there is no action to be taken, though ISPs used to put effort into throttling it because of the bandwidth it uses. Obviously not the same for the uploader.
Uploading, distributing or sharing copyright content is *absolutely* illegal and if they find you they can take action.
The problem with torrenting is that it's a p2p arrangement for file sharing and you are not simply downloading you are also uploading. Very naughty and certainly against the law. Also because a torrent is shared so widely it could be said that each individual sharer is responsible for all the losses suffered by the copyright owner. Hence the threats of massive fines.
Supplying, distributing, enabling or selling anything to enable that unauthorised downloading is illegal.
The torrent trackers tried to point out that they don't store or distribute anything, they simply have users who post where the stuff is. This makes them difficult to attack. However, I imagine that if Section 230 is repealed then they will be right in the cack because they will become legally liable for content posted by their users and thus will be deemed to enabling the distribution of copyright material.
IT could be argued that using a tracking site makes you part of the act, an accomplice, but I don't think that has ever been tried.
Your ISP has two concerns; bandwidth addressed my throttling is the easy one. However, if they do not try to stop illegal sharing and do not cooperate with whatever copyright owner is on the case, then they are enabling the distribution of illegal content which is why (and legally how) they will hand over your details at the drop of a hat.
Copyright owners are very careful who they go after and who they take to court, for much the same reason as car parking companies - they don't want the case law / precedent to go against them. Consequently when they go after someone in court then it is for uploading and sharing, not downloading.
Using Kodi is not breaking the law if you're downloading, whatever you are downloading.
So the makers of Kodi are fine, the suppliers of the repositories are not because they are distributing or enabling the distribution of illegal content. If the repository is making money through advertising that you are watching, then that becomes more difficult and may change the situation.
Of course it also matters what you're doing with downloaded content. Allowing someone else to watch it is sharing and against the law. Charging someone to watch it is *really* against the law.
In the case of Kodi I think using a VPN is protecting the repository rather than yourself from the law. It is protecting you from your ISP who will [or should] shut you down if they work it out.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Sun 3 Jan 21 at 14:02
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I suspect that VPNs are going to be attacked fairly soon. I read a figure the other day that said something like 80m people use a VPN to watch the BBC outside the UK.
And the way it works, the distributor must take reasonable steps to stop it which will include going after the VPNs allowing it.
And VPNs that say you can use it to access copyright content are absolutely on the edge.
I'm pretty sure their time will come.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Sun 3 Jan 21 at 14:06
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Yes but VPNs weren't designed for this purpose, as you'll know. They were essentially for secure, often point to point, comms and usually used by businesses. Also I run a VPN on my Raspberry so I can log into my home network and essentially be a local device, which is handy for me ot get an occasional fix of nerdiness when I am away.
I also try to remember to use VPN on my mobile when using public hotspots as they are easily spoofed.
So they can go after the file sharing stuff all they like but VPN will still have a major user base. (I note btw that Windows won't allow you to run certain torrent clients now, unless you are an Administrator.
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They won't stop VPNs in their entirety, of course, but they'll hurt all the "retail" ones..
Step 1) All VPNs advertising that they work for the BBC, Netflix etc. will be nailed to the wall.
Step 2) All VPNs will have to show that they are taking reasonable steps to ensure that their service is not being used to breach copyright.
Ironically of course this only arises because of TV, film other content companies trying to retain geographical control of their product in order to be able to sell it separately in each geography and multiplying their revenue. Otherwise consumers in any market would buy it from the cheapest market, which is not what they want and would in any case undermine their price in the expensive market.
Premier league football being a prime example.
They failed with DVDs and they will eventually fail with this. It's going to take time though.
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p.s. they don't need to stop it, they just want to prevent it becoming main stream.
Also, if you don't try to protect your rights then you will lose them.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Sun 3 Jan 21 at 17:53
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IPVanish. BBCi Player & Sky Go get blocked - No FM2R
