Blog | G5 Cyber Security

VPN Tracking: ISP & Server Control

G5 Cyber Security

TL;DR

Yes, a government controlling both your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and the website server you’re visiting can potentially track your VPN traffic. While a VPN encrypts data between your device and the VPN server, it doesn’t hide the fact you’re connecting to a VPN server at all. The ISP sees that connection, and if they also control the destination website, they can correlate those connections.

Understanding the Problem

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) creates an encrypted tunnel for your internet traffic. This makes it harder for anyone snooping on your network to see what you’re doing. However, a VPN doesn’t make you invisible. It primarily protects data in transit between your device and the VPN server.

How Tracking Can Happen

  1. ISP Visibility: Your ISP can see that you are connecting to a specific VPN server’s IP address. They don’t know what you’re doing *inside* the tunnel, but they know you’re using a VPN.
  2. Website Server Control: If the government also controls the website you’re visiting, they can identify visitors connecting from that specific VPN server’s IP address.
  3. Correlation: By combining these two pieces of information – your connection to the VPN server (from the ISP) and access attempts to a controlled website (from the server logs) – they can link you to using the VPN at a particular time.

Step-by-Step Explanation & Mitigation

Here’s how this works in detail, and what you can do about it:

1. ISP Sees Your Connection

When you connect to a VPN, your device establishes a connection with the VPN server. This initial handshake is visible to your ISP as traffic going to that VPN server’s IP address.

# Example: You connect to 192.0.2.1 (VPN Server)

2. Website Sees the VPN’s IP

When you visit a website while connected to a VPN, the website sees the VPN server’s IP address as your source IP, not your actual IP.

# Website logs show access from 192.0.2.1

3. Government Correlation

If the government controls both the ISP and the website, they can cross-reference these logs:

This correlation can identify you as the user accessing the website through that VPN.

Mitigation Strategies

  1. Obfuscation: Some VPNs offer obfuscation features. These disguise your VPN traffic as regular internet traffic, making it harder for ISPs to detect you’re using a VPN at all. Look for options like ‘Stealth VPN’ or ‘Camouflage Mode’.
  2. Double VPN/Multi-Hop: Route your traffic through multiple VPN servers. This adds layers of encryption and makes tracking more difficult.
  3. VPN Protocol Choice: Use protocols less easily detectable by deep packet inspection (DPI). WireGuard is generally considered strong, but OpenVPN with obfuscation can also be effective. Avoid PPTP as it’s outdated and insecure.
  4. Tor Integration: Using Tor before connecting to a VPN adds another layer of anonymity. However, this significantly slows down your connection speed.
  5. Choose a No-Logs VPN Provider: Select a VPN provider with a strict no-logs policy that has been independently audited. This means they don’t store information about your connections or activity.
  6. Regularly Change Servers: Switching between different VPN servers can make it harder to track consistent patterns of usage.
  7. Consider Alternative Networks: If possible, use public Wi-Fi networks (with caution) or mobile data as an alternative connection method.

Important Considerations

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