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Is Private Relay work same as VPN ?

Is Private Relay work same as VPN ?

iPhone 11

Posted on Nov 19, 2021 8:05 AM

Reply
8 replies

Dec 1, 2021 7:15 AM in response to Grateful55

Grateful55 wrote:

Wouldn’t the relay keep us bound to our region where the VPN allows us access to which ever region of the planet we choose set it for? Also thank you :)

That is correct. There are two legitimate purposes for using VPN:


  • To allow access to a private network such as a school or business when you are not on site. 
  • To allow access outside of a country with a repressive government that has restricted Internet access.


Any other use is risky. VPN disguises your location by making you appear to be somewhere else in the world. But with many VPNs you can’t control that “somewhere else”, and if it is in a location that an app isn’t approved for the app won’t work. For example, your banking apps probably won’t work if the end point of your tunnel is outside of your country, and sometimes even in the country but in a location that you have never been before, or if your GPS location doesn’t match your IPs location.


Plus the fact that the provider of the VPN knows everything about you and your location, as well as what sites you access through the VPN. So you are totally dependent on the VPN provider’s honesty. As a start, if the VPN is free, DON’T USE IT. The provider has to make money somehow, and if you aren’t paying them then they are selling your private data to make money. But even those that charge can’t necessarily be trusted. For example, Avast a few years ago was caught selling user data to advertisers and law enforcement databases. They swear they don’t do it anymore. Sure.

Nov 19, 2021 2:44 PM in response to super638

TEE_HEE is correct. Private Relay is closer in operation to TOR than to VPN, and has the added advantage over VPN that it protects your identity from the transport provider, unlike VPN, where the VPN provider knows who you are and where you are going on the web; you thus need to trust your VPN provider. But either way it makes it unnecessary to use VPN for privacy.

Dec 2, 2021 9:39 PM in response to Lawrence Finch

Thank you for the reply, that makes sense. I’m paying for a VPN and don’t really need it for much but I do like to venture out into the world at times and see what culture has to offer. I have enough faith in the company that I work with to keep working with them. That’s crazy that even companies you paid for the product would still sell your info. As far as the first one goes what’s the saying “if you don’t know who’s the fish at the table then it’s probably you” or something like that. At first it was hard to see but it started to make sense after a while. In a world driven by money everything has a price so always question what is offered for free.


thanks again

Is Private Relay work same as VPN ?

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