Background Hidemyass Windows Client
Hide My Ass! (HMA!) Is a UK-based company, with Its claim to fame being its massive number of subscribers — it has more than 400 million now. This supplier has seen its fair share of controversy with regards. It recently made upgrades support in the hopes of winning back the loyalty of its subscribers and redeeming itself. Hidemyass Windows Client
We took it To get a test run to see if it’s well worth and how much it’s improved the cost.
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What Is a VPN?
It generates an encrypted tunnel to, when you activate a VPN Protect your data as it moves from the computer to a host. From that point, your info exits onto the net that is open. It is a simple idea, but one with tremendous impacts for safety and your privacy.
For starters, it prevents anybody lurking Network from intercepting or monitoring your activity. While the airport or coffee shop Wi-Fi network appears safe (it may even be password-protected) it is not actually safe unless you’re using a VPN. For another thing, a VPN can stop your Internet Service Provider (ISP) from gathering information about your online activities so it can sell anonymized user information to the maximum bidder.
A VPN makes it more difficult to correlate your Online activities together with your identity. Because your visitors is exiting in the VPN firm’s server, you seem to have its own IP address, effectively concealing your true location. Additionally, it compels even the most determined attacker to try and sort through all of the visitors from other users on the exact same VPN server to obtain what they’re after. For these reasons, and more, you need a VPN on your life.
Be aware that your visitors is only encrypted by a VPN until it exits via the VPN server. Provided that the website you’re accessing uses HTTPS, your data must be protected all the way and its travel. Also, while VPNs can provide a modicum of anonymity, a tool like the Tor network is much better at hiding your identity.
VPNs have long been used by journalists and activists To bypass censorship in countries with repressive net policies. They’re also useful if you are looking to circumvent geographic restrictions on streaming content. A VPN can spoof your existing place, giving you access to geographically restricted content like BBC streaming or MLB TV. Many VPNs do not appreciate these actions (which may be in breach of terms of support or even local legislation ) and content providers such as Netflix are breaking down on users who snore their place and the VPN providers they utilize to do it.
There is a good opportunity That you might have never laid hands on a VPN before. If that is the case, do not worry! We’ve got a whole feature on the best way best to prepare and use a VPN. Hidemyass Windows Client
VPN Protocols
There are several techniques to make a VPN connection. My Preferred method uses the OpenVPN protocol, which is famous for its speed and reliability. It’s also open minded, and therefore has been chosen over for potential vulnerabilities by anyone with the interest to do so.
Hide My Ass utilizes OpenVPN on Windows, using an older variant That supports L2TP, and PPTP, too. There are also two different versions of this macOS app which, taken together, support IPSec (IKEv1 and v2), L2TP, and PPTP. Note that these old versions of this program have been phased out from the programmer. The iOS version uses only IPSec, along with the Android program uses only OpenVPN.
That is a bit of a hodgepodge, and I am disappointed that Hide My Ass doesn’t provide OpenVPN on all platforms. Nevertheless, some of this issue is with the programs. Apple requires programmers to jump through additional hoops if they want to include OpenVPN within a program, but a lot of them are starting to move in this way. I would love to see Hide My Ass do the same, across the board.
Your Privacy With Hide My Ass
With any safety item, you want to be sure that the Company behind it will be working on your best interests. This is particularly true for VPNs, which are intended to improve privacy and security. If a VPN company is simply as nosey as your ISP, there’s not much point in using it.
While I review VPNs, I browse the Organization’s privacy policy And talk with representatives to be able to better understand how your data is used and stored. In the case of Hide My Ass, the corporation ought to be commended on its clear privacy policy. It states that Hide My Ass logs your username, the timestamp of connection and disconnection, the amount of information transmitted, your real IP address, and the IP address of the host you linked to. This isn’t radically different from what’s offered by other services. In reality, it’s very like Golden Frog VyprVPN’s policy.
What is notable is that Hide My Ass Will store this information for two to three months, while VyprVPN shops it for only 30 days. Other services hold less info, or they eliminate it immediately. Hide My Ass says that it keeps this data for this particular time period so as to enhance performance, prevent fraud, and prevent bad guys from using the VPN to send spam. The organization, notably, also lists file sharing as one of the illegal actions it takes this information to stop, regardless of the firm being fine by means of BitTorrent on some servers.
It May be possible that this information could be used To correlate a user’s identity to specific activity on the internet, but it will probably be very difficult. In spite of this information, an audience would need to know which VPN server to watch and then compare that activity from Hide My Ass’s logs, and also have the ability to parse out the target’s traffic from everyone else using the same server.
The Hide My privacy policy also clearly says that it Does not monitor or store the real content of your internet activity. So, the support isn’t looking at your websites or the documents that you are downloading. That’s great, and just what you want to hear by a VPN company.
In the past, some VPN companies monetized consumers by Injecting ads in their web traffic. Hide My Ass states that it doesn’t do that, and goes even further. A business representative explained to me that the firm doesn’t gain from consumer data at all.
The actual place of a VPN company also matters, as it Can inform what protections are given to clients. Hide My Ass has its company headquarters in London, also operates under the legal jurisdiction of England and Wales. Notably, the UK at does have mandatory data retention legislation. That’s not perfect. Many other VPN services function in countries without data retention laws, or in ones that have privacy protections for consumers. Hidemyass Windows Client
I do not believe it is likely to make a decision About a company’s advantages based solely on its own location. But, it is important to comprehend that the laws and policies at work in a company with this kind of intimate access. I encourage visitors choose a VPN service with which they may feel comfortable, and to think about this information.
Servers and Server Places
A Vital differentiator between VPN providers is the number of Servers and their geographic distribution. Lots of servers means you’re more likely to find. For its part, Hide My Ass has a commendable 876 servers in its disposal. Nevertheless, TorGuard VPN, Private online Access, and NordVPN have well over 3,000 servers apiece. Those are my benchmarks for robustness in the VPN server class.
Geographic distribution of these servers is very important. Lots of places means more to pick from for purposes, but also ensures that no matter will likely always be a server for the very best performance. Hide My Ass has an extremely impressive 286 server places across some 220 nations. It’s easily the record among the VPN services I’ve reviewed.
The list of server places that were available offered by Hide My Ass is especially noteworthy since it covers regions often ignored by other VPN businesses. It’s, for instance, server locations that are numerous across the continent of Africa–a rarity among VPN companies. It also maintains servers in China, Russia, and Turkey, which have internet policies.
Some consumers May Be concerned about a VPN company’s Use of servers. These are software-defined servers which produce servers that are many are effectively operated as by a single server. Virtual servers may also be configured to behave as though they are in 1 country when they are in a different, which is an issue if you’re concerned about where your data is traveling.
A company representative told me this a complete 225 of the 286 server places provided by Hide My Ass are servers. Only 61 of the host locations are hardware, and 450 of Hide My Ass’s 876 servers are all virtual. That is far beyond providers. NordVPN TunnelBear, IPVanish, and TorGuard use physical infrastructure to get their host locations.
A company representative explained that bulk of the Firm’s physical server infrastructure is located in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, Miami, New York, Prague, Seattle, and Singapore. This doesn’t quite jibe with what Hide My Ass lists on its website. I’d love to see future versions of Hide My Ass be clearer about when you’re connected to a virtual host.
Setup and interface
Obtaining Started with Hide My Ass! Is super easy and the updated apps are very user-friendly. You will be given a license key once you register for your account. It is possible to use your own credentials (password and username ) to log into any program. For the purpose of this review, we’ve tested the Windows client as well as the iOS program. Hidemyass Windows Client
Desktop
Once you’ve Logged in and launched the , you will be greeted with the Success! screen. Click Got It! To get the app’s screen. Here you have Freedom Mode: Location Mode, Instant Mode, and three choices for modes.
In Immediate Mode, you can click the arrow And you’ll be connected to the fastest server for your current location.
In Location manner, that can be chosen by you You connect to. Click Change Location to see your options. There is a list which enables you to choose servers based on different criteria. We all will show you an alphabetized country list. Clicking on the arrow will show you special locations within this nation.
Quick Access shows you a list of servers you have Recently linked to, in addition to some choices that were recommended. Streaming will give you a selection of two servers acceptable for unblocking popular streaming services such as Netflix, one in the US and one in the united kingdom.
Peer to Peer shows You permit P2P filesharing. There’s the Favorites option; to mark a server the center can click to the right of the server name.
Going back To the main display, the one other option here is Freedom Mode, that is targeted at users who want to bypass censorship. This mode will connect you to a host in the closest country that is regarded as free from censorship.
You can Get into the Settings by clicking on the menu icon in the top left corner of the main screen and choosing Preferences. Here, you will find three tabs: General and Kill Change. In the Generalscreen, you can change your startup options, like beginning when your pc turn on or if the app launches.
You also Have a Personal Privacy section home one alternative that relates to Quick accessibility in Location Mode. Then you can uncheck the box, if you want to conceal your history.
Next, We have the Network Security screen in which you may select settings for wifi protection that is automatic. It is also possible to turn on the IP shuffle feature making it more difficult for somebody to detect where you are by periodically changing your IP address. One option in this display lets you use TCP with OpenVPN. Nonetheless, this is only recommended if UDP is blocked or throttled. TCP is more stable, but UDP is typically faster.
The Last tab will be the Switch tab, where you are able to toggle on this feature so that it works for all programs. You choose whether to apply it to people and can also add single applications.
This Is a fairly robust program and it both visually.
Mobile
Many Providers will have a mobile program that’s unrecognizable compared to the desktop version. However, HMA! Has streamlined its product, and the iOS app looks nearly identical to the Windows version.
Once you’re Logged in, you’ll get to the screen, which is the same as the display in the program. Here you can choose from Location Mode, Immediate Mode, or Freedom Mode.
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The Only real difference is that if you pick Location Mode, your options are presented in a different manner. You have three tabs: Countries, Cities, and Favorites, but lacking are the extra options found from the desktop such as Streaming, Peer to Peer, and speedy Access.
To Get into the streaming servers from the app, you will need to visit the Cities list and locate the Liberty Island server under US, New York. Even the UK, Donkey Town server can also be located on this listing for access to UK Netflix and BBC iPlayer.
Moving on, The settings for the program can be accessed by clicking on the menu icon and selecting Settings. There you’ve got two choices: Connection Rules and Private solitude.
In The Link Rules segment, you can correct wifi security settings and decide whether to auto reconnect when wifi or mobile connections are interrupted.
The privacy section only has 1 option: Share utilization data with third parties for analytics, which is your consent to”enable app and device usage information to be shared with third parties for analytics.” Bear in mind this is enabled by default so that it might be one of the first things you wish to flip off.
In General, This is a slick and intuitive program, but many users may be missing extra features such as a kill switch and the choice to switch protocols.
Servers and performance
The Hide My Ass! Network comprises over 850 servers covering over 190 nations. A number of them are virtual servers, but a consumer support representative was not able to tell us how many. Hidemyass Windows Client
As we Discussed previously, HMA presents many options for choosing the ideal server, including different styles and the ability to indicate servers as favorites. Servers that allow P2P are marked using a symbol that was P2P.
We tested Numerous servers for performance in the UK and the US in terms of surfing browsing, and downloading. When surfing, there were no problems, aside from there being a noticeable lag in page loading times when connected to a UK server. This isn’t unusual for distant remote servers (the tests were completed in Toronto, Canada), but might be frustrating, particularly for users with slow internet speeds.
We did not See any lag or streaming while streaming 1080p using any of those test servers and could play online games with no issues.
HideMyAss! and Netflix
Hide My Ass! unblocks Netflix! But do not expect to connect to any Waiter and go. We had no chance when we tested servers with US Netflix with the client. However, if you choose the Streaming option in the dropdown within Location Mode, you’ll see two options: a US host (USA, New York, Liberty Island) along with a UK server (UK, Donkey Town). Be aware that in the program that is mobile, you will have to find these.
Connecting Into the US server gave us access with no issue to Netflix. Connecting to the UK one allowed access to UK Netflix as well as BBC iPlayer. Many providers just concentrate on providing US Netflix accessibility, so it is refreshing to see one that strives to give access to the UK library too. What is more, BBC iPlayer is breaking down on VPN usage, so the capability to unblock this support is a nice perk.
If you’re You may have to go elsewhere. HMA! Is having trouble unblocking this support at a customer support representative and this time informed us that there isn’t any estimated timeframe for when it might be working again.
HideMyAss! in China?
Hide My Ass! Doesn’t work reliably in China. It used to, but HMA! Answers in service forums have suggested that the service will no longer function for a few users. You could try your luck, but should you need a China VPN, you’d best look elsewhere.
HideMyAss! Speed test functionality
For any VPN That is compatible with our evaluation methods, speed tests which were designed to be as empirical as possible are run by us. We utilize a Canadian test server to connect to VPN servers in the US, the UK, Australia, Hong Kong, and Germany. For each and every location, we download a test file (50MB in size) in the US server. This is done four times per day in intervals. The typical speed for each test is recorded along with the data is displayed.
You can view From the easy chart below HMA! Compares to another VPN services we’ve been testing. It’s close to the front of the package when it comes to download speeds while it does not have the fastest speeds.
By clicking the comprehensive tab, you can see that the spread in outcomes isn’t as tight as some of the test VPNs. This usually means when it comes to speeds you may see some inconsistency.
It is Important to note that these tests aren’t definitive and may function as a general indication of the performance you might see. The internet’s volatility adds a significant variable of randomness. What is more, you will likely see wait times using a slow link, and smaller or disagreements. Hidemyass Windows Client
Customer service
If you Want Any aid whilst establishing or using the support, HMA! Has a couple of options for you to select from. Clicking the Help tab you’ll find a Getting Started section and a Knowledge Base. These each home articles associated with setting up queries. There’s some crossover so before searching for other alternatives, you might want to explore both.
In addition, You’ll locate. This can be segregated into various topics; while others are active some appear to be out of date. There are a number of general FAQs.
If you don’t Discover what you’re looking for, or you simply need a response, you can click on the live chat button at the base right-hand corner of the screen. The service is educated and prompt, and agents were able to swiftly resolve. At one point, a representative advised he would escalate the issue and was not able to answer some security questions. This has been responded to in under 2 weeks which is quite quick for an email reply.
Safety and privacy
Hide My Ass! Is based. The UK is also a Five Eyes (and Fourteen Eyes) country, so it is part of an alliance that allows monitoring by external authorities. Additionally, it is home to the Snooper’s Charter which imposes regulations.
For many VPNs, data retention laws in their home country aren’t really a problem. That is because they operate with a real policy whereby no connection or traffic logs are kept by them. They can’t be tied to a single user even if link logs are kept by them.
Regrettably, HMA! Is not one of these VPNs and contains a privacy policy that many users will find off-putting. For one, when you can expect that your IP address will be logged, along with timestamps and the number of data used. This is a large no-no for VPNs in general. The fact is that this information can and has been used to trace the activity of people, although an IP address is considered to be personally identifiable information. IP addresses are used to help find and convict criminals. We are pro-privacy while we don’t condone activities that are criminal, and this policy simply doesn’t cut it. Hidemyass Windows Client
Moreover, Hide My Ass! Telephones the VPN IP address Connected into a session. This is the IP address when you visit it, that a website operator can see and document. Since both the real and VPN IP addresses are logged, between the finish and VPN website logs, it might technically be possible to piece together all of an individual’s internet activity. You might have seen news of a 2011 FBI case involving HMA! In which it handed over logs which were used to track down a hacker. This can be a mark for solitude.
One way to Make this less of an issue and to perhaps confuse things a bit is to take advantage of this IP address shuffle attribute. This occasionally transforms out your IP address to get another one, when enabled in the Network Security screen of the desktop app. It would not make you untraceable but could add a layer of obfuscation.
Privacy Problems apart, on the safety front, Hide My Ass! Fares well. It utilizes. This perfect forward secrecy and is in combination with 4096-bit RSA keys. It employs the protocol over UDP by default, however you can change to TCP inside the desktop client. PPTP, L2TP, IPSec are also available, depending on what program you’re using.
The versions boast To work for apps. The online connection will be killed by A kill button if the VPN connection drop for a certain reason. This attribute is not available from the mobile programs
A live chat Customer service representative informed us that there’s not any DNS leak protection. However, another company representative promised us that there is in fact DNS and IPv6 leak protection, but no WebRTC leak security. When we analyzed the support for escapes, we didn’t see any DNS leak problems other than leaks that are WebRTC. HMA! Does use DNS servers whereas personal ones will be preferable from a privacy perspective.
1 handy Feature that Hide My Ass! Offers is wifi protection, which is customized at the from the Network Security section of their desktop or the app’s Connection Rules tab settings.
Characteristics and pricing
Hide My Ass! Provides one merchandise with prices you sign up for. It’s definitely not one of the services available. A 12-month planwill set you back $6.99 a month, which can be greater than the average price for a similar term. What’s more, a lot of VPN providers will supply an plan; for instance, a two- or – term with discounts. Hidemyass Windows Client
If You’re not ready to sign up yet, HMA! Does offer a turn-key program for $7.99 a month or you can pay on a monthly basis for $11.99 a month. These prices are a bit above average if you compare to competitors.
Payment Options include PayPal, credit cards, and UnionPay. Unfortunately, for more users, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are payment procedures. There’s a money-back guarantee, so if you are not satisfied with the service, you can have your payment refunded.
So what do You get for your money? Hide My Ass! Has a community of over 850 servers in over 180 countries. Some are dedicated to accessing streaming sites and specific servers permit P2P filesharing (read: torrenting). All plans come with unlimited bandwidth and you may connect up to five devices concurrently. Programs are available for Windows, MacOS, iOS, and Android. The VPN can be manually configured using a few routers and Linux. Routers can be found as an alternate.
From a Security perspective, HMA! Offers perfect forward secrecy strong encryption wifi protection, along with the apps come with a kill button. However, the logging policy problems which plagued the service stay, so privacy is a problem.
Wrap-up
For the most part, HMA! Offers a support. It’s unlimited bandwidth, fast speeds, and a decent community of servers. It’s in a position to unblock popular services like BBC iPlayer, Netflix UK, and Netflix US. Plus, it gives customer care protection, and intuitive programs.
On the Surface, it feels like HMA! Would be a fantastic option for torrenters, without a data Caps and some servers suitable for P2P. The issues with the privacy Coverage are a concern as well as any other privacy-conscious users. Indeed, this is the major turn-off for this Provider, but it’s a large one. Other issues include the inability to operate Reliably in also the price tag and China. Hidemyass Windows Client
Click here to sign up for Hide My Ass! Today!