No one really wants to pay for a VPN. While they aren’t that expensive anymore, finding a VPN provider while researching the best pricing and plan, as well as researching to find out if you can trust a VPN provider with your information can be a huge hassle.
There are so many bad VPNs out there at the end of the day finding the good can be a trying process. So, many people turn to the idea of starting their own VPN, or setting up their own VPN. In this guide, I’ll talk about how that can have some unforeseen drawbacks or consequences.
Making your own VPN server can hurt your anonymity–that’s what it comes down to. If you want the most secure and anonymous encryption you might need to reevaluate what problems your own hosted VPN could create.
#1 Your Own IP IS Unique – Bad or Good?
When you setup your own VPN, you need a new IP address. You usually have your own IP address that your ISP can see quite easily, however when you setup your new VPN IP address, your ISP can easily track down your information since you are the only one using that IP.
Since your IP is not shared among other users like public VPNs, you can’t be hide amongst thousands of other users using the same IP. You might be thinking that your VPN will encrypt your data, and while that is true–no logs are needed to trace your activity, the data center only needs to confirm you are a customer renting that server.
#2 Your Own VPN could be Time Consuming and Unsecure
Maintaining a secure VPN server can be time consuming, and if not done correctly it can be a security issue
When your buy a VPN, all of the work is done for you. That means setting up fast servers, securing the right encryption and protocols, launching an app for multiple platforms, and ensuring that the app doesn’t have any bugs. When you setup your own VPN server, it can take a lot of work ensuring that it is done correctly. If not, you could have a major security issue without even knowing it.
#3 Your Own VPN will be Expensive!
So, let’s say you pay $10 a month for a VPS from digital ocean. You get ONE server, ONE IP address, and must rely strictly on third party VPN apps on your devices. Compare this with $5 spent on a VPN like TorGuard or Private Internet Access, and you get 3000+ IP’s in over 55 countries. In addition, you get to use first party applications on your devices that are usually more intuitive and user-friendly.
#4 Digital Ocean Knows your Box’s Root Password
Even if you are a IT admin guru and have locked down everything as well as wiped your logs, VPS providers like DigitalOcean could easily provide this password to a “third party” to install tracking systems. Since you would be the only user on the server, all traffic captured would be yours.
#5 Have a Problem? Great, fix it yourself.
One of the best things about using a consumer VPN like we’ve rated is that most of the best ones like TorGuard have amazing customer support that extends into all of their product lines. They can help you configure and maximize your VPN performance, or even configure DD-WRT router settings to give yourself house-wide Wi-Fi. If you’re setting up your own private VPN, you don’t have this resource and it can be a real bummer.
