this post was submitted on 08 Aug 2024
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Privacy
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I don't see why people would use a credit card to pay for a vpn, it seems like it would totally defeat the purpose. I guess if you get ahold of an anonymous card then it would be fine, but using a card in your name to pay for an anonymous service just seems wacky to me.
I'm curious, does anyone here pay for their vpn with something thatvis in their name? If so, why?
Because that's not our threat model.
I want to be anonymous for the sites I visit. I want my ISP, who's likely selling my data, to have none. I want to use a WiFi without anybody sniffing.
I'm lucky enough to live in a county were I'm not prosecuted for my ideas or who I am, and I'm not doing anything illicit aside from torrent.
So the hassle doesn't seem needed in this case. If I think Mullvad can harm me if they know my name, then I wouldn't use it at all, even with private payments.
Anonimity is keeping your identity private, but not your actions.
Privacy is keeping your actions hidden, but not your identity.
Using a VPN will hide your IP and make you more anonymous online. Using a personal CC to buy the vpn does not compromise that and does not defeat the purpose at all.
Only if your specific account ID is compromised could the personal CC be used against you by identifying you. E.g.: "they" found your bad email in an inbox of somebody who is less privacy conscious and are trying to figure out who
festybear69@...is.It depends on what your use-case/threat model is.
What purpose is it defeating if they are not storing anything besides your credit card payment information?
Yeah, if they're looking for your data on VPN services, they obviously already know you use it, most likely because of the IP.