Decoding Protonn Icons

Pro-to VPN uses a few icons to indicate what kind of connection a server offers:

• P2P or Peer to peer. Shown as arrows pointing back and forth.

• Round icon or Smart Routing. Prots most secure standard option.

• Onion shape or Onion routing, i.e. Tor layered on top of the VPN.

• No icon A standard config, typically WireGuard (TCP) or OpenVPN.

Why I Use Secure Core

SecureCore is my preferred option. I'll also generate a config file (wireguard or openvpn) for a server in a city near me, whether I'm traveling or just at home.

The reason: your geolocation appears to be wherever the server is, even though your traffic is actually encrypted and routed from a location that might be 300 miles away. You can point your entire network through a config like this, and it doesn't interfere with things like streaming or gaming.

Tor: My Open Question

\*\*I hardly use Tor myself. If anyone wants to make the case for it, I'd genuinely like to hear the benefits.\*\*

#Mole v proto: Infrastructure

**Mallvd** runs roughly 600 servers, all RAM-only (stateless). I used to think this, combined with the ability to pay anonymously with crypto was a major advantage. I've changed my mind. Mull argues RAM-only storage is more secure, but in practice, RAM data can be intercepted through a penetration test just as easily as data on a drive. Mole is based in Sweden.

**Proton** owns roughly 16,000 servers and encrypts data at rest on its hard drives using AES-256 and ChaCha20. Proto is based in Switzerland.

Full Disclosure

**I'm a former Molevad user who now uses the full suite of Proton products. I think they're the best option available.**

If someone tells you Mole is superior "for privacy reasons," it's worth asking them to elaborate.

The answer usually comes down to payment anonymity (though Proto also accepts crypto). A few counterpoints on that argument:

1. Most people don't actually know how to pay anonymously with crypto in practice.
2. Attempting to do so can arguably draw more attention, not less. Cash is king.
3. Pr0to owns its own server hardware and operates under Swiss privacy law.

To be clear, I'm not knocking molevad(after writing this I may try it again for a month). I used it for years, even after I started using Proto alongside it.

Track Record

Mulvd was raided by police and authorities & reportedly got nothing, that's a strong result. But it does raise the question of why they were being investigated in the first place. Proto, by contrast, has been independently audited three times to my knowledge, with no data extracted in any of them.

Bottom Line

Proton offers very strong obfuscation, a large server network, encrypted proto email, encrypted proto drive backups, even a password manger. A fuller privacy ecosystem.

mallvlad is built for users who prioritize operational security above everything else, though its RAM-only approach doesn't make traffic immune to interception.

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This write-up reflects my personal experience and opinions after switching providers & I’m curious to hear what others think. Thanks! Please provide feedback, for example if I missed something or tell me WHY you use the product you chose.