TorrentPrivacy VPN review

TorrentPrivacy is primarily a provider of encrypted BitTorrent proxy services that also throws in a VPN client with its 2-year subscription. Since its launch, over one million people have entrusted this service with their online privacy, and its 7-year track record makes it a veteran in the Internet privacy software market. However, since its VPN is merely a complementary feature to its torrent proxy platform, you might want to consider one of the VPN-first solutions that also support torrenting, such as the ones featured in our best VPN buyers guide.

The TorrentPrivacy software, which can be launched with uTorrent, BitTorrent, or Vuze, creates a secure tunnel via SSH protocol and all traffic that goes through this tunnel is encrypted. A pre-configured torrent client is included in the pack as well, so you can use it instead of the third-party torrenting software.

The provider also offers access to a special proxy for all torrenting websites in order to keep your true IP address hidden in case the tracker is inspected. This way, the torrenting website only gets the provider’s IP address and your anonymity is preserved.

Price

If you only need a BitTorrent proxy service, you can purchase it as a 3-month subscription at the price of $29 (equals to $9.67/month) or a 1-year plan at $89 (equals to $7.42/month). However, if you decide to go for the 2-year package at $129 (equals to $5.38/month), you’ll also get a complimentary, yet very rudimentary VPN service.

All the plans are covered by a 100% 30-day money-back guarantee but there is no free trial on the table. Accepted payment methods include only PayPal and Bitcoin.

Alternatives

TorrentPrivacy is great if your primary goal is to protect your identity only when sharing large files via torrenting and P2P clients. It does offer a VPN service, but exclusively with its priciest subscription option, which is why a true VPN platform like NordVPN, Surfshark, or CyberGhost is a much better solution and at a lower cost. 

All three of them support secure and private torrenting while unblocking popular streaming services and featuring thousands of servers scattered all over the planet. If, however, you’re a VPN elitist, then look no further than ExpressVPN, the top-level VPN that provides everything you’d get with TorrentPrivacy and the above-mentioned VPN services, and much, much more.

Streaming

TorrentPrivacy isn’t focused on offering access to geographically restricted streaming services like Netflix and BBC iPlayer. However, if you need to look for files to download via torrenting clients, this vendor will ensure you do so in complete privacy.

About the company

This service is owned by a company called Bonton Limited, headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Its server network features only 8 units in 3 countries.

Privacy and encryption

TorrentPrivacy has two services - BitTorrent Proxy which only encrypts BitTorrent traffic and VPN which encrypts Internet traffic through PPTP or OpenVPN protocols. The VPN app features a useful tool in this business - a kill switch. This mechanism will “kill” your Internet access whenever the VPN connection is interrupted, effectively protecting your sensitive data from falling into the wrong hands.

According to the provider’s website, it doesn’t keep any logs and isn’t obliged by any law to keep them. The website also states that disk caching is disabled wherever possible and maintenance scripts are run regularly to delete temporary data and compulsory cache files. This sounds alright, but it would be better if we knew what constitutes logs in the vendor’s view and what it considers as “regularly” (every day, week, month…?).

Support

The provider’s BitTorrent Proxy and OpenVPN-based VPN clients for Windows and Mac can be downloaded directly from the website. There are no apps or manual installation support for any other platforms. The BitTorrent Proxy can be enabled on uTorrent, BitTorrent, Vuze, Deluge, BitLord, and BitComet. 

If you need assistance with anything related to this platform, you can try the FAQ section on the website, which is only accessible if you sign up for an account (although you don’t need to activate the product to get there). You can also get in contact with the customer support team directly by sending them an email or via web form. That said, it may take some time to get a response.

Speed and experience

Each server’s speeds and congestion rates can be viewed on the website. The speeds for the Netherlands and Sweden servers mainly range around 300Mbit/s (37.5Mbps), while the US servers offer 150Mbit/s (18.75Mbps), all of which is considered excellent in this business.

The VPN app is simple as they come, with straightforward user interface, one-click connection, and a few optional features, including auto-launch app on startup, auto-connect upon launch, auto-connect when using unsecured WiFi, re-connect when VPN connection drops, a kill switch, IPv6 leak protection, and local port selection. You can even contact the customer support directly from the app.

Verdict

TorrentPrivacy is a great solution for users primarily concerned about their privacy when sharing large files via torrenting and P2P clients, as it will provide them with excellent speeds and top anonymity. That said, it is far from a full VPN platform such as ExpressVPN which, on top of supporting private torrenting, also has thousands of servers all over the planet, as well as featuring the capability to unblock a wide range of geo-restricted content. 

TorrentPrivacy, on the other hand, features a minimal number of servers, has no mobile apps, and it’s content unblocking capability is questionable. It also lacks the possibility of reaching customer support via live chat. All things considered, there are certainly better options out there and cheaper at that.