Downloading torrents is fun and thrilling, but it never comes without risks. From getting DMCA notices to downloading a malware-embedded torrent file, torrenting is full of security perils. Such as the latest torrent threat targeting spiderman fans. Anyone downloading the latest “Spiderman: No Way Home” movie is likely to end up infecting their device with crypto-mining malware.
But there are several ways that you can opt to download torrents safely and securely without putting your privacy at risk. Anonymity and privacy are the critical elements for safely downloading torrents. Fortunately, by using a VPN, you can achieve both of them.
Best Ways for Torrents Safely – Steps!
To reduce the risks associated with torrenting, you should always look for methods for secure downloading of torrents. For a safe and enhanced experience, dig out some privacy tool that makes you untraceable and anonymous within the P2P swarm.
Importantly you need to cover two aspects, which are;
- Protect your privacy by using VPN – encrypt your entire internet.
- Active Antiviurs: You need to secure your PC for incoming malwares from torrents site.
The five best methods for downloading torrents are discussed in detail below. So, let’s overview them:
1. Use a VPN
Using a VPN compatible with torrenting enables users to enjoy a secure and hassle-free torrenting experience. A VPN masks your actual IP address and makes you untraceable in the P2P network. It encrypts your data traffic using military-grade encryption and secure tunneling protocols.
A reliable torrent VPN comes with P2P-optimized servers and unlimited bandwidth that provides ultra-fast downloading speed without significant connection lags and ping time. Besides this, a VPN bypasses ISP throttling and ensures fast downloading speed. Another reason a VPN is the best solution for downloading is its features. It offers torrent-specific features like split tunneling, kill switch, torrents IP leak protection, SOCKS5 proxy, and other essential privacy and security-focused features. All these features protect your online identity and strengthen your torrenting experience.
Moreover, a reputable VPN provider doesn’t store your IP address and connection logs. So, by no means the copyright owners and ISP can get hands-on with your identity, and in this way, you can enjoy complete anonymity and privacy during torrenting. To use a VPN for torrenting, make sure you pick up the right VPN. Please avoid using any free VPN because it is poorly configured and has security vulnerabilities. Always pick up a premium VPN provider that offers a top-notch level of privacy and security to the users along with fast speeds.
2. Use Antivirus Software
Not all the files on torrent websites are reliable and safe to download. The potential hackers can seed any malware-infected file in the swarm, and once you start downloading such files, your systems get infected with malware or spyware. Since numerous files are available, it is tough to identify the authentic ones. It is where the need to use antivirus software arises. Using reliable antivirus software has become the need of the hour for downloading the correct torrent files and maintaining device security.
Whenever you’re downloading a torrent file, ensure that you run antivirus software. It is crucial because the antivirus software can detect the malware and send warning signals so you can stop the malicious downloading. It adds an extra layer of protection to your device by monitoring and scanning all files you download. The best antivirus software informs the users about any potential malware and blocks them from downloading, and protects your device before it can get harmed.
3. Use Sandbox
A Sandbox is a company that you can hire to reduce the risks associated with torrenting. It is like a computer that offers blazing-fast downloading speed and is mainly used to upload and download torrents. It provides dedicated P2P servers like a VPN and ensures fast downloading. Using a sandbox is another reliable and secure method for downloading torrents. It’s because it hides your IP address and uses HTTPS encryption to hide your torrent traffic from all snooping eyes. In this way, a Sandbox makes you anonymous while torrenting.
You can enjoy using the sandbox service through the torrent client web interface. When connected to the sandbox service, you need to upload the torrent files. And if you want to download any file, you can select the desired file, and it will instantly start downloading onto your device.
Sandbox uses a public IP address that belongs to data center computers. It uses multiple layers of protection, so; it’s not easy to track the user. However, a skilled hacker can still somehow track you and know your online identity. Thus, if you want to enjoy maximum online anonymity and protection, do use a VPN along with it.
4. Use Reliable Torrent Clients
A torrent client is a platform that allows users to share the torrent file that uses the same protocol. This way, in quick time, one can download their desired torrent file. However, at times, torrent clients can put your privacy at risk. It’s because, on the internet, you’d find numerous torrent clients claiming to provide the best service, but most of them are free and come with limited features and vulnerabilities.
They show several irrelevant intrusive ads that ruin your torrenting experience. Moreover, the threat actors can embed malware within these ads to harm your device and steal valuable data. Hence, using a reliable torrent client that offers various features without risking your online security and privacy is recommended.
Out of the several reliable torrent clients, the few ones are as follows:
- Vuzu offers both free and paid versions and is compatible with all major devices and operating systems like Windows. If you use the premium version, you can easily prevent pop-up ads and access the integrated search option.
- BitTorrent is the oldest yet the best torrent client available today. It offers various impressive features, such as user comments and scheduled downloads.
- uTorrent is another popular torrent client that offers a user-friendly interface and a wide range of features. But the biggest drawback of uTorrent is that it comes with significant security flaws and vulnerabilities.
Ensure that you use a VPN and any torrent clients mentioned above for added security and protection.
5. I2P Network
Using the I2P network is a less effective way to download torrents. It’s a proxy service that masks your IP address but doesn’t encrypt the data traffic. Without encryption, it is easy for the ISP or copyright trolls to learn about your online identity. Also, it uses a proxy server so, as more users download the torrent files from the same server, you might experience reduced speeds and increased loading time.
Besides this, the I2P network is supported by a few torrents clients such as Vuzu. It offers an I2P plugin named I2P Helpers that allows downloading torrents and promises not to reveal you’re true identity.
6. Use Anomas
Using anomas is yet another less common method for downloading torrents. It is a torrent client that uses onion routing technology and end-to-end encryption and ensures that you can download torrents safely. It is free software for Mac, Windows, and Linus devices. Because of encryption, it makes it difficult for anyone to track you.
Since it uses the onion routing technology, your speed can get affected. No one wants to download torrents with a slow and sluggish internet connection; this makes it unreliable. Moreover, it isn’t compatible with the Android platform, which means if you want to download torrents on your phone, it won’t support your device.
7. Use a PeerBlock
A peerBlock is open-source software that allows users to download torrents. By blocking the harmful IP address, you can easily download torrents. However, the biggest drawback of using a PeerBlock is that it doesn’t provide any encryption to your data and can expose your P2P activities to all the prying eyes. Moreover, it even fails to block all the malicious IP addresses because they’re changing quickly and thus are difficult to detect. These reasons make using a PeerBlock pretty unreliable for downloading torrents. However, experts suggest using PeerBlock alternatives instead.
Don’t forget to use a VPN if you still wish to use the above-discussed methods despite knowing the drawbacks. Its robust encryption features make you and your activities hidden and allow a fast downloading process.
Safety Habits Need to Follow While Torrenting?
You need to adopt habits that can significantly impact your digital privacy during torrenting. Some of these habits include:
- Before you download a torrent file, check users’ comments, the number of seeders, and how many times it has been downloaded. All these elements give an idea about the reliability of the torrent file.
- Try to select the single file you want to download, not the entire folder.
- Download the torrent files from reliable and trusted websites.
- Check the size of the file before downloading it.
- Join private torrent tracker communities instead of public ones.
Following these privacy measures is nothing less than crucial as even one overlook from your part can severely compromise your digital privacy and security.
Why Use Private Torrent Trackers?
For a safe and secure torrenting experience, it’s recommended that you use private torrent trackers. They provide reliable and high-quality torrent files for downloading consistently fast. To join the private torrent tracker communities, you need to make a request, and once you receive an invitation, you can start downloading. Since they have a limited number of users, there are fewer chances of hackers or ISPs snooping onto your downloading.
It also protects the users’ online identity and works under strict criteria. When you use private trackers, you need to upload the torrent files. The community members do keep track of your activities, and if you don’t meet the standard, they can even block you from using their services.
How to Configure Your VPN for Torrenting?
Using a torrent VPN is the most suitable way for downloading torrents, but for a better experience, you must configure the VPN settings. Here are a few tricks that you should follow before you use a VPN for downloading torrents:
- Most VPNs don’t offer an automatic split tunneling feature, so navigating the settings enables it.
- Check the VPN for torrent IP leaks. The best VPN is the one that doesn’t leak your actual IP address.
- Ensure that the VPN uses the industry’s highest encryption standard, i.e., AES-256-bit and secure authentication keys.
- Do check the kill switch feature and if it’s not enabled, please turn it on.
- Always connect to the P2P-optimized servers as this helps in quick downloading.
By following the tips mentioned above, you’d ensure that your privacy remains intact while torrenting.
Is Torrenting Safe Without a VPN?
Downloading torrents without a VPN is like inviting privacy invaders to abuse your online privacy. Going on the web unprotected will reveal your actual IP address, and your ISP can know about your torrenting behavior. The copyright owner might request the ISP to send settlement letters to those involved in downloading the copyrighted content. Even after getting warnings, you wouldn’t stop, so you can even get penalized and dragged into courts.
Thus, if you want to keep your identity hidden and enjoy an unlimited torrent downloading experience, then install a torrent VPN on your device. By assigning you a temporary IP address and connecting you with a remote server, it helps you retain maximum anonymity and online protection.
Final Thoughts
Torrenting is an effective method that allows users to download large files instantly; however, it isn’t as easy as it seems to be. While you download torrents, you’re constantly surrounded by privacy risks like copyright violations, compromised anonymity, and penalties imposed by the ISP. Also, experiencing slow internet speed is another hurdle while you download torrents.
However, you can download torrents safely by exercising specific security tips and encrypting the data via a VPN. It is the perfect tool for torrenting because it spoofs your IP address and encrypts the content of your online data, making your activities utterly private. Besides a VPN, you can even use the best antivirus software or use reliable torrent clients and enhance your downloading experience.
