Opera Adds Free and Unlimited VPN Service To Its Android Browser (venturebeat.com) 75
Opera has added a free VPN service to its Android browser. The Norwegian browser maker, which went public last year, also addressed concerns about potential hidden costs of using its free VPN offering. From a report: As users become more cautious about their privacy, many have explored using VPN services. According to a GlobalWebIndex estimate, more than 650 million people worldwide use such tools to mask their identity online and fend off web trackers. Opera has long recognized this need; in 2016, it launched Opera VPN, a standalone VPN app for iOS and Android. A few months later, it baked that feature into its desktop browser. Last year, however, the company discontinued Opera VPN. Now, Opera is integrating the VPN service into its Android browser. Opera 51 for Android enables users to establish a private connection between their mobile device and a remote VPN server using 256-bit encryption. Users can pick a server of their choice from a range of locations. Unlike several other VPN apps, Opera's offering does not require an account to use the service.
Bandwidth? (Score:4, Interesting)
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If many people use Opera VPN, the browsers speed will be a problem (unless they have many many servers, which is doubtful for a free VPN).
The VPN is very slow for me.
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That's because you're using Comcast.
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They don't. So it should be fine :-).
Opera's VPN in the Desktop browser works fine for occasional use, especially since I don't even have images turned on.
Re:Bandwidth? (Score:5, Informative)
The VPN is ad free, the browser isn't. I was happy with Opera Mobile for a while, until an upgrade put a "News" Screen that I couldn't disable.
This "News" Screen was populated with click-bait articles, which I would expect are full of Ad's that I am willing to bet Opera got some cut on the action.
I am actually surprised that Opera is still in the business. From its early days of being a fast and light browser which may had gained some traction if it were free to most users, and later versions which were Ad Supported, filled up a lot of your screen, imagine on a 640x480 screen having 1/4 of the screen filled with ads.
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The VPN is ad free, the browser isn't. I was happy with Opera Mobile for a while, until an upgrade put a "News" Screen that I couldn't disable.
Well, I've been using Opera Mobile forever, and I had no problem deactivating the "Nesw" screen.
The only thing that bugs me a little is that with every other update of the app they add one or more sponsored links to the speed dial. But removing them doesn't take long.
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Since Opera was once I good browser I had installed it on a device I own. It seemed OK for a while, but then I got flooded with tourism ads for China. The "notices" would respawn as quickly as I could delete them. Uninstall was the only remedy. Now I will not have anything to do with Opera in any OS.
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Still chinese (Score:2, Informative)
Who trust in russian/chinese software?
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Is Opera a company controlled Chinese government? If Yes, Thanks, I don't think I need that.
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I'm pretty sure that
1. there is only one chinese government
2. it is not controlled by a company
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Maybe, but Opera is owned by a Chines company. That means any vpn service they provide is untrustable.
https://www.engadget.com/2016/07/18/opera-browser-sold-to-a-chinese-consortium-for-600-million/
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Re: Still chinese (Score:2)
Same for the US and EU so you have no point.
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As I live in Sweden I find it highly unlikely as is that the Chinese government would arrest me.
I guess if I acted in a very poor manner maybe the US could.
But much more likely is of course that the government of this state would do so.
Doesnâ(TM)t need an account... (Score:1)
Because the VPN scrapes more than enough data to know who you are (*).
* No I donâ(TM)t have any proof of this but if your not paying for a service, you are the product.
Re: Doesnâ(TM)t need an account... (Score:1)
Emperor Xi likes to watch...
Nice try.. (Score:2, Insightful)
... I know Opera is owned by a Chinese company and this is just some scheme to redirect traffic to packet sniffers.
Their VPN used to be subject to strong Norwegian p (Score:2, Redundant)
Not sure if that's still the case.
There's also the question: who do you trust more: your ISP and Govt, or Opera?
I use the VPN to get around region lock and to visit sites my Govt might hold against me in future. Obviously, I use TOR for real security.
Doesn't do shit. (Score:5, Informative)
That's like saying "have a condom handy when you're having sex." It doesn't do any fucking good if you just look at it while you're raw-dogging the woman.
A VPN that keeps logs is just making your internet slower because you're bottlenecking through it. If you are worried that someone is going to trace you, they can do so with the same legal paperwork and subpoena's that they can use to trace all the rest of your IP traffic. The one Opera is offering is worthless, unless all you care about is watching Netflix shows from a different country.
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This is totally true. However, sometimes it's better than nothing. It will stop certain websites from gathering 'personal' info.And iIt might stop certain private parties from collecting your data, for example when sharing linux distro torrents.
Norway is a European country. However, it is not part of the EU (European Union). Hence you'd have to investigate the Norwegian law to determinate what they are required to log by law and under what conditions this data can be requested by (foreign) law enforcement a
Re:Doesn't do shit. (Score:5, Interesting)
Opera's VPN isn't worthless.
If you are worried that someone is going to trace you, they can do so with the same legal paperwork and subpoena's that they can use to trace all the rest of your IP traffic.
Random people can get a subpoena on a Chinese/European company as easy as that, can they?
The primary use for Opera's VPN will be unsecured wifi. You get off the plane, you don't have a local SIM, and the airport has free wifi. The hotel has free wifi. McDonalds has free wifi. And none of it is encrypted.
Using Opera's VPN effectively hides your IP address from most of the sites you visit too. They are not going to go out and get a subpoena just so they can geolocate your real IP address, even if it was legally possible to do so. It will also nicely bypass your ISP's blocks, in case you want to access SciHub or The Pirate Bay or whatever.
Re: Doesn't do shit. (Score:2, Insightful)
"Random people can get a subpoena on a Chinese/European company as easy as that, can they?"
Not random people. Agents of repressive authoritarian regimes. Yes, they can easily get a badlawful order to snoop anyone anytime for any or no reason. Europe is not exactly a bastion of freedom these days.
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If you want to stay anonymous
From whom? Trust is not an all or nothing question. Now your advice is generally good, but for the most part people aren't trying to remain anonymous from their VPN provider and legitimate legal requests for their logs.
Comment removed (Score:3, Insightful)
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The "Red State" is just another mega corporation, with Wall Street investments like everybody else. China is not "communist", it is merely a highly restricted market domestically. Not so much what you can buy, but what you can sell.
But they didn't discontinue it? (Score:2)
Now I'm confused? I use Opera every week or two for a website that will not work in my region with Firefox or Chrome or Safari, but Opera is still working? The article says that Opera removed the VPN last year?
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Thanks for reminding me about the time I was using fake headers for the same purpose... That was with a plugin for Firefox, but I should research the Opera situation to see if I can understand what is going on. These days I mostly just want things to work without a lot of tweaking. (And if I'm actually seriously concerned about privacy, there's always Tor. Probably layers and levels of secrecy and anonymity beyond that, too.)
Chinese, not Norwegian... (Score:5, Informative)
> The Norwegian browser maker,
Really? That seems a bit, errr, disingenuous. Maybe even misleading.
https://www.engadget.com/2016/... [engadget.com]
After a $1.2 billion deal fell through, Opera has sold most of itself to a Chinese consortium for $600 million. The buyers, led by search and security firm Qihoo 360, are purchasing Opera's browser business, its privacy and performance apps, its tech licensing and, most importantly, its name. The Norwegian company will keep its consumer division, including Opera Apps & Games and Opera TV.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
Opera Ltd. is publicly listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange [8], with majority ownership and control belonging to Chinese Businessman Yahui Zhou, creator of Beijing Kunlun Tech[9] which specialises in mobile games and cybersecurity specialist Qihoo 360.
If you want to send all your traffic through a Chinese VPN, go ahead, but at least be aware who ultimately controls Opera. The fact it's explicitly pitched as "Norwegian" seems suspicious. Could be a trap. :)
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Whoever "we" is, that seems like a very bad idea.
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Someone needs to do a Tiananmen Square test on the Chinese VPN...
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The company is owned by the Chinese, but its HQ is still located in Norway. The VPN servers are located in Norway. Besides what's so damn trustworthy about American companies and the US government?
Fun fact: the Chinses CEO of the company that owns Opera also is the CEO of the Chinese company that has a majority stake in Grindr. So all you gay Slashdotters using Grindr should know that the Chinese government is keeping track of your hookups!
When something is free, you are the product. (Score:2, Insightful)
The questions are, what are they selling and who are they selling it to?
Know your enemy (Score:3)
If you don't trust or can't verify the practices of the VPN end-point provider, using their VPN is *WORSE* than not using it. You are funneling all your traffic to a convenient end point. People need to understand this.
The usual problem (Score:1)
Unfortunately, if I use your software, then it's important that I not use your services. Or if I use your services, then I can't use your software. That's just common sense.
(Same goes for hardware. Hardware, software and services must all be independent or else you're walking into a trap. And no person who ever walked into that trap didn't get fucked by it. It's one of the most infamously well-known mistakes that a computer user can make.)
Other companies under Chinese ownership (Score:1)
Since the biggest objection to using Opera's VPN service seems due the company's ownership from a Chinese corporation, it might interest Slashdotters to know what companies here in the US are owned by the Chinese.
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/11/10-iconic-american-companies-owned-by-chinese-investors.html [cnbc.com]
1.Chicago Stock Exchange (the Chinese know your financial information)
2. AMC Theater Chain (the Chinese know what movies you see)
3. Smithfield Foods (the Chinese know what foods you eat)
4. Legacy Entertainme
Opera is a shadow of its former self (Score:4, Informative)
Decent I guess (Score:1)