I have seen the following argument (summarized here as I understand it):
Despite the promises that VPN providers make, it is known that they will often monitor your traffic, collect logs, might share your information, and will collaborate with law enforcement. Renting a VPS and running an OpenVPN server on it and using that as your VPN, is better - because you have full control over the logs. Let’s assume we trust the VPS provider to adhere to their TOS and privacy policy.
To talk about a concrete typical usecase, I am thinking about how this applies to downloading illegal torrents. In my current view, the only scenario in which the self-hosted option makes sense is if you pay for hosting using crypto and reveal no personal information during the process. Otherwise using a VPS would be virtually the same as downloading it through your ISP - and in some cases even worse - because the VPS provider might be more easily pushed to throwing you under the bus if abuse is reported since this might be a TOS violation. On the other hand, a VPN provider has a much larger motivation to protect users against this because the way that users perceive these protections is fundamental to their business model.
So, is there a reason to self-host a VPN instead of using a VPN provider? If so, should the VPS be acquired anonymously, or are there ways to protect yourself while using a provider that you gave your personal information to?
The only reason I can think of to use a VPN is to get access to content that’s location restricted. Setting up OpenVPN on a VPN is pretty straight forward, and VPS hosting is pretty cheap nowadays. I really don’t see a reason to use a provider if you have the technical skills to set up your own. Furthermore, if you control the VPN server then you can ensure that it’s not logging your activity.
I do find it convenient to have the ability to change my location quickly, but I am willing to give up on some of this flexibility. I am trying to understand the tradeoffs.
The main downside of having a private VPN is that the location is fixed to wherever the VPS is located. The downside of using a provider is that they can collect any unencrypted data going through the VPN, and you don’t know whom they share it with.
