Onion Over VPN
NordVPN – your gate to ultimate privacy on the internet.
Onion Over VPN is a special feature of NordVPN. It gives you all the advantages of The Onion Router (Tor) combined with the extra security of a VPN tunnel.
3 reasons you need Onion Over VPN
- SimplicityJust one click and you’re routed through the Onion network. You can also connect to a regular NordVPN server and use the Tor browser – your choice.
- Privacy from ISP or authoritiesYour internet service provider can see that you use Onion – though not what for. NordVPN shields you from all third parties and does not track your online activity – roam the internet in absolute privacy.
- EncryptionNordVPN sends your traffic through an encrypted tunnel, adding another layer of security over your browsing.
Layers of anonymity with Onion Over VPN
In the Onion network, you send your traffic through a network of volunteer-operated servers.
It goes through three stages:
1. Entry
You connect to the Onion network at a random entry point.
2. Maze of servers
While traveling through multiple servers, your data is enveloped in layers of encryption.
3. Decryption
Further down the road, the layers of encryption are peeled off one by one.
4. Exit
Your data is decrypted, and you exit through a random node, landing on the web.
Onion without VPN poses these threats
Untrustworthy ISPs
Without NordVPN, your internet service provider will know you use the Onion network to access the internet. This can be especially risky for political and human rights activists, journalists, and bloggers, who work and live in censorship-heavy countries.
Snoopers in the network
Onion servers are volunteer-operated – anyone can set up and run one. That means authorities or bad actors could deploy thousands of compromised servers to track you online. Furthermore, no single node sees the full picture, yet someone watching multiple servers – especially entry and exit nodes – can discover your real IP address.
Onion gives you anonymity, but NordVPN delivers the security
NordVPN encrypts your traffic and hides your real IP before connecting to the Onion network. NordVPN adheres to a strict no logs policy, so everything you do online remains hidden from all parties, including us.
Why do you need NordVPN?
Privacy
Shield your online activity – including the fact that you use Onion – from your internet service provider.
Security
Protect yourself from compromised Onion nodes and third-party snooping.
Encryption
Add an extra secure VPN tunnel over the layers of Onion anonymity.
Who should use Onion Over VPN?
Journalists and political activists
If you need to take extra steps to protect yourself and your sources from surveillance and censorship.
Residents and travelers in autocratic regimes
If your internet traffic is monitored and logged by government institutions.
Persons who work with sensitive data
If a single leak can cause tremendous harm or place people in real danger.
When you don’t need Onion Over VPN?
For casual browsing
A VPN tunnel is more than enough to guarantee your safety. You are completely secure when you browse the web connected to a NordVPN server.
For maximum speed
Since you take a longer path, routing your traffic through multiple Onion servers, you experience a slower connection.
When using Double VPN
If you don’t want to deal with the Onion network, use the Double VPN feature, which routes your data through two VPN servers, providing double the security.
You’ve never heard of the Onion router before? The basics are quite easy to grasp
The Onion Router (Tor) is a specialized browser that sends your data through a chain of servers to hide your identity.
So instead of taking a direct route, your internet data enters the Onion network via a random relay anywhere around the globe. Then it makes at least one additional hop and, finally, goes through a random exit node to its final destination on the web.
When your internet traffic enters the Onion network, it goes through layers of encryption at every point of connection, making it difficult to identify where the traffic comes from. The entry node sees your real IP address, but not the final destination on the web. The exit node sees the final destination, but not your IP address.
However, when you use NordVPN, even the entry node cannot see your IP address. So even if someone is observing vast portions of the Onion network, they won’t be able to discern your real identity.