BTGuard VPN

BitTorrentGuard — aka BTGuard — is a VPN and BitTorrent proxy provider. It is specifically designed for P2P fans at a time when most tiptoe around the subject of torrenting. You can use it on as many computers as you like without worrying about bandwidth, which is great for file sharing. Another significant aspect of the VPN is that its speeds are consistent. However, it does have some drawbacks.

First, how safe can it be for torrenting or any other activity with no kill switch?

Second, because of the low number of servers, its streaming capabilities are minimal and unable to compete with others in the market.

Instead, I recommend you try one of these secure, good-value VPNs.

Try BTGuard VPN Now!

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Streaming — Limited Compatibility With Popular Platforms

BTGuard VPN can’t safely access most streaming platforms. While its speeds are decent, the limited server network is ineffective for streaming. There are also few options for troubleshooting. Overall, it’s not the right choice for accessing the top platforms from anywhere in high quality.

Works With: Netflix

We could successfully stream Netflix Canada and Netherlands without significant performance issues.  The quality was fine, and we didn’t experience additional buffering. Unfortunately, this was the end of our successful outings.

Doesn’t Work With: Hulu, Max, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and BBC iPlayer

BTGuard can’t safely access any other platforms, partially due to its limited server network. In addition, its servers might also give you an IP in the wrong location. There are only 2 protocols you can switch between, and neither one helped our tests. We also tried switching browsers, but it was useless.

There are a few VPNs that can securely access all of these platforms from anywhere. They’re better for optimized streaming with larger networks and consistent tests done in-house to make sure they maintain compatibility. To learn more, check out our list of the best VPNs for streaming.

Speeds — Consistent Speeds Worldwide

The VPN’s speeds are reasonably fast and consistent on all its servers. The provider prides itself on unlimited bandwidth. With unlimited bandwidth, you should be able to surf, download, and live stream at the same time without any slowdown because there’s no limit to your data usage.

I first ran a speed test without the VPN and then compared the results to different servers with the VPN on:

I did not experience any significant speed loss while using BTGuard VPN

Because the data is traveling a long way, you can expect some speed loss when using a VPN due to geographical distance to the servers.

However, I experienced very little speed loss compared to my normal connection.

My download speed results on the VPN’s long-distance servers ranged from 10.09 on the Netherlands server to 11.91 Mbps on the Singapore server, my normal speed being 11.85 Mbps.

The percentage loss ranged from 2.5% to 15%, which is in the normal range. The average download speed across servers was 11.18 Mbps and the average upload speed 0.7 Mbps.

Are BTGuard VPN’s Speeds Fast Enough for Gaming? No

My speeds were not fast enough for gaming. The average ping from my tests was 159. Ideally, gamers typically need pings in the 50–100 ms range.

Ping is the number of milliseconds it takes data to reach the server from you and back. The higher the ping, the more likely it is that you will experience lag which will affect your game.

I was playing The Sims 3, and each time my ping was too high, which makes for a bad gaming experience.

I experienced delays while playing The Sims 3 online on the VPN

Server Network — Robust but Tiny Server Network

BTGuard has a small but fast network.

It has 10 Gbit servers which translate to great upload and download speeds. However, it has only 1000 in 3 locations which means your traffic may be slower if you can’t find a server near you. Not only that, but the servers can also get overcrowded, which affects speed.

The servers are in Singapore, Canada, and the Netherlands. That number is very disappointing, considering competing providers offer hundreds of locations for a lot less.

A worrying fact about the VPN’s server network was that connecting to the Singapore server kept giving me a returned IP address from the Netherlands.

Security — Average Features and Failed Leak Tests

BTGuard’s security is average. It lacks some basic features, and it failed my leak tests.

Still, the VPN offers the industry’s standard symmetric encryption — 256-bit AES. Symmetric encryption uses the same key to encrypt and decrypt data. Interestingly, BTGuard combines this with asymmetric RSA-1028 encryption, which uses one key to encipher and the other to decipher information. This is called hybrid cryptography, whose advantage is to give you better speeds and higher security.

BTGuard VPN offers 2 protocols: OpenVPN and PPTP.

PPTP provides weaker protection because its cipher is outdated by today’s standards. So, it’s not the best choice for if you want high security.

On the other hand, OpenVPN is renowned for military-grade security and is constantly improving, which means it will help you stay safe.

I was disappointed that there’s no kill switch. If your VPN temporarily disconnects, without a kill switch, your data will be out in the open and you won’t even know.

Before installation, I scanned the OpenVPN file on VirusTotal, and it was not flagged as having malicious software.

I did not find malware when scanning the OpenVPN file

I wasn’t as fortunate when testing for IP and DNS leaks. If your DNS is leaking, this is a serious privacy problem. It means your ISP can see your online activities, even though you’re using a VPN. An IP leak is when your real IP address is showing despite using a service to hide it.

My results showed that my VPN was leaking since my DNS and IP pointed to my country instead of the VPN server location. I had the same results when testing this on a different browser, as your browser often causes many leaks.

My IP and DNS leak tests on BTGuard’s Netherlands server failed

Privacy — Not Privacy-Centered

BTGuard has a short privacy policy, and it is based in a country that collects and shares data. That does not give me confidence that it will protect my privacy.

Netcrawled LLC set up BTGuard VPN in 2008. It is based in Canada, which is worrying for 2 reasons. Firstly, Canada is part of the 5 Eyes Alliance which collects and shares private data. Secondly, Canada has passed many privacy-invading laws to share collected information about you with the government.

But BTGuard says it doesn’t store, trade, or rent data, including logs or IP addresses. In case it does, it will “identify the purposes for which the information is being collected.”

The VPN’s website features a page dedicated to its privacy policy

It also says it will share your personal information with third parties with your permission. This makes you wonder: but what data exactly would it share? The vague policy on the VPN’s website sheds no light on this.

Torrenting — Unlimited Torrenting

BTGuard VPN allows unlimited torrenting. I was satisfied with the speeds as I downloaded a movie in the public domain using uTorrent.

I had no speed issues using BTGuard VPN to download files on uTorrent

However, I recommend not using it, based on IP and DNS leak tests. The actual location of P2P users within your group would be exposed, putting the security of torrenting activities at risk.

The VPN became popular after an endorsement from TorrentFreak and is refreshingly open about the fact that it allows torrenting.

I don’t condone illegal torrenting and you should always check your country’s regulations to ensure you’re not acting against the law.

Users who can legally download torrents in their countries will enjoy the featured preconfigured version of uTorrent. That means you don’t have to deal with complicated configurations yourself, saving you time and effort.

Other VPN providers offer P2P-friendly servers for better prices. For VPNs that work well with torrents, check out these suggestions.

Does BTGuard VPN Work in China? No

BTGuard VPN doesn’t work in China. China blocks OpenVPN and the VPN’s website makes no mention of the country. I contacted customer service to ask about it, but did not receive a reply.

BTGuard VPN’s customer support never responded to my question

If you are using a VPN in China to get past its Great Firewall, you need a VPN with stronger security features to bypass strict censorship measures. However, I recommend researching the country’s laws beforehand, as they are always changing.

Simultaneous Device Connections — Unlimited From 1 Location At a Time

You can connect as many devices as you want, but sharing among friends and family is not allowed. So, if BTGuard detects multiple locations simultaneously, it may shut your account down.

Make sure you use BTGuard from one location at a time

Connecting both my Windows 10 and Mac laptops simultaneously posed no problems whatsoever. This is particularly great news for torrenting enthusiasts since the majority of VPNs typically permit up to 5 simultaneous connections.