Though Private Internet Access is one of the cheapest VPN giants but is it a good VPN for torrenting?

Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access is undoubtedly the most affordable VPN in the VPN industry since its introduction. It has been an incredibly popular VPN for torrenting because of its huge number of followers. The guide below will help you review the pros and cons of PIA for selecting it as a VPN for torrenting.

Is PIA Torrenting Reliable?

In order to find out whether Private Internet Access VPN is a reliable VPN, we looked into its various features and characteristics:

1. Security and Privacy

Private Internet Access IP

VPN providers are working day in and day out to win the title of the best or the fastest. The same goes for the title of privacy, almost every other VPN claims to offer the best privacy yet provided.

However, PIA is one of those few VPNs that stand up to its Privacy Policy and thus has a concrete zero-log policy.

The security of PIA is also distinct as it uses 256-bit military-grade encryption. Further, users can also customize encryption settings from the following options:

Default Recommended Protection

  • Data encryption: AES-128
  • Data authentication: SHA1
  • Handshake: RSA-2048

All Speed No Safety

  • Data encryption: None
  • Data authentication: None
  • Handshake: ECC-256k1

Maximum Protection

  • Data encryption: AES-256
  • Data authentication: SHA256
  • Handshake: RSA-4096

Risky Business

  • Data encryption: AES-128
  • Data authentication: None
  • Handshake: RSA-2048

Moreover, the higher security levels tend to slow down the Internet speed but, the speed tests still assured us fairly good speeds.

2. Features

PIA MACE

This new feature of PIA VPN is a three-in-one built-in ad/tracker/malware blocker. PIA MACE is a one-stop solution for all the browser extensions one could need for the annoying ads and malware. This feature is undoubtedly very convenient and useful for every employer of PIA VPN.  

Kill Switch

Private Internet Access Kill Switch

The Kill Switch feature for PIA torrenting is an important feature for anonymous file sharing while downloading torrents. The PIA VPN Kill Switch feature will not turn you down as this feature worked fine during our tests. This option should always be enabled while on the web.

DNS Leak Protection

The DNS leak protection allows all DNS requests to be routed through the VPN assuring that there are no chances of DNS leaks left. This VPN for torrenting uses its own private DNS servers. One does not have to worry about DNS leaks with this feature enabled on.

3. Server Locations

Private Internet Access Server List

PIA VPN is currently having around 3245+ servers in about 33 countries around the world. Such a huge number of servers account for great coverage over the world. Therefore, every user gets to connect to a server nearby ensuring smooth and reliable PIA torrenting experience.

4. Compatibility

Private Internet Access

PIA VPN is available on almost all the main platforms like Windows, Android, Mac, Linux, and iOS as well.

Moreover, this VPN offers a generous number of 5 simultaneous device connections to the VPN at the same time.

5. Performance

The performance of Private Internet Access VPN was assessed by various speed tests and security tests such as the DNS Leak test, IP test, and Torrent IP test.

No DNS leaks were found during the DNS Leak test as the DNS Leak Prevention feature worked quite well. The IP test proved that the same IP was always assigned to the user by the PIA VPN every time. Similarly, the Torrent IP test allowed us to assess that the real IP of the user was never leaked while PIA torrenting.

Speed Tests

Private Internet Access Speed Test

The speed tests were conducted using the highest encryption, that is, 256 bits. Naturally, the higher the level of protection the slower are the speeds achieved. However, Private Internet Access VPN gave pretty good results with such a high level of encryption.

Torrent Speed Tests

Private Internet Access Torrent Speed Test

Servers in many different countries were tested and they all gave us good speeds. Good speeds of servers in torrenting friendly locations are no doubt huge merit of PIA torrenting.

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How to Connect to a PIA VPN Server?

The settings of PIA VPN are managed from the Notification Bar which is located on the bottom right of the screen.

Here, the red icon shows that the VPN is not currently running. You may right-click on it to check the options.

Private Internet Access Setting

When you are setting up PIA VPN, you must select the settings of your preference. Click on “Settings” and then on “Advanced” option.

Here, you may select the encryption levels of your preference that have also been discussed in the Security and Privacy section. Moreover, the features that you want to enable are discussed in the Features section.

After selecting the preferred settings, make sure you press Save or all your settings will be set back to default. Now, whenever you wish to connect to PIA VPN, all you would have to do is choose the server location where you want to connect.

In order to choose any country, click on the icon and select the country. You will be automatically connected to the fastest server of the chosen country.

Pricing Plans:

Private Internet Access Pricing

The Pricing Plans of Private Internet Access VPN are one of the biggest hits in the VPN industry right now. Especially, the 2-year plan which costs $2.91 per month (or $69.95 every 2 years) is a big catch. The other two pricing plans include:

  • Monthly plan – $6.95 per month
  • Yearly plan – $3.33 per month (or $39.95 every year)

All these pricing plans come with a 7-day money-back guarantee. 

Conclusion

Private Internet Access VPN has surely come a long way since its introduction in the VPN industry. This VPN is a complete package that is packed with many exciting features that are discussed above.

PIA torrenting experience was found distinct among the rest of the VPNs. This VPN ensured fast and secure downloads. Apart from the torrenting performance, all the other features of PIA VPN worked quite well.

Private Internet Access VPN is a one-stop shop for many features we usually never find in a single VPN. Don’t forget to share your experiences with Private Internet Access VPN in the comments below.