How to hide VPN IPs (4 options that work)
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There are plenty of guides online that talk about how to hide your IP address (here’s ours). But we haven’t seen anyone discuss how to hide VPN IP addresses.
And we’ve seen some Reddit users ask this question. Plus, some of our readers have been asking us this too.
So we went ahead and covered this topic in this quick article. It should only take you about six or seven minutes to go through it, so check it out. If you are in a hurry, just use the table of contents to get to the part that interests you the most.
Are VPN IP addresses visible?
Yes, They are. If anyone tells you they are invisible, they are lying to you. After all, if they are not visible, then the server will not be able to connect to the Internet or to your device.
Your ISP or any network administrator can easily see the IP address of the VPN server you are connected to. Don’t forget – the connection is running on their network, and they have complete control over it.
Here is a basic example of how it all looks at the end:
How ISPs and Network Administrators See VPN Connections
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the Required internet address It is the IP address of the VPN server. Since there is no DNS resolution next to it (website name), ISPs and network administrators will assume that it belongs to a VPN or proxy. Oh, and the IP addresses we used in the example are random.
Related: What kind of data can your ISP see when using a VPN? (complete guide)
Why would anyone want to hide their VPN IPs?
The only reason you might want to do this is to stop your ISP or network administrator from VPN block which you are using.
Don’t forget – if they can see the server’s IP address, they can use firewalls to block it. Basically, they enforce traffic rules that state that your device cannot connect to the VPN server as long as you are on their network.
But if they can’t see the server’s IP address, they can’t block it.
How to hide VPN IPs (4 options)
As far as we know, you have four options:
1. Use another VPN server
Let’s start with the most convenient option – use Double VPN connection. It sounds fancy, but it just means that you will connect to a secondary VPN server before connecting to the primary one.
Instead of this:
Your device -> ISP network -> VPN server -> Internet
Your VPN connection will look like this:
Your device -> ISP Network -> VPN Server #1 -> VPN Server #2 -> Internet
where VPN server 1 is the secondary server, and VPN server #2 It is the primary server (the server whose IP address you want to hide).
With a dual VPN connection, only your ISP or network administrators will be able to see the secondary server’s IP address.
Multi Store VPN (also called Chain VPN) is also an option. The only difference is that it involves using multiple VPN servers. So the connection could look like this:
Your device -> ISP Network -> VPN Server #1 -> VPN Server #2 -> VPN Server #3 -> VPN Server #4 -> Internet
Only ISPs and network administrators will be able to see the IP address of the first VPN server. The rest of the IP addresses are hidden.
How to Hide VPN IP Addresses with Double or Multihop VPNs
The easiest way is to use a VPN that offers Dual or multishop support links. Here are some examples:
- NordVPN – They have assigned double VPN servers.
- Surfshark The service contains multi-store servers.
If that’s not an option for you, manual configuration also works. You just need to use a VM (virtual machine) Emulation of a virtual operating system In your current operating system (such as the default Linux distro under Windows 10).
When done, install the VPN app on both the main and default operating system. Next, connect to the VPN server on your main operating system. Next, turn on the default operating system, launch the VPN application it is installed on, and connect to another VPN server.
And there you have it – your dual manual VPN connection. Just keep in mind Speeds will be slower. Your traffic bounces through two servers before it reaches its destination, after all. In addition, your data is encrypted and decrypted twice.
Read more: What is a dual VPN and how to connect VPN servers sequentially – Maximize your anonymity on the Internet!
2. Use a proxy server
A proxy server is similar to a VPN server in that it also hides your IP address. Unlike a VPN, though, the encryption is sometimes weaker or non-existent. Also, the proxy can save the content to its own local cache. When it is requested, it retrieves it without having to redirect user requests to a web server. So you get faster load times.
You can easily use a proxy to hide VPN IP addresses. Simply connect to it first, then launch the VPN app, and connect to the VPN server. This way, your connection will look like this:
Your device -> ISP network -> proxy server -> VPN server -> Internet
So ISPs and network administrators will not see the IP address of the proxy server.
over there some flaws This way we need to highlight, though:
- Speeds are likely to be an issue—especially if you’re using the free option. Proxy servers get crowded quickly because they are very popular ways to unblock content.
- Poor or lacking encryption means that the data you send to and receive from the proxy server can be monitored by your ISP, network administrators, and hackers. The VPN encrypts the traffic between it and the proxy, sure, but it will eventually be sent to your device in an unencrypted format.
3. Use Tor
Tor (The Onion Router) is an anonymizing network that names your IP that hides your IP address and encrypts your data. It looks just like a VPN, but it works differently.
Instead of one layer of encryption, you get at least three layers. This is because of your traffic It passes through at least three servers (called relays) – the entry server, the middle server, and the exit server.
Also, Tor is free service Which does not come with a client like VPNs. Alternatively, to use Tor, you can download and install Tor Browser. Then, you use it to surf the web, and you’ll do it through the Tor privacy network.
As for how to hide VPN IP addresses with Tor, it’s pretty simple. First you launch the Tor browser, then connect to the VPN server. As long as you are only browsing the web using a Tor server, only the IP address of the input server will be visible to ISPs and network administrators, like so:
Your device -> ISP network -> Tor Entry Server -> Tor Middle Server -> Tor Exit Server -> VPN server -> Internet
Just be prepared for Very slow speeds. Tor is really slow on its own, so adding a VPN server into the mix won’t help. Try using IKEv2, WireGuard, or L2TP/IPSec with a VPN if the slowdowns are too annoying.
What about NordVPN’s Onion servers?
Can’t you just use it instead?
You can, but they are not the same thing. they Onion over VPN servers, not a VPN via Onion servers. So they hide the fact that you are using Tor, not a VPN. ISPs and network administrators will still be able to see the IP address of the VPN server:
Your device -> ISP network -> VPN server -> Tor login server -> Tor Middle Server -> Tor Exit Server -> Internet
4. Use a VPS
A VPS is a virtual server that you rent from a data center. We already have an in-depth guide talking about it and how it compares to VPNs, so feel free to check it out if you want to learn more about virtual servers.
All that matters now is the fact that you can use a VPS to hide the IP address of the VPN server.
how?
By first connecting to a VPS, then to a VPN server. Do that, and your connection will look like this:
Your device -> ISP network -> VPS server -> VPN server -> Internet
So only the IP address of the VPS will be visible to ISPs and network administrators.
Just keep in mind that a VPS is not a VPN. You have to configure the VPN protocol on the server to enjoy any encryption. If you don’t, you will face the same issue as if you were using a proxy server – traffic being sent to and from your machine It will be unencrypted.
Is hiding VPN server IP addresses worth it?
Our opinion is that it’s not worth dealing with all that trouble if you’re a regular internet user (so you’re not a whistleblower or secret agent).
Really, it won’t improve your online experience much. On the contrary, it will make it more complicated. Plus, the lower speeds you’ll get won’t help you at all.
Here’s the main reason we think you don’t need to try these methods – ISPs and network administrators can always do it Block the additional server IP address.
They can’t see the IP address of the VPN server, sure, but they can see the IP address of a proxy, VPS, Tor relay, or additional VPN server. All it takes is a few seconds or minutes to blacklist these IP addresses with their firewalls.
But don’t worry – you usually don’t have to worry about anyone blocking your VPN connection. As long as you don’t live in a country that blocks VPNs or try to use a VPN at work, you probably won’t deal with that.
How can you hide VPN IP addresses?
If you know of other ways you can do this, please let us know in the comments. Also, if you would like to discuss why regular web users try to hide VPN IPs, please go ahead – we look forward to hearing your point.
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