VPN not allowed?
 

The Flyertalk website refuses to load if I have my VPN turned on. Why do you insist that I use a less safe method to view this site? As soon as I turn off the VPN, the site loads normally. Do you really support unprotected browsing?

FT blocks *some* VPNs, although it is more a function of blocking certain IP address spaces, so depending on geographical location and/or Internet provider some might find themselves blocked even without the use of a VPN.

Some related discussion threads:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/tech...pn-thread.html

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/tech...s-blocked.html

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/tech...e-via-vpn.html

If your VPN provider has alternate endpoints to select from you could try that, or to the extent it's feasible/economical, try a different VPN provider.

Although I would think in most cases it wouldn't be considered dangerous/subversive to be reading FlyerTalk, so just using HTTPS without a VPN should be sufficient protection?

And I'll just chip in here....

Consumer VPNs are good at geolocating you somewhere else to get around content restrictions.

But their marketing mantra that they offer better security is often mis-sold. If you are using public WiFi then there is a reasonable argument that an extra tunnel to protect stuff like DNS on the shared medium of WiFi that isn't already encrypted is good. But the IP address you end up using to get to the internet is shared with many other people some of whom are up to no good. Most consumer VPN IP addresses therefore end up with medium or high risk scores in authentication and hygiene services. You've chosen to associate yourself with some other low-life.

Then you've got the issue that organisations like your bank are doing their best to keep your accounts safe now see that you've used your card in Cardiff (UK) but you're logging in from California (US) - what are they expected to think?

In many cases you might be better off just using your local source IP, and running some risk that your ISP might get a little bit of a clue about your browsing destinations from DNS queries or destination IPs. And if you want a tunnel for extra last mile security roll your own with a cheap linux virtual server or on other kit you have access to.

At my $dayjob anyone using a consumer VPN to access corporate resources as a minimum gets slapped into an extra round of MFA for good measure, if they don't get blocked.