Ecuador is not that different from many of its neighboring countries in South America when it comes to the internet and its penetration rate, in the sense that it started rising exponentially only in the past few years. With this technological development came economic developments as well as social and educational developments to the whole country. Sadly, Ecuador faced the same internet complications as most of the online developed countries. These complications include online security risks, online censorship and online surveillance. The online security risks include cyber crimes like identity theft, hacking attacks, fraud, and several other major and minor online crimes. Now, luckily for the internet users in Ecuador, there is a very simple solution to avoid such complications. This solution comes in the form of acquiring a Virtual Private Network or VPN service. The use of VPNs has already been on the rise in Ecuador ever since its introduction due to that internet users in Ecuador are now have a much higher online awareness. Knowing which VPN out of the countless names out there is more suitable for Ecuador, that’s a different story. In order to pick out the most suitable VPNs for Ecuador we need to first briefly understand how VPNs work and what we require out of them in the case of Ecuador. A VPN consists of a global network of servers and through these servers they provide their users with features that aim at protecting these users’ online freedom, online privacy, and online security. Let us take a closer look at each one of these points, how it is achieved through the features, and which features serve which purpose.
Online Freedom
As we have mentioned earlier, a VPN provider operates a global network of servers and grants its users access to connect to anyone of these servers at anytime. An online restriction of websites is usually ordered by the government and implemented by the ISP on their server. A VPN user can bypass these restrictions by simply connecting to any of the VPN servers located outside of the country. This will cause all the users’ online traffic to travel through the VPN server instead of the ISP server, hence bypassing the blockade placed by the ISP. Another feature related to online freedom is that VPNs support highly encrypted tunneling protocols which disguise all traffic going through their network. In this case even if the entity restricting access to certain website cannot read the VPN user’s online traffic and so will never know if it includes access to a blocked website.
Online Privacy
Once a connection is established between a VPN server and the user, the user’s IP address is automatically replaced with one of the server’s shared IP’s. This completely hides the user’s online identity. The second feature related to online privacy is related to online freedom as well which is the support of tunneling protocols which hide all the user’s online traffic within a very strong layer of encryption and so no unwanted snoopers can get their hands on that information. Last but not least, most of the high-end VPN providers stick to a very strict “no logs” policy in which they do not record nor keep logs of their users’ online activities or browsing history.
Online Security
The most reliable VPNs use a high level encryption to secure their entire network of servers. These encryption levels can sometimes reach military grade which is the same level used by governments around the world to secure their confidential information. In addition to this VPN providers support multiple security protocols, the most common of which is the OpenVPN protocol. Other commonly supported protocols include L2TP/IPSec, PPTP, SSTP, and IKEv2. Some VPN providers even have their very own unique protocols. Not all providers support all types of protocols. In other words, the number and types of protocols supported differs between one provider and the other. In order to further secure their users’ online experience, different providers offer their users with different additional security features which we will discuss more with each VPN in our list.
According to our current understanding of how VPNs work in general, we can compare these features and purposes with our requirements out of a VPN in the situation in Ecuador. As we know, there are countless of VPN provider names available in the market today, however not all of them are reliable enough and not all of them meet our requirements in Ecuador. This is why we were able to narrow our search down using this comparison process and shortlist the 3 most suitable VPNs for the online environment in Ecuador.
Best VPNs for Ecuador
BVPN
BVPN is a Netherlands-based VPN provider that was launched in 2014. It is considered one of the greatest success stories among the biggest names in the VPN market today. This is because in a matter of just a few years it has succeeded in climbing the ranks and becoming one of the highest rated VPNs in the industry. This did not come easily though. Ever since day one of its operations and it has been providing its users with the most advanced features in online freedom, online security and online privacy. It has been highly recommended in one online challenge after the other. Every challenge was tougher than the one before it but BVPN never failed to impress. This is why we never hesitated to highly recommend to all the internet users in Ecuador.
Level of Security
- The entire network is highly secured with a military grade 256-bit encryption
- Multiple advanced and unique security protocols are supported (OpenVPN with UDP/TCP, L2TP/IPSec, SSTP, SSH, and its very own Smoke Tunnel)
Additional Security Features
- Internet Kill Switch
- IPv6 Leak Protection
- Public Wi-Fi Security
Network of Servers
- More than 20 strategically placed server locations all over the world
- Continuous expansions and upgrades are being made to the network
- Each server is capable of providing the users with countless shared IP’s
Additional Features
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switching
- Up to 6 simultaneous connections
- “Fastest Server” automatic server selection
- No logging of online traffic
- 7-day money back guarantee
PureVPN
Launched in 2007 from Hong Kong, PureVPN started off with as little as 2 server locations. Over the years it has successfully grew to become one of the biggest and most trusted names in the field of online freedom, privacy, and security. It has never stopped from continuously providing its users with new advanced features. It has been a great recommendation for the toughest online situations around the world and it is considered a very reliable option for Ecuador.
Level of Security
- A 256-bit encryption is used to secure entire network
- Multiple security protocols supported (OpenVPN, L2TP/IPSec, PPTP, SSTP, IKEv2, and its very own Stealth Protocol)
Additional Security Features
- Antivirus/Antimalware
- Intrusion Detection and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IDS/IPS)
- URL Filtering
- App Filtering
- Automatic Protocol Selection
- Internet Kill Switch
- NAT Firewall
- DDoS Protection
Network of Servers
- More than 750 servers spread across 141 countries around the world
- This network is capable of providing its users with more than 88,000 shared IP’s as well as the ability to acquire a dedicated IP
Additional Features
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switching
- Up to 5 simultaneous connections
- Ad-Blocking
- Split Tunneling
- Smart Purpose Selection
- No logs kept
- 7-day money back guarantee
IPVanish VPN
IPVanish was officially launched in 2012 and is based in the US. Many people might argue that the US is not exactly the best place for VPNs but IPVanish has taken all the legal measures necessary to fully protect its users online privacy. It has definitely proved itself to be a very reliable and trustworthy provider in all the challenges and situations that came its way. No matter how tough these challenges were, IPVanish always succeeded in protecting its users online freedom, online privacy, and online security. This is why it is surely a very considerable recommendation for Ecuador.
Level of Security
- The network is secured with a 256-bit AES encryption
- Multiple security protocols supported (OpenVPN with UDP/TCP, L2TP/IPSec, PPTP, and IKEv2)
Additional Security Features
- SOCKS5 Web Proxy
- Public Wi-Fi Protection
Network of Servers
- More than 850 servers spread across more than 60 countries around the world
- These servers are able to provide the users with more than 40,000 shared IP’s
Additional Features
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switching
- Up to 5 simultaneous connections
- Zero traffic logs
- 7-day money back guarantee
Conclusion
In South America and compared to Ecuador, there are worse online environments. However, as long as there is even a slight chance to be at risk, it’s always better to take the necessary precautions. In these cases this would be having a reliable VPN to ensure that your online freedom, online privacy, and online security are always protected. There are countless VPNs in the market, like we mentioned earlier, but each situation requires certain qualities from the VPN. In the case of Ecuador, our main priority would be to focus on the VPNs that posses higher qualities in online security and online freedom. The above 3 VPNs are the leading names among VPNs in these criteria. The most recommended VPN for Ecuador, out of them, would be BVPN.
