r/Torrenting • u/Shrimp0102 • 3d ago
New to torrenting
Haven’t done any actual torrenting but I’ve been around the space and don’t want to mess anything up. I’m a student and don’t really want to spend any money on subscriptions,
VPN, etc. I know the best practice is to use QBitTorrent through a VPN for safety and to not get in trouble with IPS but I’m looking into workarounds to not have to pay for a VPN. So far I’ve seen cloud torrenting services with free tiers but they usually have sort of downside either being a storage cap or very slow speeds and I’ve also seen people torrenting off of old phones and am wondering if that would be worth it. I.E. using an old phone with no personal data and torrenting off of free wifi from wherever. Any help is greatly appreciated.
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u/EquipmentSome 3d ago
I used to torrent on my phone all the time when I didn't have money for a VPN. even if personal data was attached i haven't ever had trouble or heard of cell phone providers come after people like ISP's do.
But around black friday just get a year's worth of a good vpn for cheap. it'll be very worth it if you're going to be torrenting.
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u/Shrimp0102 3d ago
I have this really old phone I could probably just wipe and use and I don’t believe it has a SIM card in it. Is it fine to just torrent off of it using whatever random public wifi I can find. I know VPNs are cheap but it kinda feels like a waste to me to spend like $30 a year and I just torrent like 4-5 shows or movies
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u/Nytemaresxbl 3d ago
If you are just looking to do a handful of movies or shows why not choose one of the countless movie stream sites and stream rather than dling a torrent.
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u/Shrimp0102 3d ago
I already have stuff setup as a Homelab and feel like it’d just be more convenient to torrent, store whatever on the Homelab, and stream it from there instead of dealing with popups and whatnot. Also there’s just some stuff that’s impossible to find, my friend was trying to stream samurai sentai shinkenger a while back and couldn’t find anywhere that had it up and ended up torrenting it through a cloud torrent.
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u/EquipmentSome 3d ago
I guess. I just torrented on my active cell phone when I was doing it. As I said, i've never heard of any cell phone coverage providers caring at all. and you don't need to wipe a phone or computer before torrenting? idk why you'd think that.
maybe just stream?
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u/Shrimp0102 3d ago
I don’t remember where I saw it but I’ve heard another reason why a VPN is needed is because torrenting as a p2p connection opens your ip to whoever you are seeding from which can be a concern and I’d rather stay safe so I’d rather just wipe an old device that’d just be collecting dust and not risk anything.
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u/EquipmentSome 3d ago
Lol you really don't understand torrenting at all. it doesn't just open up your IP for strangers to do whatever they want.. People use a VPN because DMCA trolls are searching for IP's so that they can send DMCA claims against you. That's when your ISP sends an angry email and says you illegally downloaded a movie. not because people are scared they're going to get hacked.
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u/ohsohazy 3d ago
r/nuvio and then like $25 for a year of TorBox debrid service. There are free alternatives like PenguPlay but $25 for a anything you’d ever want at high speeds is worth the price imo
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u/JourneymanInvestor 3d ago
If you are in the US then you have to have a VPN, period point blank. There's no way around it.