Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by TamDenholm 2624 days ago
If there was ever a time to be in the VPN business, its now.
2 comments

I wish geeks realize that VPN is not the solution for stupid/doubtful laws. They should not exist in first place.
Its not the solution, its the defence. I'd love to have the laws not inacted in the first place, but thats unrealistic IMO.
If the majority genuinely want such laws, what's your solution?
If the majority has become tyrannical in their thinking toward the minority when it comes to human rights, then get the hell out of the country or jurisdiction in question if you can. Especially if it has moved beyond the initial typically mostly benign stages.

Authoritarianism and aggressive statism broadly, generally prompt opportunistic brain drain for exactly that reason.

The US poached enormous amounts of talent from backwards, regressive European nations for more than a century previously.

Problem is, eventually you run out of places to run away to.
It doesn't matter, actually. You as a user can use a VPN but the company based in Austria will have to implement this.
I recently run into this jewel: https://www.gate.io/page/contacts

Mail: PO Box 2804, Grand Cayman KY1-1112 , Cayman Island.

I don't think anybody involved with the site has ever been to Grand Cayman. Apparently, they process 10 BTC/USDT transactions per minute; and that is just one of the hundred trading pairs.

Who can claim jurisdiction over that site? Maybe Grand Cayman, but when push comes to shove, I suspect that they won't be interested either.

Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory. Technically, the installed Governor could shut anything down at his wish. In practice it’s unlikely to happen, because (like with many British constitutional matters...) both the locals and the UK have an interest into maintaining a degree of ambiguity in current arrangements.

This said, when the UK government is fully convinced that Caymans “should jump”, they eventually jump.

>both the locals and the UK have an interest into maintaining a degree of ambiguity in current arrangements.

Interesting take on overseas territories. Fuzzy sure, but it never occurred to me that it's intentional

- provides plausible deniability for unpopular or suspicious measures at both ends

- keeps open the option of direct subsidies and favourable treatment for Cayman. I believe most BOTs are not financially self-sufficient, including Caymans.

- keeps open the option of UK re-taking direct control in some circumstances (military requirements, oil discoveries etc).

- maintains substantial independence in practice.

For small territories, BOT arrangements provide the best of both worlds, at the low low price of occasionally bowing to UK authorities.

Are they based in Austria?