Shadowsocks Vs VPN: There has been a lot of confusion between Shadowsocks and VPN. If you are too confused about these two tools; this article is for you. In this article, I’ll be pitting Shadowsocks VS VPN to show you the differences in their functionality, their security features, and their purpose in general. I’ll also be telling when and why you would need either tool. So, read on this article to know everything about Shadowsocks Vs VPN.
Read more: What is Shadowsocks? China’s Underground Proxies Explained
Shadowsocks VS VPNS – What’s the Difference?
Shadowsocks Vs VPN -Functionality
To kick off, let’s talk about the functionalities of both a VPN and Shadowsocks.
VPN or Virtual Private Network function as cybersecurity tools that:
(1) Encrypt your data
(2) Re-route all of your traffic through their own secure servers.
This enables VPN to secure your internet data, make sure your connection is private, and offer you anonymity online. Because they re-route all of your traffic indiscriminately; they end up changing your public IP address too. This implies that on top of being a cybersecurity tool; VPNs can also help you bypass geo-restrictions.
Whereas, Shadowsocks is a little bit different. For one, it’s more of a proxy than a VPN. In fact, it’s not a VPN at all. The main focus of Shadowsocks is to circumvent restricted content. The whole reason Shadowsocks exists is that a Chinese developer needed to bypass the Great Firewall of China and access the internet without restrictions.
Having said that, Shadowsocks does nothing for your privacy or your anonymity. It doesn’t encrypt all of your data, it doesn’t re-route all of your traffic, and it doesn’t mask your IP. Shadowsocks uses HTTPS and SOCKS5 protocols to hide some of your traffic, which it routes through a server. This hides what kind of actions you’re doing online from your ISP. The only data shadowsocks encrypts is the traffic it sends through to the proxy server. For tech-savvy individuals, this is limited to TCP (and sometimes UDP) data packets.
Thus, with a VPN, your ISP or any third party can’t see what you’re doing online at all. With Shadowsocks, your ISP can see your traffic, but it won’t be able to tell what you’re really doing online.
Shadowsocks Vs VPN -Security
With VPN, security is a functionality. They encrypt all of your traffic and make sure that all of your data is secure. VPNs work towards protecting you from possible data theft and potential hacks.
So, security is definitely a big factor when it comes to VPNs.
However, Shadowsocks isn’t like that. Security is still a functionality of Shadowsocks, but it doesn’t take it as far as VPNs. See, the data that Shadowsocks does re-route is encrypted, but that doesn’t mean that all of your data is. Since shadowsocks wants to bypass restrictions right under an ISP’s nose, it needs to make sure that the traffic the ISP can see doesn’t look different.
Read more: What Is Intra? Here’s Google’s New Android Encryption App
Shadowsocks Vs VPN -Which One Should I Use?
If you’re worried about your privacy online; then go with a VPN.
Are you in a country that enforces a lot of restrictions on the internet? Shadowsocks is the service you should be looking for.
However, it is worth noting that VPNs require no configuration on your computers or your mobile devices. All you need to do with VPNs is to download their designated app. Whereas, Shadowsocks, being a proxy, will require some configuration. Moreover, since VPNs re-route all of your traffic, you don’t need to inform a program that you’re about to use it. Just turn the VPN on and do your thing. With Shadowsocks, however, it’s a little different. Since it selectively re-routes traffic; you need to select which traffic you want re-routed.
Read more: Best VPN With SOCKS5 Proxy Services
Conclusion -Shadowsocks Vs VPN
There you go! Shadowsocks VS VPN in a nutshell. As you can see, both tools work in different ways and are used for different purposes. If you’re stuck deciding between a VPN or Shadowsocks, you need to define what it is you want out of either tool specifically before you can make your pick.
That being said, you should seriously consider having both tools in your arsenals for countries like China, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Iran, Syria, and Vietnam.
