Why is SL blocking NordVpn?

[JuliVreese]

Suddenly I cannot log into Second Life using NordVpn.  Not from Mexico nor anywhere in USA.  If I turn off VPN then I log in easily in all places.  I use Firestorm so when I saw this issue I went and downloaded Catznip latest version, and it's the exact same thing no matter where I try.  With VPN turned on i get this notice:

"Login failed.

Despite our best efforts, something unexpected has gone wrong.

Please check https://status.secondlife.........  to see if there is a known problem with the service.

If you continue to experience problems please check your network and firewall setup."

 

I use VPN with no issues all the time and in other games and suddenly I'm blocked from SL?   I really hope to know why since I like dance and play in clubs and have learned that not all DJs are trustworthy with our IP addresses.  I've heard them make remarks to unsuspecting guests about certain weather conditions going on they are.   That was surprising.  So I found out they have knowledge of our IPs.  (This is not SL's fault, of course).  Some DJs are also players in these clubs and like to pick up girls.  That's fine.   But I've had a DJ while performing on stage IM me and ask me where I'm from.  I answer generically like saying, "USA," and I get asked for more specifics -- being chatty, ya know.   But I know he had my IP Address the moment I landed in the club.  I  don't know why he felt he needed more. 

I know posters to these forums like to pooh-pooh such concerns about our IP addresses but please save it for some other place and don't fill up the white spaces here with it.  This issue simply makes me uncomfortable. 

Any real help?  Thanks so much.

 

Edit for additional info >>    I've tried this on 2 different computers using Mac and Windows systems with the same VPN.  Same issues.  I sense that LL is blocking VPNs now.  

Edited September 7, 2019 by JuliVreese
adding more info...

[Qie Niangao]

Do we know it's not the VPN provider deciding to block some ports on some address ranges or something?

I mean, I guess it would be possible for LL to block traffic from a particular VPN, but it seems like a lot of work and I'm not seeing when that would be a good thing to do or how it could possibly happen in error.

[JuliVreese]

Thank you for the reply.  I have noticed that some general and safe websites have blocked me pointing out that Im from a VPN provider.  I don't see why LL can't do the same.  *sighs*

[Whirly Fizzle]

Someone else reported the same problem with NordVPN on JIRA: BUG-227593 - [NordVPN] Logins seem to be broken

[Tuiat]

I also use NordVPN, and I'm also experiencing this problem. It started yesterday specifically, However randomly.. I did manage to log in and stay logged in all night, eventually.. However right now, I'm unable to do so again.

[tiffanyswift2]

same problem for me

[orangebuffoon]

I have problem to with NORDVPN. I get  7 day trial AVAST SECURELINE  and I log in. So problem is  NORDVPN.

[orangebuffoon]

OH no Maybe I type to soon.  Diconnect and now no log in.

[orangebuffoon]

 I try again  and again and yes   I enter SL with  AVAST. So problem is NORDVPN.  Try 7 dail trial  of AVAST. NO  credit require.

[Tuiat]

This issue is still relevant. Linden Labs. Hurry up. Come on, Do something.

[Wulfie Reanimator]

7 minutes ago, Tuiat said:

This issue is still relevant. Linden Labs. Hurry up. Come on, Do something.

The chances of LL fixing anything within 48 hours (especially on a weekend, let alone non-critical issues) are pretty slim...

Throwing profanities at them on the JIRA is not going to do you any favors.

Edited September 9, 2019 by Wulfie Reanimator

[Qie Niangao]

2 hours ago, Wulfie Reanimator said:

Throwing profanities at them on the JIRA is not going to do you any favors.

Oh, I dunno. It might solve the whole VPN problem -- for @Tuiat -- permanently.

(Seriously, the Jira comment should be deleted unless there's useful information to be added. It's just a bad idea to use the Jira to collect "me too" reports unless they're accompanied with logs or other details of direct relevance for diagnosing or fixing a problem. The original Jira reporter supplied the requested information, and some other commenters added useful bits, but otherwise it's just noise. Posting here is fine, but cluttering up an active Jira with a chorus of gripes only delays response to the real problem.)

[Solar Legion]

1. Lab, not Labs.
2. Unless you're offering information or a different point of view, there's no need to comment on the JIRA beyond your own observations.
3. It's only been about two days at most and unless you need the VPN to even connect to Second Life - thanks to problems within your own country - there is no reason why you cannot log in without it. Not without sounding paranoid.

[Jackson Redstar]

not sure with LL, but a number of places it seems have been 'blacklisting' known VPN ip addresses

[Adam Spark]

They know where you are in general. They don't have your street address.

Its almost certain that it would be a major headache for any DJ to use that info in any way that would in any way have any negligible impact on you. They'll talk about my weather? I do that freely and daily. Cold night here Newfoundland, Canada. Fall setting in.

I just looked up mine and the city it gave was the location of my ISP's head office. I'm 1000 miles away.

I've used VPNs. Trust me you'll have a much better experience without worrying about it.

I really do not understand the fear of privacy that has taken hold of the internet these last few years.

[Wulfie Reanimator]

2 hours ago, Adam Spark said:

They know where you are in general. They don't have your street address.

Its almost certain that it would be a major headache for any DJ to use that info in any way that would in any way have any negligible impact on you. They'll talk about my weather? I do that freely and daily. Cold night here Newfoundland, Canada. Fall setting in.

I just looked up mine and the city it gave was the location of my ISP's head office. I'm 1000 miles away.

I've used VPNs. Trust me you'll have a much better experience without worrying about it.

I really do not understand the fear of privacy that has taken hold of the internet these last few years.

To be fair, people have been paranoid/uneducated about IP addresses since the dawn of time.

"OMG they have my IP address, can they hack me???" or "NEVER GIVE YOUR IP ADDRESS TO ANYONE!!!"

Other privacy concerns, like how websites/Google collect so much data about you they can recreate your whole personality and then sell that data is a bigger, real concern. There are companies dedicated to collecting and selling information about you specifically. Whether or not you care is up to you, but VPNs (and not all VPNs are the same) are one way to hide your actions from being connected to you.

Edited September 20, 2019 by Wulfie Reanimator

[ThorinII]

5 hours ago, Wulfie Reanimator said:

"OMG they have my IP address, can they hack me???" or "NEVER GIVE YOUR IP ADDRESS TO ANYONE!!!"

Back then about15y ago, one guy on a discussion board I was active on claimed he could hack every computer, no matter the OS. I gave him "my IP": 127.0.0.1 - and a few hours later, he logged back in and claimed that I had counter-attacked him by erasing his \C: partition

Edited September 20, 2019 by ThorinII

[Adam Spark]

8 hours ago, Wulfie Reanimator said:

To be fair, people have been paranoid/uneducated about IP addresses since the dawn of time.

"OMG they have my IP address, can they hack me???" or "NEVER GIVE YOUR IP ADDRESS TO ANYONE!!!"

Other privacy concerns, like how websites/Google collect so much data about you they can recreate your whole personality and then sell that data is a bigger, real concern. There are companies dedicated to collecting and selling information about you specifically. Whether or not you care is up to you, but VPNs (and not all VPNs are the same) are one way to hide your actions from being connected to you.

True, IP addresses have been a concern to the uneducated for a long time.

As for the data collection, if some company wants to market based on what they know about me, fine. They're going to market to me anyway. Might as well be in a way I have some interest in.

Case in point - I ordered Dominos one night. Ever since, Dominos ads have appeared on Facebook repeatedly on my end. Super easy the next time I ordered. Super easy. I was gonna see ads anyhow, thankful they are Dominos ads cause I love my Dominos lol.

Can such data collection put the data in bad hands? Perhaps, but those bad hands were working pretty successfully on their own behalf long before Google.

[Magnus1285]

I don't know if I should worry or not but let me tell you, I'm reading this post because owners/hosts and helpers made me think. I had no idea but then they made it obvious. As soon as I entered firestorm sim one of the helpers talked to me in my language, which is not english, using a translator. I asked how they knew where I'm from and never answered. So am I comfortable knowing that they know where I am? No. Is it important? I don't have anything to hide but being a game, it's not cool to know that if I want to lie about my location for any reason I can't. LL know where we are and I understand that, they kinda have to, but people like me having access to my information just because they're standing there with the "helper" tag? I do not like that. They're people like me, not from LL. I was a host with my former account and I know some of them. They're people with alts like most, they're people who play, role play, lie, have sex, go to clubs and all that just like everybody else, so why do they have access to my location? You're gonna say anybody can have access, I know that, but then please somebody tell me.... Is there a way to hide my location in SL? and, every single helper or owner in SL has my info or just the ones that know how to get it? Ty.

[Ardy Lay]

On 9/20/2019 at 9:40 AM, ThorinII said:

Back then about15y ago, one guy on a discussion board I was active on claimed he could hack every computer, no matter the OS. I gave him "my IP": 127.0.0.1 - and a few hours later, he logged back in and claimed that I had counter-attacked him by erasing his \C: partition

Heh, script kiddies.

[Wulfie Reanimator]

15 minutes ago, Magnus1285 said:

I don't know if I should worry or not but let me tell you, I'm reading this post because owners/hosts and helpers made me think. I had no idea but then they made it obvious. As soon as I entered firestorm sim one of the helpers talked to me in my language, which is not english, using a translator. I asked how they knew where I'm from and never answered. So am I comfortable knowing that they know where I am? No. Is it important? I don't have anything to hide but being a game, it's not cool to know that if I want to lie about my location for any reason I can't. LL know where we are and I understand that, they kinda have to, but people like me having access to my information just because they're standing there with the "helper" tag? I do not like that. They're people like me, not from LL. I was a host with my former account and I know some of them. They're people with alts like most, they're people who play, role play, lie, have sex, go to clubs and all that just like everybody else, so why do they have access to my location? You're gonna say anybody can have access, I know that, but then please somebody tell me.... Is there a way to hide my location in SL? and, every single helper or owner in SL has my info or just the ones that know how to get it? Ty.

I don't have any answers but is your Viewer or system (eg. Windows) set to a different language than English?

There's no way to directly know another avatar's location, since your IP is not shown to other viewers. (It's not required to keep SL working.)

To get someone's IP, you'd need something external to Second Life like prim/parcel media.

Edited May 18, 2020 by Wulfie Reanimator

[Ardy Lay]

10 minutes ago, Magnus1285 said:

I don't know if I should worry or not but let me tell you, I'm reading this post because owners/hosts and helpers made me think. I had no idea but then they made it obvious. As soon as I entered firestorm sim one of the helpers talked to me in my language, which is not english, using a translator. I asked how they knew where I'm from and never answered. So am I comfortable knowing that they know where I am? No. Is it important? I don't have anything to hide but being a game, it's not cool to know that if I want to lie about my location for any reason I can't. LL know where we are and I understand that, they kinda have to, but people like me having access to my information just because they're standing there with the "helper" tag? I do not like that. They're people like me, not from LL. I was a host with my former account and I know some of them. They're people with alts like most, they're people who play, role play, lie, have sex, go to clubs and all that just like everybody else, so why do they have access to my location? You're gonna say anybody can have access, I know that, but then please somebody tell me.... Is there a way to hide my location in SL? and, every single helper or owner in SL has my info or just the ones that know how to get it? Ty.

Perhaps they used : http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/LlGetAgentLanguage

[Jessica Lyon]

Hi Magnus1285. I am the owner of the Firestorm Project and the Firestorm Community Gateway.

I just want to reassure you that no one on our team has any means of checking or looking up your physical location in the world. Our gateway helpers utilize a translator hud that uses an LSL function called llGetAgentLanguage (as was mentioned above).

All viewers do broadcast the default language you have chosen to use and llGetAgentLanguage simply queries and returns that information. So our helpers know only what language you have chosen from within the viewer you are using and they try to respond in that language via their translators. This is in fact how most translators in Second Life work, and we use one of the widely available cheapo translators found on SL Marketplace.

Firestorm takes privacy very seriously and I can assure you we have no tracking mechanisms what so ever to locate your physical location in the real world or within our virtual world.

I hope that puts you at ease, and if you have any other questions please feel free to drop me an email at jessica.lyon@phoenixviewer.com.

Please stay safe.

Jessica Lyon
CEO/Project Manager
The Phoenix Firestorm Project, Inc.

[Whirly Fizzle]

@Magnus1285

You can also stop scripts from getting your language setting if you wish.

Edited May 18, 2020 by Whirly Fizzle

[Kendra Jovinavic]

so has anyone found a cause for failed VPN log-in yet? I use a torgaurd encrypted ddwrt VPN router for internet traffic and have for a while. suddenly login will not connect.  My reason for using a VPN are simple. My packets are my own business. Just like I don't send letters in the mail sealed in clear plastic baggies for all to read, I don't broadcast my packets for all to see. just a little thing I like to call privacy. with VPN off it loggs in fine. turn VPN on and you see the message below. This just started for me this week. What changed?