This is a public statement directed at GitHub: Fuck You.

Every fucking time I try to contribute to an interesting project, GitHub blocks my newly created account.

This problem stems from Microsoft's aggressive and unnecessary VPN blocking.

The worst part of it is that they don't always tell you right away.

You create your account, you configure everything - email, SSH, GPG - and then make your first comment or create a PR.

Then, a couple of hours later, when you check the public reactions to your PR on your phone, your post has disappeared.

When you log into GitHub, you are told that your public activity is hidden.

Contacting support is a waste of time, of course.

Thanks for nothing.

I refuse to use a non-VPN connection for privacy reasons.

In fact, because I have configured my network with a router-level privacy VPN connection, it is actually impossible for any client on my network to bypass the VPN.

I know that the Private in VPN does not really stand for the kind of privacy one would naively expect.

It actually describes the fact that the virtual subnetwork to which all VPN participants belong is isolated from non-VPN clients.

Yes, I need to trust the VPN provider.

Yes, a VPN is a black box that is inauditable for its users.

No, a VPN is not comparable with stronger privacy tools.

I use a router-level VPN to not only provide some privacy to my clients - I trust the VPN provider more than my ISP - but also for peace of mind.

This is because I cannot control my users' public activities.

To prevent their activity from falling back to my real IP, I simply send all their traffic to another location.

This approach is not bulletproof, but it creates some distance between my users' public internet activity and their network administrator (me).

In my opinion, a router-level VPN is a sensible security measure for anyone who administers a (Wi-Fi) network which is used by lots of untrusted people.

This might include cleaning personnel, friends, family, guests, and construction workers.

Furthermore, even if all network participants are trustworthy, there is always a possibility of malware sending illicit traffic from a compromised device.

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