Mysterium VPN

Mysterium VPN represents a fundamentally different approach to virtual private networking. Rather than routing traffic through centrally operated servers, Mysterium uses a decentralised peer-to-peer network where individual nodes are run by community members. This architecture means there is no single entity controlling the network, providing genuine decentralisation of trust.

The key advantage for UK users is that Mysterium routes traffic through residential IP addresses rather than data centre IPs. This makes it significantly harder for streaming services and websites to detect and block VPN usage. In testing, BBC iPlayer worked smoothly without the access issues that sometimes plague traditional VPN providers.

Mysterium operates on a pay-per-use model rather than traditional subscriptions. You purchase MYST tokens and pay only for the bandwidth you consume. This can be more economical for light users who do not need a VPN constantly running.

Based in Switzerland and fully GDPR compliant, Mysterium takes privacy seriously. The decentralised nature means there are no central logs to collect, and the WireGuard protocol with DNS leak protection ensures your traffic remains secure. The main drawback is variability — speeds and availability depend on the nodes in your area.

This makes it less predictable than traditional providers, though the UK generally has good node coverage.