April 2, 2019 at 11:52Cloudflare introduced its own VPN service based on the 1.1.1.1 application for mobile devices
Yesterday, completely seriously and without any jokes, the company Cloudflare announced its new product - a VPN service based on the DNS application 1.1.1.1 for mobile devices using its own Warp encryption technology. The main feature of the new Cloudflare product is simplicity - the target audience of the new service is conditional “moms” and “friends” who are not able to independently buy and configure a classic VPN or do not agree to install third-party applications that are voracious in terms of energy consumption from unknown teams.
Recall, exactly a year and one day ago - on April 1, 2018 - the company launched
its public DNS 1.1.1.1, the audience of which over the past period has grown by 700%. Now 1.1.1.1 is fighting for the attention of the public with Google’s already classic DNS at 8.8.8.8. Later, on November 11, 2018, CloudFlare launched the mobile application 1.1.1.1 for iOS and Android, and now, on its basis, the “VPN by button” is launched.
Frankly, Cloudflare is a little cunning, calling its application update 1.1.1.1 a full VPN, because in its pure form it is not. Rather, it is about encrypting traffic using Warp, which, like a VPN, hides what is happening inside our conditional “tunneling” to a VPN server, that is, to Cloudflare’s DNS 1.1.1.1.
The main marketing and applied rationale for the importance of the existence of a new product is that providers and other structures involved in the transfer of user data actively collect and even trade these data. At the same time, HTTPS does not save us: it is enough to know about the fact of accessing a page in order to draw up a "portrait" of the user and then show him the corresponding advertisement.
What you need to know about the update of the application 1.1.1.1 and Warp in particular:
The team says that a distinctive feature of Warp is that it was developed including to improve mobile connectivity. CloudFlare recalls that the TCP protocol is poorly adapted to work in mobile networks, the packet loss inside which can cause any microwave conditionally. The situation everywhere is aggravated by the fact that the same Wi-Fi is scanned randomly in residential areas or in public places, which entails some kind of monstrous noise level on all frequency channels (of course, 2.4 GHz channels are most affected , but also at 5GHz the situation begins to deteriorate). Under such conditions, permanent packet loss is not the fault of the user, but because of external conditions, TCP connections are called not the best option. The record says that Warp’s work is built around the use of UDP packets, which, as we recall, do not require a return response from the target server and which, for this reason, are actively used in the same game dev to reduce ping. CloudFlare also assures that their application will clearly monitor battery usage through moderate access to antennas, and will not “stomp” the device to the state of a hot pan in attempts to make the device catch the network in places where the connection is not too stable. Separately, it is worth recalling that Warp runs on the already mentioned VPN protocol that their application will clearly control the use of the battery through moderate access to the antennas, and not “stomp” the device to the state of a hot pan in attempts to make the device catch the network in places where the connection is not too stable. Separately, it is worth recalling that Warp runs on the already mentioned VPN protocol that their application will clearly control the use of the battery through moderate access to the antennas, and do not “stomp” the device to the state of a hot pan in attempts to make the device catch the network in places where the connection is not too stable. Separately, it is worth recalling that Warp runs on the already mentioned VPN protocolWireGuard . The full WireGuard technical documentation is available here .
In addition, Warp was not developed specifically for the mobile application 1.1.1.1, but is part of CloudFlare’s technical solution for protecting servers from attacks called Argo Tunnel , which uses part of the Cloudflare Mobile SDK solutions , which in turn is based on the Neumob project purchased in 2017 . That is, in fact, Cloudflare began methodical work on entering the mobile market back in 2017 - a year before the launch of the public DNS 1.1.1.1. Such an integrated approach instills some confidence in the sequence of actions of Cloudflare and the presence of an understandable long-term strategy, which cannot but rejoice.
Cloudflare claims that it is not going to trade the data of its users, but will monetize Warp by subscription. Out of the box, users will have two versions of the program available: Basic and Pro. The basic version will be free, but with a reduced data transfer rate, which, apparently, will be enough only for lazy surfing in the network or correspondence. The pro version for a monthly fee promises a full channel to Cloudflare servers and maximum comfort.
Representatives of the company say in advance that different regions will have different subscription costs to offset differences in income in different parts of the world. It is possible that the CIS region together with Russia will receive a more or less acceptable offer at the level of $ 3-10 per month instead of the quite standard 15-30 euros for the EU or the USA.
The company honestly admits that they are far from Google, but they are trying, so that access to the new features of the application 1.1.1.1 will be issued in batches, in a live queue. In order to enroll in this very queue, you need to download the application for iOS or Android and declare your desire to use the “VPN from Cloudflare”.
If you look at the reviews in the market, they are mostly positive, although the application has problems with non-disable notifications, which some users are seriously annoyed with. However, many note that the Cloudflare solution is an excellent option for the safe use of public Wi-Fi access points: the latter are usually not very fast, so the free version 1.1.1.1 should be enough for the eyes.
Another important nuance of the recent Cloudflare presentation is that the company soon promises to bring its “DNS-VPN” to the desktop as well, covering this quite numerous segment.
If Cloudflare’s development is actually as good as it is described in the company's official blog, then the market will finally see a shareware (remember speed limits) and understandable application for people who are not too into the subject of how the VPN works and what is information security in general. Now everything is in the hands of Cloudflare marketers - if they can enter the mass market and implement the idea that the inclusion of a VPN mode in the application 1.1.1.1 is a mandatory element of Internet hygiene, then for millions of users the worldwide network can become much more friendly and welcoming place than before. Also, this product will be important for countries where government agencies block access to certain resources.
And it's not just about Russia, but, for example, about Iran or even France. The court of the Fifth Republic, by the way, quietly decided to block access to the pirated scientific portals SciHub LibGen , saying that there is nothing for scientists to read the work of colleagues for free. But this is a completely different story, but the situation with free access to resources is getting worse and worse all over the world.
Be that as it may, a service similar to 1.1.1.1 is quite suitable for young people and representatives of the older generation who are not ready or unable to figure out how to buy, configure and use VPNs even on desktops, not to mention mobile devices.
its public DNS 1.1.1.1, the audience of which over the past period has grown by 700%. Now 1.1.1.1 is fighting for the attention of the public with Google’s already classic DNS at 8.8.8.8. Later, on November 11, 2018, CloudFlare launched the mobile application 1.1.1.1 for iOS and Android, and now, on its basis, the “VPN by button” is launched.
Frankly, Cloudflare is a little cunning, calling its application update 1.1.1.1 a full VPN, because in its pure form it is not. Rather, it is about encrypting traffic using Warp, which, like a VPN, hides what is happening inside our conditional “tunneling” to a VPN server, that is, to Cloudflare’s DNS 1.1.1.1.
The main marketing and applied rationale for the importance of the existence of a new product is that providers and other structures involved in the transfer of user data actively collect and even trade these data. At the same time, HTTPS does not save us: it is enough to know about the fact of accessing a page in order to draw up a "portrait" of the user and then show him the corresponding advertisement.
What you need to know about the update of the application 1.1.1.1 and Warp in particular:
- End-to-end encryption to Cloudflare servers and the absence of any authentication certificates. That is, CF themselves refuse to watch your traffic.
- Powered by WireGuard VPN Protocol .
- By default, all unencrypted traffic is encrypted when working through applications or when viewing insecure HTTP pages, for example.
- Theoretical optimization of traffic on the side of Cloudflare when surfing and so on.
The team says that a distinctive feature of Warp is that it was developed including to improve mobile connectivity. CloudFlare recalls that the TCP protocol is poorly adapted to work in mobile networks, the packet loss inside which can cause any microwave conditionally. The situation everywhere is aggravated by the fact that the same Wi-Fi is scanned randomly in residential areas or in public places, which entails some kind of monstrous noise level on all frequency channels (of course, 2.4 GHz channels are most affected , but also at 5GHz the situation begins to deteriorate). Under such conditions, permanent packet loss is not the fault of the user, but because of external conditions, TCP connections are called not the best option. The record says that Warp’s work is built around the use of UDP packets, which, as we recall, do not require a return response from the target server and which, for this reason, are actively used in the same game dev to reduce ping. CloudFlare also assures that their application will clearly monitor battery usage through moderate access to antennas, and will not “stomp” the device to the state of a hot pan in attempts to make the device catch the network in places where the connection is not too stable. Separately, it is worth recalling that Warp runs on the already mentioned VPN protocol that their application will clearly control the use of the battery through moderate access to the antennas, and not “stomp” the device to the state of a hot pan in attempts to make the device catch the network in places where the connection is not too stable. Separately, it is worth recalling that Warp runs on the already mentioned VPN protocol that their application will clearly control the use of the battery through moderate access to the antennas, and do not “stomp” the device to the state of a hot pan in attempts to make the device catch the network in places where the connection is not too stable. Separately, it is worth recalling that Warp runs on the already mentioned VPN protocolWireGuard . The full WireGuard technical documentation is available here .
In addition, Warp was not developed specifically for the mobile application 1.1.1.1, but is part of CloudFlare’s technical solution for protecting servers from attacks called Argo Tunnel , which uses part of the Cloudflare Mobile SDK solutions , which in turn is based on the Neumob project purchased in 2017 . That is, in fact, Cloudflare began methodical work on entering the mobile market back in 2017 - a year before the launch of the public DNS 1.1.1.1. Such an integrated approach instills some confidence in the sequence of actions of Cloudflare and the presence of an understandable long-term strategy, which cannot but rejoice.
Cloudflare claims that it is not going to trade the data of its users, but will monetize Warp by subscription. Out of the box, users will have two versions of the program available: Basic and Pro. The basic version will be free, but with a reduced data transfer rate, which, apparently, will be enough only for lazy surfing in the network or correspondence. The pro version for a monthly fee promises a full channel to Cloudflare servers and maximum comfort.
Representatives of the company say in advance that different regions will have different subscription costs to offset differences in income in different parts of the world. It is possible that the CIS region together with Russia will receive a more or less acceptable offer at the level of $ 3-10 per month instead of the quite standard 15-30 euros for the EU or the USA.
The company honestly admits that they are far from Google, but they are trying, so that access to the new features of the application 1.1.1.1 will be issued in batches, in a live queue. In order to enroll in this very queue, you need to download the application for iOS or Android and declare your desire to use the “VPN from Cloudflare”.
If you look at the reviews in the market, they are mostly positive, although the application has problems with non-disable notifications, which some users are seriously annoyed with. However, many note that the Cloudflare solution is an excellent option for the safe use of public Wi-Fi access points: the latter are usually not very fast, so the free version 1.1.1.1 should be enough for the eyes.
Another important nuance of the recent Cloudflare presentation is that the company soon promises to bring its “DNS-VPN” to the desktop as well, covering this quite numerous segment.
If Cloudflare’s development is actually as good as it is described in the company's official blog, then the market will finally see a shareware (remember speed limits) and understandable application for people who are not too into the subject of how the VPN works and what is information security in general. Now everything is in the hands of Cloudflare marketers - if they can enter the mass market and implement the idea that the inclusion of a VPN mode in the application 1.1.1.1 is a mandatory element of Internet hygiene, then for millions of users the worldwide network can become much more friendly and welcoming place than before. Also, this product will be important for countries where government agencies block access to certain resources.
And it's not just about Russia, but, for example, about Iran or even France. The court of the Fifth Republic, by the way, quietly decided to block access to the pirated scientific portals SciHub LibGen , saying that there is nothing for scientists to read the work of colleagues for free. But this is a completely different story, but the situation with free access to resources is getting worse and worse all over the world.
Be that as it may, a service similar to 1.1.1.1 is quite suitable for young people and representatives of the older generation who are not ready or unable to figure out how to buy, configure and use VPNs even on desktops, not to mention mobile devices.