Proton VPN’s port-forwarding implementation isn’t vulnerable because our VPN servers are aware of the fact that IP_public belongs to a user, and will translate the incoming requests of the user from: Why Proton VPN is not vulnerable to Port Fail The attacker would therefore see IP_public. The source IP of this request will be the victim’s IP_public.Īt this point, a vulnerable Port Fail implementation would directly translate the request coming from IP_public → IP_server:1234 into IP_public → IP_local_attacker. By default, since the victim is connecting to IP_server, the routing table will execute the request in clear, bypassing the VPN.Through social engineering or other tricks, they then manage to convince the victim to connect to IP_server:1234.The attacker connects as a VPN user to the same VPN server ( IP_server) as the victim and enables port forwarding (for example, opening “port 1234” on the server).In the Port Fail vulnerability, an attacker tries to exploit this to make local ports available on the internet so that the IP_public address of the victim is exposed. Port forwarding maps a given port on IP_server to a port on IP_local. Any other requests are routed through IP_local_vpn and will be encrypted in the VPN tunnel. If the user is trying to reach IP_server (the IP of the VPN server), the request will go directly in clear (i.e., unencrypted) through the user’s router. Now, for every IP the user tries to reach, their device checks a routing table to decide where the request should go. The VPN server is reachable by the user’s device in this local network through its local IP ( IP_local_vpn). The user is also assigned a unique dedicated local IP address ( IP_local), which is valid only within the network of all users connected to the VPN server. When the user connects to a VPN server ( IP_server) to reach the internet, websites and other servers they connect to will see requests coming from IP_server (since the VPN server protects the user’s IP_public address). The router will have a public IP address (let’s call it IP_public). Let’s assume we have a user with a laptop connected via WiFi to their router, which is connected to the internet. We detail why below, although the explanation is necessarily quite technical. Proton VPN’s implementation of port forwarding is not vulnerable to this exploit. It doesn’t matter if the victim uses port forwarding or not. Port Fail is a security vulnerability that can allow an attacker who uses the same VPN service as the victim to exploit port forwarding to expose the victim’s real IP address. If the software is open-source (as, for example, qBittorrent is), take the time to verify its digital signature. The chances of this happening are minimal, but you should always be sure to download trustworthy software from a known source. In this case, the scope of the damage an attacker could do is limited only by the software’s access to your system. However, the program could contain vulnerabilities that an attacker could exploit to gain access to other parts of your system. They would not gain any further access to your system. In most cases, the worst an attacker could do is cause some damage within the app (such as changing your app’s settings). When a port is opened for a program, such as a BitTorrent app or a multiplayer game, the risk is very low. Ultimately, the risks of port forwarding are quite small, especially if you take proper precautions, such as only downloading trusted software. It also describes the Port Fail vulnerability and why Proton VPN is not vulnerable to this exploit. ![]() This article describes some of the inherent risks of port forwarding.
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