How to unblock torrent sites in the United Kingdom

Torrent users in the UK come across many challenges due to the fact that torrent websites are actively blocked in that country. The Pirate bay, which is one of the most popular options has been blocked for years and new sites are regularly added to the list. There are hundreds of URLs that can’t be accessed in the United Kingdom and ISPs/authorities there have even taken steps to block torrent proxy sites. In spite of these actions, there are still ways in which you can get access torrent websites. There are solutions that are available for free and that allow you to bypass the restrictions implemented. However, it is advisable to opt for paid services since they are more reliable and offer better results. Before going through the methods that you can use to unlock torrents in the UK, let’s take a look at how your Internet Service Provider is preventing you from accessing torrent sites.

How are torrent sites blocked in the UK?

Torrent sites in the UK have been blocked following a court order and the measure was implemented with the collaboration of ISPs, given that they are the ones that manage internet traffic. The main ISPs in the UK are Virgin, Sky, BT, EE and TalkTalk and all of them are blocking torrent sites. You may be wondering, how are these sites blocked? Well, whenever you enter the URL of a website that you want to visit, your computer sends a request to a DNS (Domain Name System) server. This DNS server connects to the domain name (the URL of the website) to the physical location where the website’s servers are on the internet, which is the IP address of the site.

In order to ensure that all the DNS requests sent from your computer are routed through their DNS servers, ISPs in the UK use a system called Transparent DNS Proxy. This allows them to know what websites you visit since they located the site for you and transferred the data to your computer. ISPs are able to block any website they want without any hassle because all they need to do is to refuse to route your computer to the relevant internet address. In order to unblock torrent sites, there are two things that you need to do. The first one is to use a DNS server that can’t be seen by your ISP, the second is to encrypt the data transferred to ensure that your ISP is not able to see the website to which it is being sent/received. While the technology behind it may be complicated, in reality, achieving these two steps is possible in a very easy way.

Free solutions to unblock UK torrent sites

There are multiple free solutions that will allow you to access the torrent websites that are blocked in the United Kingdom. However, these services won’t prevent your ISP from seeing your online data and the torrents that you download. These free methods can’t stop your ISP from monitoring, throttling or blocking your downloads. They are convenient due to the fact that they are free and simple, but they are not a comprehensive solution to protect your torrent activity. Here is a list of options to consider.

Unblocked.pw

This fast and easy to use solution could be a good choice, although it is not completely effective. It provides links to proxies for over 20 popular torrents sites. These proxies are regularly updated and it is unlikely that they are blocked.

Tor Web browser

This anonymous web browser can help you to bypass censorship and restrictions that prevent you from accessing your favorite websites. Apart from allowing you to bypass blocks, Tor can encrypt and hide your entire web browser traffic through layers of anonymous proxies. It is easy to use and it doesn’t require you to adjust any settings because all the anonymous proxies are configured internally. Tor helps you to make your web browsing very difficult to trace and since it adds encryption, your ISP won’t be able to see what you are up to.

Free encrypted Web proxies

It is possible to find a selection of free web proxies that allows you to get access to websites that are blocked by your ISP. Once you enter the website that you want to unblock, the proxy locates the website and delivers it to you. The website is transferred to you using https encryption, which ensures that your ISP can’t see it. There are multiple solutions available, but the below are recommended as they generally work very well.

Hide.me

Hide.me is a Malaysian VPN provider that is committed to provide strong protection for your online privacy. It has a no logs policy, which makes it ideal for torrent users. Although the best option is to go for their paid VPN service, if you are looking for a free, simple way to unblock a torrent website, you can rely on Hide.me’s free proxy option. Their free proxy allows you to change your IP address to appear as if you were connecting from United States, Germany or the Netherlands. Although it won’t encrypt your entire VPN traffic, it is a practical way to access blocked websites.

CyberGhost

CyberGhost’s free proxy service is known for its efficiency and it is another practical way to evade blocks and get access to the websites you want. You just need to enter the URL of the website and CyberGhost will fetch it for you. CyberGhost also offers a highly secure paid VPN service that provides better protection for your online traffic. CyberGhost strives to offer advanced technology to help you to fight censorship and blocks.

Enjoy the best protection using a VPN

Since free web proxies won’t encrypt your entire traffic and won’t prevent your ISP from finding out what you do on the internet, a VPN is a better solution. A VPN does more than just unblocking torrent websites, it helps you to enhance your anonymity by changing your IP address and keeping your traffic private because not even your ISP will be able to see what websites you are visiting. The below VPNs are ideal for bypassing the blocks imposed in the United Kingdom and they will also help you to protect your privacy.

Private Internet Access

PIA has a good record defending the privacy of its customers and it is also a very affordable service. They have thousands of servers in over 20 countries and their privacy policy establishes that no logs are kept of your online activities. PIA offers strong encryption to ensure that not even your ISP can see what you do on the internet.

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN has built a solid reputation as one of the best services in the VPN industry. They offer great speeds, high quality software and military grade encryption that will keep your internet traffic private. ExpressVPN has servers in over 90 countries and their excellent customer support is available 24/7.