How safe is torrenting in Spain? A complete guide

Torrenting is a popular way to share files in Spain. However, it comes with privacy and security risks that you should consider before downloading or sharing files. In this guide, we discuss how safe it is to torrent in Spain and provide tips and tricks to help you torrent more safely.

Local networks and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can track your activities when you download torrents in Spain. Whether you’re at home, using public Wi-Fi, or using the internet at work, network admins and ISPs can detect which torrent repositories you visit. They can also monitor who you connect with Peer-to-Peer (P2P) and which files you download.

Unless you use a VPN for torrenting, your downloads are likely tracked by Spanish ISPs and any third parties they share your information with, such as government authorities and copyright trolls. In Spain, ISPs must comply with mandatory data retention directives that force them to retain browsing histories and metadata for 12 months. The ISP will keep records of all your torrents for a year. A VPN is the best way to stop this.

Hackers are also a threat when torrenting in Spain. When you share or download torrent files, you connect directly with the swarm, exposing your IP address to all other peers. Hackers hang around in popular torrent swarms to collect user IPs and probe networks for vulnerabilities. If targeted, hackers could infect you with malware, steal your data, and engage in fraud or identity theft. Using a VPN hides your IP address, preventing this from happening.

Not all VPNs are ideally suited to torrenting. Some VPNs are slow, and others lack the necessary security features. In this guide, we’ll show you how to torrent safely in Spain and recommend the best VPNs to prevent ISP and government tracking.

How safe is torrenting in Spain?

Torrenting is popular in Spain, with millions of users sharing peer-to-peer files. In 2024, Spain had approximately 45.6 million internet users.

According to the latest statistics, around 3% of global internet traffic is used for torrenting. This suggests at least 1.3 million active torrenters in Spain.

Below, we have listed the main risks associated with Torrenting in Spain:

• ISP tracking
• Hackers
• Dangerous downloads
• Data theft

A VPN is a crucial privacy protection for torrenters in Spain. We also recommend a reliable antivirus that scans the files you download in real time. Later in this guide, we will provide additional tricks and tips for torrenting safely in Spain.

Not all VPNs are suitable for torrenting. Some VPNs are too slow, while others don’t offer adequate security. In this guide, we have pinpointed the best VPNs to torrent in Spain. Our recommendations provide fast speeds and all the security features needed to torrent without fear.

Can ISPs see my torrents in Spain?

Yes. When you torrent in Spain, your ISP can track your activities without a VPN. ISPs in Spain provide your gateway to the Internet and can, therefore, see every torrent site you visit. They can also monitor the IP address of the peers you connect to. Your ISP will know what files you download, and due to mandatory data retention directives, they will keep these records on file for a year.

Retaining and potentially sharing data with third parties creates significant privacy risks for torrent users in Spain. Copyright holders and their legal representatives can request information from ISPs about individuals who visit or download torrent files. This can potentially lead to legal ramifications for torrenting, including fines.

The information stored by Spanish ISPs also increases the opportunity for practices like speculative invoicing, where law firms seek compensation for alleged copyright infringements by sending settlement letters to torrenters.

We strongly recommend using a VPN in Spain to protect your privacy and prevent ISPs from monitoring your torrenting activities. VPN encryption masks your IP address and stops your ISP from tracking your activities, which makes it much safer to torrent in Spain.

What is prospective invoicing?

Prospective invoicing is a tactic used by attorneys representing copyright holders. It is used to pressure individuals into paying settlements for suspected piracy, including online streaming or downloading copyrighted content via torrents.

This practice involves attorneys asking ISPs for information about users who have visited specific torrent sites or downloaded certain files. Once a target is identified, the law firms send letters threatening legal action unless the suspect pays a settlement fee.

These law firms don’t usually intend to sue suspects. Instead, they rely on the threat of legal action to encourage settlements without incurring the costs of going to court.

Occasionally, copyright holders may decide to pursue legal action against individuals who pirate content, usually in high-profile cases where remuneration is likely to be substantial. There have previously been cases where individuals were prosecuted and fined for torrenting, so the risk of legal action is real.

Copyright trolls may also join popular torrent swarms to collect IP addresses. These IP addresses can be taken to Spanish ISPs to match them with user accounts. If ISPs comply with these data requests, it may lead to prospective invoicing letters.

Are you at risk of hackers when torrenting in Spain?

Every time you torrent without using a VPN, you risk being hacked. The BitTorrent protocol facilitates direct file sharing over the internet without needing a central server.

This method allows users to share files directly from their computers. Users can download files quickly from multiple sources by sharing pieces of files rather than the whole thing. When the seeder has all the pieces required to reconstruct the file, the torrent client will stitch the file together.

BitTorrent’s Peer-to-Peer (P2P) nature creates risks because users connect directly with people they don’t know. At any one time, a popular swarm could have dozens or even hundreds of individuals connected.

Cybercriminals often join popular torrents to gather IP addresses. Once they have harvested the IPs for potential targets, they will probe each one in search of vulnerabilities.

If you torrent in Spain without a VPN, and a hacker detects a weakness in your network, they could add devices to a botnet or use them to mine cryptocurrencies. You could be infected with malware, leading to data theft, fraud, or using your network to engage in illegal activities such as DDoS attacks or spamming.

The files you download via BitTorrent could potentially be infected with malware. A VPN can’t protect you if you download infected files, so learning how to differentiate between safe and dangerous files on torrent repos is vital. This includes using an up-to-date antivirus to scan files for malware.

Will I download malware when torrenting in Spain?

Unfortunately, it is possible that you could download malware when torrenting in Spain.

Torrent sites are full of malicious files that hackers have uploaded. If you accidentally download one of these files, you could have a very serious infection, such as trojans, spyware or ransomware.

There are dozens of torrent trackers, and they are not all safe. Even torrent sites that many users consider to be reputable aren’t invulnerable to malware. It is vital to learn how to spot torrents that are a threat.

Some torrent sites have active communities that moderate downloads to warn users about dangerous files. These communities allow users to rate torrents, leave comments, and alert others about malicious torrents used to spread malware.

However, not all torrent sites offer this level of safety. The best torrent repositories, with the most active communities, are often invite-only. You have to be a member to join. Getting an invite isn’t always easy and may require making friends via other websites, such as Reddit or Discord.

To stay safe when torrenting, we recommend checking the reputation of each file, ensuring it has been downloaded safely many times by other users. Scan downloaded files with a reliable antivirus program.

How can I torrent safely in Spain?

Using a reliable VPN is the simplest way to protect your privacy and secure your network while torrenting in Spain. That said, not all VPNs are suitable for torrenting.

Many VPNs have slow servers that take too long to download torrents. Some VPN providers even block P2P connections altogether, making them unsuitable for torrenting. Other VPNs implement NAT firewall configurations that prevent torrent clients from communicating properly, which may slow down or even completely block torrenting.

The best VPNs for torrenting offer strong encryption and all the crucial security features required for safe torrenting. Later in this guide, we will list the VPN feature we recommend for torrenting.

The VPNs we recommend in this guide have all the features you need, but our list will help you learn more about the best VPN features for safe torrenting.

Using a recommended VPN is by far the easiest way to secure your torrenting activities without needing to analyze the market in search of VPNs that have the features you need. Many VPNs exaggerate or even flat-out lie about their protection level, so you must take VPN claims with a pinch of salt.

We acknowledge that choosing (and using) a VPN can confuse beginners. To make things as straightforward as possible, we have included a step-by-step guide below:

How to safely download torrents in Spain with a VPN:

1. Pick a reliable VPN for torrenting: For users in Spain, we recommend NordVPN. It has a fast proprietary protocol, torrent-optimized servers, and strong security features to stop your ISP from tracking your downloads. Alternatively, you can opt for Surfshark which is extremely reliable and cheap – or IPVanish, which has a robust network of self-owned servers that provide outstanding speeds.
2. Subscribe to the VPN: By clicking our links, you can get a subscription at the lowest possible cost. Provide an email address and a valid payment method. Many VPNs offer discounts for longer subscriptions, so consider how long you plan to use the VPN.
3. Download and install the VPN software: After subscribing, download the VPN software to your device. Our recommended VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, Android, and Linux, making them compatible with any popular torrent client and device.
4. Connect to a VPN server: The VPNs in this guide have extensive global server networks. This allows you to get an IP address from any continent, which is useful if you’re in a country where popular torrent sites are blocked, such as Germany, Australia, India, France, and Denmark. To get the best download speeds, we recommend connecting to a VPN server closer to your location. To torrent in Spain, for example, connect to a Spanish server – or a country nearby, such as Portugal.
5. Start torrenting: That’s it! Once connected to the VPN, simply launch your torrent client. Your ISP will no longer be able to see your activities, and your IP address will be protected against hackers. We recommend enabling the VPN kill switch to prevent private torrent data from leaking outside the encrypted VPN tunnel.

What are the best VPNs for safe torrenting in Spain?

Here’s a list of the best VPNs for torrenting safely in Spain:

1. NordVPN: The best VPN for safe torrenting in Spain. NordVPN offers consistent performance and robust security features to prevent tracking in Spain. It provides very fast speeds, unlimited bandwidth, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
2. Surfshark: A cost-effective VPN for torrenting in Spain. It supports unlimited simultaneous connections and provides fast WireGuard connections, perfect for extensive P2P file sharing.
3. IPVanish: A dependable VPN for torrenting without being tracked in Spain. It boasts excellent security features, including strong encryption. It is compatible with popular torrent clients across major operating systems.
4. ExpressVPN: Known for its consistently fast speeds. ExpressVPN is ideal for safe torrenting in Spain. It features a no-logs policy, a kill switch for enhanced security, and user-friendly apps across all devices.
5. PrivateVPN: A solid choice for P2P file sharing, PrivateVPN offers port forwarding and maintains a strict no-logs policy.
6. PureVPN: PureVPN ensures your data remains private with its fully audited no-logs policy. With a low starting price, it’s an affordable and secure option for torrenting in Spain.
7. ProtonVPN: A highly advanced VPN. ProtonVPN excels in privacy and reliability and has an extensive network that covers 85+ countries.

What features does a reliable VPN for torrenting need?

We have developed an in-depth, scientific VPN testing methodology to find the best VPNs for torrenting in Spain. Our custom evaluation process has been developed over many years and allows our expert VPN reviewers to distinguish VPNs that offer robust security.

If you want to know more about how we test VPNs, you can follow the links above.  Our guide explains each step taken by our reviewers, including analyzing privacy policies, testing apps, checking for leaks, and analyzing the encryption implementation.

For a VPN to be suitable for torrenting safely in Spain, it must include certain features. All our recommendations have these critical features, but for added transparency and to allow you to shop around, we have included the features you must look for below:

• Robust AES-256 or ChaCha20 encryption
• A kill switch
• DNS leak protection
• Obfuscation
• A no-logging policy
• Diskless servers that run in RAM
• Fully audited service
• Fast servers that are optimized for torrenting
• Port forwarding (makes it easier to torrent with some clients)

Is Torrenting illegal in Spain?

No. The BitTorrent protocol is not illegal in Spain, and sharing files through P2P is legal. Internet users in Spain can legally install and use torrent clients on their devices.

That said, it is important to differentiate between legal torrenting and piracy. Legal torrenting is the act of sharing files that users own, control, or have legal permission to share. This type of sharing does not infringe on copyright.

Sharing copyrighted content remains illegal in Spain and could lead to prosecution by Spanish authorities. For this reason, users must never download or share copyrighted music, videos, literature, software, or other files they do not own.

While we have attempted to provide accurate information, we are not lawyers, and this guide is not intended to be legal advice. You should conduct your own research to understand the legality of torrenting in the country you are currently in. Torrent at your own risk.

Do I need a VPN to torrent safely in Spain?

Yes. Every time you download or share torrent files, your ISP tracks you and exposes your home IP address to other users. A VPN for torrenting will prevent local networks and ISPs from monitoring your activities and allow you to torrent without fear of hackers.

Torrent safely in Spain – Tips and tricks

Besides using a VPN, you can do other things to torrent safely. To help you out we have included a checklist of tips and tricks below. If you stick to all of these tips, you will enjoy a much safer torrenting experience:

1. Stick to legal torrents: Always opt for legal downloads to avoid legal repercussions.
2. Use a reliable torrent site: Research torrent sites carefully and avoid sites with a poor reputation to ensure safer downloads.
3. Read seeder comments: Before downloading, check user feedback in the comments to verify the safety of each file.
4. Keep your torrent client up-to-date: Regularly update your torrent client to prevent vulnerabilities that could be exploited by hackers.
5. Install a reliable antivirus with real-time scanning: A good antivirus will flag and quarantine any dangerous files during download (or once the file has been stitched together by the torrent client).
6. Check file type: Consider each file you download. If you download a text file, an mp3, or a video, it should not be an executable file (such as “.exe”). If a file appears to be the wrong type, be extremely suspicious: scan it with an antivirus, and remove it from your device at once if a threat is found. This is especially true for compressed files.
7. Download to a sandbox: The best way to avoid unnecessary infections is to download to a sandboxed environment, like a virtual machine. This prevents malware from affecting your main system.
8. Join a reputable torrent community: Joining a well-known torrenting community can provide you with much safer file sharing. An invitation might be needed, which you can get by making friends on platforms like Reddit or Discord.
9. Check seeds carefully: Opt for torrents with a high number of seeders that have been verified and reviewed positively by the torrent community.
10. Always use a VPN with a reliable protocol: Only use a reputable VPN with secure protocols such as WireGuard, IKEv2, or OpenVPN. Avoid older protocols like PPTP, as these will not protect you.
11. Enable the VPN kill switch: This feature stops all internet traffic if the VPN disconnects unexpectedly, protecting your real IP address.
12. Enable IP binding to your VPN: Configure your torrent client to use a specific IP address to ensure it only works when connected to the VPN (only available with some VPNs).

How safe is torrenting in Spain? – FAQs