Without a VPN, "your IP is exposed to your Internet Provider or anyone else who wants to track your activities," making you "susceptible to doxxing, DDoS attacks, and other sorts of online threats".
"Proxies are essential for accessing these mirror sites, as they bypass ISP and government-level geo-blocks by masking your true IP address". However, "many 'free lists' are dangerous"—unofficial mirrors may contain malware or phishing scripts. uncensored torrent