Been using it for close to 10 years. Never had a single serious issue with it. Apps break now and then. A simple reboot of the server or the app fixes it every single time.
A lot of public torrents download and seed at insane speeds. Like “must be in the same building or even the same disk” speeds.
I use a seedbox abroad and secure ssh to transfer stuff to my own server. Don’t see what additional security a vpn would give me.