StreamSec Secure Newsreader is a NNTP client based on the Xananews code base. It adds a number of security enhancements, including support for high performance SSL/TLS without the need for external DLL files.

The purpose of SSL/TLS is to allow the server to authenticate itself to the client. If you use a secure newsreader for connecting to a NNTP server over SSL/TLS, you will get cryptographic guarantees that you are connecting to the correct host. SSL/TLS will also make it harder for an adversary to figure out what data is sent between you and the news server.