Who's Really Behind the World's Most Popular Free VPNs? [View all]

After big names like Whatsapp, Snapchat, and Facebook, VPNs are the most searched-for applications in the world. “VPN” is the second-highest non-branded search term behind “games”, and free apps completely dominate the search results. The most popular applications have amassed hundreds of millions of installs between them worldwide, yet there seems to be very little attention paid to the companies behind them, and very little scrutiny done on behalf of the marketplaces hosting them.

When someone opts to install a VPN on their device, they are essentially choosing to trust their data with that company instead of their ISP or wireless carrier. The VPN provider can inspect your traffic, modify it, log it, and if their policy permits, send or sell it elsewhere. Given the potential for this data to be abused, it’s critical that consumers choose their VPN provider wisely.

We investigated the top free VPN apps in the App Store and Google Play Store. We found that very few of these hugely popular apps do anywhere near enough to deserve the trust of those looking to protect their privacy online.

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Over half (59%) of the apps studied ultimately have Chinese ownership or are based in China, despite its strict ban on VPNs and its notorious internet surveillance regime. This raises questions about why these companies — which have such large international user bases — have been allowed to continue operating.


https://hackernoon.com/whos-really-behind-the-world-s-most-popular-free-vpns-d74bafc82178