It's big game time at the 2026 FIFA World Cup as Scotland take on Brazil on a night which could see the Tartan Army seal qualification to the knockouts – and just because you're a UK expat it doesn't mean that you can't still enjoy watching Steve Clarke's men for free on BBC iPlayer just like you would back in Scotland.

So long as you're a license fee payer, you've every right to enjoy the Beeb's British commentary and support from your sunny spot in Dubai, Saudi, Singapore or wherever else you may be.

Just use a VPN, choose a UK server to connect to in the app, and then head to iPlayer and get streaming straight away, just like everyone else back in Scotland.

If you don't have a VPN, then we recommend NordVPN. We've rated it as the best VPN for streaming as well as the best VPN overall for more than two years now. Sign-up, install it on your laptop and away you go.

NordVPN comes with 24/7 live chat support just in case you have any difficulties getting connected. It also offers a tonne of scam protection features too if that's of interest to you beyond streaming.

VPNs are completely legal to use in all but the most draconian of countries. They're excellent for streaming your regular shows wherever your travel and providing privacy and protection from prying eyes for all of your online activities.

Traveling today comes with a hidden bill that catches many off guard. It isn’t just the price of the flight or the hotel; it’s the steady drain of international roaming fees. Take Verizon’s TravelPass for instance. At $12 a day, this quickly adds up and can turn an exciting 2026 FIFA World Cup trip into an unexpectedly expensive one.

While some travelers rely on public wifi to save, this often means battling sluggish speeds and insecure networks that risk your data. Fortunately, the way we stay connected while abroad is changing. The world’s best VPN services are no longer just encryption tools; they’ve evolved into direct mobile data providers.

By bundling secure VPN access with an affordable eSIM plan, you can skip sky-high carrier fees and stream your favorite shows without geo-blocks. This ensures a secure, seamless connection throughout the tournament without having to worry about surprise bills.

Saily: NordVPN's highly flexible, pay-as-you-go traveler

Saily, NordVPN’s flexible eSIM platform, is ideal for travelers who prefer pay-as-you-go control over their data spending.

Instead of committing to a single monthly plan, you can purchase small 1GB or 5GB allowances exactly when you need them. The setup is refreshingly simple: you install just one eSIM profile on your phone. Once installed, it handles all of your data without cluttering your device with extra apps.

It’s worth keeping in mind that NordVPN and Saily remain separate subscriptions. Though you can link your logins, they don’t merge into a single bill. Instead, you’ll manage them independently, paying strictly for the data you use and the VPN access you need.

Holiday.com: ExpressVPN’s unlimited data premium tier

Subscribing to an ExpressVPN one or two-year Advanced or Pro plans gives you a coupon for Holiday.com, their eSIM partner. This partnership effectively bundles unlimited mobile data into your existing subscription.

However, the setup isn’t fully integrated. You still need to download a separate Holiday.com app to activate and manage your eSIM plan, meaning you’ll be switching between two different apps to stay secure and connected.

Plus, these unlimited data offers are time-capped, at three or five days. If you need more data, you can conveniently top up via the ExpressVPN dashboard.

What if your VPN doesn't do data?

Not everyone wants to switch providers just for a trip. If you’re already loyal to a traditional security suite, you might be disappointed to find they don’t offer cellular data themselves, preventing you from enjoying the convenience of an all-in-one solution.

The process is simple enough but requires a little more legwork. You’d need to purchase a standalone eSIM from a provider like Airalo – one of the best eSIMs for global travel –then manually toggle your VPN app on top of it when you need encryption.

This lets you shop around for the cheapest data plans but with the caveat that you’ll be juggling two separate apps.

Verdict

Choosing the right setup depends entirely on your travel style. Saily takes the crown for budget-conscious fans who want total flexibility; its pay-as-you-go model lets you buy exactly what you need without overcommitting.

On the other end of the spectrum, Holiday.com (via ExpressVPN) is the superior choice if you need a lot of data for streaming World Cup matches.

Other VPNs remain a robust option if device security is your top priority, offering complete control to shop for the best eSIM deals. However, this comes with a trade-off: you’ll be managing two separate subscriptions and apps. For most travelers, this DIY approach isn’t worth the hassle unless you have a specific security preference.

• NordVPN offers a private server with dedicated IP, hardware, port forwarding
• The feature is aimed at gamers, self-hosters, and smart home owners
• It's an add-on for $11.99 per month on top of an active subscription

UPDATE: After publication, NordVPN shared more details on how its new Dedicated Servers work. We add some of these comments throughout the copy.

NordVPN has launched a private, dedicated VPN server, a new add-on that gives you your own private corner of the internet with a static IP address, isolated hardware, and port forwarding. In plain terms, the feature lets you reach your home network, devices, and personal services from anywhere in the world without exposing your real location.

Most people pick one of the best VPN services to stay more private while browsing, and a standard connection with a shared IP does that job perfectly well. But with this add-on, you are the only person using the server, and you get all the bandwidth to yourself, as well as full control over the IP's reputation.

"Some users need their VPN to have a broader scope. They want to secure their gaming server’s IP address, access their home network from across the world, and keep their real IP off the public internet," says Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN. "A dedicated server gives them the resources to do that."

The feature is now available for $11.99 per month and requires an active NordVPN subscription.

What NordVPN's dedicated server actually is

The dedicated server is a virtual private server assigned exclusively to one person and deployed automatically once you buy it. Where a standard or dedicated-IP connection still runs on shared hardware, this gives you an entire virtual machine to yourself, with your own CPU, memory, and bandwidth.

When compared with other non-VPN virtual private servers, however, NordVPN clarifies to TechRadar that the feature "does not provide end users with SSH or console access."

The specs are modest but sensible for the job: 1 vCPU, 4GB of RAM, up to 1 Gbps of dedicated bandwidth, and a 4TB monthly data allowance, with up to 10 devices able to connect at once.

"When the 4 TB monthly bandwidth allowance is reached, connection speeds are reduced to up to 10 Mbps until the start of the next month," a NordVPN spokesperson told TechRadar.

The headline feature, though, is port forwarding. Port forwarding lets specific types of internet traffic find their way to a particular device sitting behind the server, so people on the outside can reach it. Layered on top of a VPN, it does this without revealing the real IP address of whoever is hosting.

A NordVPN spokesperson confirmed to TechRadar that secure port forwarding is possible on Dedicated Servers, as the "hardware assigned to the single user removes the blocker of opening ports on a shared VPN server's infrastructure."

Therefore, there are no plans to extend this feature to Dedicated IP users.

Why would anyone want one

For general browsing and streaming, you do not need this, and NordVPN is upfront that shared servers perform just as well for normal VPN use. The dedicated server is for the people whose needs spill beyond simple privacy.

For example, anyone hosting a game world normally has to hand their real IP address to every player who joins, and that exposes them to DDoS attacks and leaks location data. Routing traffic through a dedicated server keeps your real IP hidden, while port forwarding still lets friends connect.

Finally, if you want to log in to your home PC from a remote location or self-host your own tools, a dedicated server gives you a stable, private route in. This is a long-standing reason people pair port forwarding with a VPN: it lets you reach a server inside your home network remotely and safely. Similarly, you can also reach your smart home devices.

How to get started

The dedicated server is an extra that anyone can add to their NordVPN subscription, and the private server is provisioned automatically after purchase.

From there, you can pick the US, the UK, Germany, or France as your server location. Once it's live, you connect through any of the major NordVPN apps using the NordLynx protocol.

A few limits are worth noting before you buy. The feature is not available on browser extensions or Apple's tvOS, and it does not support OpenVPN or any protocol other than NordLynx.

It’s not pitched as an upgrade for everyday browsing or streaming, where a standard shared connection works just as well. But if you need a dedicated IP, isolated resources, and port forwarding, this gives you your own private corner of the internet to do it from.

World Cup 2026 has kicked off — and if you’re looking to keep up with the latest matches wherever you are, or just keep your connection secure, it’s a good idea to use one of the best VPNs while streaming.

It’s well known that most major VPN providers offer apps for desktop, mobile, and tablets, but some go a step further with apps that you can install straight onto your TV.

Having a VPN app on your TV means skipping the hassle of connecting via a phone or laptop and allows you to keep your streaming activity and personal data private.

However, not all TV operating systems are alike when it comes to VPN availability — while Android TV, Google TV, Amazon Fire OS TVs and Apple TVs support native VPN apps, Samsung’s Tizen OS and LG’s webOS don’t. But don't worry, we’ll cover a workaround below.

Which VPNs work on TVs?

Which VPN will work on your TV depends on which platforms your VPN service is available on and whether your TV allows VPNs to run on its operating system.

Some VPNs are widely available across platforms. Norton VPN has a native app on Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, and Android or Google TVs can run the Google Play version of the app natively.

The same is true for NordVPN and ExpressVPN, which both support all four platforms. However, it’s worth checking your VPN service’s specific device support information. Amazon’s latest Vega OS Fire Sticks, for example, is not compatible with ExpressVPN or Norton VPN.

For more details on the operating systems supported by different VPNs, it's worth checking out our roundup of best smart TV VPNs.

As for Samsung TVs running Tizen OS and LG TVs running WebOS, VPN apps are not natively supported — but this doesn’t mean you’re out of luck if you’re looking to watch the World Cup securely.

How to use a VPN with a Samsung or LG TV

To access VPN-like functionality on a Samsung or LG TV, you'll need to use Smart DNS. This effectively reroutes your Domain Name System (DNS) queries, so you can access your favorite shows from home. However, it won't mask your IP address or encrypt your traffic like a VPN does.

It’s not a given that a VPN service will offer a SmartDNS feature. Of the best VPNs, ExpressVPN comes with its MediaStreamer SmartDNS tool, while NordVPN also has a SmartDNS capability. CyberGhost, which features in our best smart TV VPN list, also offers this functionality.

Using this method isn't always that easy and success isn't guaranteed. The simpler solution s to run a VPN on a laptop or mobile device, stream the World Cup (or whatever you’d like to watch) on that device, and then connect to your TV with a HDMI cable.

Can I cast a VPN stream to my TV with AirPlay or Chromecast?

Unfortunately, casting from a phone running a VPN to a TV not running a VPN usually doesn’t work, because the two devices aren’t part of the same network environment.

Casting relies on communication between devices on the same network, so using a VPN on only one device can interrupt the connection between them.

If you link both your TV and phone to the same network — either behind the VPN or with SmartDNS — you’ll have a better chance of casting, but it’s still not as reliable as using a native VPN on your TV, or even using SmartDNS.

So the tip worth remembering: if you're TVs operating system allows it, download a VPN direct to your device. If it doesn't, you can always use your laptop and connect to your TV using a standard HDMI cable.

• NordVPN's next-gen antivirus blocked 96% of phishing sites in the 2026 AV-Comparatives test
• The software perfectly distinguished between active malicious links and 200 legitimate banking URLs
• Detection rates jumped by 6% compared to the previous test in May 2025

When you're searching for the best VPN to secure your online traffic, you increasingly need an app that does more than just encrypt your data. As phishing attacks grow more sophisticated, top providers are evolving into robust, all-in-one cybersecurity suites, and independent testing shows these built-in tools are making a real impact.

In the newly released 2026 Anti-Phishing Comparative Test by independent cybersecurity evaluation authority AV-Comparatives, NordVPN’s next-generation antivirus achieved a massive 96% phishing detection rate.

Even better for users who hate annoying pop-ups blocking safe internet browsing, the software managed this impressive high block rate with absolutely zero false positives.

The results highlight a steady improvement for the provider. Compared to the last AV-Comparatives test of this sort in May 2025, NordVPN’s phishing detection has improved by 6%.

Putting the antivirus to the test

To put the software through its paces, AV-Comparatives ran its testing between May 11 and May 22, 2026. Assessors threw 275 active phishing URLs at the most recent product version of NordVPN’s next-gen antivirus available at the time. These malicious links specifically targeted personal data across popular platforms, including PayPal, online banking portals, email services, and social media networks.

To ensure the antivirus wasn't just blindly blocking everything, the testers also introduced 200 legitimate banking URLs to validate the false positive results. NordVPN safely allowed the real sites through while neutralizing the threats.

"Phishing sites today are sophisticated enough to fool almost anyone, and most people shouldn't have to become cybersecurity experts just to stay safe online," said Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN. "Results like these are exactly the kind of protection that makes a real difference in people's daily lives."

This isn't the first time the company has impressed the ISO-certified independent testing firm. Back in June 2024, NordVPN became the first VPN service provider to be approved for the AV-Comparatives anti-phishing protection badge. To earn this certification, software must detect and block at least 85% of phishing URLs without causing any false alarms on legitimate banking and related sites.

How to recognize phishing websites

While utilizing a premium service, like the next-gen antivirus available with a NordVPN Complete subscription, is a powerful safeguard, threat actors are constantly evolving their tactics. Maintaining good digital hygiene remains crucial.

Alongside using reliable cybersecurity software, NordVPN recommends users follow a few simple tips to avoid being caught out:

• Verify the URL: Always inspect your browser’s address bar. Watch out for subtle variations in a domain name, suspicious prefixes, or being unexpectedly redirected to a subpage instead of a homepage.
• Read the text carefully: If an unsolicited email or message is urging you to act immediately or trying to induce panic, take a step back. Look closely for typos or other mistakes.
• Enable two-factor authentication (2FA): Adding a second step, such as a one-time code sent to your phone, ensures that even if a hacker steals your password, they won’t be able to access your account.
• Check the website’s protocol: Ensure the site uses a secure HTTPS connection. Look for the padlock icon in the address bar; spoofed URLs often only use unsecured HTTP protocols.

Apple’s 2026 WWDC event promised some serious upgrades for Siri, macOS and parental controls.

Here at TechRadar our live WWDC 2026 coverage tracked everything the announcement included. If you need to catch up, we've summarized the 17 things we learned during the event.

And though we’ll continue covering all the on-device security upgrades, there’s still good reason to pick up a VPN subscription.

That’s where NordVPN comes in. NordVPN is the best VPN overall as well as our choice for the best VPN for iPhone, and with this deal you can now get it for an excellent price:

Do I still need a VPN if I have an iPhone?

Apple is keen to let its users know about its privacy and security credentials, such as offering users the opportunity to ask apps not to track their activity.

Apple has built a reputation as the ‘safer choice’ for those concerned with cybersecurity, with popular wisdom suggesting that iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks are less susceptible to data interception or malware than devices from rival brands.

However, there is one frontier that Apple can’t fully control, and that’s online privacy. Because accessing the internet depends on your ISP, public networks and companies outside of Apple’s purview, it can’t fully protect its users from online surveillance.

The best VPNs increase your digital privacy and shield your data from unwanted monitoring by ISPs. What’s more, NordVPN comes with a bevy of additional features to help keep you safe online.

While all three NordVPN plans offer a fast, reliable VPN with access to thousands of servers in the US and worldwide, the Complete plan adds advanced email monitoring, scam call filtering, an antivirus, and a dedicated secure search engine. Meanwhile, Prime adds insurance against identity theft (though its availability depends on your region).

Other VPN options

If NordVPN isn't ticking all the boxes, there are some great alternatives to choose from depending on your VPN needs.

Surfshark is even cheaper than NordVPN and offers a similar standard of features, including the option to upgrade to identity theft coverage.

And if you're an iPhone user but want to prioritize your Windows laptop, ExpressVPN is currently our pick for the best VPN for Windows users thanks to its blazing fast connection speeds on Windows devices.

• The NordVPN client is now available on the Meta Horizon platform
• The app is installable directly on Quest headsets, no sideloading required
• NordVPN is the third VPN provider to enter the metaverse

NordVPN has arrived on the Meta Horizon platform, making it one of the very few VPN services you can drop straight onto a Quest headset. For anyone who has struggled to get one of the best VPNs running in virtual reality, it's a small but meaningful shift.

Until now, protecting a headset meant tinkering: configuring a VPN on your router, sharing a connection from a computer over a hotspot, or sideloading an app through developer tools. None of those routes is friendly to the average user.

Meta has been folding its Quest ecosystem into Meta Horizon, and one result is that VPN apps can now be installed natively on Quest devices. NordVPN is now the third provider to take advantage.

What's new and why it matters

The change is simplicity. NordVPN now installs directly through Meta Horizon, so the encryption lives on the headset rather than being bolted on from your router. That means full-device coverage: the app encrypts traffic leaving your headset, and masks your IP across the whole device, not just the browser.

This is great for online play on the Quest 2 and 3, which exposes your traffic and IP address much like any connected device. Masking it makes it harder for others in multiplayer lobbies to trace your location. It won't stop Meta's own data collection, but it does limit what third parties learn about your connection.

Because this is a native app rather than a browser extension, you install it the same way you'd add any other Quest title.

• Open the app store on your headset through Meta Horizon;
• Search for NordVPN;
• Install the app;
• And sign in with your account to connect.

The older methods haven't gone anywhere for people who prefer them.

A virtual private network (VPN) configured on your router will automatically cover any Quest device that connects over Wi-Fi, and sharing a VPN connection from a computer via a hotspot remains an option.

More advanced users can still sideload apps through SideQuest, though that route requires enabling developer mode and is better suited to those comfortable poking around in system-level settings.

Other VPNs available on VR headsets

NordVPN isn't arriving in an empty field, but it is joining a very short list.

ExpressVPN got there first, unveiling a dedicated Meta Quest app that encrypts everything entering and leaving the headset last February, which it pitched as a way to stop ISP throttling during demanding VR streaming and gaming.

The provider paired the launch with an "industry-first" hybrid browser extension that combines a lightweight proxy with remote control of the full desktop app. This lets users assign different VPN locations to specific sites, while adding safety nets like WebRTC leak blocking and HTML5 geolocation spoofing.

AdGuard took a different route, launching two privacy-focused extensions for the Meta Quest Browser: the AdGuard Ad Blocker and the AdGuard VPN.

The VPN extension encrypts browser traffic and masks your IP to help bypass geo-blocks, while the ad blocker scrubs ads, trackers, and pop-ups that feel especially intrusive when they're floating inches from your eyes.

Because they're browser extensions rather than system-level apps, they only protect what happens in the browser, making AdGuard the lightweight choice for people who mainly want cleaner web surfing rather than VPN-protected gaming.

The tech giants are pushing back against Canada's Bill C-22. Companies are raising the alarm over the cybersecurity and privacy risks that these new obligations will pose.

Encrypted messaging app Signal and Windscribe VPN went as far as to vow to leave the country if it becomes law.

And the Canadian government appears to be listening to these concerns and has agreed to clarify contentious points around encryption and metadata. However, Canada's Minister of Public Safety, Gary Anandasangaree, remains firm that tech companies are "misinterpreting" the bill.

In a statement to TechRadar, the ministry "categorically rejects" claims that Bill C-22 would enable surveillance, arguing that the provisions are meant to "modernize" lawful access to data in line with similar requirements existing in other G7 countries.

"For international companies, to claim that Bill C-22 would somehow undermine their ability to offer robust privacy and security features is simply misleading," Simon Lafortune, Deputy Director of Communications and Press Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety, told TechRadar.

Tech giants, alongside some of the best VPN providers and encrypted messaging services, aren't convinced, though. Google has warned of "surveillance infrastructure" and, together with Apple, urged lawmakers to add explicit protections for encryption.

Meanwhile, a joint report from Citizen Lab and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association recently branded the proposed legislation "almost certainly constitutionally fatal".

So, what is the actual threat to Canadian privacy? Why are tech providers so worried? And, most importantly, will they manage to make the government actually rethink its surveillance law?

The encryption debate

Lafortune maintains that the government has made it clear that strong encryption is essential to cybersecurity, economic growth, and the protection of Canadian citizen personal information.

"We want to reassure Signal, Windscribe, NordVPN, and all service providers that we are not legislating to require them to install capabilities to enable surveillance, and any assertions otherwise are false," Lafortune told TechRadar.

One of the major areas of contention surrounds the draft's definition of encryption and vulnerabilities. In a May 13 submission, Google called for clearer definitions, while privacy advocates have warned about the law's potential future impact.

Laura Tyrylyte, privacy advocate at NordVPN, told TechRadar: "In its current form, Bill C-22 grants the government overbroad, unsupervised and opaque Ministerial Order powers that could effectively compel any electronic service provider to build technical capabilities that compromise end-to-end encryption, insert backdoors, or perform surveillance."

The VPN industry is largely united in its opposition to the bill, with representatives from ExpressVPN, Proton VPN, and Windscribe all echoing similar concerns.

ExpressVPN's Chief Research Officer, Pete Membrey, told TechRadar: "Even well-intentioned requirements can create pressure for providers to build technical capabilities that weaken security or undermine trust in encrypted services."

Meanwhile, Proton VPN's David Peterson said that politicians are at risk of misunderstanding how encryption works. "If you create a backdoor in encryption, it cannot be selective — it allows both good and bad actors in equally," he said.

For Yegor Sak, CEO of Windscribe, the issues with encryption are linked to another contentious point — greater data retention. He told TechRadar: "[The bill] forces companies to build technical capabilities and retain data in ways that make it nearly impossible to maintain strong encryption without major changes to how the service works."

Metadata privacy matters

Bill C-22 seeks to significantly expand providers' data retention obligations.

The government maintains that the bill introduces "limited retention requirements strictly for metadata," and the text does include restrictions on collecting data that could reveal the "content" of communications, users' "web browsing history," and their "social media activities."

For Sak, however, forcing companies to build data logging systems and "retain large amounts of metadata" directly undermines encryption.

"You can have strong encryption and effective law enforcement. You just can’t have both if you’re also forcing companies to weaken their architecture, which will put users at risk," he told TechRadar.

Even though metadata does not explicitly reveal the content of online activities, its privacy implications are vast. Powered by modern AI tools, tracking this information enables law enforcement — or any malicious actor with the necessary skills — to build a highly accurate picture of a user's digital life without ever breaking encryption.

Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-Commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, warned that mandatory metadata retention will "create a national surveillance map" of Canadians' movements and communications.

Tyrylyte also views this level of data collection as "disproportionate and dangerous," especially in an era where citizens are increasingly targeted by data breaches, fraud, and identity theft.

Will the government find a compromise?

It remains unclear how the government intends to improve transparency and accountability. Minister Anandasangaree has said that he intends to pass the bill before Parliament breaks for the summer on June 19.

Conservatives also recently moved a motion to split the legislation in half to allow further study of the controversial encryption and metadata provisions.

However, Proton and Windscribe are not optimistic that any concrete changes will materialize.

"It is difficult to see how the privacy of Canadian citizens can truly be preserved while simultaneously granting law enforcement broad access to their most sensitive data," Peterson said.

Sak shares this skepticism, saying that potential amendments "will mostly be fluff."

Regardless, the government's stance remains firm. "The government remains committed to protecting both public safety and the fundamental rights of Canadians, and we look forward to Bill C‑22 proceeding through Parliament and receiving Royal Assent as soon as possible," Lafortune told TechRadar.

As a G7 nation and a member of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, Canada's final lawful access framework could set a global precedent.

And with a growing list of countries attempting to "modernize" law enforcement's ability to access citizens' data, the implications stretch far beyond Canadian borders.

• NordVPN has launched Call Protection for iPhone users worldwide.
• The tool runs in the background, analyzing call patterns and metadata to flag potential scam calls in real-time.
• Research from the Global Anti-Scam Alliance shows consumers globally lost roughly $442 billion to scams in the past year.

NordVPN has announced it is rolling out its Call Protection feature to iPhone users worldwide.

Designed to help people spot and dodge fraudulent calls before they pick up the phone, the tool provides a real-time warning to keep users one step ahead of scammers.

While NordVPN has long been a heavyweight contender for the title of best VPN, this latest iOS update underscores the company's shift toward becoming an all-encompassing digital privacy and security suite.

The scale of the scam call problem cannot be overstated. According to recent research from the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA), consumers across 42 countries lost roughly $442 billion to scams over the past year alone. Even more alarmingly, 57% of adults worldwide report having been scammed during that same period.

By bringing Call Protection to iPhone users worldwide, NordVPN is trying to stop scam calls before they get started.

A privacy-first approach to call screening

Giving a third-party app access to your incoming calls can sound daunting from a privacy perspective, but NordVPN claims its tool is built strictly with data security in mind.

The Call Protection feature utilizes a privacy-first approach that analyzes call patterns and metadata to spot potential scams.

Crucially, NordVPN says the feature accomplishes this without ever touching or listening to your actual conversations. It runs quietly in the background, meaning it doesn't even require an active VPN connection to screen out bad actors.

By throwing up an early warning notification on the screen, the tool puts the recipient on high alert. That extra warning gives people time to think before they answer, which can help them avoid scams and fraud.

"Protecting people from scam calls on Android was only ever half the picture, and iPhone users deserve that same level of defense," says Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN.

"Our job is to make sure that wherever people are, whatever device they use, they have a real line of defense."

How to enable Call Protection on your iPhone

Setting up Call Protection is incredibly straightforward, though you will need to give the app permission to manage your caller ID settings.

To activate the feature, iPhone users simply need to open their NordVPN app and navigate to the "Products hub" tab.

From there, select "Call Protection" and toggle the feature on. The application will then automatically guide you through updating the necessary iOS settings to allow the background screening to function.

Once the initial setup is complete, Call Protection will run silently in the background, giving you a real-time heads-up whenever a known scammer tries to ring your device.

The introduction of iOS call screening joins NordVPN's existing roster of built-in security tools, which currently includes a next-generation antivirus suite, advanced phishing and malware protection, and its proprietary Dark Web Monitor.

The Champions League has long been a staple midweek viewing for me. But, in recent years, my internet connection has struggled to match the standard of football it's trying to stream.

Whether it's throttling, congestion, or ISP peering causing my issues, I don't entirely know. That said, I've quickly found that a VPN has solved my issues almost entirely.

I've been using NordVPN to watch my beloved Chelsea since the beginning of their search for a third Champions League trophy. While the results on the pitch have left something to be desired, the results for my connection have been far more impressive.

Connecting to a local server, I've never found myself struggling for stream quality, nor have I seen my stream delayed so much that I see the goals in my phone notifications first.

Unlike other VPNs, I also rarely found my stream completely dropping out. While some of the best VPNs like Proton and Surfshark provide stiff competition in many other ways, I found my connection dropping more often with these providers when streaming on services such as TNT and Peacock.

Can you use a free VPN to watch the Champions League final?

Free VPNs come nowhere close to the best streaming VPNs you'd need to pay for. While yes, it's theoretically possible to watch the final with a free VPN, limitations in server network, data caps, and reduced streaming performance all make it more hassle than it's worth.

If you're wary of paying huge sums, the best cheap VPNs will prove far more effective. Surfshark starts from only $1.99 per month and will perform better than any free VPN on matchday.

Alternatively, consider picking up a one-month VPN plan. The likes of Proton VPN can give you a month of protection for only $10. Should you then choose to extend your plan, you can then pick up a deal on a longer option that works out to far less per month.

VPN companies are eagerly waiting to hear the government's plan for VPN access in the UK following the close of the online safety consultation.

The Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) launched the "Growing up in the online world" national consultation back in March with a clear goal — gathering evidence and views from parents, organizations, and the wider public on how to make the internet safer for children and teens.

Lawmakers made the stakes clear from the start, noting that VPNs could face age restrictions if the consultation concludes that these tools undermine online safety protections.

With the findings now imminent, TechRadar spoke to leading VPN providers about what could come next.

VPNs aren't a threat

VPNs have multiple functions. While they primarily improve a user's digital privacy and security online, they can also circumvent age restrictions by masking a device's IP address.

Surfshark — one of the best cheap VPNs available — recently contributed to a coordinated statement urging the UK government to consider VPNs' multifaceted purposes.

"Treating VPNs as a 'loophole' misunderstands their role and risks reducing online safety for the very users these proposals are meant to protect," a Surfshark spokesperson told TechRadar.

"While we support efforts to protect children online, targeting tools that are essential for online security is a flawed approach."

Both Surfshark and NordVPN point out that their services are already off-limits for children, meaning government-mandated age restrictions would primarily impact adult users instead.

That's why NordVPN Privacy Advocate, Laura Tyrylytė, believes lawmakers should draw a clear distinction between trustworthy and unreliable VPN services.

"The government could work with industry to develop formal guidance on what ethical, secure VPN services should look like in practice," she said.

Age restrictions may not work

Imposing age restrictions on VPN companies would be antithetical to their mission of improving digital privacy and may be difficult to enforce.

"Age-gating VPNs would require VPN providers to collect and verify identifying data on all users (including journalists, domestic-abuse survivors, and remote workers), which must be avoided," Tyrylytė told TechRadar.

Alternatively, VPN companies may be required to rely on third-party services to conduct the age verification process, which poses its own risks.

Both NordVPN and Surfshark also warned that children may move to less reputable, free VPN apps, which are harder to regulate.

"The compliance burden would fall on reputable, paid providers, while pushing determined users toward exactly those unregulated services that pose the real risk to children," said Tyrylytė.

NymVPN's CEO, Harry Halpin, told TechRadar that achieving a reasonable degree of accuracy using existing technology is not realistic.

"This has been shown as children can easily fake a moustache to fool age-gating apps," said Halpin.

Will the evidence-based approach save VPNs?

While it is hard to predict if the consultation's findings will side with the VPN industry, the UK government is actively seeking ways to prevent age verification circumvention.

The controversial Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act became law recently and introduced an obligation for service providers to take "reasonable anti-circumvention measures." Plus, if social media is restricted for teens, an increase in VPN use is almost certain.

Halpin feels strongly that restrictions on VPNs are likely. "The UK will almost certainly ask for age verification and may try to make VPNs that do not do age verification illegal in the UK," he told TechRadar.

"My fear is that this VPN ban to 'save the children' will just be used to crush freedom of speech and political dissent, the very political tradition that once found a proud home in the UK," he said.

However, Surfshark and NordVPN are more hopeful.

"We expect a measured, evidence-based outcome that does not treat VPNs as a threat," Surfshark told TechRadar.

Both companies also emphasized the importance of investing in additional digital safety measures, such as device-level protections and improving children's digital literacy.

The government is expected to make its plans on the future of children's access to social media and circumvention tools clear in the coming months.

• NordVPN identified malware and scam campaigns targeting GTA 6's fans
• The web is flooded with fake beta keys, trojanized repacks, phishing sites
• PC and Android users are the main targets

The hype around the release of GTA 6 is real, and threat actors are quick to make the most of it by targeting gamers who are disappointed by the game's delayed release. The lead-up to the release of Rockstar Games' most anticipated title makes fans vulnerable to a large number of scams, NordVPN warns.

NordVPN, which consistently ranks at the top of our list of the best VPNs, shared the findings of its Threat Intelligence team. The team discovered a wave of GTA 6-themed scams targeting eager fans with fake installers, non-existent beta keys, phishing pages, and even Android adware pretending to be a "GTA 6 beta" app.

Attackers are banking on victims clicking first and then thinking later, instilling a sense of urgency through every scam attempt.

NordVPN reveals the staggering extent of GTA 6 scams

NordVPN has revealed that PC and Android users are the primary targets of GTA 6 scams, but the threat actors may still promise access to the game on other platforms.

The game has been confirmed to launch on the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X/S to start with, which threat actors are willingly abusing by promising exclusive beta keys for those consoles. Users first fill out a short form, go through a quick verification process, and then are told to either subscribe or download potentially unwanted applications (PUAs).

Windows users are also targeted by clones of well-known piracy sites. These clones distribute malware, cleverly disguised as the actual game. NordVPN downloaded one of these scam files and found it to look surprisingly legitimate, with a proper game installer that quietly launches a trojan in the background. The malware can modify your PC's RAM, connect to external servers, and download even more malware.

gta from r/GTA/comments/1t5m6cr/gta6_is_already_on_android

Android users are subjected to adware that pretends to offer access to the GTA 6 beta. This is especially clever, as the game is unlikely to ever launch on Android, but fake apps that promise access to the game are still cropping up, as shared by NordVPN as well as various Reddit users.

NordVPN downloaded one such file and found the app to be an empty shell that plays a video and then makes you download additional data. The app tries to get users to pay for a subscription or download further malware, and NordVPN traced it back to a domain that's known for distributing banking trojans, ransomware, and infostealers.

Even Rockstar Social Club accounts aren't safe: phishing pages attempt to steal login credentials, and those accounts, quickly stolen, are often resold or used for in-game scams.

How to stay safe

The general rule of thumb is not to trust anything that didn't come directly from Rockstar Games, the PlayStation Store, or the Xbox Marketplace. Never download any game-related content from third-party sites, as even a legitimate-looking site can be a scam.

Don't trust offers of free beta keys, either. Follow the official social media channels for these platforms to keep an eye out for legit offers.

Lastly, don't share your Rockstar account details on any websites other than the official site, and check the URL before you type them in.

NordVPN has just rebranded its Threat Protection suite as next-gen antivirus, so if you want to stay extra safe with a more robust security solution, it's worth checking out.

• NordVPN rebrands its app across three pillars: connect, protect, monitor
• Threat Protection's tools are now under a newly launched anti-gen antivirus
• Anti-gen antivirus tools blocked 4.8 million threats in April alone

NordVPN is officially changing. The cybersecurity giant has announced a major rebrand, shifting its focus from a standalone VPN provider to an all-in-one digital security app.

The revamped NordVPN application is now organized around three core pillars: "connect," which refers to the virtual private network tech; "protect," where what's known as the Threat Protection suite becomes next-generation antivirus; and "monitor," which includes tools like Dark Web Monitor.

As Marijus Briedis, CTO at NordVPN, said in a press statement: "Such an approach reflects what users increasingly want from digital protection: stronger security, less complexity, and fewer separate tools to install and manage."

The need for a next-gen antivirus

The rebranding of Threat Protection features as next-generation antivirus capabilities is especially significant to grasp how the company is adapting to an online landscape where threats are diversified.

Many of today's most common and damaging digital dangers, including phishing pages, fake online stores, scam messages, and account takeover attempts, do not rely on downloadable files at all. Instead, modern cybercriminals use deception, compromised credentials, and social engineering to target unsuspecting users.

Yet, as Briedis explains, people still use the word 'antivirus' as a "shorthand" for digital security. "Modern protection should address the real risks people face online today, from phishing and scams to malicious downloads. Protection needs to evolve, without compromising the standard of privacy people expect from us," said Briedis.

Traditional antivirus software, in fact, has historically focused on reactive file scanning. NordVPN's next-generation antivirus aims to redefine this concept for private customers. It focuses on proactive, real-time protection to stop phishing, scams, ads, trackers, and malware before they ever reach a user's device.

Over the last year, we have tracked how NordVPN has steadily integrated broader defense features against online scams and malware. And these tools are already working hard. In April alone, NordVPN's next-gen antivirus tool blocked 4.8 million threats. Malware made up the majority of these blocks, accounting for over 3 million stopped threats.

Now, those extra layers of defense are taking center stage. A massive evolution for a service that already ranks among the best VPN options on the market.

Privacy-first security by design

One of the biggest concerns for users adopting all-in-one security suites is privacy. Antivirus software historically requires deep system access, which can raise surveillance concerns.

NordVPN claims its security approach is designed around collecting the minimum signal required to make a threat decision, avoiding turning security tools into surveillance products.

This privacy-first ethos extends across NordVPN's entire suite, from its core VPN capabilities to its dedicated machine learning models used to catch specific threat categories.

For users looking to streamline their digital setup, this rebrand also seeks to reduce the clutter of managing multiple subscription services.

"Consumers should not have to choose between convenience, protection, and privacy," says Briedis. "Our goal is to bring together advanced VPN technology and next-generation antivirus in one streamlined app experience that reduces complexity and better matches how people think about digital safety today."

This rebrand follows what has already been a highly active period for the provider; you can catch up on their other recent updates in our recap of everything NordVPN released in early 2026.

• A Spanish court dismissed La Liga’s request to impose fines on NordVPN
• NordVPN demonstrated that blanket IP blocking harms legitimate websites
• The wider legal battle over Spain's dynamic blocking regime remains open

In a significant win for the VPN industry, a Spanish court has ruled in favor of NordVPN, rejecting demands by football league LaLiga to impose coercive fines.

The ruling, handed down on May 19, 2026, by the Commercial Court of Córdoba, marks a critical checkpoint in Spain's controversial crackdown on illegal sports streaming. It also offers some reassurance to anyone searching for the best VPN to secure their online identity.

The dispute stems from a February 2026 court injunction that ordered VPN providers like NordVPN and Proton VPN to actively block IP addresses hosting unauthorized LaLiga streams. NordVPN resisted, presenting technical evidence that ultimately convinced the court that imposing fines was unwarranted.

However, NordVPN was quick to emphasize that this is not yet a final victory. "It is important to note that this is a procedural decision at the preliminary stage, not a final judgment on the merits of the evidence," the company wrote in a blog post.

Spain’s aggressive IP-blocking regime and its fallout

To understand why this decision is so important, it is necessary to look at how Spain’s "war on piracy" has unfolded.

La Liga has been using dynamic injunctions to demand that internet service providers (ISPs) and VPN companies block access to specific IP addresses in real-time.

However, this "carpet bombing" approach has caused massive collateral damage. Because many pirate streams share CDN infrastructures like Cloudflare, LaLiga's aggressive IP bans have ended up breaking the internet in Spain for normal users.

Entirely legitimate services, including GitHub, Docker, and Vercel, have experienced intermittent outages during match windows. In a highly publicized blunder, the ban list even temporarily blocked Freedom.gov, a US government portal designed to fight internet censorship.

This ongoing disruption led thousands of frustrated Spaniards to download tools like Proton VPN as weekend outages worsened.

Why the court rejected the fines

In its defense, NordVPN presented crucial technical evidence demonstrating that La Liga's blocking demands were fundamentally flawed.

First, the company proved that the IP addresses used for pirate streams "change constantly," often within hours. Consequently, by the time any blocking list could be processed, the addresses were already outdated.

Second, NordVPN argued that enforcing blanket IP-level blocks would result in severe overblocking, rendering thousands of lawful websites inaccessible to innocent users.

The Commercial Court of Córdoba accepted this evidence, ruling that "it cannot be concluded that NordVPN had deliberately and without justification breached the order".

While the main legal battle is still ahead, NordVPN is treating this preliminary ruling as a vital step forward.

The provider stated, "What the ruling does is confirm something we said openly from day one — the technical concerns are real and evidenced, and a Spanish court has now recognized that".

• ExpressVPN has joined other VPN providers in criticizing Canada's Bill C-22
• The bill seeks to impose greater data retention and an encryption backdoor
• Proton, Windscribe, NordVPN, Signal have already slammed the proposal

The privacy industry's backlash against Canada's controversial Bill C-22 continues to grow. Virtual private network giant ExpressVPN has formally criticized the proposed legislation, stating that its no-logs architecture and encryption remain strictly "non-negotiable."

The controversy is a major concern for anyone searching for the best VPN to protect their online identity. Bill C-22, officially known as the Lawful Access Act, would require online services to build technical capabilities facilitating government access to encrypted communications, while also mandating metadata retention for up to a year.

In a statement shared with TechRadar, ExpressVPN said to be "carefully reviewing" Canada's Bill C-22, particularly the provisions on access to user data and the requirement to build technical capabilities supporting government access to encrypted user communications.

For millions who rely on VPN services, the proposal threatens the core mechanisms of online privacy. Under a strict no-logs policy, a VPN provider like ExpressVPN technically promises to never track or store what its users do online. This means that if a government demands user logs, a secure provider simply has nothing to hand over — a fundamental privacy guarantee that Bill C-22 threatens to disrupt.

ExpressVPN's stance follows similar warnings shared by other VPN providers, including NordVPN and Proton VPN. Windscribe and Signal also threatened to leave the market if Bill C-22 were to pass.

The danger of mandated backdoors

Why are VPN companies and secure messaging apps uniting against Ottawa? The core of the issue lies in the bill's technical requirements. ExpressVPN warned that forcing companies to build tools to access secure user data creates a massive security vulnerability that malicious parties could easily abuse.

"Our position on the underlying principles is clear: ExpressVPN’s no-logs architecture and encryption are non-negotiable," the ExpressVPN spokesperson told TechRadar.

That's because, ExpressVPN explains, both encryption and a no-log architecture protect users from a wide range of threats, including bad actors who would exploit any technical capabilities built for one purpose to use them for another.

"Legislation that mandates data retention or technical access, however well-intentioned, undermines the security that millions of users rely on," the ExpressVPN spokesperson added.

By mandating that providers build a way to circumvent encryption, the bill effectively demands digital backdoors.

Security experts argue that there is no such thing as a backdoor that only "good guys" can use. Once an entry point is created, it becomes a high-priority target for cybercriminals and state-sponsored hackers.

A growing privacy exodus

ExpressVPN is not alone in its stance. The provider joins an increasingly vocal resistance that includes some of the industry's biggest names.

Earlier this week, Swiss-based Proton VPN declared that "there is no universe in which Proton VPN compromises its no-logs policy," vowing to fight the legislation by any means.

Meanwhile, Toronto-headquartered Windscribe VPN went as far as threatening to relocate its operations out of Canada entirely. Encrypted messaging giant Signal similarly warned that it would rather exit the Canadian market than compromise user trust.

The friction has even raised cross-border concerns. Lawmakers in the United States have cautioned that the bill could compromise the data privacy of American citizens.

"We are monitoring the legislation closely as it unfolds and engaging with the broader conversation about how Canada balances law enforcement needs with the security and privacy of its citizens," the ExpressVPN spokesperson concluded. "We will be transparent with our users as the situation develops."

TechRadar has contacted ExpressVPN for further comment.

The 2026 Premier League season is coming to a close. Whether you're watching behind your hands for fear of your team being relegated or hoping for a snatch-and-grab win to get into Europe, Sunday the 24th certainly isn't a gameweek to miss.

An easy way to ensure you don't miss a kick is with a VPN. Virtual Private Networks secure your connection via an encrypted tunnel. Since these services have servers worldwide, you can choose to connect via a tunnel in your home country. This means if you're traveling over the weekend, you can stream the game with your usual streaming service, without encountering location-based blocks.

For me, no VPN can handle your matchday better than NordVPN. It ranks as our best VPN overall, offering fast download speeds, secure protocols, and, most importantly, seamless streaming performance.

I've tested it with the likes of Sky, Peacock, TNT, and Ziggo, and it's never faltered when streaming live events such as football, tennis, or F1. It's also fast enough that I've rarely found my stream delayed to the point where I find out the score from a phone notification first.

Right now, NordVPN is only $3.09 per month — $83.43 in total — for 27 months of protection. This means you'll get secure access to the finale of this Premier League season, plus two more after that.

Streaming is the biggest challenge VPNs face. The best streaming VPNs regularly update their servers to ensure their IP addresses work with key platforms like Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+, while also ensuring your streaming quality isn't massively impacted once you're signed in.

Our most recent tests proved NordVPN was the best overall at these areas. That said, several VPNs work well with sports-focused streaming platforms if you want something a touch cheaper or with different features.

Personally, Surfshark is my next best recommendation. It does sometimes struggle with dropouts when watching live events, but it starts from $1.99 and comes packed with other features.

Alternatively, Proton VPN is as secure as NordVPN, is normally slightly cheaper (between $2.79 and $2.99 per month), and offers an equally broad selection of server locations. That said, it struggled to reach the same streaming quality as NordVPN on regular occasions.

• Proton VPN has hit back at Canada's proposed Bill C-22
• The proposed legislation could require VPNs to log user metadata
• NordVPN and Windscribe have also slammed the bill

The fight for digital privacy in North America just gained another heavy hitter. Proton VPN has come out swinging against Canada’s controversial Bill C-22, assuring users that it will not comply with the proposed surveillance legislation.

Taking to X on Tuesday, the Swiss-based provider warned that the bill "empowers the government to order VPN providers in Canada to retain metadata for up to a year." In response to the looming threat, the company drew a definitive line in the sand regarding its core privacy commitments, stating that "There is no universe in which Proton VPN compromises its no-logs policy."

Proton VPN’s General Manager, David Peterson, also weighed in to clarify the legal reality of the situation. Because Proton operates under Swiss and European jurisdictions, Peterson argues that complying with the Canadian bill would violate local privacy laws.

"Complying with foreign surveillance orders without Swiss legal process is a criminal offence. Not happening," Peterson stated. "We'll defend our Canadian users and never compromise them. We will fight C-22's application by every means available."

If you are looking for the best VPN to protect your online identity, a strict no-logs policy is what keeps your data out of the hands of hackers and overreaching governments alike.

What is Bill C-22?

Introduced in the spring of 2026, Bill C-22, also known as the Lawful Access Act, is designed to give law enforcement broader tools to investigate crimes.

However, privacy advocates warn that the legislation is a surveillance nightmare. If passed, it would force digital services to record and retain user metadata for a full year.

Crucially, it provides a mechanism for the Minister of Public Safety to demand companies create a technical backdoor to their services, provided it doesn't introduce a "systemic vulnerability."

As cybersecurity experts often point out, a compromise between encryption backdoors and complete security is fundamentally impossible. Creating a way for law enforcement to access encrypted data inherently creates a vulnerability that malicious hackers can exploit.

The "clown show" response

Proton VPN is not the only provider pushing back against the legislation. The outcry follows similar threats from Signal and Windscribe last week, with the latter warning it would relocate its Toronto headquarters if the bill passes.

The situation took a bizarre turn on Tuesday when Public Safety Canada posted on X, encouraging citizens to use VPNs to secure their data on public Wi-Fi networks. Windscribe was quick to point out the hypocrisy of a government promoting VPN usage while simultaneously trying to outlaw the privacy protections that make them effective.

"Oh this is just rich… Bill C-22 is driving VPN businesses like ours out of Canada because of the required user logging. And in the same breath you tell people to secure their data with VPNs," Windscribe wrote. "I hope you bought your circus tickets folks, because the clown show is starting."

NordVPN has also formally joined the opposition. While the company stated it is still reviewing the draft and hopes to participate in the consultation process, it made clear that its core security infrastructure is not up for debate.

"Should Bill C-22 pass in its current form and if we are subjected to mandatory obligations, there isn't a scenario in which we would compromise our no-logs architecture or encryption protections," NordVPN stated.

With the world's biggest privacy companies drawing a hard line against Bill C-22, it remains to be seen whether Canadian lawmakers will amend the legislation or risk driving the cybersecurity industry out of the country entirely.

• Bank cards and IDs are easily available, and cheap, on the dark web, NordVPN warns
• UK citizens are a major target, with their data worth more
• The best fix is to secure your online accounts

We already know about the risks of using the internet, and how basic cybersecurity hygiene principles can do a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to keeping you safe, but NordVPN has revealed exactly what happens with your data after it’s been stolen.

The company’s research found stolen UK payment card details are now being commonly sold on dark web marketplaces for around £9 (around $12), with full more complete ‘digital identity packs’ being sold for around £30 ($40).

Among the most commonly sold pieces of information are payment cards, digital passport copies (£26), digital driving licence copies (£26) and full bundles of the above and more.

Criminals buying bits of information here and there

Perhaps the most concerning finding isn’t the existence of these marketplaces and the fact that personal, sensitive information is so easily accessible, but rather how cheaply criminals can acquire enough information to commit fraud.

“When people hear that stolen data is selling for the price of a coffee, it can sound almost trivial,” CTO Marijus Briedis wrote - as for such a small amount of money, criminals can go on to commit identity theft, account takeovers, credit application and loan fraud, phishing campaigns and more.

The company also noted that UK consumers are among the most valuable, with payment card data priced “slightly above” the European median and identity documents coming in with “comparatively high prices.”

However, the company worries it is becoming increasingly hard to become aware of an attack as identity theft becomes more quiet and incremental. Small pieces of leaked information end up being combined to form a bigger picture, leading to larger identity profiles.

“Most people still think identity theft is something dramatic and obvious, when in fact it can begin quietly, with a few personal details or copied documents being traded online,” Briedis added.

How to stay safe online

To help consumers understand the threat, NordVPN has launched an interactive dark web calculator to quantify how much an individual’s data could be worth based on the online accounts and digital identities they hold, and their country of origin.

On the site, the company explains regular personal emails can go for as little as $1, while more valuable corporate accounts tend to command a higher price on dark web marketplaces because of how they can give attackers access to sensitive company systems.

As for social media, Meta-owned platforms are among the most attractive purely because of the company’s dominance within the market. A single login could afford an attacker access to multiple accounts across Facebook, Instagram, Threads and more.

Setting out a series of solutions for consumers, NordVPN suggests using unique passwords for every account with multi-factor authentication on top. Replacing traditional passwords with passkeys is a big win for consumers, because they can’t be stolen and copied from password managers and the underlying technology relies on matching an account with your device.

Reviewing bank statements frequently to spot unexpected charges can also help identify attacks – NordVPN plugged its own Dark Web Monitor as a similar type of tool that alerts users when sensitive personal data hits a dodgy marketplace.

“The earlier people understand what their data is worth and how exposed they may be, the better chance they have of protecting themselves,” Briedis concluded.

• From May 26, NordProtect will be known as Coveron
• Existing users will not be impacted by the change
• The security service works as a standalone tool or as a VPN complement

From May 26, 2026, Nord Security’s identity protection service NordProtect will officially rebrand as Coveron, adopting a fresh visual identity while maintaining the same core functionality users have come to rely on.

There’s no need for existing customers to take any action, as the transition is designed to be seamless. Existing accounts and subscriptions will be automatically transferred to the new branding. The only changes users will notice are on billing statements and within the service interface, where the name will reflect the new Coveron identity.

The rebrand comes amid a broader push by cybersecurity companies to bundle identity theft protection alongside traditional VPN utilities. While NordVPN focuses on securing internet traffic, Coveron acts as a separate layer targeting personal data exposure and identity fraud.

Under the hood: What Coveron actually does

Coveron is a comprehensive identity theft and cyber protection service developed by Nord Security, the team behind NordVPN. It functions as a dual-layer defense system combining active monitoring with financial insurance.

The monitoring component continuously scans for signs of misuse regarding your sensitive personal information. This includes checking the dark web for exposed data, tracking credit activity, and alerting you to potential security threats across the personal details you register with the service.

When suspicious activity is detected, Coveron provides immediate alerts with specific details, helping users understand the nature of the threat and the steps required to mitigate it. Beyond detection, the service offers substantial financial protection through a partnership with HSB, a major global specialty insurance underwriter.

This coverage extends far beyond identity theft, protecting users against cyber extortion, online fraud, and cyberattacks. The policy includes up to $1 million for identity theft recovery, $50,000 for cyber extortion, and up to $10,000 each for online fraud and cyberattacks.

Why identity protection matters now

In its blog post on the rebrand, NordVPN points to recent data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that shows a sharp rise in reports of identity theft, climbing from 1.1 million cases in 2024 to 1.3 million by the end of 2025. Credit card fraud and loan fraud remain the most frequently reported types.

While a VPN is important for securing your internet connection and privacy, it can’t prevent data breaches that occur on third-party websites or protect you if your credentials are already compromised. Coveron fills this gap by acting as a safety net. It provides continuous monitoring to catch issues early and offers financial recovery support if the worst occurs.

Coveron is available as a standalone service, meaning you don’t need to be a NordVPN subscriber to access this level of protection. Whether you pair it with NordVPN or use it independently, adding this layer of coverage helps anyone with a credit history or active online presence stay safe as cyber threats continue to get smarter.

• ISPs often use "Deep Packet Inspection" (DPI) to identify and intentionally slow down high-bandwidth activities like streaming or gaming
• You can detect throttling by comparing a standard speed test against a streaming-specific test like Netflix's Fast.com
• The best VPN encrypt your traffic so your ISP cannot see, and therefore cannot throttle, what you are watching

There is nothing quite as frustrating as paying for a premium 500Mbps fiber connection only to have your 4K Netflix stream stutter, buffer, or drop down to grainy 720p. You’ve checked your router, you’ve restarted your TV, and yet the performance remains underwhelming.

The culprit often isn’t your hardware or a temporary outage. Instead, it is a practice known as 'bandwidth throttling'. This occurs when your Internet Service Provider (ISP) intentionally slows down specific types of traffic.

Whether it is streaming, online gaming, or P2P file sharing, ISPs manage their network congestion by putting the brakes on data-heavy activities.

While it feels like a breach of trust, this practice is frequently buried in the "Fair Usage" or "Traffic Management" clauses of your contract.

This makes it a legal, albeit quiet, way for providers to push their own proprietary streaming services or simply save on infrastructure costs.

Finding a way around these artificial bottlenecks is the key to getting the service you actually pay for.

How to tell if your ISP is throttling your connection

Detecting a throttled connection is simpler than you might think. All you need is a comparative speed test to see if your ISP is treating all data equally. First, run a standard speed test using a neutral service like Ookla’s Speedtest. This gives you a baseline for your general connection speed.

Next, run a dedicated streaming speed test to Netflix’s Fast.co. Fast.com connects directly to Netflix’s servers. That means that ISPs often target this specific traffic for slowing down.

So, if your results on Fast.com are significantly lower than your results on Ookla, then your ISP is almost certainly throttling your video traffic.

ISPs use a process called Deep Packet Inspection (DPI). Think of this as the ISP "peeking" at the metadata of your data packets.

While they might not see exactly what movie you’re watching, DPI allows them to identify that the data is coming from a streaming platform, which triggers their automated slowing rules.

How a VPN breaks the bottleneck

This is where a VPN (Virtual Private Network) comes in. A VPN creates an encrypted tunnel. Once your data is encrypted, your ISP’s DPI tools are effectively blinded.

When the ISP can no longer "see" that your data packets are coming from Netflix, YouTube, or Disney Plus, they cannot trigger the specific throttling rules associated with those services.

To your ISP, your traffic simply looks like a stream of indecipherable code heading toward a single VPN server. Since they can't categorize the traffic, they generally treat it as standard data, allowing it to move at full speed.

It's important to note that using a VPN does involve a small 'encryption overhead'. In other words, you'll get a slight drop in raw top speeds. That's because it takes a little more work to scramble your data before routing it through the remote server.

But, whatever drop you might see will likely be far smaller than the throttling your ISP will do without the VPN.

Choosing the right VPN for the job

To keep your speeds 4K-ready, prioritize providers using modern protocols like WireGuard or ExpressVPN’s proprietary Lightway protocol.

While developing these protocols is complex — our team recently flagged and helped resolve issues with Surfshark’s proprietary Dausos protocol — they remain essential for performance.

Currently, Surfshark and Proton VPN lead our speed tests, offering the overhead necessary to handle high-bandwidth tasks without becoming a bottleneck themselves.

By masking your activity, you bypass ISP restrictions and ensure your connection actually delivers the speeds you pay for

It's not all about speed when it comes to streaming soccer on Peacock TV with a VPN. I noticed that when I switched from ExpressVPN to NordVPN.

In our May 2026 lab tests, ExpressVPN (1117 Mbps) came out with nearly twice the download speeds of NordVPN (688 Mbps) when we took average measurements between a US and UK server.

But what I noticed most when I switched my Premier League streaming to NordVPN is that I rarely, if ever, get caught in a buffering loop or end up with the action freezing or stuttering.

With other VPNs, I usually find I have to manually disconnect two or three times over 90 minutes, which brings the double annoyance of having to get up off the sofa and the possibility of missing a goal.

NordVPN, though, has far lower latency than all the other VPNs over long-distance connections. It recorded latency figures of about half the rest of the pack, in fact, and that's crucial for more stable streams with fewer frames dropped.

So, if you're trying to watch your Premier League soccer on your Peacock TV subscription while you're abroad, then I believe that NordVPN is very much where it's at.

We rate it as the best streaming VPN on TechRadar and, best of all, you can get it right now at a discounted rate. It usually starts from $3.39 per month but it's currently available at $3.09 instead.

For streaming Peacock wherever you go, you're only going to need the entry-level NordVPN price tier. That's the one called NordVPN Basic.

It's $3.09 per month on the two-year plan but you can sign-up for one year at $4.99 per month instead.

There's only about $20 difference in total, though, so the two-year plan would be my tip.

If all this still seems a little rich to you, then try Surfshark ($1.78 per month) or PrivadoVPN ($1.11 per month). Like ExpressVPN, while both are fast, they can't match NordVPN for super-consistent low latency performance.

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

• NordVPN has released a new tool that calculates the price of your online data
• It is based on research into 75,000 listings on dark web marketplaces
• The research shows that currently, US data is the cheapest to buy

NordVPN is inviting you to understand the price of your personal data online with a new tool based on extensive dark web research.

TechRadar's best VPN analysed over 75,000 listings on dark web marketplaces and compiled a list of personal data commonly traded there. From bank accounts to Netflix subscriptions to credit card details, these data items were frequently sold on the dark web for as little as $5.

To illustrate the point, the VPN provider has turned its entire research into an interactive calculator that helps you find out how much your unique and sensitive data is actually worth if it falls into the wrong hands.

How does it work?

NordVPN’s calculator challenges users to find out their own digital value. By selecting their country and the types of data, the tool displays a figure corresponding to the price a cybercriminal would pay to purchase that data bundle on the dark web.

“Every online account you own has a price tag on the dark web,” warns Marijus Briedis, CTO at NordVPN.

This is nothing new, perhaps: insurance companies have long been in the business of putting a monetary figure on a human life.

However, the dark web has gone a step further, enabling criminal market-dynamics to set the price of our digital assets at a shockingly low level - even just $1 for a personal email account if sold in bulk.

NordVPN’s research shows that prices vary considerably from one country to another, depending on supply and demand dynamics.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Americans’ personal data is the most sought-after in the world. However, less obvious is that the abundance of security breaches there also makes it the cheapest to buy.

Stolen payment credit cards from North America are sold for as little as $10 and account for over 70% of all stolen card listings. However, in countries where stolen data is scarcer, such as Japan or Singapore, the same cards sell at a significant premium.

The same logic applies to data packages - sets of information, including identification numbers and dates of birth, that are sufficient to steal someone’s identity. Where an American package sells for $35, a Japanese one is worth many times that amount.

A subtle, dramatic threat

The tool also shows how the effects of criminal theft can range from almost imperceptible to dramatic.

At one end of the spectrum, criminals can build continuous subscription-style businesses by stealing and reselling Netflix or Spotify accounts that cost as little as $4.55 and are often invisible to you.

At the other end, your complete identity, including social media accounts, can be bought for less than $150, and massively disrupt your life.

Between these two extremes lies the intermediate corporate case, with NordVPN having found over 14,000 lists of corporate email addresses on the dark web. These accounts act as gateways to entire corporate networks, potentially leading to significant and often irreversible business damage.

“The reality is that your data could already be for sale, and you’d have no way of knowing unless you actively check,” warns Briedis. Its Dark Web Monitoring Pro actively scans the dark web for leaked credit card numbers, tax identification numbers and phone numbers.

If our data is so cheap to buy, how should we react? If there is any key takeaway, it is that identity theft is not always dramatic, and vigilance is key.

As cyberattacks continue to rise, using unique passwords for each account via a reliable password manager, enabling multi-factor authentication, and limiting the sharing of personal information online can make all the difference.

• NordVPN's new Chrome feature spots audio deepfakes
• The real-time checker provides immediate scam alerts
• AI Voice Detector also keeps your data protected

Are you feeling a little uneasy about the AI-generated audio deepfakes that are increasingly polluting your online experience and potentially tricking you into a scam?

If the answer is yes and you are worried you might be talking to an online deepfake, being tempted to reveal information only your mum knows, you’ll be glad to know that NordVPN has you covered.

The best VPN on the market has just integrated a new AI-powered voice detector into its Chrome extension. This means that users can now identify audio deepfakes in real time whenever they browse the web.

NordVPN said that the firm currently has no plans to extend the feature to different apps. "But we would consider it if there is a need," a spokesperson told TechRadar.

With the move, the VPN provider continues to expand its security offerings in its relentless fight against cybercrime, proving anti-scam capabilities are now an essential part of any top VPN service.

How does it work?

AI-generated voice technologies are becoming increasingly sophisticated and difficult to recognise, even to the best-trained human ear.

While it may be shocking to discover that your favourite influencer is actually a synthetic voice, the dangers associated with AI-generated audio go far beyond mere fake content for entertainment purposes.

Scammers are now able to clone voices using just a few seconds of audio recording, using them for identity theft scams, fraudulent calls and spreading misinformation.

"AI-generated voices have become one of the most convincing tools in a scammer’s arsenal, and most people have no reliable way to tell the difference," stressed product director at NordVPN Domininkas Virbickas.

Developed by NordVPN and a team of cybersecurity experts at NordLabs, AI Voice Detector captures the audio stream from an active browser tab and processes it using a neural network model built into the device.

While the audio continues to play normally for the user, the tool compares the sound to thousands of real and AI-generated audio samples, verifying in real time whether the user is listening to a human or synthetic voice.

If the content is generated by AI, the result is displayed immediately in the form of a red pop-up or a small notification on the web page. A yellow pop-up warns that the content may be a deepfake, whilst a green pop-up indicates that the audio poses a minimal risk.

Installation is a breeze: users can simply enable the feature in the NordVPN Chrome extension to start audio detection.

Protecting your privacy

AI Voice Detector also analyses audio data directly within the browser. This should ensure that users’ data is not compromised during the process.

Because of that, the tool never records your identity, browser history, cookies, or account details, ensuring that your data is never exposed. Furthermore, as soon as the recording stops or the tabs are closed, all audio buffers are immediately cleared

But above all, the tool does not actually listen to what is being said. It solely examines acoustic patterns, meaning it is technically incapable of understanding, recording, or interpreting the content of any conversation.

It seems that NordVPN is determined to make 2026 its year of anti-scams innovations. It has so far launched a free tool to detect online scams, rolled out its scam-blocking tool for Android globally, and upgraded its dark web monitoring, all of this while scoring top marks in independent phishing tests.

With so many new features being released, it might well seem that we can't trust anyone or anything. For the time being, at least, your conversations are intact: the next time you are talking on Chrome with your bank manager who wants to discuss your bank account or a friend asking for money, you can continue to sip on your drink and enjoy spring as it comes.

• NordVPN has just released an update for its macOS app
• All standard servers now automatically support P2P activities
• Streamlined P2P servers are also live on iOS, Android, and Windows

Mac users looking to secure their peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing just received a major quality-of-life upgrade. NordVPN has officially rolled out P2P support across all of its standard servers on macOS.

Previously, anyone using TechRadar's best VPN recommendation on a Mac had to manually seek out and connect to specialized servers to safely engage in P2P activities. This dual-server display caused confusion, as many customers were unsure if they needed to take extra steps to enable torrenting securely.

With the release of NordVPN app version 10.0.0 for macOS, that extra step is gone. The dedicated P2P server category has been completely removed from the server list, streamlining the application and removing visual clutter.

According to the provider's official support updates, the change comes as a direct response to user feedback. "This eliminated the confusing dual-server display and gave users a simpler, more intuitive app experience," the company stated.

The change isn't entirely exclusive to Mac. The streamlined P2P functionality is also present in version 9.0.0 for iOS and Android, and version 8.0.0 for Windows.

NornVPN CTO Marijus Briedis told TechRadar that P2P support is already active "across the vast majority of our standard servers, meaning users can establish P2P connections when connected to virtually any server in our network".

How to get the upgrade and what it means

To take advantage of this new streamlined experience, Mac users simply need to update their NordVPN application to version 10.0.0. You can download the update directly from the NordVPN website or via the Apple App Store.

Once updated, you won’t have to toggle between server categories. Because the restriction is lifted, you can securely connect to any standard server location and instantly begin file sharing or gaming.

"All standard NordVPN servers now support P2P activities, including gaming and other peer-to-peer applications," the company confirmed. NordVPN notes that integrating this capability into its main network "simplifies the user experience while maintaining full P2P capability."

Briedis told TechRadar that the underlying infrastructure remains unchanged.

"Maintaining a separate P2P category became irrelevant, and this update simply removes it to streamline the user interface," he said, ensuring that "users on any platform will see no impact on speeds or bandwidth capacity."

What are P2P servers?

If you're new to the world of file sharing, you might be wondering exactly what specialist VPN servers are and why P2P servers matter.

Peer-to-peer (P2P) is a decentralized networking model where users share files directly with one another, rather than downloading them from a central server. This is the core technology that powers torrenting. Because P2P file sharing can consume massive amounts of bandwidth, many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) actively throttle or block P2P traffic.

To combat this, users rely on the best VPN for torrenting. P2P-optimized servers are specifically configured to handle large data loads without sacrificing speed, while also encrypting your traffic so your ISP cannot see what you are downloading.

By integrating this capability into every standard server, NordVPN ensures that its users enjoy premium speeds and high-end security without any extra configuration.

• Donors who give £35 to Internews can claim a 6-month NordVPN plan
• The campaign is limited to the first 100 donors
• The initiative seeks to support journalists working in high-risk environments

Supporting a charitable cause usually provides its own reward, but a new initiative from the non-profit Internews is offering a high-tech bonus for those looking to secure their digital footprint. By donating to help journalists and independent media outlets operating in some of the world's most dangerous environments, you can now claim a premium security tool for your own devices.

Internews has officially launched its "One Donation. Online Protection. Real Impact." campaign, a limited-time initiative designed to bolster both the organization's global mission and the individual privacy of its supporters.

For a donation of £35 made through the official campaign page, contributors will receive a 6-month subscription to NordVPN, which currently sits at the top of our list for the best VPN services available today.

This isn't just a random giveaway; it is the latest development in a deep-rooted collaboration between the two organizations.

Earlier this year, NordVPN teamed up with Internews to defend journalists and activists from digital threats, providing thousands of free accounts to those on the front lines of information gathering in repressive regimes.

The new campaign effectively invites the public into this circle of protection. By contributing to the fund, donors help provide emergency support, digital safety training, and legal aid to media professionals who, as the organization notes, "face surveillance, harassment and cyberattacks simply for doing their job."

How to claim your NordVPN subscription

The process for securing the subscription is straightforward, but users will need to act quickly.

According to the campaign landing page, "NordVPN will give a 6-month VPN subscription to the first 100 people who donate £35 to Internews."

When you contribute, you are essentially performing a dual action.

As the campaign states, "You receive a NordVPN subscription to protect your own digital life," while simultaneously helping Internews "Strengthen independent media in high-risk environments" and "Protect journalists and sources facing digital threats."

To ensure you receive your reward, you must provide an email address at checkout or contact the organization directly via the email provided in the donation thank-you note. This allows the team to send over the activation details for your 6-month plan.

Why NordVPN?

For those unfamiliar with the service, our NordVPN review highlights why it remains a powerhouse in the cybersecurity industry. It isn't just about hiding your IP address; the service offers a comprehensive suite of security features that are particularly useful for those who travel or rely on public Wi-Fi.

Key features included in a NordVPN subscription include:

• Threat Protection: An advanced tool that blocks trackers, intrusive ads, and malicious websites before they can even load.
• Meshnet: A unique feature that allows users to create their own private, encrypted network for file sharing or gaming.
• Double VPN: For those requiring extra anonymity, this routes your traffic through two different VPN servers rather than one.
• Global Server Network: Access to over 6,000 servers in 111 countries, ensuring fast speeds and the ability to bypass regional geo-blocks.

By participating in this Internews initiative, you aren't just getting a top-tier privacy tool; you are directly supporting the mission to "Protect the truth."

In a world where digital risk is at an all-time high, this partnership ensures that security and press freedom continue to go hand in hand.

• NordVPN faces yet another lawsuit in the US over auto-renewal pricing
• The complaint accuses the firm of using 'dark patterns' to trap users
• This is not the first time Nord Security has faced similar legal complaints

Nord Security, the company that develops and operates NordVPN, has been hit with yet another class-action lawsuit in the US.

The lawsuit — filed on April 10, 2026, in the state of Virginia — accuses the cybersecurity giant of "unlawful, unfair, and deceptive" practices regarding its auto-renewal pricing, arguing that such a system makes it "intentionally" and "exceedingly" difficult for users to cancel their subscriptions.

While the complaint is on behalf of plaintiff Craig Schnappinger, the class-action seeks to represent all Nord Security customers in Virginia and North Carolina who have used Nord's services. These include its virtual private network (NordVPN), password manager (NordPass), and encrypted cloud storage (NordLocker).

Auto-renewal pricing systems are popular in the wider subscription service industry. Most VPN services adopt similar practices, in fact, besides a few exceptions such as Mullvad and Windscribe.

NordVPN —and a few other names, including Surfshark and ExpressVPN — have been targeted with similar legal actions in the last few years.

Between 2024 and 2025, Nord Security was hit by at least four complaints on similar grounds. In 2026, we found details of at least two more class-action lawsuits filed against the company — one in March and one in February.

What the lawsuit against Nord Security is about

Wise Law Firm, PLC, Bryson, Harris, Suciu, & Demay, PLLC, and Wittels McInturff Palikovic are the law firms behind the class action against NordVPN S.A. and Tefincom SA d/b/a NordVPN.

The core allegation is that Nord Security may use deceptive "negative option" billing and "dark patterns" (manipulative website designs) to "trap" consumers into "unwanted, pricey," and automatically renewing subscriptions, according to the class action complaint.

Specifically, the law firms accuse Nord Security of failing to clearly disclose the terms of its automatic renewals or how to cancel at the time of enrollment – something that may go against both the Virginia Consumer Protection Act and North Carolina’s Automatic Renewal Law.

The complaint also challenges Nord Security's practice of charging users 14 days before the subscription expires, arguing that the warning email fails to explain that users must cancel the recurring subscription 14 days before that date to avoid being charged.

Plaintiff Craig Schnappinger, the lawsuit alleges, was charged for unwanted renewals in 2023, 2024, and 2025 because he allegedly struggled to figure out how to cancel these charges.

The lawsuit seeks class certification for affected consumers in Virginia and North Carolina. It also demands an injunction to stop Nord Security's deceptive practices, alongside compensatory damages of at least $100 million.

NordVPN's response

We asked Nord Security for a response but it said it was unable to comment on all of the specific allegations contained in the complaint, considering they are a matter of active litigation.

However, the company argues, two complaints previously filed in North Carolina were fully dismissed by the courts last year. TechRadar wasn't able to verify this claim.

About the auto-renewal and billing practices, Privacy Advocate at NordVPN, Laura Tyrylyte, told TechRadar that the company has been "very clear" about the recurring nature of its services.

"Subscription terms, including auto-renewal, are clearly presented to users at the point of purchase. We also send charge reminders to customers with long-term recurring subscriptions 30 days in advance of renewal, giving them full clarity and ample opportunity to manage their subscription," said Tyrylyte.

Tyrylyte also added that the team is "committed to making account management, including cancellation, straightforward for our users."

When asked if NordVPN's February update of its terms and conditions was a direct consequence of previous dark pattern lawsuits, Tyrylyte said: "These updates are part of our ongoing commitment to providing customers with clear and accessible information about our services and meeting regulatory requirements."

Tyrylyte finished by stressing that Nord Security "takes its legal obligations seriously and believes its practices are in compliance with applicable consumer protection laws."

NordVPN users can check how much time they have left on their subscriptions by heading to the Account menu on the app.

We also have more detailed information on how to cancel NordVPN and get a refund, where possible.

• NordVPN has just announced a huge upgrade to its network capacity
• Its global aggregate capacity has now surpassed 100 Tbps
• This should mean more stable performance even during rush hour

NordVPN has just crossed an important milestone, with its global aggregate network capacity now surpassing 100 terabits per second (Tbps).

The idea behind the upgrade is simple: prevent one of the most annoying VPN problems before it starts. NordVPN says the network is engineered with enough spare capacity to keep connections stable even during peak demand.

In our testing, we've already deemed NordVPN to be at the top of our list of the best VPNs. The new update should bring peace of mind to users who tend to connect to the VPN during peak hours. Here's how it works.

Preventing slowdowns before they happen

NordVPN says its network now exceeds 100 Tbps in aggregate capacity, spread across 211 locations in more than 135 countries. This gives it more room to handle demand before users ever get to feel the strain.

The end goal is for users to never feel that the network is currently busy. Using a virtual server network (VPN) is sometimes associated with buffering, slow load times, or disconnects, but adding more network capacity should prevent that. Bottlenecks may still happen, but they'd often be caused by your local connection rather than the VPN itself.

The new update is all about headroom. You're not going to get higher speeds on an individual connection unless your connection was already being thwarted by VPN network congestion. However, NordVPN already delivers solid speeds, with a record speed of 1249 Mbps in our in-depth testing.

Why it matters

This matters because VPN slowdowns don't just happen out of nowhere. In fact, as NordVPN says, slowdowns are typically caused by insufficient capacity. That's why the latest update is a means to avoid that, adding extra headroom on top of already existing headroom.

NordVPN reveals that its servers run at roughly one-third of their capacity by design, so it sounds like potential slowdowns will be left in the rear-view mirror with this new update.

Marijus Briedis, CTO at NordVPN, said: "Great infrastructure is the kind you never notice. In practice, 100 Tbps means more room to absorb demand surges, which results in fewer bottlenecks when everyone comes online at the same time, and faster, more reliable connections that users can actually feel."

You don't need to do anything to activate the new update, although it doesn't hurt to make sure that your NordVPN app is running the latest version.

NordVPN believes that server quality is more important than quantity, and this update should go a long way toward improving the former. With that said, the VPN provider still has a robust network, and it was recently expanded with the addition of 211 new server locations worldwide.

• A recent NordVPN macOS update caused massive interface lag and dropped connections for users.
• Frustrated customers took to Reddit to criticize the app's confusing UI changes and bloated features.
• NordVPN has told TechRadar it is releasing version 10.0.4 "later this week" to address the reported issues.

If you use a Mac to protect your online privacy, you might have noticed some serious performance issues lately. A recent update to the NordVPN macOS application has caused a wave of technical headaches, with users reporting frequent connection drops and severe interface lag.

For anyone relying on the best VPNs to keep their browsing secure and their streaming libraries unlocked, an unstable connection is incredibly frustrating. When a VPN drops every few minutes, it can expose your real IP address and disrupt your online activities, entirely defeating the purpose of the software.

Fortunately, relief is on the horizon. Following the growing backlash online, NordVPN has confirmed to TechRadar that a solution is actively in the works.

"I have just received a quick update from our tech team that they are preparing a hotfix to address the reported issues," a NordVPN spokesperson told us. "We expect to release version 10.0.4 with the fix later this week."

What went wrong with the update?

The trouble began shortly after the latest version hit the App Store. Users flocked to Reddit to voice their frustrations, with one customer describing the update as a "dumpster fire."

Horrible update from r/nordvpn

The main technical complaints revolve around extraordinary slowness. One user reported experiencing "10-second input lags, and repeated connection drops," while the original poster noted that their connection was randomly dropping every 30 seconds despite restarting their computer and disabling extra features like the kill switch and DNS filters.

Beyond the connectivity bugs, the update also introduced several controversial design changes. Customers complained about an increasingly bloated experience, citing unrequested additions such as aggressive antivirus settings blocking simple text files. The development team also removed the dedicated reconnect button, now placing it under a "Pause" menu, and made changes to the widget that caused it to incorrectly display connection statuses.

What should you do right now?

If you are currently experiencing these issues on your Mac, the best course of action is to look out for the version 10.0.4 update hitting the App Store in the coming days.

In the meantime, some tech-savvy Reddit users have found success by uninstalling the current application and rolling back to older, more stable builds, such as v9.10.1, to regain their normal speeds.

Others have suggested temporarily relying on the browser extension or configuring the connection manually via OpenVPN if the desktop app remains completely unusable.

If you choose to wait it out on the current version, ensure your kill switch is fully active. While the app's interface might be laggy, a functioning kill switch is vital to block your internet access if the VPN drops, ensuring your personal data doesn't accidentally leak during a reconnect.

• NordVPN has expanded its network with 211 new servers
• It now competes directly with ExpressVPN and PIA in the US
• It still lags behind ProtonVPN in terms of country coverage

NordVPN has expanded its server network by adding 211 server locations worldwide and significantly strengthening its presence in the US.

With the upgrade, TechRadar's best VPN on the market takes the top spot in terms of geographical coverage, with NordVPN overtaking the previous leader, ExpressVPN, which remains in second place with 189 locations covered.

The network expansion also sees NordVPN catching up with both ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access (PIA) in offering servers in every US state, directly competing for the crown as the best US VPN app.

Whilst celebrating its victory, the VPN continues to strive to win another race: to consolidate its position in the highest number of countries, a challenge that many regard as even more important, and in which NordVPN currently still ranks second.

Taking over the world

The number of VPN server locations is often touted as a key selling point by VPN providers. A more extensive network significantly improves VPNs' speed as data passes through a wider number of servers for less latency, while bypassing geopolitical restrictions to boost anti-censorship capabilities.

For NordVPN, 211 locations represent a pretty stark surpassing of other VPNs — for example, ExpressVPN currently covers 189 locations, Proton VPN 188, Surfshark 142, and PIA 152.

When comparing NordVPN’s server footprint from October 2025 to April 2026, the newly supported locations represent a massive leap. There were a total of 46 new additions since then. Locations in new countries previously uncovered include Barbados, the Ivory Coast, Fiji, Mauritius, Togo, Chad, and Suva.

In the US, the VPN has gone the extra mile, and it now covers every state in the country. Until now, only ExpressVPN and Private Internet Access could make this claim.

US users will be pleased, with coverage now spanning the less populated Lewiston, Fargo, New Haven, and Providence, to the more populated Las Vegas, Detroit, New Orleans, and Portland.

The race continues, and new VPNs might again change this line-up.

Proton VPN, for example, has also recently expanded its server networks, increasing its number of server locations from 164 to 188 over the last six months. Other VPNs have moved more slowly: Surfshark, for example, has added just one location, whilst ExpressVPN has added two.

Another race to win

However, many would argue that the number of countries a VPN covers is more important than the number of locations it serves — and it’s a fair observation.

Covering a wide range of countries is particularly important for ensuring greater IP security and broader coverage. Users turn to a VPN for a variety of reasons: for example, they may need to spoof their location to a specific geographical area in order to access certain resources, such as Amazon, Netflix, or HBO streaming services, which require the user to be in that country.

The less obvious aspect concerns security. In this case, what matters for security and privacy when using a VPN often depends on the network's entry and exit points. For example, if all the servers were located in one country, the country itself could monitor the entry and exit points and might be able to correlate that data.

It's worth noting that while physical servers must follow local rules on surveillance and data retention, virtual server locations do not. The likes of NordVPN, Proton VPN, and other secure services generally choose this option to offer local IPs to people living in authoritarian countries, while avoiding compliance with their intrusive regulations.

And if countries win over locations, then the undisputed winner here remains ProtonVPN, with a presence in 145 countries, far ahead of NordVPN with 135 countries. In comparison, Surfshark has 100 countries, and ExpressVPN has 108 countries — but the race might be far from over.

• NordVPN latest desktop update delivers a cleaner, less cluttered interface
• A prominent search bar now replaces a long server list for instant access
• The redesign cuts connection time and simplifies navigation for subscribers

NordVPN has rolled out a major redesign for its desktop apps, swapping out the old interface for a cleaner, more intuitive layout without skimping on advanced features power users rely on.

The update, available now for Windows, MacOS, and Linux, follows the company’s mobile refresh earlier this year. It arrives during a busy 2026 for NordVPN, which has also passed its sixth independent no-logs audit recently.

The redesign makes locating servers and accessing privacy controls effortless. Instead of displaying a lengthy server list, the app now features a prominent search bar and immediately displays suggested locations upon launch.

While the fresh visuals demand attention, the real win is how core features are reorganized for improved efficiency. From the revamped server list to the new real-time stats, everything feels snappier when using TechRadar's top-rated best VPN.

What’s new in the NordVPN desktop redesign

NordVPN’s desktop home screen is now far less cluttered, offering far more clarity as a result. Users are greeted with their preferred location immediately, removing the need to hunt for a connection.

The traditional long server list is gone, replaced by a prominent search bar that reflects feedback that the old list was cumbersome. This shift makes finding specific locations significantly faster.

The search function now unifies all connection options. Whether you need a specific geographic location, a server type like Double VPN, or a Meshnet device, the bar handles it all. Simply select a category to filter results instantly.

A new map graphic at the top visually confirms your current connection location.

For deeper insights, the three-dot menu offers a “Show connection details” toggle. Enabling this displays your IP address, server number, and connection time on the dashboard. The same menu also allows quick access to settings and location switching without leaving the home screen.

Finally, the updated statistics section offers richer activity views. Beyond standard duration, users can now track daily averages and week-to-week comparisons.

Why it matters and how to get the most out of it

The ultimate benefit of NordVPN’s redesign is a smoother, faster experience by cutting out unnecessary steps. By prioritizing search and preferred servers, the app cuts connection times to mere seconds — a big plus for frequent travelers or on-the-go users.

The new statistics go beyond simple uptime. Leveraging daily averages and weekly trends helps users spot irregularities in their usage patterns and keep an eye on their online safety habits.

To maximize the experience, it’s worth customizing the dashboard upon launch. Enable the "Show connection details" toggle via the three-dot menu to keep your IP and server status visible for peace of mind.

Additionally, use category filters in the search bar to bypass generic lists and jump straight to specialized servers. With these small tweaks, the updated app delivers simplicity for everyday tasks and depth for advanced security needs.

2026 has already been a massive year for one of the biggest players in the cybersecurity market. If you are using what is arguably the best VPN around right now, you might have noticed some serious upgrades over the last few months.

NordVPN has just released a roundup of its busy first quarter, revealing a flurry of updates aimed at making its apps easier to use while actively fighting back against scammers.

The company didn't just tweak its interface. It rolled out a completely redesigned mobile experience, took its scam-blocking Android tool global, and expanded its dark web monitoring. Crucially, it also proved its privacy claims remain ironclad.

For everyday users, these updates mean faster connections, automated troubleshooting, and an extra layer of defense against the social engineering attacks that increasingly target our phones.

A fresh look and smarter mobile experience

The centerpiece of NordVPN's early 2026 updates is a significant redesign of its mobile app. Driven by user research, the update delivers a cleaner interface and an expanded, interactive map view that can go full-screen.

Users can now browse and connect to servers directly from the map, while a unified search experience brings locations, server types, and Meshnet devices into one easily filterable menu.

"We didn’t redesign the app just for the sake of a fresh look. We spent a lot of time understanding how people actually use NordVPN day to day, and this update is built around those real habits and expectations," said Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN.

Virbickas explains that the main goal behind this overhaul was indeed to make the VPN experience feel "effortless" for all types of users. "Whether you’ve been with us for years or just downloaded the app," he added.

Android users also received a brand-new Smart Troubleshooting wizard in March. Instead of contacting customer support, users can run automated diagnostics across their network, DNS, and server states to fix common connection issues instantly.

Fighting back against scammers

Phishing and social engineering attacks are on the rise, and NordVPN is stepping out of the browser to stop them.

The provider's Call Protection feature is now available globally for Android. Running quietly in the background without needing an active VPN connection, it alerts users to potential scams before they even pick up.

Taking a privacy-first approach, the tool only checks the caller's number and never accesses the actual conversation. Better yet, users can now set the app to automatically block scam and telemarketing calls outright.

NordVPN also launched a free-to-use Scam Checker to help users evaluate suspicious text messages and emails for signs of fraud before they engage.

"Threats aren’t limited to what happens inside a browser anymore. Scam calls, phishing texts, and social engineering are part of everyday life now. We want NordVPN to be the tool that helps people feel confident about what they pick up, open, or click on," Virbickas stated.

Privacy verified and data tracked

Beyond usability, NordVPN successfully completed its sixth independent no-logs assurance engagement. This third-party verification reaffirms that the company still does not track, collect, or store users’ connection data.

To help users see what data hackers have collected, Dark Web Monitor Pro saw a major expansion, too. Over Q1, the tool added monitoring for credit cards, national IDs, Social Security numbers, and phone numbers. Alerts now suggest clear mitigation steps, and a new website widget allows users to check for leaks without even opening the app.

Finally, privacy advocates using the NordVPN browser extension gained full parity with the desktop apps, as the provider officially rolled out support for activating and purchasing a Dedicated IP directly within the browser.

We are now looking forward to seeing what the rest of 2026 has in store for NordVPN, with a further boost on its post-quantum cryptography and NordWhisper protocol already anticipated to be in the pipeline for the year.

• NordVPN has released a new free browser tool
• "My Location" displays your physical location alongside the virtual location
• The tool seeks to help users grasp their digital privacy risks

Location data can give away far more than just what coffee shop you are sitting in. It exposes the places you visit regularly, your daily routines, and exactly when you are away from home. Now, to help users understand exactly what data they are broadcasting, the team behind one of the best VPN services has released a dedicated way to check.

NordVPN has officially launched My Location, a completely free online tool designed to let you instantly check both your physical location and the virtual location visible to the websites you visit. Operating entirely at the browser level, the tool aims to demystify how different types of location data impact your digital privacy.

"Location is one of the most sensitive types of personal information because it can reveal where you are as well as patterns about your daily life," says Marijus Briedis, CTO at NordVPN. "Once this data is exposed or shared too broadly, it can be used for profiling, targeting, and other purposes far beyond the original reason it was collected."

Real vs. virtual location

One of the primary goals of the My Location tool is to educate users on the crucial difference between their real and virtual locations.

Your real location is pinpointed using device-based methods like GPS or your browser's geolocation API, which apps typically use when they ask for access to your whereabouts.

Your virtual location, however, is based on the IP address attached to your online traffic. This is the data that websites rely on by default to estimate where your connection is originating from.

Why does this difference matter? Handing over this information can lead to targeted advertising and regional price discrimination, where websites show you different prices based on your region. In more severe cases, a time-stamped location history can invite intrusive surveillance or stalking by making it easy to infer where you live and track how you move through daily life.

How to use the My Location tool safely

Using the tool is incredibly straightforward, but there is a specific step you should follow to protect your privacy.

When you navigate to the My Location page, you will see a button to test your location. If you are using Google Chrome, clicking "Test" will trigger a browser warning asking, "Can I give NordVPN your location?" Alongside this warning, Chrome will present you with three options: "Block," "Just this time," or "Always."

Users should opt for "Just this time." By doing this, you allow the tool to use your browser's geolocation API to determine your real physical location and map it alongside your IP-based virtual location for that single session. Because you haven't granted permanent access, the tool won't work again automatically, keeping your long-term privacy intact.

Crucially, you don't need to worry about the provider keeping tabs on you. NordVPN confirmed that the tool operates purely at the browser level and it "does not log or store any location data revealed through its use."

How to protect your location data

Beyond simply checking what information is visible, taking active steps to lock down your data is essential.

Briedis recommends a few simple hygiene habits for your devices. You should regularly review your app permissions, ensuring you only allow location access while actively using an app. Additionally, it is highly recommended to disable geotagging in your device's camera settings and choose privacy-friendly tools wherever possible.

Finally, while a virtual private network (VPN) won't mask GPS-based tracking, it is the best way to protect your virtual footprint. By routing your internet traffic through an encrypted server, a VPN changes the IP address visible to websites, ensuring your general browsing activity remains safely hidden.

• NordVPN researchers uncovered a massive recruitment phishing scam
• Scammers impersonate global employers like Meta, Disney, Spotify
• Hackers use fake job portals to steal job seekers' Facebook login credentials

The job market is tough enough without having to dodge cybercriminals. But according to new research from NordVPN, hackers are now impersonating recruiters from some of the world's biggest brands to hijack the social media accounts of unsuspecting job seekers.

The cybersecurity firm’s Threat Intelligence unit has exposed a highly sophisticated phishing campaign that weaponizes the names of major employers, including Meta, Disney, Coca-Cola, and Spotify.

Rather than stealing your money outright, the operation is designed to quietly harvest your Facebook credentials. With social media accounts often linked to other sensitive apps and services, a compromised Facebook login can quickly spiral into a devastating privacy breach.

If you want to protect your personal data while applying for roles online, using one of the best VPN services with built-in anti-malware and malicious tracker blocking is a smart first step. However, staying completely safe from targeted phishing requires a deeper understanding of how these multi-stage scams actually work.

From fake job offer to full account hijack

The campaign kicks off with a professional-looking cold email, often sent via legitimate platforms like Google AppSheet to slip past standard spam filters.

These messages feature clean grammar and target victims whose contact details were likely scraped from platforms like LinkedIn or exposed in previous data breaches.

Clicking the email link takes victims to a "HUB" domain (such as careers.meta-findyourjob[.]com).

Interestingly, NordVPN found that these sites feature a clever built-in evasion tactic. If a security scanner or an analyst visits the URL directly, they only see a blank, harmless webpage. The malicious "Search for a job" button only activates when the site is triggered by a unique referral link embedded in the original phishing email.

Once the victim clicks through, they land on an intermediate site that flawlessly mimics a legitimate corporate job board. Researchers identified several fake portals, including connect.spotifycareerapply[.]com for Spotify and jobquest.wdcfuturesteps[.]com for Disney.

The trap finally closes when the applicant clicks "Apply." Instead of a standard application form, they are met with a prompt demanding they log in via Facebook to proceed. This fake login page captures the victim’s username and password, handing the attackers total control over the account.

Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN, explains that job seekers are "uniquely vulnerable" to these types of attacks as they’re already in a mindset of sharing personal information and following instructions from unfamiliar contacts.

"Such campaigns take advantage of that trust using polished communications and convincing fake career portals that are nearly indistinguishable from the real thing," said Virbickas.

How to stay safe during your job hunt

To protect yourself, NordVPN recommends making a habit of verifying the URL before entering any personal data. Legitimate mega-brands will always host their career pages on official, recognizable domains, not unusual third-party links.

The same rule applies to social login prompts. A genuine "Log in with Facebook" button will always securely redirect you to the official facebook.com domain. If the URL bar shows anything else, close the tab immediately.

If you still have doubts, I recommend running the link through NordVPN's URL checking tool or similar software. It's completely free to use for anyone, even those who don't have an active NordVPN subscription.

Finally, NordVPN suggests always activating two-factor authentication (2FA) across your social media profiles. Even if a sophisticated phishing page manages to steal your password, 2FA serves as a vital safety net that blocks attackers from accessing your account.

We thought it was all over for our exclusive deal, but it seems NordVPN has forgotten to pull the plug!

If you're still looking for a way to secure the best VPN available – with a free Amazon gift card and 4 months extra protection thrown in – then now really is your last chance!

Plans start from $2.91 per month, but to get the best value, and the free Amazon gift cards, you'll need a Plus plan ($3.33/month), or higher, which I rate as one of the best value NordVPN plans as it is.

The maximum gift card value on offer is $50, or equivalent but, to get these means signing up for NordVPN's most premium plan in your region. Like I say, my recommendation is to pick up a Plus plan. It's currently cheaper than a Basic plan's off-sale price, packs all of NordVPN's best features, and gets you the free $20 gift card as well as an extra four months of service.

Wondering what that gift card can give you? I built a full security toolkit for $20 that you can pick up on Amazon that will protect your personal data even when disconnected from the VPN. Or you can just buy some light bulbs or batteries of whatever it is you need, of course.

NordVPN has ranked as our top VPN for over two years. We also rate it as the best streaming VPN.

It's not the fastest VPN, nor does it have quite the same security pedigree as ExpressVPN, but it's a top all-rounder. When we put it against streaming services from across the globe, it performed flawlessly and delivered clearer picture quality than any provider for longer than any provider.

The only arguable drawback for NordVPN is its price. Not only is it regularly more expensive than the likes of Surfshark and even ExpressVPN of late, but it also has a huge price jump once your plan renews. That's why I recommend turning off auto-renewals as soon as you sign up to avoid getting stung.

If you're unsure whether NordVPN is right for you, it does offer a 30-day money-back guarantee. Just know, you won't get to sneakily claim a gift card and run away, since these are sent out from day 31 onwards! Alternatively, you can check out some other great VPN deals below.

Today is probably the final day to claim TechRadar's exclusive NordVPN deal. The deal was supposed to end on the 28th, but we're still seeing it here — so claim while you can!

You can claim an extra 4 months of protection, with up to $50 in Amazon gift cards, on NordVPN's cheapest plan prices this year.

NordVPN's one flaw, despite being our best VPN overall, has been its price. It's often more expensive than competitors like Surfshark and IPVanish. Even ExpressVPN — long-considered the most expensive reliable VPN — is often cheaper since changing its pricing structure.

Thankfully, this deal gives you access to NordVPN's lowest prices of 2026, starting from $2.91 per month. Plus, there are 4 months of extra protection at the lower price exclusively available for TechRadar readers.

To get the best value, make sure to pick up a NordVPN Plus plan.

It doesn't give you the biggest Amazon voucher ($20) but it gives you all the best bits of NordVPN for less than the price you'd normally pay for a Basic plan.

NordPass and NordVPN's antivirus solution, Threat Protection Pro, are the headline inclusions. However, you can also access useful features such as data breach detection, dark web monitoring, and adult content blocking.

If you're tempted by the cheaper Basic plan — which starts from $2.91 per month — be aware that, while you keep the 4 months extra protection, you aren't eligible for an Amazon gift card.

If you're trying to protect yourself while spending even less, consider Surfshark. Plans start from $1.99 per month, and while it's not quite as high-performing as NordVPN, it offers more features than most VPNs.

• 9 out of 10 top VPN providers failed to meet what we consider baseline GDPR expectations
• Article 15 requires firms to share the data they hold on you when asked
• Surfshark was the only provider to perfectly fulfill its GDPR promises

VPNs are used to minimize the amount of data you share with your ISP and to keep your browsing data secure. But that doesn't mean VPN companies hold absolutely no information about you.

In reality, identifiers such as email addresses and payment details are almost always collected and stored to manage your subscription.

This means they are legally "controllers' of our data under legislation like the GDPR in Europe.

This classification isn't optional. Even if a provider is based in a "privacy haven" like Panama or the British Virgin Islands, they must comply with Article 15 of the GDPR if they offer services to users in the EU or UK.

Article 15 is explicit: you have the right to obtain confirmation from the company as to whether your personal data is being processed and, if so, access that data.

We wanted to test how some of the best VPNs on the market behave when asked to fulfill this basic right.

The results were underwhelming. Our investigation found that 9 out of 10 providers fell short of what we consider basic GDPR expectations, with most failing to share the information they held on us at all.

While our testing focused on the GDPR, these obligations are not unique to Europe. The "Right of Access" is a fundamental pillar shared by modern privacy regulations across more than 160 countries, including California’s CCPA/CPRA and Brazil’s LGPD.

It's important to note that a poor response to a data subject access request is not indicative of poor privacy practices more broadly.

We contacted every VPN company featured in this report. You can read the replies below.

Our findings at glance

• 90% of tested VPNs failed to meet our standards of a "thorough and timely" data subject access report.
• 2 providers (NordVPN and TunnelBear) failed to provide any response within the 30-day window without multiple prompts.
• Only 1 out of 10 (Surfshark) provided a professional, readable PDF report within 24 hours.
• 20% of providers sent unusable or unexplained data files (CSVs with generic headers like "field_0").

How did we get there

To see how the industry’s leading VPN services handle their legal obligations, TechRadar contacted 10 major providers on January 5, 2026, requesting all personal data held on our accounts.

We maintained active subscriptions with every provider and followed the specific instructions laid out in their respective privacy policies for data access requests.

We monitored their response rates over an eight-week period, sending multiple follow-up prompts to companies that failed to acknowledge the initial request.

No reply

NordVPN and TunnelBear were the most significant disappointments. Despite having clear instructions in their policies on how users can exercise their GDPR rights, both exceeded the 30-day legal limit and failed to deliver any data by the eight-week mark.

Equally frustrating were the responses from Proton VPN and ExpressVPN — two services that market themselves on a "privacy-first" ethos. Instead of providing the requested data, both issued "canned" responses directing us to read their privacy policies.

This fails to meet the requirements of Article 15 because a company’s obligation to provide a user's specific data is not satisfied by simply pointing to a generic public document.

PrivadoVPN acknowledged it held email and had once held payment data but stopped short of disclosing specific details. Meanwhile, PureVPN replied after 30 days only to ask what specific types of data we were looking for. Under Article 15, providers are required to disclose all data held on a user and it is not the user's responsibility to guess what that might be.

Cryptic and delayed responses

While some providers failed entirely, others attempted to comply but fell short of a professional standard.

IPVanish was a mixed bag. The company uses a specialized portal to make requests easier and provided a CSV dataset. However, the response took over 30 days and revealed the company still held IP addresses from the signup period — a finding that may clash with the 'anonymous' experience many users expect.

CyberGhost's process was flawed from the start. We were required to download a DOCX file to submit our request, which appeared to be an outdated Scottish government template. The company then demanded sensitive information, such as a physical address and phone number, which they didn't even have on file. After eight weeks and multiple chases, the final response only listed the types of data held, rather than the data itself.

Hotspot Shield eventually provided data in the form of seven CSV files, but the files contained no headers. This left dozens of data points labeled cryptically as "field_0" through "field_32," making the information functionally useless. While the company offered to clarify the data later, this does not fulfill the GDPR requirement to provide data in a concise, transparent, and intelligible format.

The winner: Surfshark

Surfshark was the only provider in our test that treated the request as a serious legal obligation. It took the provider only four hours to deliver a detailed PDF report of all the information held on our account.

The report included a full record of payments (including dates, currency, and IDs), account email addresses, active subscriptions, and even a log of malware blocked by Surfshark’s built-in antivirus tool.

While the level of detail is a win for transparency and GDPR compliance, it does raise secondary questions about whether a privacy-focused company should be logging some of these data points in the first place.

You can read our full analysis of Surfshark's response here.

VPN providers' responses

We contacted every VPN company included in this report for comment prior to publication. Most didn't respond. However, several challenged our findings.

NordVPN initially said that our decision not to verify our identity when requesting information was responsible for the delay.

However, following an internal investigation, the company said our emails had been inadvertently quarantined by their email system so the company effectively never received them. A spokesperson clarified this issue only affects a handful of emails and that it has now been resolved.

IPVanish said that the delay was caused due to waiting for identitiy verification. The company also emphasized it's no-log policy and said: "when a customer subscribes to our service, their sign-up IP address may be collected in connection with payment processing and preventing fraud."

Proton VPN said that there was a misunderstanding as to whether our initial request formally constituted a DSAR, though admitted "the response could have been more specific."

A spokesperson for the company said that personal data — such as security logs, payment details, subscriptions and emails — can all be found via "dedicated tools" online.

Privado VPN said: "We are always happy to provide data subjects with a copy of their personal data upon request, and we consider this obligation to have been met in this case."

While they did respond promptly, their response provided generic information about the categories of data held, rather than specific data points. According to the company, this is a result of the minimal data held, rather than intentionally withholding disclosure.

However, its response was missing many of the supplementary information points we would expect to see, such as the right to make a complaint, whether or not automated decision-making is being used, and how long the data is stored for.

Surfshark's responses have been included in the accompanying article that highlights the data the company holds on users.

• NordVPN & TechRadar uncover three global cybercrime campaigns
• Legacy FCKeditor flaw exploited to hijack 1,300+ domains; crypto deposit scam tricks victims into fake “fees”
• Chinese-speaking actor runs 800+ fraudulent e-commerce sites with urgent, too-good-to-be-true offers

A number of large, interconnected, global cybercriminal operations have been found abusing legacy software, people’s trust in digital platforms, and the desire to get rich fast, to target people with malware and wire fraud.

A new research report, published jointly by NordVPN’s Threat Intelligence research unit, and TechRadar’s security team, found the first campaign revolves around legacy software called FCKeditor, an old web-based rich text editor that works inside a browser.

It is like a mini version of Microsoft Word embedded in a website, and it was widely used in early CMS platforms, forums, and admin panels, back in the early 2000’s and 2010’s.

Even though FCKeditor is no longer maintained, many important websites still actively use it, and are hunted by cybercriminals for it. Back in February 2024, TechRadar reported of “dozens of educational websites” being abused this way to poison search engine results, deliver phishing sites to victims, and engage in all kinds of fraudulent activity.

Back then, a security researcher alias @g0njxa found the websites of MIT, Columbia University, Universitat de Barcelona, Auburn University, University of Washington, Purdue, Tulane, Universidad Central del Ecuador, and the University of Hawaiʻi, all being targeted. Besides university sites, the campaign also targeted government and corporate websites, such as the site of the Government of Virginia, Austin, Texas, the website of the Government of Spain, and Yellow Pages Canada.

FCKeditor is no longer maintained, and is vulnerable to CVE-2009-2265, a group of directory traversal flaws that allow remote attackers to create executable files in arbitrary directories. According to NordVPN and TechRadar, threat actors have used this flaw in recent times to compromise more than 1,300 high-value domains, including government, public, corporate websites, high-value brands, and research institutions.

After taking over the sites, the crooks would use them as launchpads to distribute malware or redirect traffic to fake e-commerce sites and phishing pages.

Crypto phishing

The second threat is a “highly organized” phishing and fraud campaign that tricks people into making fraudulent payments. It starts with an email alerting the victim about a large crypto deposit (usually 15 bitcoin) to a new wallet on an exchange. The victim is given a link and login credentials which, if they used, lead to a fake wallet or exchange website showing the “funds”.

The victim is then tricked into paying “gas fees” (transaction costs) or “taxes” in order to withdraw the crypto. The money they give this way is then lost to the attackers, likely forever.

NordVPN’s investigation uncovered more than 100 active domains being used in this campaign.

“This is social engineering at an elite scale,” said Domininkas Virbickas, Product Director at NordVPN. “Criminals are leveraging the allure – and confusion – of cryptocurrency to reinvent old scams in new digital forms.”

Hundreds of fake e-commerce sites

The third campaign is even bigger - more than 800 fraudulent e-commerce domains, in all sorts of categories - from fashion, to automotive, to health products.

Traced to a single Chinese-speaking threat actor, the network is built using WordPress, WooCommerce, and Elementor, and offers time-limited, too-good-to-be-true offers. Victims, eager not to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, lower their guard and end up making payments without ever getting what they paid for.

“These “shops” lure victims with unrealistic offers, creating urgency and bypassing consumer skepticism. Indicators of Chinese origin include untranslated Chinese characters and localized file artifacts across the network. NordVPN linked the sites through shared digital fingerprints and discovered consistent hosting under the registrar Spaceship, Inc.” says Domininkas Virbickas.

“This network demonstrates the industrialization of online fraud,” added Virbickas. “Automation and template-based site creation now allow single actors to manage entire fraudulent ecosystems that mimic legitimate online retail.”

NordVPN has launched a new, exclusive offer for TechRadar readers that's available for one week only — it's the perfect way to keep your data secure this Spring Break.

Launching March 23, the exclusive means TechRadar readers can claim up to $50 in Amazon gift cards alongside 4 extra months of coverage.

NordVPN has been our best VPN overall for years. It's only real limitation is its price compared to Surfshark or IPVanish. But this deal means its monthly price to starts from only $2.91 per month — NordVPN's lowest price since Black Friday.

The provider has also been making big improvements to its mobile experience. Most notably, it's expanded its Call Protection feature across Europe and introduced a new, cleaner app layout on mobile.

For the best value, I recommend getting this NordVPN Plus plan. It gives you NordVPN's best features, including NordPass, Threat Protection Pro, and data breach alerts.

NordVPN ranks as our best VPN overall for several reasons. It's super quick, uses encryption technology as strong as that used by ExpressVPN and Proton, and it's unparalleled in its geo-unblocking capability.

If you're new to VPNs, the new layout on mobile is a huge improvement. Plus, if you're unsure, the new, prominent 'Secure my connection' button does all the hard work for you.

However, if you're after a simpler experience that also boasts a huge number of features, check out Surfshark. It offers a true 7-day free trial, meaning you don't need to commit and comes packed with tools to help you every day.

This deal ends at 23:59 on March 28.

• NordVPN has rolled out a new free scam checker tool
• It detects if images or messages are fake in near real-time
• Everyone can use it without paying for a NordVPN subscription

Have you recently received a message or an image that looks completely genuine, but your gut tells you it's not safe to click on it? If so, you'll be pleased to know that NordVPN has just expanded its security offering with a new AI-powered scam detection tool that confirms if you are actually dealing with a phishing attempt or a fraudulent threat.

As part of its fight against cybercrime, the best VPN on the market according to TechRadar's reviewers has helpfully decided to offer the tool for free, making it accessible to anyone concerned about the risks of online scams.

Indeed, no subscription or account is required to use it, meaning that even your most vulnerable friends or elderly relatives — often the most frequent victims of scams — can stay safe without spending a penny.

How NordVPN's scam checker works

Scams and phishing attacks are growing too fast. AI now makes it significantly easier to create convincing impersonations of customers or employees, while also enabling cybercriminals to automate these attacks on a large scale.

"The days when a poorly written email was an obvious red flag are gone," notes Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN.

As new AI-based malware threats are capable of fooling even the most tech-savvy users, those who are less familiar with technology and therefore more vulnerable are particularly at risk.

Offering rescue, NordVPN’s scam checker analyses messages in text and images, searching for suspicious links, phone numbers, and email addresses to identify any signs of malicious intent.

Its embedded AI algorithm identifies patterns typically used in phishing scans and attempts, including intimidating tactics and fake urgent alerts that often prompt people to act impulsively with potential disastrous consequences.

We’ve tried it out and can vouch that it’s quite a piece of cake to use: you can simply paste a message or upload a screenshot into the designated field on the NordVPN page to receive a verdict in a matter of seconds.

The tool accepts plain text and screenshots in .jpg and .png formats, for a maximum of five email addresses, URLs, and phone numbers per request.

An anti-scam mission

The VPN giant has recently drawn attention to the extent of current online threats by sharing a survey by the Global Anti-Scam Alliance. It highlighted how consumers were defrauded of a staggering $442 billion last year alone, with more than half of adults reporting being victims of scams during that period.

Talking to TechRadar earlier in the year, NordVPN reiterated that protecting its users from online scams is indeed a top priority.

Signs of this commitment have already been evident: its Threat Protection Pro suite, while achieving top marks in various phishing tests, has kept growing in these first months of 2026.

Recent additions include a call protection feature to identify fraudulent calls before you even answer, and a Dark Web Monitor Pro feature that detects potential data breaches dating back several years.

The new free scam checker then comes as an additional bonus to all those who aren't yet NordVPN subscribers. Additionally, the tool further builds on NordVPN’s commitment to cyber threat awareness, as the VPN had already previously released a different free service that scans email's links for threats in real-time.

There's not long left to claim Surfshark's latest selected collaboration. The provider is offering 12 months of Calm Premium for free with one and two-year plans.

A year of Calm Premium usually costs $80 without a VPN. A year of Surfshark's cheapest one-year plan costs only $47.85 with 3 extra months included.

That means you have the chance to get a Calm Premium subscription for effectively 60% off with a great VPN included for free.

For the best combination of value and protection, I'd recommend a two-year Surfshark One plan. This gives you 27 months of protection and access to Surfshark's best tools, including Antivirus, Alternative ID, Secure Search, and Alert.

What's more, it's only $67.27 — that's still $10 less than a standalone Calm Premium subscription.

Surfshark has long been the best cheap VPN. It's also the fastest VPN we've tested, and comes packed with unique features you'll find nowhere else. That said, it's not perfect.

For a more secure VPN, we'd still recommend ExpressVPN or Proton VPN — since both use more secure encryption methods.

We also still recommend NordVPN as the best VPN overall. While it's noticeably more expensive, it offers superior security credentials, a great suite of cybersecurity features, and speeds that are more than enough for any user. Its only drawback is that it limits you to 10 connections compared to Surfshark's limitless connectivity.

• Surfshark now offers up to $1 million in ID theft coverage for new US users
• It covers legal costs, document replacement, lost wages, and more
• The rollout follows similar moves by rival providers ExpressVPN, NordVPN

Popular VPN provider Surfshark has just unveiled a brand-new identity theft coverage feature for its top-tier online security bundle, offering victims up to $1 million in financial reimbursement.

While Surfshark has long been a major contender for the title of best VPN, the new insurance offering shifts the provider from purely proactive protection to reactive recovery.

The release couldn't come at a more crucial time. With billions of personal records floating around the dark web and an average of 33.8 accounts compromised every single second worldwide, as per Surfshark data, digital hygiene is no longer just about hiding your IP address.

"As fraud, scams, and data leaks will never stop, the risk of compromised personal accounts remains high. This danger keeps growing as threats become more advanced and harder to identify," explained Gabriele Sinkeviciute, Head of Product at Surfshark, in a blog post.

ID theft protection, however, is currently restricted to new Surfshark One+ customers residing in the United States, with residents of New York State entirely excluded.

What does the coverage include?

According to Surfshark, a standard antivirus or basic encryption is great for prevention, but it doesn't solve the devastating financial and emotional toll of a hijacked identity.

"Cybersecurity incidents related to identity theft can lead to serious financial consequences, causing victims to have challenging and sometimes persistent issues in restoring their identity," Sinkeviciute stated.

That's exactly why the company decided to enhance its top-tier security bundle. An ID theft coverage, Sinkeviciute explains, allows the team to help users prevent, protect against, and recover from the damages of identity theft with no extra cost.

The $1 million coverage limit provides victims with a licensed identity theft investigator who will do the heavy lifting to correct credit histories and restore compromised records. Because Surfshark itself is not an insurance producer, the policy benefits are issued and covered by HSB Specialty Insurance Company.

Under the policy, users can claim reimbursement for credit bureau reports, legal costs, document replacement fees, and up to $5,000 in lost wages (including elder and child care). The coverage even extends to mental health counseling, offering up to $1,000 to help victims cope with the stress of the ordeal.

The race for all-in-one security

Surfshark’s decision to add identity insurance completes what the company calls its "online protection cycle," joining existing data-protection tools like Alternative ID and the data-broker removal service Incogni.

"Relying on a single online security measure is no longer enough," states Sinkeviciute.

Surfshark is not the only provider pushing beyond standard virtual private networks. Over the last year, the industry has aggressively pivoted toward comprehensive cybersecurity suites.

Rival provider NordVPN previously launched its own ID theft protection tool for US users, before expanding a similar identity theft recovery service to its UK customer base. Likewise, ExpressVPN launched a suite of identity theft protections, offering up to $1M in ID theft insurance for free on certain plans.

As cybercriminals leverage AI to automate phishing and fraud, it is becoming increasingly clear that consumer protection must evolve. While a VPN secures your connection, having a $1 million safety net ensures that if the worst does happen, you won't be left paying the price alone.

• NordVPN partners with Internews to support activists and journalists
• Nord's tools will be integrated into Internews' digital safety programming
• The first 100 people to donate £35 will receive a 6-month NordVPN plan

NordVPN — currently the top-rated provider in our best VPN guide — has partnered with non-profit organization Internews to strengthen digital safety for journalists, civil society organizations, and human rights defenders.

State-sponsored surveillance, censorship, and cyberattacks are on the rise, in fact, making the need for secure online communications more crucial than ever for those on the frontlines. This collaboration aims to distribute vital privacy-protecting technologies to at-risk communities operating in the world's most dangerous and restrictive environments.

According to Internews' announcement, the partnership will help those facing intense information manipulation and harassment to maintain access to trustworthy information and communicate securely without fear of pervasive monitoring.

This isn't the first time the two organizations have worked together; Nord Security (NordVPN's parent company) previously equipped local partners in Sudan and Afghanistan with tools to minimize surveillance risks and bypass censorship.

Now, the new initiative expands on that foundation by directly integrating Nord’s secure tools and "Changemakers" training slide decks into Internews' global digital safety programming.

"Secure digital spaces are a lifeline for people working under threat," said Meera Selva, CEO of Internews Europe. "NordVPN's support allows us to provide journalists and activists with reliable tools that reduce their exposure to surveillance and censorship, and ultimately help them continue their vital work."

Why journalists need a VPN more than ever

Operating in restrictive contexts shaped by conflict and censorship means that secure communication is no longer a luxury for journalists; it’s an absolute necessity for survival.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) encrypts internet traffic and masks the user's IP address, making it harder for hostile regimes or bad actors to track their physical location or monitor their online activities.

NordVPN brings significant technical muscle to this cause. The provider boasts servers in 178 locations across 129 countries, alongside specialist privacy features like Double VPN, Onion Over VPN, and its signature Threat Protection Pro, which actively blocks trackers, malicious websites, and malware-laced downloads.

This move follows a similar path set by its sister brand, Surfshark, which also recently partnered with Internews to provide at-risk individuals with free VPN access.

To encourage broader public engagement with digital safety, Internews and NordVPN have also launched a joint donation campaign. The first 100 individuals who donate £35 to the non-profit will receive a 6-month NordVPN subscription as an incentive.

Furthermore, the two organizations will share the stage at the upcoming RightsCon 2026 event to highlight the importance of responsible technology in protecting vulnerable communities.

"Our work together underscores a shared commitment to strengthening digital resilience worldwide," said Akvilė Liudžienė, ESG manager at NordVPN. "By combining Internews' frontline expertise with Nord’s secure technologies, we can help protect those most at risk."

Amazon has just launched its Spring Sale event in the UK. While the event is packed with great deals, there's one way you can save more in the future and protect your personal details at the same time.

Our top-rated VPN, NordVPN, is offering up to £50/$50/50 CA$ in Amazon gift cards when you sign up for a two-year plan. It was our VPN deal of the week a few weeks back and, honestly, it's still the best VPN deal out there. However, it won't be available for much longer.

The only plan excluded from the deal is the Basic plan but my recommendation is a NordVPN Plus plan regardless. It gives you a gift card worth £20 (or $20), plus a bunch of other great features.

With Plus, you get access to NordPass, Threat Protection Pro, and a data breach scanning tool. It doesn't include every feature the company offers but they're the most essential.

While a Plus plan gets you only £20 (or equivalent), you can claim up to £50 if you choose to grab your region's most expensive plan.

Although Plus plans give you the best of NordVPN's essentials, premium plans include so much more. This includes everything from encrypted cloud storage, to cyber insurance and NordVPN's new scam call detection feature.

These features vary by region, so you may find that your region region lacks a plan with the combination of features you want for a price that's worth it.

While we think NordVPN is the best VPN, you might want to also consider Surfshark. It's the best cheap VPN and comes with its own host of unique features. What's more, right now you can get a 12-month Calm Premium subscription when you sign up.

Regardless of whether you choose NordVPN or Surfshark, it's always worth turning off auto-renewals after signing up. That's because both have steep price hikes once your plan ends. You can do this in a matter of clicks from your account page on their website.

• NordVPN launched Dark Web Monitor Pro as un upgarde to its existing tool
• The tool now also scans for phone numbers, credit cards, and national IDs
• This follows Google's decision to kill off its own Dark Web Report feature

When Google quietly discontinued its Dark Web Report feature, millions of users were left without an easy way to check if their personal information had fallen into the wrong hands. Now, TechRadar's top-rated best VPN is stepping up to fill that dangerous void.

NordVPN has just released Dark Web Monitor Pro, a major upgrade to its existing cybersecurity suite. While the original tool was limited to scanning for exposed email addresses, this new premium tier casts a much wider safety net. The upgraded feature now actively scans the dark web for leaked credit card numbers, national ID numbers, and, crucially, phone numbers.

"Most people only find out their data has been leaked when it's already too late," says Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN. "Credit card numbers and national IDs are the kind of data that leads to direct financial loss, and that’s exactly what [Dark Web Monitor Pro] watches for."

What’s new with Dark Web Monitor Pro?

According to threat intelligence platform NordStellar, over 900 million leaked email addresses and 650 million passwords have been found on the dark web in 2025 alone.

Yet, criminals rarely rely on a single data breach. Instead, they compile huge databases of stolen details to execute identity theft, financial fraud, and account takeovers.

To combat this, NordVPN is expanding its data sources to include "combo lists." These are massive collections of leaked credentials compiled from stealer logs and various past breaches. Because these lists consolidate data from multiple incidents, the updated monitor can spot reused credentials that might not appear in individual breach databases.

As a result of this deep dive into combo lists, users might suddenly receive new alerts about previously undetected data exposures. Some of these newly discovered leaks could date back years, giving users a much clearer picture of their digital footprint.

How to take back control of your data

If you use the standard Dark Web Monitor, you can currently track up to five email addresses. By upgrading to Dark Web Monitor Pro, you can monitor up to eight email addresses, two credit card numbers, two national ID numbers, and one phone number.

For maximum privacy, any credit card and national ID numbers you enter are hashed. This ensures your most sensitive information remains secure even while the app searches the darkest corners of the internet for matches. Phone number monitoring is currently limited to selected countries, though the company hasn't specified exactly which ones yet.

"People deserve to know what's happening with their personal data," says Virbickas. "Dark Web Monitor Pro puts that control in their hands, so they can monitor their most sensitive information and respond quickly if it’s been exposed. The sooner you know, the sooner you can change a password or alert your bank."

If you're looking for extra protection online, pairing a reliable password manager with the best dark web VPN is a great place to start.

• Australians are turning to VPNs amid new mandatory age verification rules
• Australia's digital rights group argues that VPN users may be the next target
• Restricting VPN could put at risk the country's digital safety, experts warn

Australian digital rights advocates have warned that VPNs could be next on the chopping block, with the country kicking off the second phase of its age verification rollout.

The warning comes as downloads for VPN services have surged in local app stores on Monday, when new age-gating rules on adult-only content took effect.

The spike shows that Australians are searching for ways to protect their sensitive ID data in the face of the risk of what the country's longest-running digital rights organization, Electronic Frontiers Australia, describes as a "Swiss cheese-like age verification" system.

The threats to public privacy and security, however, may only be at the starting point.

Talking to TechRadar, the Chair of Electronic Frontiers Australia, John Pane, argues "there is a reasonably strong possibility" that VPNs may be banned or restricted as a result of that. Something that, he warns, would create "extraordinary privacy, security, and online safety risks" for all.

VPN restrictions — what's at stake?

Virtual private networks (VPNs) are tools used by both individuals and businesses to secure their digital activities from an increasingly data-rich and hacking-ripe online world.

VPNs encrypt internet traffic to make online monitoring more difficult. They also spoof a user's real IP address by rerouting their connections through one of the VPN company's servers — either in the same country or abroad.

The second feature is the reason why Australian authorities could end up restricting their use.

Rather than security and privacy software, VPNs are increasingly viewed as mere circumvention tools that can let minors evade mandatory age checks. Yet, Pane told TechRadar, a ban or restrictions on VPNs would be "a bright red line" not to cross.

He warns that online safety is on the line for the whole nation, outlining the unseen risks to both private citizens and commercial enterprises should a VPN ban come into place.

For children, Pane explains, this could mean pushing them to use insecure free VPN apps. TechRadar recently uncovered that over 75% of all free VPNs on the Android store have questionable personal data practices, and that could easily expose thousands of minors to malware and other malicious tracking.

The need to find different workarounds could also push young people to even darker corners of the web, further endangering their security and privacy.

As for adults, the millions of people entering their age verification details into adult content websites are creating a database of sensitive details that would lead to a large prize for any identity thieves. We have already had a hint of that when Discord's third-party exposed the government-issued ID photos of approximately 70,000 users following a data breach.

Without a VPN to protect any of this information transfer, Pane argues that the problem will only be exacerbated. This is a concern shared by over 400 scientists who have recently called for a moratorium on mandatory age verification globally until a "scientific consensus" is reached regarding the benefits and technical feasibility of such laws.

How likely is it for Australia to restrict VPN usage?

While Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, has not announced a direct ban or restrictions on VPNs just yet, the possibility was previously mentioned when these tools began allowing teens to easily bypass the country's under-16s social media ban.

Currently, the guidance from the eSafety Commission is clear — all service providers are expected to take "reasonable steps" to prevent workarounds, which include detecting and restricting the use of VPNs.

Surfshark's Senior Product Manager, Justas Pukys, told TechRadar that these expectations rest "on the false notion" that VPNs are merely 'workarounds' for age gates.

"This misunderstanding ignores the fact that VPNs are essential infrastructure for the security and privacy of millions of Australian citizens and businesses," said Pukys, warning that "attempting to block them is a disproportionate response that treats a fundamental cybersecurity tool as a loophole, creating far-reaching collateral damage that policymakers have not adequately considered."

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone using a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Australia's new age verification legislation has left Australians raising their eyebrows.

Similar to enforcements in the UK and US, citizens will be required to verify that they are over 18 to access adult content. But, with this comes concerns that people's most sensitive data will be put at risk by communications with third parties.

Luckily, this is where a VPN can help. The best VPNs secure your online traffic, leaving no trace of your IP that snoopers can find, and securing data you transfer to age verification providers against malicious actors trying to intercept your information. What's more, doing this can cost under 3 AU$ per month.

My top pick for achieving this is Surfshark. It gives you unlimited simultaneous connections, it's the fastest VPN I've ever used, and you can choose to add a bunch of additional features if you want to completely secure your online presence.

While it's not quite as high-performing as NordVPN, our best Australia VPN overall, it's a superb option if you're new to VPNs and looking for something cheap and simple to use that's still powerful.

While a Surfshark Starter plan is the cheapest way to protect yourself during age verification checks, a One adds a full security suite, including antivirus and real-time data breach alerts. For a small monthly increase, this bundle provides broader digital protection than the base plans of many competitors.

NordVPN and Surfshark both offer 5 Australia locations. However, NordVPN offers more advanced security credentials and more consistent content unblocking capabilities.

Having tested both myself, you can rest assured that either choice will protect you should you choose to use a VPN when verifying your age. But, no matter if you choose Surfshark or NordVPN, make sure to turn off auto-renewals after signing up, as both enforce large price jumps at the end of your plan if you don't.

Australia has officially moved into the next phase of its mandatory age verification rollout. Following the implementation of a world-first social media ban for under-16s last December, internet users must now provide proof of age to access adult-only content and material deemed unsuitable for minors.

As seen in other regions with similar laws, VPNs have rapidly climbed the Australian app store charts as residents seek ways to protect their digital footprint. While it's difficult to determine if these new users are minors attempting to bypass restrictions or adults concerned about the privacy risks of sharing sensitive ID data, the trend is undeniable.

This shift is refueling a global debate over whether VPNs render age-gating ineffective. With the UK government recently launching a consultation on potential restrictions, Australian lawmakers may soon have VPN users in their sights.

The VPN dilemma

A virtual private network (VPN) is an important security tool that encrypts a user's connection to protect them online. By rerouting traffic through an encrypted tunnel to a remote server, a VPN masks a user's real IP address and replaces it with a virtual location.

While this technology is a favorite for streamers and those living under authoritarian regimes, it also provides a simple way to bypass domestic content blocks. By selecting a VPN server in a country without mandatory age verification, Australian users can access websites and apps without having to scan government IDs or undergo facial recognition checks.

However, the workaround is changing how regulators perceive the technology. Once viewed as an essential tool for privacy and security, VPNs are increasingly being framed by officials as "loopholes" that need to be closed.

NordVPN privacy advocate Laura Tyrylyte told TechRadar that while protecting minors is a vital goal, targeting VPNs is a "fundamentally flawed approach."

She warns that broad restrictions would jeopardize the digital safety of legitimate users, including businesses securing remote work, journalists protecting sources, and everyday citizens looking to secure their personal data.

The political landscape in Australia

Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, has not announced a direct ban on VPNs.

Yet, as Chair of Electronic Frontiers Australia, John Pane, told TechRadar, both the eSafety and the government have "obliquely referred to this possibility" following the ease with which young people have circumvented the social media ban.

This is why, according to Pane, there's "a reasonably strong possibility" that authorities may seek to introduce a ban or curtail the uptake of VPNs.

"This would be a bright red line for digital, human rights, and civil liberties groups, academia, and the media," Pane told TechRadar, while adding that such restrictions will also expose Australians to several security and privacy risks.

After all, current guidance for online service providers suggests a tightening of the net. The eSafety Commissioner expects platforms to take "reasonable steps" to prevent workarounds, which include detecting and restricting the use of VPNs. Suggested methods include monitoring for irregular traffic patterns and utilizing IP intelligence APIs to flag and block known VPN server ranges.

As Tyrylyte points out, this creates a significant privacy conflict. Premium VPNs often include their own internal barriers to prevent unauthorized use by minors, yet government-mandated blocking could strip adults of their primary defense against data breaches and invasive tracking.

Will the UK set a global precedent?

While US proposals to restrict VPNs have largely stalled — with Wisconsin recently scrapping such rules — the debate is moving much faster in Europe. France has already hinted that VPN restrictions could be on the table if its social media bans are widely circumvented.

The UK is currently the most significant testing ground for these policies. On March 2, the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) launched a landmark consultation on digital safety for children. This process, which runs until May 26, 2026, explicitly asks for public and expert input on whether VPNs should be age-restricted.

This follows a previous attempt in the House of Lords to implement a ban on the technology for children. While that amendment was eventually softened in favor of an evidence-led approach, the outcome of the current consultation will likely provide a blueprint for other nations.

Lawmakers worldwide are watching these developments closely. If the UK decides that restricting VPN access is a necessary step for child safety, Australia may well find itself at a crossroads between enforcing its new laws and protecting the fundamental digital privacy of its citizens.

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone using a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

• VPN services are gaining traction among people in Australia
• Proton VPN and NordVPN are among the most downloaded apps
• All users now need to prove they are 18 to access adult-only content

VPN services are climbing Australia's app store charts as mandatory age verification checks to access adult-only content come into effect on Monday (March 9).

According to Sensor Tower data, the popular secure free VPN service, Proton VPN, jumped from #19 to #7 on Google Play on Monday. TechRadar's top-rated best VPN service, NordVPN, is also seeing a significant rise in downloads across both iOS and Android. Talking to TechRadar, Surfshark also confirms having recorded "a growing interest" in Australia after the new rules took effect.

Among the apps gaining traction is VPN - Super Unlimited Proxy — the second most downloaded iOS app as of Tuesday. While this free service claims to operate a no-logs policy, users should be cautious as it records usage data to track activity across third-party apps and websites and collects sensitive identifiers, including location data, as per Apple App Store's privacy labels.

Australia age verification rules — all you need to know

From March 9, all websites, AI chatbots, and online services hosting adult-only material must verify that users are at least 18 years old.

The new regulations allow service providers to choose their own "appropriate age-assurance measures." These typically involve scanning government-issued IDs, performing credit card checks, or using biometric facial age estimation.

Adult-only content giant, Aylo, began restricting access for Australian users on Friday in protest. The company told The Guardian that the measure "creates harms relating to data privacy and exposure to illegal content on non-compliant platforms".

Companies found to be in breach of these new rules face significant penalties, with fines reaching up to $49.5 million. These regulations follow a landmark ban on social media for users under 16 which was introduced late last year.

Why are Australians turning to VPNs?

A virtual private network (VPN) is a privacy tool that encrypts a user's internet connection and masks their real IP address. By spoofing their location, Australians can appear as though they are browsing from a different country.

This spike in VPN usage mirrors trends seen in the UK when similar age verification measures were introduced, as well as in several US states where such laws are already active.

It's impossible to know how many people are using VPNs because of privacy concerns, or how many are simply attempting to bypass the new rules.

Politicians in both the UK and the US have increasingly signaled a desire to regulate the technology itself. In January 2026, the UK House of Lords proposed that VPN providers should introduce "highly effective" age assurance for all users.

As the UK government moves into a landmark three-month consultation period that could see VPNs become age-gated, the debate in Australia is expected to intensify.

While it's early to say whether a VPN ban is on the horizon for Australian authorities, the eSafety Commissioner's guidance doesn't leave many doubts: service providers are required to take all "reasonable steps" to prevent workarounds, including detecting and restricting the use of VPNs.

It remains to be seen how these requirements will play out in practice. Yet, the industry's view on this is crystal clear — restricting VPNs would put the country's digital safety on the line, creating even more problems than it's expected to solve.

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone using a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Last week, our investigation revealed that over three-quarters of Android VPNs fail basic transparency tests. The research casts serious doubt on which apps you can actually trust.

This week, I spoke with leading VPN providers about how you can stay safe online and what the industry is doing to clean up its reputation.

Aaron Engel, Chief Information Security Officer at ExpressVPN, says “the industry must continue to raise the bar on transparency.” But with the bar for Android VPNs set concerningly low, what does this actually look like in practice?

The importance of transparency

Engel said “transparency should be a key factor when choosing a VPN” and highlighted the importance of audits, accessible privacy policies and clear company ownership. Combined, these provide “important indicators of whether a provider is committed to protecting user privacy,” Engel argued.

"Transparency should be backed by verifiable action.”

ExpressVPN has done this with third-party audits — 23 of them to be precise — alongside significant investment into its security capabilities.

Most notably, its TrustedServer technology uses RAM-only server infrastructure to ensure the entire operating system and VPN are reinstalled at every reboot, ensuring no data is ever written to physical drives.

Like ExpressVPN, Surfshark prioritizes clarity. Justas Pukys, VPN Product Manager at Surfshark, says this commitment includes everything from 24/7 customer support to "clear, accessible" online resources.

What else can providers do?

“A VPN is entrusted with a user's most sensitive data, and as this investigation reveals, a significant portion of the market is not equipped to handle that responsibility” explains Marijus Briedis, CTO of NordVPN.

So, what more can the industry do? Pukys, of Surfshark, believes that "VPN providers need to demonstrate trust in other ways”

For Surfshark, this has involved everything from regular independent audits — though fewer than ExpressVPN’s 23 — to transparency reports and frequent app updates to meet evolving platform requirements.

Surfshark also regularly publishes research on topics such as digital privacy, online wellbeing, and global data breaches. While research isn't a direct technical "trust indicator," it’s likely that a provider investing heavily in studying the real-world impact of privacy is genuinely committed to defending it.

Independent audits are a key indicator of a trustworthy VPN. Typically made publicly available, these reports outline any concerns or vulnerabilities discovered by the third-party auditor.

However, since these reports can be dense with technical jargon, transparency reports and no-logs policies serve as more accessible starting points. Both use clearer language to demonstrate how your data is handled.

If you’re keen to dive into an independent audit yourself, two sections deserve your focus. First, look for the executive summary or introduction. This usually provides a snapshot of the findings, including the number of issues identified.

Naturally, the fewer issues the better and ideally, the report will find no ‘critical vulnerabilities.’ Second, be sure to check the "Scope" section. This defines the boundaries of the audit — if the scope is too narrow, significant vulnerabilities may have been overlooked.

Another strong indicator of a provider’s intent is membership in the VPN Trust Initiative (VTI). The VTI includes major players like NordVPN, Surfshark, ExpressVPN, and IPVanish, and focuses on “advancing online privacy, security, and freedom through clear standards and trusted practices.”

Membership suggests that these providers are committed to a shared set of industry principles, implementing these privacy standards directly into their software and infrastructure.

That is not to say that VPNs outside the VTI are untrustworthy. Reputable providers like Proton VPN, Mullvad, and Windscribe have yet to join, but they consistently demonstrate the same rigorous, privacy-first practices that the VTI advocates for.

What should VPN users look out for?

However, as our recent investigation into the Google Play Store revealed, these high standards are the exception rather than the rule.

Responding to the findings, Pukys says “the Android ecosystem is generally more open" than others. While this makes it easy for new developers to access a major downloads platform, it also means closer attention should be paid to “how VPN providers communicate their data practices and privacy commitments.”

When considering Android VPNs, David Peterson, GM of Proton VPN, explains, you should:

1. “Check the data safety section on their store listing” to ensure you’re comfortable with the information being collected and shared with third parties
2. “Visit the brand’s official website and read through their privacy policy.”
3. “Download their VPN only from the links they prominently provide”, commonly found on the provider’s website or via official app store links.

For Briedis, there is a broader scope of sensible steps to consider:

"Invest time in researching their provider. Look for clear, accessible privacy policies, professional websites, and dedicated customer support channels.”

Our research has also shown how unresponsive customer support can be when using an untrustworthy Android VPN. Knowing you can get help is crucial. if you’re unsure, try contacting a provider's support team with a question before signing up. A prompt response is a good sign.

As Briedis noted: “Choosing a VPN is a significant decision for one's digital security, and it's essential to select a service that proves its commitment to user privacy and transparency.”

So, do your research. Don’t fall for the first VPN you see, and make sure to check anything if you’re unsure.

• NordVPN warns rules of Utah's age verification bill on VPNs are unworkable
• The bill was agreed on March 4, with enforcement expected in May 2026
• NordVPN is now urging lawmakers to "pause and convene" with experts

Utah lawmakers are a step closer to restricting VPN usage in a way that NordVPN says would "punish lawful users who care about their privacy" across the globe.

The warning follows the passage of Utah’s Online Age Verification Amendments — formally Senate Bill 73 — which cleared both chambers of the state legislature on Wednesday, March 4,

With enforcement expected to begin in May 2026, the bill requires online service providers to age-gate content deemed harmful to minors.

However, the legislation also makes companies liable for age-gating any user physically located in Utah, regardless of whether they are using a virtual private network or a proxy server.

NordVPN argues this creates an "unresolvable compliance paradox" for responsible operators.

How the law targets VPN users

Under the current text, any person physically located in Utah must undergo mandatory age checks to access adult-only content. Crucially, the law requires service providers to verify the age of users even when they use a VPN or similar tool to spoof their geolocation.

The bill also prohibits commercial entities that host "a substantial portion of material harmful to minors" from facilitating or encouraging the use of VPNs to bypass these checks. This includes a ban on providing instructions on how to use such services to access their websites.

NordVPN's resposne

While VPN providers are not the primary targets of the law, NordVPN has strongly criticized the proposal as technically unworkable.

In a statement shared with TechRadar, the firm argued that blocking all known VPN and proxy IPs in Utah is "technically impossible" because providers constantly add new addresses and no comprehensive blocklist exists.

The VPN giant also warns that attempting to comply would have serious consequences for lawful users worldwide. As currently written, the bill does not appear to give adult sites the option to simply exit the Utah market to avoid the rules.

Instead, the only remaining option appears to be age-verifying every visitor globally, regardless of their actual location. NordVPN warns this would subject "millions of users to invasive identity checks they have no legal obligation."

This isn't the first time US lawmakers have included provisions that impact VPN users in age verification bills. While Wisconsin recently scrapped similar rules that would have effectively banned VPNs in the state, Utah’s proposal is more far-reaching, with a potential impact that stretches beyond state lines.

While NordVPN supports the intent of protecting children online, it is now urging Utah legislators to pause and consult with experts before the May 2026 deadline.

The firm warns that good intentions written into "technically unenforceable law" fail to protect minors and instead "simply punish lawful users who care about their privacy, globally."

Ultimately, NordVPN argues that any legislation that cannot be complied with is not a workable measure. As the company puts it: "It is a liability trap."

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone using a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.