Privacy News Your Free VPN App Might Be Leaking Data to China

[lokamoka820]

Content source

https://www.makeuseof.com/your-free-vpn-leaking-data-china/

Using a VPN can help protect you online—as long as you're using the right one. Just because a VPN is free and available on an official app store doesn't always mean it's safe to use.

Chinese VPNs Might Be Stealing Your Data​

An investigation by the Tech Transparency Project (TTP) into the top 100 free VPN apps on the Apple App Store found as many as 20 apps with undisclosed Chinese ownership. These apps have been downloaded over 70 million times.

Five apps, including Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN, Snap VPN, and Signal Secure VPN, have been linked with Qihoo 360, a company with suspected ties to the Chinese military. In June 2020, the US sanctioned Qihoo 360, citing national security reasons.

Apart from these five apps, a full list is as follows, along with those already removed from the App Store.

• Alphaoo Net (removed from App Store)
• Best V2ray (removed from App Store)
• Best VPN Proxy AppVPN
• HulaVPN
• Incognito Net (removed from App Store)

• LinkWorldVPN
• Now VPN
• Ostrich VPN
• Pearl VPN
• Speedy Quark VPN

• SwiftLink VPN (removed from App Store)
• VPN Bucks
• VPN Proxy Master
• VPN Proxy OvpnSpider
• VPN Ⓟ (removed from App Store in 2024)
• VPNIFY
• WireVPN - Fast VPN & Proxy
• Wirevpn - Secure & Fast VPN
• X-VPN

This isn't a problem with Apple's App Store alone. I found all five of the Qihoo 360 apps and several others on Google Play, with several apps having four-star or higher ratings and millions of downloads. Turbo VPN even has a verified badge on the Play Store, distinguishing it from other apps as trustworthy and secure.

If you're using any of the apps mentioned above, I strongly recommend deleting your account and the app itself as soon as possible. There are other, more secure VPN alternatives, like Proton VPN, SurfShark, and NordVPN, that offer free tiers with better protection. If you can, ponying up for a premium VPN is the best way forward.

 

[cartaphilus]

NO WAY!!!! With a business model like FREE why would they want to sell my data?!!!!!

Besides as soon as world discord picked up the number of run by day VPN providers popped up. The names were becoming worse than the Amazon "XISHD Corporation" and "XSJKEWHAS*(#)(*$%R Company" that paddle in cheap Chinese knock offs.

Might as well start a company called "Totally NOT a Nation state data proxy VPN".

 

[badboy]

That's why I don't use Chinese or Russian software, and I carefully study the "roots" and owners of "European" IT services. Today, it is very easy to rent an office in any EU country and pretend to be a "European company".