• Klarna has partnered with NordVPN to include a free VPN subscription
• Only Klarna Premium and Max members can redeem one NordVPN plan
• The perk is bundled into existing memberships

Buy now, pay later giant Klarna has a new perk for its paying members, and this one is all about your privacy.

The company has partnered with NordVPN to add encrypted connectivity as an included benefit for Klarna Memberships subscribers, folding a digital security tool into a subscription that was previously focused on cashback, travel protection, and lifestyle rewards.

It's the latest example of a payments company bundling in one of the best VPN services as a membership sweetener, and it follows hot on the heels of NordVPN's tie-up with Mastercard earlier this year, as well as other collaborations with companies such as CrowdStrike and Marvel.

The idea is simple. If you already have a Klarna membership, you can now activate a NordVPN subscription at no extra cost. Which tier you get depends on your membership level.

What the Klarna and NordVPN partnership involves

The structure is tied directly to Klarna's membership tiers.

Klarna Premium members will receive access to NordVPN Basic, while Klarna Max members will receive access to NordVPN Complete, both included within their existing membership subscription.

It's worth mentioning that at the time of writing (August 10, 2026), Klarna's membership page wrongly indicates that the perk for Max users is NordVPN Standard — described as "secure VPN access with enhanced security features". A NordVPN spokesperson clarifies to TechRadar that the company actually meant its Complete plan.

Regarding the partnership, NordVPN argues that VPN protection has become relevant infrastructure for both professionals and consumers, supporting secure connections on public and shared networks, such as those found in coffee shops, airports, and hotels.

Klarna describes the move as part of a strategy focused on offering tangible, valuable benefits at scale, giving members more control over aspects of their digital activity, and positioning its memberships to compete on overall value.

How to claim your free NordVPN subscription

Because the VPN is bundled into your Klarna membership, the first step is simply making sure you're on an eligible tier (Premium or Max).

With NordVPN's comparable Mastercard partnership, once users activate their NordVPN subscription, the service asks them to set up their Nord account and download the NordVPN app. We can likely expect the Klarna flow to follow the same rough path: confirm eligibility, activate the benefit, create or sign in to a Nord Account, then install the app on your devices.

If you're unsure whether your specific plan includes the perk, it's worth checking directly with Klarna, since availability can vary by region and membership level. Once it's live, you'll have the full NordVPN app to set up across your phone, laptop, and other devices.

NordVPN Basic vs NordVPN Complete: what's included

While users can use both plans on up to 10 devices simultaneously, features offered slightly differ.

As the name suggests, NordVPN Basic is the entry-level tier, and the main feature is the virtual private network (VPN) itself, using the same core software found across every NordVPN plan.

You get access to all NordVPN's server network — 211 locations in 135 countries— which TechRadar's reviewers found to be larger than any rival we test. You also get NordVPN's fast, secure NordLynx protocol, a reliable kill switch, and post-quantum encryption already baked in.

Basic also includes NordVPN's standard Threat Protection — now known as NordVPN's next-gen antivirus suite — which filters your traffic through NordVPN's DNS servers to block ads and malicious sites.

NordVPN Complete expands on Threat Protection's reach by adding real-time anti-malware and file scanning. The plan also bundles premium access to its password manager tool (NordPass) and 1TB of encrypted NordLocker cloud storage.

• NordVPN 5.3.0 for Linux automatically installs the GUI app alongside the command-line daemon
• A new NordVPN diagnostics command bundles troubleshooting info into a single shareable file
• CLI commands are now case-insensitive, and older operating systems like Ubuntu 20.04 are no longer supported

NordVPN has rolled out version 5.3.0 of its Linux app, marking a notable shift in how the provider approaches the notoriously command-line-heavy operating system. Starting with this August 2026 release, the provider’s graphical user interface (GUI) will now install automatically alongside the standard daemon.

The best VPN on the market according to TechRadar's testing, NordVPN has spent the last couple of years steadily improving its Linux offerings. While the company first launched a full GUI for Linux to make securing open-source systems as simple as clicking a button, it previously required a separate installation step.

Now, by making it part of the default setup process, NordVPN aims to increase its usage among Linux users who may have skipped or missed the extra package entirely.

"The GUI app now installs automatically alongside the daemon," the provider noted in its latest release notes. "It's been around for a while, but we figured it deserved a little more visibility."

This change ensures that all Linux users immediately benefit from visual features like light and dark mode, server maps, and easy toggles for post-quantum encryption, without ever having to touch the terminal. The integration comes just a year after NordVPN made its Linux GUI app open-source, allowing the community to inspect the code for complete transparency.

Simpler troubleshooting and broader changes

While the automatic GUI installation is the most visible change, version 5.3.0 brings several major quality-of-life improvements to the Nord's Linux VPN.

First is a brand-new diagnostics command. In the past, Linux users troubleshooting connection issues had to manually run a series of complex commands to pull network information, system specs, and firewall rules.

The new tool consolidates this process, gathering all necessary data into a single file that can be securely shared with the support team. However, NordVPN clarifies that "this command is not yet available for Snap package installations."

The command-line interface (CLI) has also received an overdue tweak: commands are now case-insensitive. As the company jokingly explained in the notes, users can "feel free to shout in ALL CAPS if the need ever arises."

Additionally, the NordVPN pause command has officially made its CLI debut, and the system tray app now includes a highly requested “Open NordVPN app” button. As the provider states, it "does exactly what the label suggests, which is always reassuring."

Under the hood, a few technical adjustments were made to improve networking. For users struggling to find local devices, mDNS traffic is now allowed by default when LAN discovery is turned on, meaning printers and local servers will no longer remain "impressively undiscoverable."

However, users running older setups should take note before upgrading. To keep up with modern standards, NordVPN has raised the minimum glibc version to 2.35. As a result, the 5.3.0 update officially deprecates support for older operating systems, including Ubuntu 20.04, Debian 11, and Fedora 32 through 42.

During our latest tests of Turbo VPN's Windows client, we identified active IP leaks and misconfigured protocols that put users' privacy at risk.

Owned by Singapore-based Innovative Connecting Pte. Limited, Turbo VPN boasts over 500 million downloads on Android.

Although the provider issued a patch after receiving our initial technical findings earlier this week, version 3.6.0.0 continued to leak IPv6 addresses across its proprietary protocols (Lepus and LinkSentinel) as well as standard OpenVPN connections.

Following further technical evidence provided by TechRadar, Turbo VPN has deployed a second update (version 3.7.0.0) for Windows to patch the persistent IPv6 leaks. Our testing confirms that this latest build now successfully blocks unencrypted IPv6 traffic.

However, information regarding the app's proprietary protocols remains scarce, and one protocol (V2Ray) was quietly removed during the recent updates. When asked about its removal, the company told TechRadar it is "still checking" the protocol.

Intermittent IP leaks

Concealing your IP address is a VPN's primary objective. However, when we began testing Turbo VPN's proprietary protocols earlier this week on an IPv4-only connection, we found that our real IP address wasn't being hidden at all.

Despite the app displaying that we were "connected," every online IP lookup test we ran showed our real IPv4 address. We rebooted our machine, reinstalled the app, and used multiple independent lookup tools, but the issues persisted.

To confirm our findings, we installed the app on a second machine on a separate dual-stack IPv4/IPv6 network. Testing on this setup revealed a distinct failure: while our IPv4 address was masked, our genuine IPv6 address remained exposed.

Subsequent follow-up tests on our IPv4-only connection also saw IPv4 masking stabilize, which highlights the intermittent nature of the initial build.

After we shared these technical findings with the team, Turbo VPN issued an update (version 3.6.0.0). In our testing of this build, the app successfully masked IPv4 addresses consistently but IPv6 addresses remained exposed on proprietary protocols and standard OpenVPN connections.

Given that most modern operating systems and web browsers favor IPv6 connections over IPv4, failing to tunnel or block this traffic left users on dual-stack connections exposed by default.

Following a subsequent update issued today, the Windows app is now blocking unencrypted IPv6 traffic while masking IPv4 addresses consistently.

Lepus: a VPN or Shadowsocks proxy?

Lepus is listed alongside Turbo VPN's standard VPN protocols. It is described as providing "excellent camouflage with equally outstanding speed and stability built for highly restricted networks."

However, during our initial tests Lepus operated in ways distinct from standard VPN protocols. Rather than creating a system-wide encrypted tunnel, it executed a local ShadowsocksR (ssr.exe) process that toggles Windows settings (ProxyEnable: 1) to run a local proxy on port 46288.

That means any non-browser data sent from your device — including background OS traffic, desktop messaging apps, and command-line utilities — did not benefit from an encrypted tunnel and was instead routed over a standard connection.

We asked the team at Turbo VPN how long this behavior may have been present for, but they did not reply to that specific question.

In our subsequent tests, version 3.6.0.0 successfully protected all outbound traffic in an encrypted tunnel and successfully operated as a system-wide tunnel for IPv4 traffic.

However, its configuration still allowed for IPv6 leaks, which means users on a dual-stack connection were left exposed. This is because the app did not enable any IPv6 virtual interfaces, assigned zero IPv6 gateway routes, and set no firewall rules to block outbound IPv6 traffic as shown below.

The official response, and what comes next

After sharing multiple rounds of technical feedback with Turbo VPN, the Windows app (version 3.7.0.0) appears to have fixed the remaining IPv6 leak issues.

Rather than attempting to create a full IPv6 infrastructure, the latest version appears to have implemented IPv6 blocking at the client level. This forces all web traffic down the encrypted IPv4 tunnel.

However, detailed information about the proprietary protocols remains conspicuously absent both within the app and on Turbo VPN's website — a search of the company's official website yields no results for Lepus or LinkSentinel.

Beyond a brief descriptor on the protocol-selection tab, users are given no technical context about how these protocols route traffic or what security mechanisms they employ. Combined with the silent removal of V2Ray, users are left with little information on how best to secure their connection.

The company did not respond to questions about the lack of information regarding the app's proprietary protocols. In response to our initial findings, the company said: "The behavior observed in the Windows client arose only under certain network configurations, appearing to occur in a limited number of network environments.

"Following the points you raised, our technical team carried out a thorough review and implemented the necessary improvements in the latest Windows build within a short timeframe."

We will continue to test the product and update our full review in the coming weeks.

• PIA has added 22 streaming-optimized VPN server locations
• No update, reinstall, or plan change is needed to access new servers
• Countries getting the label for the first time include France, Spain, Brazil

Private Internet Access (PIA) has more than doubled the size of its Streaming Optimized network, growing from 13 dedicated streaming locations to 35 with the addition of 22 new countries.

The expansion spreads across Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East, giving users a far wider spread of servers picked out specifically for watching online content.

For a provider already regarded as one of the best VPN options for value and customization, the change is less about adding raw server count and more about making the right servers easier to find.

Most of these countries already had standard PIA locations. What's new is a dedicated Streaming Optimized label sitting alongside them in the app. The new options show up automatically across PIA's apps without any updates required.

What PIA has actually added

PIA's Streaming Optimized locations are servers the company monitors and regularly tests against a range of streaming services, rather than general-purpose servers that may or may not work. The idea is to give users a reliable starting point instead of leaving them to guess which location to try.

France, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, New Zealand, and South Africa are among the countries picking up the label for the first time, with further additions across Central and Eastern Europe. The full list of 22 new locations spans the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa.

According to PIA, the rollout was made possible as more of its locations became "technically ready to support the setup," part of a broader run of network upgrades the provider has been pushing out through 2026, as well as bringing its app to the Google-alternative app store, F-Droid.

Why streaming-optimized servers matter

Streaming platforms restrict content by region, checking your IP address against a database of known ranges and serving a different catalog depending on where you appear to be.

A virtual private network (VPN) sidesteps that by routing your traffic through a server elsewhere, so the platform sees the server's location rather than yours.

The catch is that services actively block IP addresses linked to VPNs, which turns finding a working server into a guessing game. Dedicated streaming servers exist to cut down that trial and error, with providers monitoring and refreshing them to keep the success rate up.

It is worth noting that performance still varies by service and account, and using a VPN this way may run against a platform's terms.

How to use the new PIA's streaming-optimized servers

Getting to the new locations takes seconds. Open the PIA app, head to the location list, and type "streaming" into the search bar.

The new countries appear alongside PIA's existing streaming picks. Choose the one you want and connect as usual.

Because everything is included with existing subscriptions and rolls out automatically, there is no separate plan or toggle to hunt for. PIA says it plans to keep expanding the network over time.

It’s official: TechRadar readers want VPN pricing to change. In a recent set of polls, 54% of TechRadar readers said price jumps were the most annoying part of VPN subscriptions, while a whopping 97% said they’d rather pay a flat fee than a discounted rate that rises later on.

The problem is that many of the best VPNs don’t work this way. Most opt for a reduced rate that increases at the end of the fixed plan. And while some providers offer an end-of-plan offer, it isn’t guaranteed.

One VPN that breaks this mould is Mullvad VPN. It costs €5 per month, every month.

Its price hasn't changed since it launched way back in 2009. What’s more, if you’d like to keep your payment anonymous, it allows cash payments, which require no identification whatsoever.

Mullvad's single price does mean it is more expensive per month than options offering an initial discount. NordVPN, for example, costs $3.49/month initially, over a dollar less, but you're faced with a $80+ price rise at the end of two years, and you pay the whole fee upfront.

Mullvad gives you greater control of your payments; no price rises, and performance that rivaled the very best VPNs in our March 2026 testing.

It achieved 2,308 Mbps using WireGuard in our speed testing, second only to PrivadoVPN. It also proved to be reasonably effective with streaming services. It struggled with Disney+ and Prime Video in some regions, but was flawless with global Netflix libraries and local services such as BBC iPlayer.

Compared to other VPNs, Mullvad does fall short on additional security features. It lacks capabilities such as antivirus, password management, or dark web monitoring to secure you outside of the VPN. For these features, you'd need to look to VPNs such as NordVPN or Surfshark.

Wanna have your own say? The polls are still open, so feel free to leave your vote and let us know why in the comments below.

• IPVanish has updated its Apple TV app to widen its VPN protocol choice
• Beyond IKEv2, the app supports WireGuard and OpenVPN (with Scramble)
• Both existing and new subscribers can unlock everything with a single step

IPVanish has given its Apple TV app a notable upgrade, adding support for the WireGuard and OpenVPN protocols in addition to the current IKEv2.

For anyone who streams from the sofa, this is a meaningful change. Protocol choice affects speed, stability, and how easily a VPN slips past networks that try to block it, so having multiple options is much better than a single default.

The update also comes with a bold competitive claim. IPVanish argues it's now the only provider offering WireGuard, OpenVPN (with Scramble), and IKEv2 together on Apple TV, building on its early arrival as one of the first premium services on the platform.

Subbu Sthanu, IPVanish's General Manager of Consumer Cybersecurity, framed the launch around the living room, saying the provider wants to give Apple TV owners "the ultimate balance of speed, security, and customization."

If you're shopping for the best VPN for your living-room setup, more protocol flexibility is exactly the kind of feature that separates a bare-bones tvOS app from a properly capable one.

What's new in the IPVanish Apple TV app

The refreshed app, rolled out in late July 2026, brings two of the most widely used VPN protocols to Apple TV for the first time, sitting alongside the existing IKEv2 option.

WireGuard is the headline addition. Built on a lean codebase with modern encryption, it's designed to deliver fast connections and low latency. This makes it well suited to streaming and gaming on a big screen.

OpenVPN is the other new arrival. As one of the oldest and most battle-tested protocols around, it's prized for flexibility, supporting both UDP and TCP connections and editable port settings.

Crucially, OpenVPN ships with IPVanish's Scramble feature. Scramble obfuscates VPN traffic so it looks less recognizable to networks that try to detect and limit VPN connections, which can help you stay connected on fussier Wi-Fi.

Why the VPN protocol choice matters

The value of multiple protocols comes down to fit. No single option is best for every network, so being able to switch lets you match your connection to the situation.

WireGuard offers the best balance of speed and security for most people, and it's the one to reach for when you just want smooth 4K playback. OpenVPN is the more configurable fallback, handy when a network is being awkward or actively blocking VPNs, especially with Scramble turned on.

Apple has allowed Apple TV VPN apps for a few years now, but many providers still ship fairly basic living-room clients. Adding genuine protocol choice puts IPVanish a step ahead of rivals.

How to change protocols on IPvanish Apple TV app

There's no complicated setup involved. All existing and new IPVanish subscribers can access the protocols simply by updating to the latest version of the app from the tvOS App Store.

Once updated, open the app, head into its settings, and pick your protocol before connecting. New to the app entirely? Our guide to installing IPVanish on Apple TV walks you through it.

• Private Internet Access has rolled out its VPN for Android on F-Droid
• It provides de-Googlers with an alternative to sideloading
• It reinforces PIA's commitment to maintaining its open-source status

Open-source Private Internet Access (PIA) VPN has rolled out its Android app on the digital store F-Droid, a privacy-focused alternative to the Google Play Store.

The move comes to the delight of VPN users who don’t trust Big Tech and its notorious track record of privacy violations, but are also fed up with more old-school, DIY de-Googling alternatives.

From now on, PIA users will be able to safely download the Android VPN app directly from the community-run store dedicated to open-source Android apps. This ensures that the version is free of Google dependencies without users having to manually source and upgrade new versions themselves.

The best VPNs often benefit from independent third parties to prove their reliability, including through commissioning security reports or independent audits.

With PIA now available via F-Droid, PIA users can now rely on a community of privacy-conscious individuals instead of having to blindly trust a binary file provided by the VPN directly. "We pride ourselves on being a VPN where anyone can read the code we actually ship — landing on F-Droid is a natural extension of that commitment," said the company.

What is F-Droid?

To install a VPN, Google Play Store is usually the common way. However, some users steer clear of the tech giant, which has faced countless legal cases relating to privacy and is known for collecting vast amounts of user data, including for targeted advertising.

A breath of fresh air, F-Droid's catalog of free and open-source Android apps is run by a group of volunteers that builds every app from the public source code rather than from a file provided by the developer, and makes it available on its Google-alternative store.

Because all apps on F-Droid are open-source and compiled independently, users can be sure that the binaries are tamper-free builds of the listed source code.

What’s more, F-Droid volunteers carry out these checks on users' behalf by auditing the open-source code, inspecting the code to check that it contains no spying or any sort of malicious behaviour — so you don’t have to do it yourself.

Why a native PIA's F-Droid app matters

The digital store offers a far more reliable alternative to the more traditional method of sideloading your VPNs. This involves changing the device's security settings to allow the installation of apps from sources outside the Google Play ecosystem, including the VPN's website or alternative sites.

However, compiled binary code is opaque and has to come from somewhere, often the developer themselves. And by relying on the developer you are implicitly trusting their word — something that is easily abused.

Furthermore, with sideloading, you won’t receive the automatic notifications and pop-up messages from the official app stores that you would get via Google Play, which means you’ll need to monitor and install the APK manually to keep the app up to date — something that F-Droid takes care of.

To download the F-Droid app, you can visit f-droid.org in your browser and download and install the F-Droid APK; then install PIA once you've found it in the list of downloaded apps.

Ultimately, you are always relying on a third party unless you install the software yourself. But between a profit-driven company and a group of volunteers with a privacy policy that guarantees no shared accounts, no installation tracking and no adverts, we are sure the choice for many will remain a no-brainer.

• Windscribe has released deGDID, a free tool that targets a hidden Windows identifier that VPNs cannot mask
• The identifier surfaced in a US court case where it helped trace a suspect's PC across VPNs and three countries
• Blocking the identifier can break Microsoft account features like Xbox, Outlook, and the Store

Windscribe has built a new tool that takes aim at a form of Windows tracking that even the best VPN cannot switch off.

The tool, called deGDID, targets a little-known Microsoft identifier called the Global Device Identifier, or GDID. It is a server-assigned code tied to a Windows installation.

The GDID burst into public view in July after it appeared in a US federal complaint against an alleged member of the Scattered Spider hacking group, where Microsoft gave investigators logs that correlated a Windows GDID with IP activity. Investigators traced the machine through VPN obfuscation across multiple countries over roughly eight months.

What Microsoft's GDID is, and why a VPN won't help

A Microsoft representative described the GDID in the complaint as a persistent, device-level identifier designed to uniquely identify an installation of Windows on a device.

It survives Windows updates but not a clean reinstall, which generates a fresh one. The privacy risk appears when that stable ID is tied to telemetry, Edge browsing data, Microsoft Store records, and IP addresses, letting Microsoft reconnect the same machine across sessions and services.

A virtual private network (VPN) protects your traffic by masking your IP address and encrypting your data. The GDID sits outside that tunnel, at the layer where Windows talks to Microsoft's cloud, so it ties every session together no matter which IP the traffic came from.

Switching to a local Windows account doesn't fix it either. Windscribe found its test machine still created a GDID even as a local account, and after manually deleting the value from the registry, it reappeared after a reboot.

How Windscribe's deGDID works, and how to use it

Windscribe's deGDID uses hosts file modifications and firewall rules to block the registration paths Windows uses to fetch a GDID, and wipes known local identity artifacts.

To run it, download the degdid.ps1 script from GitHub and run it in PowerShell with administrator rights. Use the -Status flag for a read-only check, or -Protect for the full block, verify, and wipe routine, with an -Unprotect option to reverse the changes.

The tool deliberately refuses to run on managed, domain-joined, or corporate machines.

This is not a clean opt-out. In hands-on testing, the script ran without errors, but then broke logins to Xbox, Outlook, and the Microsoft Store because the firewall rules also cut off the connectivity those services depend on.

Windscribe warns it may also affect OneDrive, passkeys, and Windows Hello, cannot guarantee it catches every GDID pathway, and does not erase records Microsoft already holds server-side.

For most people, this is just another reminder of what it means to be a Windows user, but if you want to inspect or reduce the identifier, deGDID is currently one of the only tools that tries. And if you want a more comprehensive solution, Windscribe suggests giving Linux a go.

• Surfshark is retiring its private Search tool, blaming a lack of usage
• Already begun on mobile, the full shutdown is expected by the end of 2026
• The company says the move frees up resources for its Antiscam Hub

Surfshark is preparing to shut down Search, its built-in private search engine, for the simple reason that not enough people were using it.

In a note to TechRadar, the company confirmed that the tool, which is bundled with its One and One+ plans, will be wound down over the coming months.

Surfshark framed the decision as a way to free up resources for the areas its customers care more about, chiefly its Antiscam Hub.

The move is a notable trim for one of the best VPN providers around, a company that has spent recent years bolting extra privacy tools onto its app. Search was one of them, offering ad-free, tracker-free results with the option to switch regions.

Why Surfshark is retiring Search

The problem, by Surfshark's own admission, is that hardly anyone used it. The company told TechRadar that adoption stayed limited to a very small slice of its user base, and that retiring the tool lets it pour resources into higher-demand areas instead. Chief among those is the Antiscam Hub.

It's a pragmatic call. Standalone private search engines face stiff competition from established names like DuckDuckGo, Startpage, and Brave Search, and a search tool tucked inside a VPN app was always going to be a hard sell against them.

The wind-down is staggered rather than immediate. Search has already been pulled from iOS, and it will disappear from Android with the next app release in early August. For now, it survives on Surfshark's web app, so anyone who relies on it there has some time to choose their new alternative.

Surfshark says it will retire Search everywhere else by the end of the year, and tidy up any lingering mentions of it across its website.

Where the resources are going: the Antiscam Hub

In May, the company launched its Antiscam Hub for iOS, a dedicated section of the app that pulls five existing tools into a single interface: Personal Email Masking, Alternative Number, Dark Web Monitoring, Unsafe Site Blocking, and Identity Theft Coverage.

At launch, the hub didn't so much add new features as reorganize existing ones, and Surfshark billed it as the starting point for a roadmap of increasingly sophisticated security features.

That roadmap is now taking shape: the company told TechRadar it will soon reveal a completely new addition to the Antiscam Hub for both iOS and Android users.

It won't reach everyone, though. The new feature "will be part of the Surfshark One and One+ bundles," Gabriele Sinkeviciute, Head of Product at Surfshark, told TechRadar, adding that the company will assess future releases individually.

"The VPN is our foundation, but our focus is on building an all-in-one security product," Sinkeviciute said.

That tracks. Rivals including NordVPN have been consolidating their security tools into unified suites, as VPN providers push beyond simple traffic encryption. It also reflects a grim reality: US consumers reported losing about $15.9 billion to fraud in 2025, the highest on record and up roughly 27% from $12.5 billion in 2024, according to the FTC.

For now, the takeaway is straightforward — Search is on its way out, scam protection is the priority, and Surfshark says there's more to come.

• Post-quantum encryption is now live on Norton VPN's Mimic and WireGuard
• Rebuilt iOS and Android apps have slashed connect times by more than 50%
• Norton has added 12 new countries across Asia and Africa

Competition for the title of best VPN is fiercer than ever, and Norton is making a strong case for the crown. The cybersecurity veteran has just unveiled the final releases from its first-half 2026 roadmap, delivering a robust mix of future-proofed privacy tools, significantly faster mobile applications, and an expanded global footprint.

The standout feature of this latest rollout is the introduction of post-quantum encryption. This comes alongside improved Software Development Kits (SDKs) for its mobile apps and an expanded server network across Asia and Africa.

At first glance, these releases may appear to be separate features. But for the provider, they all address the same need — customers must count on Norton VPN, wherever they are.

As Himmat Bains, Product Lead at Norton VPN, told TechRadar, post-quantum encryption is crucial to protect users' data from future threats. Faster, more reliable mobile connections mean VPN protection is there exactly when they need it. And coverage in 12 new countries means that more people can connect locally.

"Different problems, same answer — we want this to be the VPN you can simply trust and forget about," said Bains.

Post-quantum ecryption lands on Norton's Mimic and WireGuard

As quantum computing advances, cybersecurity experts have increasingly warned of "harvest now, decrypt later" attacks. This is a tactic where cybercriminals or state actors steal encrypted data today, hoarding it with the intention of cracking it when quantum computers become powerful enough to break traditional encryption standards.

To combat this long-term risk, Norton VPN has upgraded its proprietary Mimic protocol to utilize the ML-KEM-1024 encryption algorithm by default across all platforms.

The company is also rolling out the exact same post-quantum protection to the popular WireGuard protocol on both desktop and mobile devices, ensuring that user traffic remains fully secure against tomorrow's technological threats.

Turbocharging mobile performance

While future-proofing encryption is crucial for long-term privacy, everyday users will immediately feel the benefits of Norton’s revamped mobile experience. The provider has entirely rebuilt its iOS and Android SDKs, the underlying code architecture that powers its mobile applications, from the ground up.

The performance gains are impressive. According to Norton's release notes, the new mobile architecture reduces connection times by more than 50% and connection errors by over 60%. For mobile users who constantly hop between home Wi-Fi, public hotspots, and cellular networks, this means a much smoother, almost instantaneous protective shield.

Just as importantly, this rebuilt framework will allow Norton to ship bug fixes and new features much faster going forward. The overhaul has already paid immediate dividends, leading directly to a rebuilt mobile widget that patches previous usability issues users had been facing.

"

A broader network and a busy 2026

Beyond the apps themselves, Norton is continuing to scale up its physical infrastructure. The provider has added 12 more countries to its network, specifically targeting underserved regions across Asia and Africa.

This expansion brings Norton's total reach to an impressive 102 countries and more than 140 global locations, seamlessly building on the momentum of previous network upgrades earlier this year.

This latest announcement caps off a remarkably busy start to the year for the Norton VPN team.

The provider brought a native Amazon Fire TV app (Fire OS 8 and newer) in March and introduced the industry's first AI-native VPN for Agents in April. It also successfully added Split Tunnelling on Mac in June, joining its Android and Windows counterparts.

Furthermore, WireGuard is now live across Mac, iOS, and tvOS, with a new Pause VPN feature on iOS closing the platform's last functional gap. The company also rolled out 25 Gbps servers across busy cities and added Manual IP Rotation.

"Our goal is simple: deliver a VPN for the masses," Bains told TechRadar, arguing that these releases weren't about shipping a longer list; "it was about closing the gaps customers actually feel."

Looking ahead, Bains confirmed that Norton's second-half roadmap pushes even further, noting that "we'll have third-party audits for the third year launching later in the summer, along with meaningful updates coming to our streaming and performance.

Trust your VPN software updates keep you safe? Believe that downloading the latest release protects you from most known threats?

You might be surprised to learn that there could be a set of invisible vulnerabilities lurking inside your state-of-the-art VPN. That's because more than half of Windows VPNs we analyzed include OpenVPN code that hasn’t been updated in over a year — potentially leaving you exposed to a wide range of security and performance threats.

OpenVPN is a protocol that determines how data is encrypted and routed between a user's device and a VPN server. Thanks to its open-source status, it became the industry's de facto standard, serving as the foundation for many commercial VPN services.

Because OpenVPN is developed as a separate open-source project, however, VPN providers often update their apps while leaving the bundled OpenVPN component unchanged. New interfaces, bug fixes, and major features may arrive regularly, but the code responsible for the fundamental VPN connection may be severely out of date.

Cracking the kernel

This July, we audited 32 Windows VPN clients ranging from established, multinational companies to smaller, older and free apps, to check the OpenVPN version included in their latest release.

The results were shocking. A massive 56% (18 of 32) use an OpenVPN version that is more than a year old, 41% (14) use configurations that are over two years old, 22% (7) rely on code more than four years old. And a terrifying 12.5% (4) use code that is at least five years old.

Not all providers were equal. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many of the best VPNs — including NordVPN, Windscribe and Proton VPN — use OpenVPN releases as recent as April 2026. At the other end of the scale, Turbo VPN and VyprVPN continue to use OpenVPN 2.4.7 from April 2019.

It might seem logical that companies with greater commercial resources are the ones investing more into keeping the app's codebase up to date. But having significantly older versions of the OpenVPN protocol raises significant privacy and security concerns regardless.

A variety of hidden risks

So is this really a big deal?

Marijus Briedis, CTO at NordVPN, tells TechRadar: “Because OpenVPN — like any project — regularly patches vulnerabilities, hardens its codebase, and improves performance, running a version that’s years behind might miss security components that current up-to-date versions offer.”

Jason Xu, senior app developer at Windscribe, argues that previously disclosed vulnerabilities could actually be more serious, precisely because they have been documented. “An attacker doesn’t even need to find a new bug; they can just read the changelog,” he notes.

Indeed, OpenVPN regularly releases Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs): six vulnerabilities were registered in 2025, six in 2024, one in 2023, and one in 2022. This means providers with older versions likely did not adopt the upstream releases containing those fixes.

Of course, the risks have nuances. Running an older version does not necessarily mean an application is vulnerable to every newly discovered flaw. For example, if an older build does not include a feature which later caused a vulnerability, it is unaffected.

Briedis stressed that security can be maintained through other means, including backported patches, vendor fixes, configuration mitigations and/or removing vulnerable functions. However, he said the real concern is when none of those measures are in place and when there’s no visibility into whether they are.

The issues involved can be broad and numerous. Outdated dependencies, like running an older version of OpenSSL, are just some of the potential issues.

There is also a broader maintenance cost. According to Dr. Peter Membrey, Chief Research Officer at ExpressVPN, older versions can become increasingly difficult to integrate with current operating systems and cryptographic libraries. “Being several years behind can indicate a growing body of security, compatibility, and operational debt,” he says.

Ultimately, “the further behind you fall, the harder each upgrade gets,” Xu adds. “That’s the trap. Nobody decides to be five years behind; they just keep saying ‘next quarter’”.

A question of stack

Adopting a new OpenVPN release is a fundamental change requiring compatibility testing across platforms, regression checks, staged rollouts, and validation that nothing breaks in the software stack — a process which often takes months to complete.

Because of that, VPN providers say they are not obliged to adopt every upstream release.

NortonVPN, which is in the process of moving to the cutting-edge OpenVPN version at the moment, explains that each update needs to be assessed and tested carefully to make sure it delivers clear benefits without introducing stability, performance, or compatibility issues for customers.

Indeed, Karolis Kaciulis, Leading System Engineer at Surfshark, agrees that a six-to-18-month delay can be reasonable provided critical vulnerabilities are addressed promptly.

Some VPN providers whose updates date back more than two years have cited specific reasons to justify the delay.

StrongVPN, for example, states that work on its proprietary internal protocol has postponed the planned update to OpenVPN 2.7. Meanwhile, ClearVPN claims to ensure security by applying its own security patches.

Finally, PureVPN states that it is staying with OpenVPN 2.6.12 because it has developed custom technologies based on that version and because OpenVPN 2.7 removes support for the Wintun driver.

Time to DIY

So what can you do? Is it time to shun anyone not using the most recent version of OpenVPN?

Not necessarily. Many providers now use newer protocols like WireGuard by default, which generally benefit from more active maintenance.

In fact, several providers are in the process of phasing out OpenVPN support for faster, more agile protocols.

Proton VPN is one of the providers keeping pace, running one of the most recent OpenVPN builds on its Windows app. However, a spokesperson said that over time, the company "will start to phase out OpenVPN support in our client apps" while retaining the protocol on servers for legacy routers and older devices.

The spokesperson also noted that the protocol is "slow and bloated" in comparison to Proton VPN's Stealth and WireGuard protocols, though OpenVPN remains "robustly secure."

So whether you're using an app with the latest OpenVPN configuration or not, it might be worth switching protocols anyway.

But if you really want to know, you can audit your VPN by checking the client settings, diagnostic logs, or official release notes to confirm which version of OpenVPN your provider is using and when it was last updated.

A key red flag is protocol dependencies that are more than 12 to 18 months old without a documented security or compatibility reason as it may suggest that critical security updates have been delayed.

If you're still unsure, you can always contact your VPN provider's support team to receive more transparent info about timelines for protocol updates and security patches.

Ultimately, the risk to your security may well be limited. However, in the world of VPNs — where attention to detail in regards to security is the currency of providers — one might well ask: “Why not simply support the latest and most secure option?”

Why not indeed…

If you're looking to get ahead for college in the fall, then a VPN is one of the most sensible back-to-school staples to tick off your list now. You're going to spend a lot of time connected to campus Wi-Fi and it's often not as user-friendly as it might seem.

For sure, there can be security concerns when connecting to any form or public network, which a VPN can help with, but its best use at university is to make sure you can access all the content that you usually do at home.

That's because campus Wi-Fi can be very restrictive. These are networks that have to manage huge bandwidth demands, maintain cybersecurity, and also comply with legal requirements.

That means that they often limit access to certain usage-heavy services, and sites and apps that are more in a grey area when it comes to safety and the law. Think video streaming, online gaming and torrenting, for examples, as three activities that you might find curtailed.

But, if you're using a VPN on your device, the campus network in question won't be able to see what internet sites and services you're accessing, so it will be blind to you and your activities.

It will probably be able to see that you're using a VPN, the amount of bandwidth your device is using and what your device is but your online deeds will remain private. So, if you're headed to college this year, you might want to think about getting a VPN.

Right now, IPVanish is a good choice for college students. It does a great job of keeping your digital life private and, just as importantly, it's cheap!

At $2.19 per month, IPVanish is solid, 4-star VPN and is only short of the very best VPNs on features like server count and some streaming service unblocking that's not a priority for this use case.

It does also have a unique privacy feature which may be handy for your browsing too.

IPVanish's Secure Browser is remote browser software that runs on an IPVanish cloud server. The sites and services you then navigate to have no idea about you or your device at all. They only connect with the cloud server.

That means the session cannot be linked with you at all and no trackers, cookies nor anything else can come your way. It also protects you from any malware or any other nasty things that you stumble across. Definitely worth using when you're searching the darker corners of the web.

Along with IPVanish's standard features, that should have you covered for all the college dorm internet use cases you'll have. Give it whirl.

There are some very good and obvious reasons why a VPN should be part of your summer holiday plans.

Anyone who's ever had to rely on crawling hotel Wi-Fi speeds or faced blocks on their regular home streaming services while abroad will understand the frustration, and a VPN is a great solution for both of those.

A VPN will mask your online activities to make sure you can access whatever you like on public Wi-Fi without the network restricting your bandwidth or recording the sites and services you go to.

You can also use a VPN to supply you with an IP address of any country in the world, of course. That means that your device can appear to be connecting from back home and you won't get blocked from accessing iPlayer, Sling or any of your other regular streamers.

All good VPNs offer these things, and for a few dollars a month, it's well worth downloading one for this year's summer vacation.

If you are going to give that a try, then you should have a think about IPVanish. It's a very good VPN – not the best VPN, but a very good one – but the reason it's a good choice for your travels this time is that an IPVanish subscription currently comes with a free eSIM to use for 30 days too.

Compare that to ExpressVPN – the only other recommended VPN company that offers a free eSIM right now. First, ExpressVPN's plans are twice as expensive ($2.19 per month vs $4.49 per month) but, secondly, you only get access to your eSIM for 3 days with ExpressVPN!

Sign up to the IPVanish Essential plan ($2.19 per month) and you'll get 3GB for 30 days. If you go for the Advanced plan ($3.29 per month), then it's 5GB for 30 days.

The other good reason to try Advanced is that it comes with access to a cloud based browser called Secure Browser. This means that you'll do all your browsing and service accessing from IPVanish's cloud servers, instead of your own device, while on shared Wi-Fi networks. There's no way that any restricting network will have any idea of what you're doing and that should mean you're scot-free to access whatever you need with minimal disruptions.

You can read more about IPVanish and Secure Browser here. Have a great vacation and happy travels!

• NordVPN has begun a server-by-server upgrade until the end of 2026
• Every machine gets a newer Linux distribution, kernel, and IP address
• App users should notice little beyond the occasional reconnection

NordVPN has kicked off a months-long overhaul of the software running its VPN servers, a rollout that started in July and will continue, one server at a time, until the end of 2026.

Despite the scale, this isn't a feature update. TechRadar's best VPN pick is replacing the foundations beneath its network: every standard VPN server is moving to a newer Linux distribution, picking up an updated kernel, and getting a reworked software stack.

The one change users can actually see is the addressing. Every upgraded server is issued a new IP, which is harmless if you use the NordVPN app, but a headache if you don't.

A new Linux base for every server

NordVPN frames the work as maintenance rather than a redesign, and is explicit that it won't add features or change how the service behaves. The stated payoff is a more flexible environment for its engineers to automate, maintain, and scale.

Four things are changing: a newer Linux distribution carrying current security fixes, newer kernels, an optimised software stack aimed at server efficiency, and a different IP address on every upgraded machine.

Each server needs a brief reboot to get there, which is less disruptive than it sounds given NordVPN runs a diskless, RAM-only fleet on hardware it owns and colocates in third-party data centres. That architecture has been examined repeatedly in the provider's Deloitte no-logs audits.

What you'll actually notice

Very little, for most people. NordVPN says app users don't need to do anything, and the client will reconnect automatically if the server you're on drops out mid-session. Expect a short interruption while that happens.

Recent releases were built with this in mind. The provider's July Linux release notes describe the app switching you to another server in the same country, city, or group when yours goes offline, with the kill switch standing guard during the handover.

There should be an upside once the dust settles: steadier performance at peak times, more traffic capacity per server, and fewer disruptions down the line.

That builds on April's milestone, when the network passed 100 Tbps of aggregate capacity across 211 locations in 135 countries, with servers deliberately run at roughly a third of their limit to leave headroom.

The exception: manual setups

If you connect manually, using OpenVPN config files on a router, a NAS, or a bare Linux box, your setup will stop working once the server it points at has been upgraded.

The fix is easy but not automatic — download replacement config files from the manual setup area of your Nord Account once the server is back online, then swap out the old ones. NordVPN says the new files carry a "Verified" badge so you can tell which are current.

• ExpressVPN has launched passkey sign-in for passwordless logins
• Passkeys are more resistant to phishing, but passwords remain a backup
• The feature arrives as part of a redesigned ExpressVPN+ dashboard

One of the best VPN providers is retiring the password, at least as a requirement.

ExpressVPN has added passkey sign-in, giving users a way to get into their account without typing anything at all.

Instead of a password, you sign in using the screen lock already on your device, such as a fingerprint or face scan. That means nothing extra to remember and nothing to key in each time.

The change was announced on Tuesday (July 21) and is part of a wider redesign of the ExpressVPN+ dashboard, which the company is turning into a single home for your entire subscription.

What is new in ExpressVPN+

ExpressVPN+ now supports passkeys, so you can reach your account without entering a password. The company notes this can make life easier when you are setting the VPN up on a new device.

The redesigned dashboard sits behind that login. Rather than hopping between separate apps and account pages, you get one view of what is protecting you, which products you have set up, and anything that needs attention.

Depending on your ExpressVPN plans and regions, ExpressVPN says it can pull in insights from tools like ExpressKeys and Identity Defender, and you can also buy and manage holiday.com travel eSIMs from the same place.

How passkeys work, and why they are safer

A passkey swaps your password for a pair of cryptographic keys. The public key lives on the service's server while the private key stays locked on your device, and no shared secret ever travels across the network for an attacker to intercept.

That design is what makes passkeys resistant to phishing: there is no password to trick you out of, and the credential only works on the genuine ExpressVPN sign-in page.

It is an approach Apple, Google, and Microsoft have all backed, and one ExpressVPN has already brought to its ExpressKeys password manager.

To enable one, sign in to your ExpressVPN account, select your profile in the top-right corner, choose Account & Billing, and follow the prompts to add a passkey.

If you use ExpressKeys, you can save the passkey there alongside your other logins. And if you would rather stick with what you know, your password will keep working as another way in.

• Proton VPN's Stealth protocol is now available in beta for Linux GUI users
• The obfuscation feature disguises VPN traffic to better evade censorship
• It is currently supported on Debian, Ubuntu, and Fedora distros

In a major win for open-source enthusiasts, Proton VPN has officially launched its proprietary Stealth protocol in beta for Linux. Known for being one of the best VPN services on the market, the Swiss provider is continuing its push to bring the Linux experience up to par with its Windows and Mac counterparts.

Announced on its official Reddit account, the release introduces powerful obfuscation capabilities to the platform. In simple terms, the Stealth protocol makes your VPN connection look like regular, unencrypted internet traffic, allowing you to bypass aggressive internet blocks and firewalls in highly censored regions.

Speaking directly to TechRadar, the Proton VPN team confirmed the rollout, noting the strong demand from the open-source community. "Our Linux community has been vocal about their desire to receive Stealth protocol support, and we're pleased to now make this a reality," a Proton spokesperson said.

Being a beta release means that users may encounter instability and bugs. That's why Proton encourages users to report any issues. "We welcome as much user feedback as possible," Proton told TechRadar.

Proton also confirms that Stealth is only available on the Debian, Ubuntu, and Fedora distros at the moment, with more coming by the end of the summer. If you are looking to test the feature today, it is worth noting that it is currently limited to the Proton VPN Linux GUI (graphical user interface) app.

Flying under the radar: Why Stealth matters for Linux

Authoritarian governments, restrictive internet service providers (ISPs), and strict workplace network administrators frequently use a technique called Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) to detect and block VPN traffic.

Standard VPN protocols, like OpenVPN and WireGuard, have distinct cryptographic signatures. Even if your data is securely encrypted, DPI can analyze the metadata of your connection, spot those signatures, and immediately cut your access to the broader web.

Obfuscated servers, like those utilized by Proton's Stealth protocol, strip away this identifying metadata. By wrapping the connection to make it look like standard HTTPS web traffic, Stealth effectively hides the fact that you are using a VPN in the first place.

As Proton notes, "Linux users now have an effective, straightforward way to disguise their VPN traffic. The Stealth protocol helps avoid Deep Packet Inspection, and makes it harder for a VPN to be detected and blocked."

Stealth protocol is now available in beta on Linux from r/ProtonVPN

The Stealth beta release is part of a much broader strategy to revamp Proton's offerings for Linux.

Over the past year, we have seen the provider promise a complete Linux makeover, bringing parity across its desktop clients. Since then, the company has delivered official one-click installs to the Snap store, introduced better stability updates, and most recently, expanded its capabilities with a new split-tunneling feature.

Bringing Stealth to Linux fulfills one of the major promises Proton made earlier this year. It also reaffirms that users running open-source operating systems aren't left behind when it comes to vital anti-censorship tools.

While CLI (Command Line Interface) users will have to wait a little longer, this GUI beta is a massive step forward for digital freedom.

Beware of low-price or early stock Samsung Galaxy pre-orders after the July 22 Galaxy Unpacked 2026 event. They might be too good to be true.

Scammers will be praying on those looking for stocks of the just-announced Flip 8 and Fold 8 handsets and anyone looking for a cut-price deal or an early release unit should watch where they browse.

There will be fake shops out there ready to take your money, your identity and maybe drop you some malware all at the same time.

There are some simple things you can do before you buy, though. Check the URL of the store you're in. It may look like one you know but AI has made it incredibly easy to create and clone pages that look legitimate.

If you don't recognise the store and it's offering a Samsung Galaxy deal or Flip and Fold 8 stock that you can't find anywhere else, then it's very likely a scam.

There are free tools you can use, such as link checkers from the likes of Google and NordVPN. These will, analyse the page before you have to click on the link, and will let you know if the page has been compromised in any way, i.e. if there is any malware or phishing attacks waiting on the other side.

They're excellent in any situation where you're not sure about a link you're looking at or have been sent.

To keep yourself super safe, though, an extra layer of protection is advisable. There are browsers that can keep your more secure but it's hard to beat a browser that isn't even on your device in the first place.

IPVanish is a VPN that comes with a unique feature called Secure Browser which does just this. It's cloud-based software that you connect to from your device and then use to go online.

Because the browser isn't actually on your phone or laptop, it means that any site or service you access has no knowledge of you or your device at all. It can't follow you with trackers or cookies and it can't upload any malware or nasty code because it can't see you at all.

Combine that with the link checker and you'll avoid getting taken in by the fake shops and scams.

IPVanish is one of the VPNs we recommend. It's cheap, at $2.19 per month, and comes with a fast and wide spread server network which means you'll get good internet connection speeds when using it, and will be able to use an IP address that makes you appear to be in almost any country in the world.

There are more high spec, and more expensive, VPNs out there but you won't find any with a feature like Secure Browser too.

Do take a look at IPVanish if you want to add a little more safety to your surfing, and please be careful when you're searching for deals at any big events like Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2026.

• PIA rolls out phased network upgrades, urging users to update their apps
• Updates are aimed at routing, capacity, and everyday reliability
• It has been since 2024 that PIA hasn't released a substantial app update

Private Internet Access (PIA) has just announced network infrastructure updates rolling out across parts of its system, and is asking users to update their apps to get the full benefit.

The changes are less about flashy new features and more about the plumbing: routing, capacity, and the day-to-day reliability of staying connected. PIA says the latest app versions include logic built to work with the upgraded backend as it rolls out region by region.

The announcement comes after a long quiet period from PIA. It has been since 2024 that the provider hasn't released a substantial app update.

While it remains a strong pick among the best VPN services thanks to rock-bottom pricing, deep customization, and a repeatedly audited no-logs record, its pace of visible improvement had lagged behind rivals like NordVPN and Surfshark.

What PIA is actually changing

As described in a blog post, the update centers on three practical improvements.

The first is smarter automatic reconnections. PIA's teams routinely take VPN servers offline for maintenance, and older app versions sometimes left users with dropped connections or manual reconnects. The refreshed logic is designed to ride out maintenance more smoothly and cut avoidable interruptions.

The second targets a persistent user gripe: CAPTCHAs. Because large VPNs funnel many people through shared IP addresses, websites often flag that traffic and throw up endless verification prompts.

The company says it has made routing and IP-management changes to distribute traffic more evenly, which may cut those challenges, though whether a site decides to throw a CAPTCHA at you or not is ultimately out of PIA's hands.

The third improvement concerns location accuracy. PIA has updated parts of its localization data so selected locations line up more accurately with the region you chose, meaning more relevant local search results and other regional content.

A phased rollout

These upgrades are not landing everywhere at once. PIA describes the rollout as phased, with some locations already on the newer platform and others still being migrated.

That is why it is nudging everyone to update now, as keeping your app current ensures you benefit the moment the improvements reach your region.

The latest versions span Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and tvOS, available through the App Store, Google Play, or a direct download from PIA's site.

Does it address the criticism?

Such a substantial update is a meaningful, if measured, step from PIA. Still, it doesn't touch the areas where PIA has slipped most against rivals. These include raw speed — where our latest testing recorded a notable drop — and streaming unblocking, which has grown patchier.

That said, the provider's core strengths remain intact, including its large US server footprint, open-source apps, port forwarding, and a no-logs policy Deloitte has now verified across three audits.

For existing subscribers, the takeaway is simple: update the app for steadier connections and possibly fewer verification loops.

For anyone weighing PIA against the competition, these updates smooth over some rough edges without changing the wider calculation. It remains one of the best-value, most customizable VPNs around, just one still with ground to make up on speed.

• Surfshark adds thousands of servers to its FastTrack optimisation feature
• The technology now spans over 2.000 servers
• The VPN is gathering user feedback for further expansion

It was August 2025 when Surfshark told TechRadar that it would expand its custom-built FastTrack technology — its feature designed to optimise VPN traffic routing — and we’re pleased to confirm that it has kept its word.

In a recent post shared on X, Surfshark announced that it has upgraded its infrastructure, making the technology available on more than half of its servers across all continents.

In practical terms, this means that FastTrack, which promises speeds 70% faster than even the best VPNs, is now available on around 50% of its current network of 4.500 servers. If you’re a user, chances are it’s already available in your city too; just check for the FastTrack icon in the server list to find out.

A wide network upgrade

FastTrack is an optimization feature that Surfshark uses on part of its server network.

Rather than simply routing the user via a single virtual private network (VPN) path to connect to a server, FastTrack's algorithm calculates the actual latency values detected within its network to identify the fastest route to that specific VPN server.

Specifically, globally distributed probes run speed tests, measure latency, and save the results to determine the best-performing route for a user located in a specific country who needs to access a specific VPN location.

The system differs from traditional systems, where a server establishes a direct connection with the VPN server, and traffic follows the available route. With FastTrack, all network nodes are constantly monitored. Something that allows the system to continuously select the optimal connection.

Karolis Kaciulis, Leading System Engineer at Surfshark, claims these calculations optimise routes regardless of their geographical location. "For example, if a longer path can actually enhance performance due to better conditions, as it uses more advanced routers or higher-capacity cables, FastTrack will select it."

While the feature was initially limited to just three servers (Sydney, Seattle, and Vancouver), Surfshark has now converted more than 2.000 of its exit nodes to FastTrack, allowing users to connect to a much wider range of new servers that can benefit from the same speed boost.

The expansion seems almost a natural progression and follows the VPN provider’s announcement in October 2025 regarding a massive expansion — both in quantity and quality — of its global server network.

Last year, Surfshark indeed released another innovative self-healing VPN tool, Everlink. The feature aims to ensure connection stability even in the event of serious malfunctions or service interruptions.

More than speed

Of course, speed is obviously the main advantage of FastTrack, but using FastTrack also brings additional benefits, Surfshark claims.

For example, it ensures a significant reduction in routing errors, as one of the key features of Nexus — Surfshark’s routing infrastructure — is precisely its redundancy.

Indeed, as Nexus offers multiple routes within the network, if one route encounters a problem, traffic can be automatically redirected via another available route, thereby helping to prevent interruptions or slowdowns.

Surfshark also claims that FastTrack improves the VPN service overall, as it operates on a different data center network from traditional ISPs, naturally reducing the likelihood of throttling or various network limitations.

So, are there any drawbacks to this unique technology? Probably the most pressing issue currently is that it is only available on Surfshark’s VPN app for Mac and iOS platforms. These limitations have already prompted some users online to call for an Android version as well.

"We are connecting user feedback to help determine where to expand next," a Surfshark spokesperson told TechRadar, fuelling hopes that new updates are already on the way.

In the past year I've spent tens of hours streaming with VPNs, and one thing is consistently problematic for even the best VPNs — live events.

So, if you're traveling and keen to catch BBC's coverage of England vs Argentina later this evening instead, you might think you're stuck. Thankfully, NordVPN proved to be the one streaming VPN I tested that consistently performed well in these scenarios.

Over the past year, I've used NordVPN with Peacock, BBC iPlayer, TNT Sports, ITVX, and 7Plus. And compared to any other VPN, it's proved the most effective.

I experienced the least delayed streams, the least buffering, and, most importantly, the fewest complete connection dropouts when using NordVPN. So, while cheaper alternatives such as Norton VPN and Surfshark exist, if you want the most reliable performance, this is where I'd put my money.

If you don't want a long term commitment, you could always choose to pick a monthly plan. For $15, you can watch the rest of the tournament and gain all the additional security benefits that come with a VPN.

You don't need NordVPN's most advanced features to watch England with a VPN. That's a good thing, as right now its premium plans are considerably more expensive than many other providers.

With long term plans, Surfshark plans start at $2.49/month, a full dollar cheaper per month; the same goes for Norton VPN. If you're really budget-focused, both PIA and Cyberghost are less than $1.60 per month right now, too.

But, should you choose a NordVPN Plus plan or above, you do get some great perks. NordPass, the best password manager we've tested, cloud storage, dark web monitoring, and more are on offer.

It's worth mentioning that buying the more premium plans monthly will set you back at least $20, so I'd recommend signing up for a longer duration if you prefer these extra features.