App Caution: Avoid Keeping These Applications on Your Smartphone (iPhone or Android)
High-Risk Free VPN Apps to Avoid on iPhone and Android
In the digital age, protecting personal data is paramount. However, a recent concern has emerged about the security of free VPN apps, with some of these apps potentially compromising user privacy and sending data to servers in China.
Google and Apple, the tech giants behind the Play Store and App Store respectively, have stated their commitment to compliance with applicable laws and policies. Yet, the Tech Transparency Project has reported a threat to data privacy, warning that these app stores continue to offer private browsing apps that are surreptitiously owned by Chinese companies.
The high-risk free VPN apps to avoid on iPhone and Android, as reported by the Tech Transparency Project and corroborated by other experts, are those free VPNs that steal user data and send it to servers in China. While none of the provided sources list specific app names by these organizations, a broader cybersecurity consensus warns that many popular free VPN apps without privacy transparency fall into this category and should be deleted immediately.
The Tech Transparency Project and Top10VPN (though specific lists were not found in the search results) typically flag free VPN apps with the following risks:
- Secretly sending sensitive user data to foreign servers, especially in China.
- Extensive user tracking.
- Potentially selling data to third-party brokers.
- Lack of transparency and poor privacy practices.
In contrast, the trustworthy VPNs recommended for iPhone and Android tend to be paid or reputable free versions with strong privacy policies, such as ExpressVPN, NordVPN, Proton VPN Free, PrivadoVPN Free, Windscribe Free, Hide.me Free, and Surfshark (paid, good value).
The key takeaway is to avoid free VPN apps from unknown or unvetted providers, especially those reported or suspected of data theft or surveillance practices. Instead, choose VPNs with proven privacy credentials, ideally paid versions or free ones with transparent policies and no data-selling.
To ensure safety, users are advised to steer clear from any free VPN that has suspicious permissions, excessive tracking, or unclear ownership, as many such apps have been flagged recently for data leakage and suspicion of sending data to China.
In other news, Microsoft is offering free Windows downloads, but a deadline is approaching. Meanwhile, VPNs are being used to bypass porn bans, despite failing to circumvent TikTok's U.S. ban in January. James Maude, a cybersecurity expert, warns that users seeking privacy are potentially unknowingly feeding data to a foreign nation state through free VPNs. The Tech Transparency Project warned in a report that millions of Americans have downloaded apps that secretly route their internet traffic through Chinese companies.
- Google and Apple, the giants in the technology industry, have warned users about the potential risks of using free VPN apps, as these apps could compromise user privacy and send data to servers in China, posing a threat in cybersecurity and data-and-cloud-computing sectors.
- In the finance and banking-and-insurance sectors, it's crucial to avoid free VPN apps with suspicious permissions, excessive tracking, or unclear ownership, as these apps could lead to data leakage and suspicion of sending data to foreign servers, especially in China.
- Despite the use of VPNs to bypass porn bans, a cybersecurity expert, James Maude, warns that users seeking privacy through free VPNs may unwittingly feed their data to foreign nation states, a concern that was also highlighted in a report by the Tech Transparency Project, which stated that millions of Americans have downloaded apps that secretly route their internet traffic through Chinese companies.
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