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ZDNET's key takeaways
An analysis of 800 free VPNs reveals serious security issues.
Dangerous behaviors were also found, including strange permission requests.
These findings remind us why choosing a reputable free VPN provider is crucial.
New research has revealed serious flaws in approximately 800 free VPNs that could compromise your device, security, and privacy.
VPNs are crucial security tools that provide users with a layer of encryption and IP masking to keep data secure and to mitigate the risk of users being monitored online. However, VPN users place a lot of trust in these services -- and if the provider does not maintain strong security practices, it negates the point of using a VPN in the first place.
Also: Best VPN services in 2025
There are only a few free VPNs around that seem to care about the security of their users and do not employ shady data collection practices or conduct malicious activities -- and this appears to now have backing from zLabs' latest research.
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