The company has a large and diverse collection of server location and a robust set of security features backed by a strong stance on privacy. Its app is easy to use, and the company offers a generous seven simultaneous connections. The company also smartly emphasizes the importance of video streaming.
CyberGhost VPN Review: A Well-Rounded VPN for Everyone
A Smart Rules panel is far more useful, and gives you an unusual level of control over how the client works. Right-clicking CyberGhost’s system tray icon also displays all the available servers, with submenus for torrenting, streaming and your favorites. You can opt to choose, switch and close connections without ever bothering with the main client interface. If you just can’t live without watching the latest episode of your favorite series while traveling, a VPN can help you access your content as if you were in your own family room. Even though you’re on the go, some VPNs allow you to select a server in your home country.
Unlike its competitors which allow you to turn on/off the kill switch, CyberGhost gives no such option – its kill switch is always on by default. CyberGhost is a capable VPN service with a highly configurable Windows client, packed with features yet still easy to use. The mobile clients are much more ordinary, but there’s still plenty to like here, from Netflix and iPlayer unblocking to low three-year prices and helpful live chat support.
Most of these you won’t need to touch, but I like that they’re there. You can change VPN location from the pulldown menu beneath the connection button. Tap the graph icon and you can see some real-time analytics about your connection. Clicking the yellow tab on the lower left of the window expands the Settings panel.
In some cases, this means annoying targeted ads that pop up on your screen, but with some free VPNs, you might have to deal with the consequences of bad encryption or even privacy breaches. Most free VPNs just have limited data plans (so no torrenting) or a slow connection (so no Netflix), to give users an incentive for upgrading to a paid service. Although Hotspot Shield has 3,200+ servers in 70+ countries, the free version only gives you access to the US virtual location. You will be blocked by a Premium Payment Wall if you try to access streaming content with the VPN enabled. With all of ProtonVPN’s free users connected to one of just three locations, its servers are often overloaded and your connection speed could be slow.
CyberGhost keeps its status page up to date, so if you experience issues, you can always check to see if there’s a problem. Additionally, keep in mind that when using CyberGhost VPN, your connection is anonymized and offshored, so some location-restricted services may not be available.
While you can find some good free VPNs, even the safest free services can’t compete with low-cost premium VPNs. A premium service offers the best security, as well as streaming and torrenting support.
The apps are equipped with the kill switch – a valuable mechanism that blocks your device’s access to the Internet as soon as it detects an unexpected VPN connection loss. This way it prevents your sensitive data from ending up in the wrong hands.
I used speedtest.net to measure my speeds while connected to the VPNs, keeping only the services that were fast enough for streaming and torrenting. VPNs work by masking your IP address and routing your internet traffic through a server in a different location to your own. If this server is based in the same country as the Netflix service you wish to use, the VPN will bypass any geo-restrictionsby tricking Netflix into thinking you’re in that country. For its part, CyberGhost offers static IP addresses and provides ad blocking through its VPN connection, as well as blocking malicious content.
A company representative told me that the CyberGhost not only does not log user activity, it also does not know the identity of the customers connected to a given server. The company does monitor server CPU load, available memory, the amount of server bandwidth used, and other metadata. CyberGhost is also among the heaviest hitters when it comes to number of servers, offering an impressive 5,900.
The big catch is that it does all this at an above-average cost. The company does appear to collect information regarding connection attempts and successes, but only in aggregate form.
A deeper settings menu has a collection of surprisingly advanced security features. You can, for example, have CyberGhost connect via a random port, change the VPN protocol used by the app, and block IPv6 connections, to name a few.
Client setup
- While you can find some good free VPNs, even the safest free services can’t compete with low-cost premium VPNs.
- A premium service offers the best security, as well as streaming and torrenting support.
CyberGhost has servers specially designated for video streaming services, which can be handy if you find yourself blocked off from your favorite shows. A VPN is an enormously powerful tool for securing your online life, and CyberGhost is one of the best VPNs on the market. It makes a smart emphasis on video streaming, but backs that focus with rarely seen privacy features and a large network of servers and server locations. The service is built for users who just want secure, private access when connected from public or untrusted networks.
Check the Terms of Services for your VPN and streaming website, and the laws of the country where you are travelling to determine If your use presents a risk. While virtual private networks may conjure images of illegal activities and mysterious figures on the dark web, in reality VPNs are currently legal to use in many countries, including the U.S. Some VPNs encrypt your connection to the internet, disguise your IP address, and prevent others, like the government or internet service providers (ISPs), from tracking your virtual whereabouts. IP address, the types of sites you visit, etc.- the exact thing VPNs are meant to protect you from. In addition to privacy issues you would want to hide your IP, you may experience slow browsing speed, unstable connections, data usage caps, and outdated encryption.
A powerful and full-featured VPN from a popular privacy provider
And, unlike most free VPNs, premium VPNs offer you unlimited data and bandwidth. You’ll be able to access more servers and enjoy faster connections.
I appreciate CyberGhost’s quick action on this issue; it shows that the company is serious about even small threats to user privacy. , which while functional, is known to disconnect randomly and experience intermittent connectivity issues.
CyberGhost may not claim the victory in most sections, but it still has plenty to offer. With much better results on the New York and Los Angeles servers, NordVPN proves the faster VPN for browsing, streaming, and downloading in the US. CyberGhost isn’t necessarily slow here, but it obviously takes a bigger toll on your connection. This may lead to buffering issues if you have several streams opened at the same time. As with any free service, you have to pay for it in some way.
What Is a VPN?
Is CyberGhost safe?
CyberGhost is a capable VPN service with an exceptionally powerful Windows client, packed with features and yet still user-friendly. The mobile clients aren’t quite on that level, but they are decent enough, and there’s still plenty to like here, from Netflix unblocking through to quality and speedy live chat support.
“Free” isn’t completely free when it comes to accessing blocked websites through free VPNs and proxies. These services actually allow malicious third-parties to snoop through your personal data, or, even worse, let others use your internet connection to conduct illegal activities on the web. You might have noticed how most streaming services are blocked abroad or not yet available in your country. The most common solutions to bypass such geo-restrictions are proxies and VPNs, since they reroute your traffic to make it appear as if you’re located somewhere else.
Such servers are hardly available, usually the regular servers offer only 1 Gbit connections. If we would decrease too much the number of simultaneously users per server, this would no longer be financially viable on one hand, and on the other hand the anonymity level would have to suffer. CyberGhost’s OpenVPN configuration is not compatible with your Internet connection (different packet sizes). If that’s the case, there should be the same problem on all servers and at all times.
NordVPN is the only other service to break 5,000 servers, while ExpressVPN, Hotspot Shield VPN, Private Internet Access VPN, and TorGuard VPN are the only ones to break 3,000. More servers doesn’t mean the service is better, but it can be helpful. If you absolutely need a VPN connection to a specific geographic location, having more servers means a better chance of finding an uncrowded one in the region you desire. If you’re a fan of BitTorrent, you’ll be glad to know that CyberGhost allows BitTorrent and P2P file sharing via VPN and the appropriate servers that allow torrenting are marked in the app.
CyberGhost’s apps seem to make life much easier by highlighting locations which support the services you need. In most cases, VPNs will limit your data, bandwidth, connection speed, available server locations, and even block you from streaming services. And this is why I’ve researched so many; the list you’re about to read has only secure FREE VPNs, with no hidden costs, risks, or headaches. In my testing, I used the DNS Leak Test tool, and discovered that the VPN server appeared to be leaking my information. I contacted CyberGhost who were already aware of the problem, and reported that they believed it to be an issue with Windows and resolving DNS requests.
It also has the option to enforce the use of HTTPS, which I particularly like. Notably, TunnelBear also provides ad blocking but does it through a stand-alone browser plug-in, which provides more options for users than unseen blocking.
What is CyberGhost used for?
CyberGhost is a well-rounded VPN service that offers everything a typical user needs. It supports safe and fast torrenting, streaming of content and playing online games that are restricted in some parts of the world, as well as overall strong security features.
For example, using such a services allows someone in England to access Pandora, or a user in Canada to use British BBC iPlayer. A server on which are connected for example 50 persons and each of them wants to download with 50 Mbit/s, must be able to handle at least 2,4 Gbit/s user data. But the TCP/IP protocol used on the Internet adds another “Overhead”,so in practice, the measurements have shown that a 1 Gbit fastened server reaches approx. Therefore in order to transmit 2,4 Gbit/s user data, the server must be equipped with a 5 Gbit connection.