VPN.ac is a lesser-known VPN service based in Romania. It claims to be the fastest and most secure among the other providers on the internet. It is a decent service with high encryption and many excellent features.
Although VPN.ac is a competitive service, some major loopholes raise questions about privacy. The VPN logs the user’s IP address for 24 hours and is deleted after the session. This is a major privacy concern for security risk.
Besides, the VPN has limited servers, and the refund policy is also pretty confusing. As every service has pros and cons, we decided to review VPN.ac. We tested the VPN to see if it’s compatible with other premium services. Read further to know more about the VPN.
Who owns VPN.ac?
VPN.ac is owned by Netsec Interactive Solutions, an IT security company. It is based in Romania, and the company’s main focus is online privacy and security. Fortunately, Netsec holds a clear record of providing security solutions to users. The company was started in 2009, and later in 2012, it launched its VPN service by the name VPN.ac.
What does it offer?
VPNs are privacy tools that offer security by encrypting users’ data. However, besides security, VPNs also offer other features that help stream, torrent, and perform other activities. But with hundreds of VPN providers on the internet and all claiming to be the best, it’s quite hard to find the right VPN.
VPN.ac is a small Romania-based VPN provider with limited servers and streaming support. It is known for working in China and bypassing firewalls with ease. However, its logging policy is a little concerning. This review will explore all corners of VPN.ac; read further to learn more.
- Online privacy: it has AES-256-bit encryption which prevents ISP throttling and offers maximum security.
- Jurisdiction: it is based in Romania, which is free from data retention laws and is a safe country.
- No-log policy: the VPN follows a no-log policy but still keeps more logs than other VPN services.
- Streaming: it supports streaming sites and can also unblock Netflix.
- Torrenting and P2P: the VPN is suitable for torrenting and offers a fast download speed.
- Gaming: users can play and unblock games using VPN.ac. It also prevents DDOS attacks and decreases ping time.
- Tor Browser: it offers average compatibility with the Tor browser.
This review aims to provide customers with authentic and legitimate information about VPN.ac. We reviewed the VPN by researching online forums, reading users’ experiences, and then using the VPN to cross-check the gathered information. We tested the VPN through various speed and security tests. This review will help you know more about VPN.ac and what it offers.
Privacy and Security
VPNs are supposed to provide security; every VPN service offers unique security features. Along with these features, they offer advanced encryption, tunneling protocols, and other basic features like Kill Switch, etc. we will discuss the privacy and security features offered by VPN.ac and their performance;
- Private DNS: the VPN uses its private DNS servers, which offer higher speeds and better security.
- Double-hop: Your data is traveled through two VPN servers for extra privacy.
- Leak protection: it prevents your IP, WebRTC, and DNS from leaking.
- DNS filtering: it is a built-in ad and malware blocker that is supposed to block intrusive ads and malicious ads.
- Perfect forward secrecy: your encryption key is changed after each VPN session for maximum privacy.
- Kill switch: it prevents IP leaks during connection drops by disconnecting your internet connection.
- Obfuscation technology: this technology helps in bypassing censorship in restricted countries like China.
Although these features seem quite promising, there is a downside. The DNS filtering cannot unblock ads completely, the Kill Switch decreases the internet speed, and the Split tunneling feature is only available for Android devices. Well, this was our evaluation of VPN.ac; continue reading to know more about the service.
Jurisdiction
VPN.ac is based in Romania, a European country. Although most European countries have data retention laws, Romania disregarded these laws. Moroever, it is the only country where data retention laws are considered illegal.
This makes the country an ideal place for a VPN jurisdiction. It is a privacy-friendly and safe county that allows VPN.ac to manage a no-log policy. So the users have nothing to worry about regarding their privacy with VPN.ac.
Log policy
It is essential for a VPN service to ensure users about their logging policies. What logs do they keep, and what are their terms and conditions? VPN.ac claims to keep no logs of users’ activity and states that they do not share users’ personal information with third parties. We checked their logging policy, and this is what the VPN service logs;
- Email address.
- IP address.
- Payment information.
- Bandwidth usage.
- Session time outs.
This is more information logged by VPN.ac than needed. Logging a user’s IP addresses is a major concern, and also, they log session timeouts which raises questions as to why VPN.ac needs this information.
Another quite alarming thing is that VPN.ac states, “We do not cooperate with any requests for information unless we are ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction.” This shows that if the court ever asks VPN.ac to share user data, they will! So if complete privacy is your top priority, VPN.ac is not the right choice.
Past Records
Fortunately, we found no history of VPN.ac. It is a secure service that started in 2012 and is working under the parent company Netsec Interactive Solutions, based in Romania. Moreover, Romania has declared Europe’s mandatory data retention laws unconstitutional, which is a major pro for VPN.ac users as they do not have to worry about their data security.
Encryption
Encryption plays a vital role in securing your data; VPN providers often brag about using robust encryption to demonstrate the security of their service. Encryption ciphers change the data into incomprehensible codes to increase privacy and prevent data breaches.
VPN.ac uses AES-GCM 256-bit encryption along with a 4096-bit RSA authentication key. This is also known as advanced encryption used by the government and military. Besides, VPN.ac also uses SHA512 HMAC and PFS for maximum privacy.
VPN protocols
Tunneling protocols decide how your data will travel. They are responsible for speed and connection time. VPN.ac offers various tunneling protocols for its users to choose from; these protocols can be used for different purposes, such as;
- KEv2: it is suitable for mobile users and ideal for establishing connections between cellular and wifi internet.
- L2TP: it is good for fast speed and offers reliable security.
- OpenVPN (TCP/UDP): an easy-to-use and secure protocol. The UDP is faster, while the TCP is more secure.
- PPTP: it offers robust security while aired with AES-GCM-256 encryption.
- WireGuard: it provides fast speed and offers robust security.
However, the WireGuard protocol is not available for macOS. While all the other tools can be used according to need. Some are more focused on speed, while others’ priority is security.
Streaming
Streaming online websites is not as easy as it sounds; you will encounter numerous issues such as ISP throttling, geo-restrictions, bandwidth limitations, etc. However, using a VPN can easily help overcome these issues. We tried VPN.ac to see if it’s compatible with streaming sites, and this is how it went;
- Prevents ISP throttling: the high encryption rate prevents ISP throttling, and there were no lags while streaming.
- Kill switch: it disconnects the device’s internet connection when the VPN connection is dropped to prevent IP leaks.
- Split-tunneling: users can choose which app gets routed through VPN servers and which travels through the regular network.
- Netflix: US, Canada, Sweden, Germany, and Japan.
- Disney+: US, Canada, and Japan.
- HBO NOW, BBC iPlayer, and Amazon Prime Video: Blocked
Netflix
Netflix is a well-known streaming site that has different regional libraries. These libraries have unique streaming content for every region. However, as the sites apply geo-blocks, users cannot access them outside the region. So if you want to access the Netflix US library, your IP must show your location as the United States.
We used VPN.ac to unblock the Netflix US library, and luckily it worked. The VPN unblocked Netflix right away, and the quality was HD. We connected to the US server and enabled the Kill Switch for added privacy. Moroever, we also tried connecting to other servers, but they weren’t as efficient in unblocking the site and kept giving errors. Overall, it was a seamless experience with no lags and high quality.
How I set up VPN.ac for Netflix;
- Install and launch the VPN.ac app.
- Register yourself and create an account.
- Enable the Kill Switch from the settings.
- Select the WireGuard protocol for fast speed.
- Choose a server of the region you want to access Netflix from.
- Open the Netflix app or open the site on your browser.
- Start streaming!
Users must have a Netflix subscription to unblock the site.
Disney+
Disney+ is another popular streaming platform with amazing content, but unfortunately, it also applies geo-restrictions. It is available in restricted regions, and to access the site, we tried accessing it with VPN.ac.
The VPN easily unblocked Disney+ with US and Japan servers. The picture quality was HD, and the homepage loaded quickly. There were no lags, and the VPN kept us protected throughout streaming. Like Netflix, we enabled the Kill Switch and used the WireGuard protocol for fast speed.
How I set up VPN.ac for Disney+;
- Install and launch the VPN.ac app.
- Register yourself and create an account.
- Enable the Kill Switch from the settings.
- Select the WireGuard protocol.
- Open the Disney+ streaming site or download their app.
- Start streaming!
Now enjoy streaming without geo-restrictions.
Torrenting.
Torrenting is a risky task, and in many countries, it is prohibited. If you perform torrenting and your ISP catches you doing the prohibited act, you can be charged with strict penalties. That’s why many users opt for a VPN while torrenting. VPN.ac is a reliable and secure service with various security features such as;
- Double-hop: Your data is traveled through two VPN servers for extra privacy.
- Leak protection: it prevents your IP, WebRTC, and DNS from leaking.
- Kill switch: it disconnects the device’s internet connection when the VPN connection is dropped to prevent IP leaks.
Setting up VPN.ac is quite easy; just choose your subscription plan and log in. We enabled the Kill Switch and Split tunneling features for fast speed and security. After that, open the torrent client, and the file will be downloaded in a few minutes.
VPN.ac support torrenting on all of its servers and allow P2P sharing. The speed is good; users can easily download files within 3-4 minutes. Moreover, the VPN has a no-log policy, so you do not have to worry about risking your privacy either. However, one thing about the VPN is that it logs users’ IP addresses. So it’s not the best choice for safe torrenting.
Gaming.
Gaming on VPNac is not the best choice; the speed is good enough for gaming. Moroever, we experienced a few lags while gaming, and compared to other VPNs VPNac is not in our recommendation for gaming VPNs. It does provide the following features, which help in gaming.
- Kill switch: it disconnects the device’s internet connection when the VPN connection is dropped to prevent IP leaks.
- Obfuscation technology: it helps in bypassing geo-blocks in restricted regions.
We set up the VPN by logging in to our account and enabling the Kill Switch. Then we opened our game, and luckily, VPNac unblocked it, but the speed wasn’t satisfactory. It kept lagging and, overall not a good option for gaming.
Tor.
VPNac is a safe choice for securing your data and IP while browning on the Tor. it has many security features that can help in protecting your privacy, such as;
- Double-hop: Your data is traveled through two VPN servers for extra privacy.
- Leak protection: it prevents your IP, WebRTC, and DNS from leaking.
- Perfect forward secrecy: your encryption key is changed after each VPN session for maximum privacy.
- Kill switch: it prevents IP leaks during connection drops by disconnecting your internet connection.
We used VPNac with Tor Browser by connecting to a nearby server for fast speed. The speed was good, and there were no IP or DNS leaks, thanks to its leak protection. We also enabled the Kill Switch and Double Hop for maximum privacy. In short, VPNac is compatible with Tor Browser.
Pricing and Money back guarantee.
VPN.ac offers four pricing plans with a 7-day money-back guarantee.
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| 1 month | $9 |
| 3 months | $24 |
| 1 year | $58 |
| 2 years | $90 |
Payment methods;
- PayPal.
- Bitcoin and various altcoins.
- Credit cards.
- Alipay.
- 100+ US gift cards.
- Mobile/SMS options.
- Others.
It also offers a one-week trial for only $2. But with it, you only get 3 device connections, which is not worth considering. Also, unlike other services, there is no free version or free trial.
Customer support.
Customer support is the backbone of any service. If the customer service is reliable, then it’s safe to say that the VPN provider is also trustworthy. VPN.ac offers various ways to contact them, such as;
- Ticketing.
- Email.
- Via Wire.
- Tutorials.
- FAQs.
The VPN provider claims the ticketing system is the fastest way to contact them. Users can also email them and expect an answer within an hour. One unique way of support that VPN.ac offers is the Wire chat option, you can contact the support through Wire, and as the messages on the chats are encrypted, your privacy is also ensured. However, the service lacks every VPN service’s basic live chat support option.
Pros and cons
VPN.ac proved to be a good VPN service, and we compiled the essential pros and cons of the service;
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| It offers AES-GCM-256-bit encryption for maximum security. | The service logs users’ IP addresses. |
| It provides the WireGuard protocol for fast speed and security. | There is no live chat option. |
| The Kill Switch and Split tunneling features are ideal for added privacy. | It has no Smart DNS feature. |
| It has DNS leak protection to ensure secure browsing. | There is no free trial or free version of the VPN. |
| Users can watch Netflix US and Disney+ with VPN.ac. | |
| It accepts cryptocurrency. | |
| It follows a no-log policy and supports torrenting on all servers. |
Final Words
VPNac is a reliable VPN service with high encryption and fast speed. It is based in the privacy-friendly country of Romania, which has no data retention laws. We loved the VPN’s security features, including Kill Switch, perfect forward secrecy, and obfuscating technology. Moreover, it is compatible with streaming platforms and can unblock streaming sites like Netflix.
However, its IP logging policy and limited server network are not ideal. The logging policy is suspicious; they log users’ IP addresses. Although the IP addresses are removed from their servers within 24 hours, there is a huge risk of a privacy breach. Other than that, it is a good service with unique features.
FAQS
VPN.ac is a safe VPN service with high AES encryption and a no-log policy. It also has other security features like Kil Switch and multi-hop for maximum security. However, remember that the VPN logs users’ IPs for 24 hours, so if you are concerned about your privacy, a little too much VPN.ac is not for you.
Yes, it can easily unblock Netflix. The obfuscating technology helps in bypassing geo-restrictions, and it offers a seamless streaming experience.
VPN.ac is a reliable service with quality features. It is not the most popular, but it has all the necessary features, including robust encryption, fast protocols, and a no-log policy.
Yes, the VPN works very well in China. The obfuscating technology helps in bypassing firewalls and allows users to access content in China.
It is not the safest due to its logging policy, but it is a good option. The service claims to log users’ IP addresses, and its privacy policy states, “We do not cooperate with any requests for information unless we are ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction.”. This is a concerning statement for users and clearly shows their privacy is at risk.
