Hide.me VPN Review-Expensive or worth it?

Based in Malaysia, Hide.me is a feature-packed service with more than 50 servers spread along different locations. It has free and premium subscription plans and promises to be the fastest and most secure VPN service on the internet. However, we weren’t sure of these claims. 

Although the service is packed with numerous security features, there are some related concerns. Not all features are functional, and the speed is definitely not the fastest. We tested the VPN ourselves to see if it was worth the money. Keep reading to know if Hide.me VPN is the right choice!

Who owns Hide.me VPN?

Hide.me VPN is owned by eVenture Ltd, a Malaysian company founded in 2011. It is an e.commence and telecommunication company with a revenue of $14 million. In 2012, Hide.me was started and quickly became a popular VPN service among users. As the company is based in Malaysia, it is safe to say that Hide.me is a secure service. 

Malaysia’s Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) legislation was released in 2010, which clearly states that users’ personal information may not be shared outside the Malaysian jurisdiction. 

Why choose Hide.me VPN? 

Hide.me VPN is an all-rounder service that is hard to ignore. It has advanced encryption and WireGuard protocol for fast speed. In this era where privacy tools are becoming a basic need while using the internet, VPN usage is also increasing. Hide.me has impressive security features, and in a short time, the VPN has made its name in the market. 

Despite being a security-focused VPN, Hide.me lacks a few features. The free version lacks WireGuard protocol; the speed is average and not fast enough, as the VPN claims. Moreover, the Kill Switch is not functional and is almost useless. Keeping these things in mind, we did this review, and our primary focus was the following objectives;

• Online privacy: high encryption of AES-256-bit makes it secure and reliable for users. 
• Jurisdiction: it is based in a privacy-friendly and safe jurisdiction of Malaysia. 
• No-log policy: the VPN has a no-log policy that ensures no user data is stored on its servers. 
• Streaming: it supports streaming and can unblock streaming sites, including Netflix. 
• Torrenting and P2P: users can download P2P files and perform fast torrenting on its servers. 
• Gaming: it has a low ping time, and fast speed helps in gaming. Users can also unblock blocked games with it. 
• Tor Browser: the secure features help in protecting users’ devices and data while surfing on the Tor Browser. 

This information is gathered through deep research; we studied the VPN’s claims and cross-matched them with customers’ reviews. Afterward, we used the VPN to check its performance, speed, and functionality. Moreover, we looked into online forums to see what users experienced with Hide.me VPN. Continue reading to learn more about Hide.me VPN. 

Is Hide.me secure?

Virtual Private Network or VPN is a tool that secures your data and IP to prevent hacking and data breaches. Hide.me VPN is a freemium service with numerous security features and a strict no-log policy. We tested the VPN to see if it fulfills its company’s claims; here are the security features offered by the service.

• VPN Cascading: it is a multi-hop feature that increases security by passing the data through 2 VPN servers instead of one. 
• Port Forwarding: it helps increase the internet speed and adds additional layers of security. 
• Fixed IP: each time a user connects to the VPN, they will always be given the same IP. 
• Self-managed DNS: the VPN has a proprietary DNS server to prevent data breaches. 
• Kill switch: it prevents IP leaks and data breaching during unexpected connection drops by disconnecting the internet. 
• Stealth Guard:  It disconnects the internet connection during connection drops to prevent data leaks. It also allows users to choose the app data they want to encrypt. 

However, the Kill Switch is not the most efficient. It is not good at preventing DNS or IP leaks at all. So, if you want complete security, the Kill Switch may be unable to do so. Other than that, the rest of the features work exceptionally well and are not less than any premium VPN service. 

Jurisdiction-Malaysian VPN. 

Hide.me VPN is owned by eVenture Ltd in Malaysia, an IT company. Malaysia is a safe and privacy-friendly jurisdiction and does not require companies to log or store user data. Hide.me VPN also stated, “We purposefully set up our headquarters in a jurisdiction that cannot, by law, request us to record your data.” 

Moreover, for added security, the VPN service also releases transparency reports. These reports can be requested for information such as;

• Illegal activities (DDoS attacks, scams, spam, botnets).
• Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) violations.
• Law enforcement.
• Police requests. 

It is safe to say Hide.me is a safe and secure VPN with strict privacy policies. 

Zero-log?

The VPN is known to keep zero logs. However, a service can’t manage a zero-log policy. For privacy purposes, a VPN must keep some logs such as payment details and email of users. it is better to say that the VPN follows a no-log policy and does not store information such as IP address, search history, time stamps, session duration, etc. Their no-log policy was audited in 2015; however, there is no copy of that audit for users to read. 

Past Records.

Fortunately, Hide.me has a clean record of providing security and privacy to its users. We found no reports of data breaching, privacy loss, or anything alarming about the VPN. It’s safe to say Hide.me is a secure VPN service. 

Encryption Ciphers. 

A VPN encrypts your data by passing it through encrypted tunnels. This way, the data become unreadable, and your ISP or government cannot monitor your online activity. The stronger the encryption, the harder it is for anyone to intercept and view your data.

Hide.me uses military-level AES-256-bit encryption. Not only does it protect your data, but it also prevents ISP from throttling your connection and prevents online monitoring. 

What Protocols does Hide.me VPN use?

VPN protocols decide how the data will travel. Each protocol is different from another and can be used for various purposes. Such as, some protocols are suitable for speed, while others offer better security. Hide.me VPN provides the following protocols;

• OpenVPN: an open-source protocol that is good for both speed and security. 
• IKEv2: this protocol is ideal for mobile users. It can quickly re-establish connections between cellular data and wifi. 
• WireGuard: the fastest and relatively new protocol in the market. It is secure and offers high-speed, ideal for streaming. 
• Soft ether(only for Windows): it works best for bypassing geo-blocks, but in terms of security, it has very less to offer.
• SSTP(only for Windows): it can easily bypass firewalls and offer high speed. 
• Bolt: it is a new Hide.me VPN protocol that offers robust security and can easily bypass censorships. 

These protocols vary from each other and offer different benefits. However, the WireGuard and OpenVPN protocols are the two most recommended and best options for everyday use and activities like streaming and torrenting. 

Can Hide.me unblock streaming sites? 

Many VPN services promise to support streaming and unblock streaming sites, but most of the time, they fail. We tried using Hide.me to unblock major streaming sites and check their performance. The VPN has the following benefits;

• Prevents ISP throttling: it prevents ISP throttling by encrypting your data. 
• Kill Switch: it prevents IP leaks during connection drops. 
• Optimized servers: it offers nine streaming-optimized servers to unblock geo-restrictions. 
• Netflix: US, UK, Japan, Australia.
• BBCiPlayer: UK servers.
• Disney+: Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US.

Unblock Netflix with Hide.me 

Netflix is a popular streaming site and surprisingly Hide.me unblocked it pretty quickly. The streaming-optimized servers helped in the process, we connected to the US server, and within a few minutes, it unblocked Netflix US. 

We streamed the show “YOU” in HD quality, and we could access the whole Netflix library with ease. Moreover, we enabled the Kill Switch to prevent data leaks and used the WireGuard protocol for fast speed. 

How to set up Hide.me VPN for Netflix;

• Download the Hide.me VPN app. 
• Create an account and select your subscription plan. 
• Enable the Kill Switch from the settings. 
• Choose the WireGuard protocol. 
• 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. 

Unblock BBC iPlayer with Hide.me 

Similar to Netflix Hide.me conveniently unblocked BBC iPlayer. The site is also geo-blocked due to censorship issues and is only available in the UK. We tried accessing the site with Hide.me and this is how it went. 

We connected to the optimized server and remember that only optimized servers can unblock streaming sites. If you connect to a regular server no site will be unblocked. After that, we enabled the Kill Switch and opened the BBC iPlayer site. The quality was good, but not as good as Netflix. We encountered no lags or buffering and it was a seamless experience. 

How to set up Hide.me VPN for BBC iPlayer;

• Download the Hide.me VPN app. 
• Create an account and select your subscription plan. 
• Enable the Kill Switch from the settings. 
• Choose the WireGuard protocol. 
• Choose a UK-based server. 
• Open the BBC iPlayer site.
• Start streaming!

Users must have a BBC iPlayer subscription to unblock the site. 

Unblock Disney+ with Hide.me 

Hide.me can also unblock the Disney+ streaming website. The streaming-optimized servers are great for bypassing geo-restrictions and once again proved it. We connected to a US-based server that convinently unblocked Disney+.

Similar to other websites, we enabled the Kill Switch to prevent IP leaks, and this time we connected to the OpenVPN protocol. The protocol offered high speed, and we encountered no IP leaks. The streaming quality was good, and the whole content library was accessible. 

How to set up Hide.me VPN for Disney+;

• Download the Hide.me VPN app. 
• Create an account and select your subscription plan. 
• Enable the Kill Switch from the settings. 
• Choose the OpenVPN(UDP) protocol. 
• Choose a US-based server. 
• Open the Disney+ site.
• Start streaming!

Users must have a  Disney+  subscription to unblock the site. 

Does Hide.me support Torrenting?

Hide.me VPN has a vast network of servers spread around the world, and fortunately, all of them support torrenting. To check out the performance of Hide.me with torrenting, we used the following features;

• SOCKS5 proxy: it helps in fast speed and building P2P connections.
• Stealth Guard: It disconnects the internet connection during connection drops to prevent data leaks. It also allows users to choose the app data they want to encrypt. 

The VPN worked exceptionally well with torrenting, we were connected to the Singapore server automatically, and the speed was fast. Besides, the SOCKS5 proxy also helped in providing fast speed. We also enabled the Kill Switch feature and Stealth Guard for secure torrenting. 

Gaming support of Hide.me 

A VPN can be very helpful while gaming. They can unblock geo-blocked games, prevent DDOS attacks, prevent ISP throttling, and help in lag-free gaming. However, finding a perfect gaming VPN can be a hassle, so we tested Hide.me VPN to see its performance with games. 

• VPN protocols: Fast protocols help in offering fast speeds and lowers ping time. 
• Kill Switch: it works by masking your IP address to prevent IP leaks.
• Stealth Guard:  It disconnects the device’s internet connection during connection drops to prevent data leaks. It also allows users to choose the app data they want to encrypt. 
• Port Forwarding: it helps increase the internet speed and adds additional layers of security. 

We used the port forwarding method for high speed, and to our surprise, the VPN quickly unblocked all games. The picture quality was a bit choppy and pixelated, but there were no lags. Moreover,  it also prevented DDOS attacks. Overall, it was a smooth experience; the speed was good, not the fastest, but enough to prevent lags. 

Is Hide.me VPN compatible with Tor Browser?

We used Hide.me VPN with Tor Browser to see if it worked with it, and to our surprise, the VPN maintained our security very well. We enabled the Kill Switch feature to prevent IP leaks and connected to a server in the US. The speed was fast, and we experienced no lags or buffering while browsing. These features help in secure browsing;

• Kill Switch: it works by masking your IP address to prevent IP leaks. 
• VPN protocols: fast protocols help in building quick server connections and offer high speed. 
• Robust encryption: AES encryption helps keep your data secure and prevents your ISP from monitoring your activities.

Hide.me is a good choice for browsing securely on Tor Browser but do not perform anything illegal while using Tor. We do not support unlawful acts; the only reason behind promoting VPN use is to ensure customer security. 

Pricing and Money back guarantee. 

Hide.me VPN offers different pricing plans along with a free plan. They have a 14-day money-back guarantee, valid only if you follow the rules. If you use more than a 500MB bandwidth limit, this offer won’t be valid for you. 

Free plan

The free plan has the following features;

• Only five server locations (Canada, Netherlands, Singapore, etc).
• no port forwarding.
• no fixed IP function and no support for streaming.
• 2 GB data transfer per month as a limit.
• 1 connection.
• 3 Mbps speed.
• The free plan must be renewed every 14 days.

Plus plan 

Premium plan 

Payment methods:

• Credit/debit cards.
• PayPal.
• iDeal.
• Wire transfer.
• Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

The prices are high, making Hdeme one of the most overpriced VPNs out there; however, the quality features and advanced security surely make up for the price. 

Customer Service-fast and reliable. 

Customer support is extremely important for any company, and we reached out to Hide.me VPNs customer service; this is how they offer help;

• 24-hour support.
• Live chat support.
• Ticket-system support.

They also have a detailed FAQs section where you can find answers to general queries, and the 24/7 live chat support is very handy. The assistant replies within a few seconds, and users can also create a ticket to get better answers. Overall, the support service is amazing and much better than other VPN providers. 

Pros and cons

The VPN has various features, and while testing it out, we also found some major loopholes in the service. Here is what we gathered through our research. 

Final Words.

Hide.me is a good quality VPN with robust encryption and fast tunneling protocols. It is based in Malaysia and follows a strict no-log policy. What we loved about the VPN were the amazing security features and the complete IP and DNS leak protection. So you don’t have to worry about compromising your security while browsing.

However, Kill Switch is malfunctioning, and the speed on Windows is very slow. Moreover, another disturbing thing is that the app crashes frequently, and when the app is not working, the VPN is useless to many users. Although these downsides are major red flags let’s not ignore that Hide.me offers other good features also. It is certainly not a bad VPN.

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