Is Avast VPN Any Good

Does Avast Secureline VPN Keep Logs

The companys website states that Avast SecureLine VPN has a zero-logging policy. The company promises never to track the apps you use, the websites you visit, or the content you consume.

A VPN needs to have a zero-logging policy if it wants to guarantee your anonymity.

A VPN that keeps logs of your activity can be forced to give away information about your online activity to law enforcement agencies, government agencies, and other groups.

In contrast, a VPN that doesnt log your activity wont be able to give away your information under any circumstances.

I was pleased to see that Avast SecureLine VPN has a link to the companys privacy policy in the apps settings.

Transparency is always a good sign. The privacy policy confirms that Avast SecureLine VPN doesnt collect any data about your activity online.

However, it does collect some connection logs, including timestamps of your connection and the amount of data transmitted. This information is stored for up to 30 days.

Secure VPN And Nortonlifelock Inc

The Norton Secure VPN is a product of NortonLifeLock Inc. The company, formerly known as Symantec, is based in Tempe, Arizona, USA. NortonLifeLock is a publicly traded US company that also has offices in India.

Unfortuately, the United States is not an ideal place for a VPN service to be based. Between being the heart of Five Eyes and many other international intelligence gathering organizations, US law is not very pro-privacy. Companies can be forced to gather information about their users and provide it to various government organizations, while also bound by gag orders from even revealing whats happening to the people being targeted.

One example that illustrated this problem was a case with IPVanish. Despite being a zero logs VPN service, the FBI successfully forced IPVanish to log user data and hand it over for a criminal investigation. We discussed this case in the IPVanish review.

To Install An Apk Just Follow These Easy Steps:

• Go directly to the Developer Options area of your Firesticks settings menu. Then choose Allow Apps from Unknown Sources.
• In the search box on your home screen, type Downloader.
• Open the Downloader app once it has been installed.
• Paste the URL of Avast VPNs APK into the applications search box.
• The Avast Secureline VPN program should be ready to use after it has been installed.
• There is one significant drawback to installing APKs. You will not get any automated app or security updates if you choose this option.
• As a result, unless you conduct manual upgrades, which may be time-consuming, you will undoubtedly lose out on new features and security measures.

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What Does A VPN Do

After all, a VPN reroutes your connection through a remote server. This takes longer, so it might slow down your internet connection. This isnt constantly the case. There are many VPNs that do whatever in their power to make your web connection as fast as it can be .

All VPNs we recommend there have shown to work perfectly and cause little to no hold-ups. Streaming, video gaming, and searching will go as fast regular, just with increased liberty, security and privacy. If your internet speed is artificially limited by your ISP or another party, a VPN can actually make your connection much faster.

On the contrary: numerous main business and organizations work with VPNs and advise the usage. The European Union, too, supports internet freedom, which a VPN can offer you. Many nations think about making use of a VPN totally legal What Is a Virtual Private Network ?. Carrying out illegal activities while using a VPN, however, remains prohibited. Using a VPN for legal activities, such as surfing, gaming, Netflix, and You, Tube, isnt a problem at all.

While the VPN provides you more privacy online and makes it a lot more difficult for officials to trace you down, the downloading in and of itself is still prohibited. There are a number of countries that do consider the use of a VPN illegal. If you wish to understand more about these countries and the legal and illegal use of VPNs in basic, you can read this short article.

Norton Secure VPN Ease Of Use: Mobile & Desktop Apps

Norton Secure VPN has intuitive apps for Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS. It doesnt have a Linux app I really like ExpressVPNs and Mullvad VPNs Linux apps.

I installed Norton Secure VPNs apps on my iOS and Android smartphones in 1 minute, and the process took a swift 1-2 minutes on my Windows 10 PC and MacBook Pro.

Android

Norton Secure VPNs Android app is feature-rich and very easy to use. The quick-connect feature automatically connects you to the fastest server based on your location. For example, I was connected to a server in the UK even though Im located in Romania I tested the speed of a server in Romania, but the UK server was a bit faster.

And I like how simple it is to manually connect to a server the list of countries appears when you click on the location icon at the bottom of the page. My only complaint with connecting to a server is that there is no option to filter servers by speed.

The Android app only has OpenVPN, but I like that you get all of Norton Secure VPNs features, including split-tunneling, a kill switch, an ad blocker, and the Wi-Fi Secure feature and Norton Secure VPNs intuitive design makes it easy to find each feature. If youre new to VPNs, youll like how Norton Secure VPN provides a brief explanation for all of its features.

Overall, I really like Norton Secure VPNs Android app. Its feature-rich, secure, and has a very user-friendly design.

iOS

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Norton Secure VPN Privacy & Security

Norton Secure VPN has a no-logs policy, but in my opinion its not strict enough. While Norton Secure VPN doesnt log the sites you visit or the files that you download, it logs your IP address.

Norton Secure VPN says it keeps records of your IP address to determine appropriate language settings and to deliver content to your device, but this explanation on the website is too vague and the customer support representatives were unable to provide me with a clear answer as to why the provider stores IP addresses. I cant fully trust a VPN that logs users IP addresses because it puts their privacy at risk Norton Secure VPN can turn this information over to authorities if requested.

In addition to IP addresses, Norton Secure VPN also logs your email address and your bandwidth .

The logging of IP addresses is even worse because Norton Secure VPN is headquartered in the US, which is part of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliances . If the US government were to request user data, Norton Secure VPN would have to share user information with law enforcement. Private Internet Access is also based in the US, but Private Internet Access has proven in court many times that it doesnt store user data.

Server Network Avast Secureline

Avast SecureLines server network includes 55 servers in 34 countries. Avast SecureLine offers specialized P2P servers as well as servers for streaming. This section will tell you more about Avast SecureLines servers and server locations. The main points to note are:

• Avast SecureLine has a relatively small server network with 55 servers in 34 countries.
• It offers special servers for streaming and downloading.
• Two fictive servers, Gotham City and Wonderland, also are part of the server network.
• It isnt possible to request a dedicated IP address with Avast SecureLine.

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Is Avast Secureline VPN Any Good

Avast SecureLine VPN is a While it cant really compete with standalone VPN solutions, its able to deliver some good speeds, unblock a couple of Netflix libraries, and provide a good level of security.

However, theres still a lot of work to be done. The team behind Avast VPN should consider adding more features, making sure the app works with more streaming services, and fixing the weird loading issues.

You will find the tool pretty useful if youre a newbie in the IT world. But if you need an advanced VPN solution, Avast SecureLine VPN isnt the application for you.

Top 10 Download Speed

Avast brags on their homepage about how fast their VPN service is.

So now its time to put them to the test literally!

I ran speed tests of their service on servers in the US and the Netherlands to see how they stack up against the competition.

Here are my results without VPN:

Here are our results with Avast VPN:

US Server

Avast SecureLine offers two protocols, IPSec and OpenVPN on UDP with AES 256-bit encryption.

This is military-grade encryption. The 256 number refers to the encryption strength.

The short story is that 256-bit is the best in the business right now. Its considered virtually brute-force proof by many of the top government agencies and security professionals around the world.

Avast SecureLine also offers DNS leak protection. This handy little feature makes sure that none of your personal data might leak outside the VPN connection without you realizing it, divulging your browsing activity or true physical location.

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Norton Secure VPN Full Review

I spent a few weeks testing and researching Norton Secure VPN to see how it compares to other top VPNs.

And I can safely say Norton Secure VPN is a user-friendly VPN that has good speeds and is good for basic uses like online browsing, hiding your activity from your internet service provider , and unblocking some geo-restricted content.

Norton Secure VPNs easy-to-use apps have an intuitive design that make it simple to navigate for someone who has never used a VPN. You can connect to a server with 1 or 2 clicks, the features are easy to find and use, and most of the functions in the Settings tab include brief explanations. However, experienced users will find Norton Secure VPN also has a few cool features like Tor support, Wi-Fi security, and split-tunneling.

Streams Us Netflix And Bbc Iplayer

Streaming & Torrenting

Streaming & Torrenting Rating: 8.0/10

To our surprise, AVG Secure VPN streams US Netflix and BBC iPlayer on its streaming-optimized servers.

In the past, the VPN service didnt work reliably with American Netflix. However, our recent tests show that AVG VPN has vastly improved its Netflix accessibility.

To unblock US Netflix, we recommend you use the Gotham City server.

Also, the Wonderland VPN server, located in the UK, works with BBC iPlayer effectively. This not something many VPN services can do.

AVG Secure VPN servers that work with Netflix US:

• Gotham City

AVG Secure VPN servers that unblock BBC iPlayer:

• Wonderland

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Hands On With Secureline

I tested the Windows client on an Intel NUC Kit NUC8i7BEH desktop running the latest version of Windows 10. I had no trouble installing the client software. Interestingly, the app had me authenticate myself using an activation key, found on my Avast account page. This saved me the trouble of having to enter my username and password, and is reminiscent of the login methods used by ExpressVPN and Mullvad.

Starting up the app, I was pleased to see that Avast had shed its rather odd previous design and now looked much more clean and modern. Right away, the app directed my attention to a large toggle that turned the VPN connection on and off. I appreciate the simplicity of the design anyone, even someone who has never used a VPN before will quickly understand what they need to do.

Once connected, the app displays your current virtual IP address, your true IP address, and how long you’ve been connected to the VPN. To switch servers, you can peruse a list of the countries Avast SecureLine serves. Server locations that allow P2P traffic are clearly marked, which is useful. A number next to the location indicates the number of cities in that region. A list down the side lets you narrow down the server list by continent. You can also sort the list to show just streaming servers or P2P servers.

Avast Sold Data To Third

In January 2020, a joint investigation by PCMag and Motherboard revealed that Avast indirectly sold user data to other parties. That is, it did not deal directly with companies such as Google, Yelp, and Microsoft but used a subsidiary called Jumpshot.

In this way, Avast passed on a lot of specific information to other parties. This information included Google searches, user locations, YouTube videos, LinkedIn pages, and porn websites users had visited. This sensitive information was collected from more than 100 million devices and then resold.

Users could indicate in their settings whether or not they wanted to participate in this data collection. Yet many Avast users were unaware that this data was subsequently being sold and unknowingly opted in. In other words, Avast was not transparent about the process and did not sufficiently monitor user privacy.

Meanwhile, Avast has confirmed that they no longer sell user data. Nonetheless, the trust in Avast has been seriously damaged. Given the lack of transparency and the incidents recency, this has seriously affected our score. As a result, we give Avast a 3 for privacy.

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Strong Privacy And Security Features

Avast SecureLine VPN uses strong, industry-standard privacy and security features.

In keeping with this VPNs ease-of-use approach, there are no real options to adjust when it comes to privacy and security features. When you use it, your configuration is:

• AES-256 data encryption

There is currently no support for the WireGuard VPN protocol, IKEv2, or any other protocols. If you want to use WireGuard, two great options for this are NordVPN and Surfshark.

Expressvpn Vs Avast VPN Torrenting

First things first! You have to pay a huge fine or sever prison time if you are caught downloading pirated content from anywhere. Furthermore, there are only a few VPNs that can help you stay safe with torrenting. Some VPNs do not provide unlimited bandwidth while others have a wobbly security protocol. This is the reason why you must always be wary before choosing a VPN specifically for downloading torrents.

As both ExpressVPN and Avast SecureLine VPN use bank-grade encryption protocols and offer P2P servers, you can use either of them to download torrents. And surprisingly, Avast SecureLine VPN offers high speed which is important for downloading torrent files and staying anonymous. But is Avast SecureLine VPN better than ExpressVPN for torrent downloads? The answer is yes.

ExpressVPN uses a split tunneling feature that can route internet traffic and boost downloading speed. Whereas Avast SecureLine VPN do not offer a split tunneling feature even though you can enjoy high internet speed. Thats why we would suggest you use ExpressVPN for downloading torrents.

ExpressVPN: Best-suited for torrent downloads!

Avast SecureLine VPN: Not recommended!

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Does Avast Secureline VPN Work In China

Sadly, Avast SecureLine VPN doesnt work in China at the time of writing this review. It simply doesnt support any of the advanced obfuscation techniques that are required to bypass the Great Firewall.

On the other hand, its Mimic protocol uses some unusual and seemingly random ports, so it has the potential of bypassing some simple port blocks. However, it doesnt seem to be designed with restricted networks and countries in mind.

If you truly need a VPN that works in China and other countries with internet censorship, you might want to get your hands on NordVPN or VyprVPNinstead.

Avast Secureline VPN And Torrents

Avast SecureLine allows you to. The VPN offers special servers for P2P data. These servers are available in Germany, France, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and the United States. While some servers might not give you access to The Pirate Bay , they work very well otherwise.

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Speed Comparison: Avast VPN Or Nordvpn

The internet speed with an active VPN is one of those things that varies based on many factors. Its possible to test the general tendencies, but keep in mind that your results might be different than what I presented below. With that in mind, lets look at the speeds of Avast VPN vs NordVPN.

For this test, I used the fastest tunneling protocol of each application. In NordVPNs case, it was NordLynx, its in-house variant of the speedy WireGuard. As for Avast, I used OpenVPN UDP, which is the best choice available on this VPN.

• Baseline: 300 Mbps download/300 Mbps upload

As you can see from the table, NordVPN is the winner in the speed department. Its almost twice as fast when it comes to download speed, and more than five times faster in terms of upload speed.

When browsing the web, I noticed a bit of a lag when Avast SecureLine VPN was in use. I didnt have this problem with NordVPN, though.

I also noticed that Avast VPN takes its time to change a server – you have to wait up to ten seconds for that. On the other hand, NordVPN connects to a different server almost instantly.

Winner:

Avast Keeps Connection Logs

When you visit the Avast SecureLine VPN webpages, youll notice that they state the VPN, Doesnt log websites visited or app usage. A thorough review of the VPNs Privacy Policy seems to confirm this. Avast SecureLine VPN doesnt keep usage logs. Thats great.

However, while they dont keep usage logs, they do keep connection logs. These connection VPN logs record when you log onto and off of the VPN. But that isnt all they log. According to the VPN privacy policy, they actually record:

• Timestamps of your connections .
• The subnet of your originating IP address. An IP address is composed of 4 octets of data. Each octet consists of 8 bits of data, with a range from 0 to 255. The first three octets collectively identify a subnet. The final octet identifies the device. According to Avast, they anonymize the final octet of the address, meaning they dont identify you directly. But there are a maximum of 255 devices that could be identified by that final octet.
• IP address of the VPN server you are using.
• The amount of data transferred while you are logged on.

While the VPN policy explains the reasons Avast records each of these types of data, these logs make us uncomfortable. Of course, there are many VPNs that keep some basic logs, which we showed in the CyberGhost review, so you really want to read the fine print.

If this leaves you feeling uncomfortable, check out these VPNs keep no logs.

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