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   Millions of free VPN users have inadvertently sent their data to China   
      
   Date:   
   Wed, 02 Apr 2025 13:37:29 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   New research found that 20 popular free VPN apps are Chinese-owned, with at   
   least 5 linked to a sanctioned tech firm. Here's what's at stake for your   
   privacy.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   Millions of free VPN users in America have sent their data to China without   
   knowing it. At least five of these services are linked to Qihoo 360, a   
   Shanghai-based firm hit by US sanctions in 2020 for alleged links with the   
   Chinese military.    
      
   These are the worrying findings from an investigation carried on by the Tech   
   Transparency Project (TTP) into the top 100 free VPN apps on Apple's official   
   app store in the US.  Overall, experts found 20 apps had undisclosed Chinese   
   ownership and have been downloaded more than 70 million times.    
      
   The China-linked VPN apps are also currently available in both Apple and   
   Google's official app stores in and out of the US, the UK included. This   
   indicates that the real number of impacted users is likely to be even higher.   
      
   The danger of China-linked VPNs    
      
   While the best VPN services boost your online anonymity and security by   
   encrypting your internet traffic and spoofing your IP address, malicious apps   
   pose great risks to your privacy.    
      
   That's because providers can potentially read the internet traffic rerouted   
   via their servers. "That risk is compounded in the case of Chinese apps,    
   given Chinas strict laws that can force companies in that country to secretly   
   share access to their users data with the government," TTP experts noted.    
      
   Worse still, understanding the real ownership behind these free VPN   
   applications isn't easy. TTP found that none of the 20 China-linked services   
   disclosed this crucial information. The team was able to determine this by   
   piecing together several corporate documents.    
      
   Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN, Snap VPN, and Signal Secure VPN are   
   the five services linked to Qihoo 360. The Shanghai-based firm has been   
   previously accused of having ties with the Chinese military. For this, the US   
   sanctioned the company on national security grounds in June 2020.    
      
   All in all, "Apple is not taking adequate steps to determine who owns the    
   apps it offers its users and what they do with the data they collect," TTP   
   experts note.    
      
   We contacted Apple, but we are still waiting for a response at the time of   
   writing. I first raised the alarm about the Turbo VPN family of #VPN apps and   
   their Chinese ownership links in 2018. Looks like I was right & they're   
   connected to blacklisted Chinese security firm Qihoo 360.   
      
   Apple isn't alone to allegedly failing user privacy, though.    
      
   As reported by the Financial Times , Qihoo-linked apps were all available on   
   Apple and Googles US stores as of last week. "After the Financial Times   
   contacted Apple for comment, Thunder VPN and Snap VPN were pulled from its   
   store," pointed out the publication.    
      
   It's estimated that three of these apps alone were downloaded more than 1   
   million times from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store combined in the   
   past three months.    
      
   Turbo VPN even obtained Google's verified badge , a label that helps users   
   easily identify secure and trustworthy services.    
      
   TechRadar was also able to confirm that, at the time of writing, these apps   
   are still available across Apple and Google's official app stores in the UK.   
   The apps are likely to remain available in other markets, too, considerably   
   raising the number of impacted users.   
      
   Which are the China-linked free VPNs?    
      
   TTP experts flagged a total of 20 free VPN apps with shady Chinese ownership.   
   This count excludes those services clearly labelling themselves as Chinese in   
   the App Store, making their China connection clear to users.    
      
   As mentioned earlier, five of these have links with Shanghai-based Qihoo 360,   
   a company believed to have ties with the country's military bodies. Below is   
   the full list:    
      
   Qihoo 360-linked VPNs (Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN,   
   Snap VPN, and Signal Secure VPN) X-VPN VPNIFY VPN Bucks VPN Proxy Master   
   LinkWorldVPN WireVPN - Fast VPN & Proxy Wirevpn - Secure & Fast VPN VPN Proxy   
   OvpnSpider Best VPN Proxy AppVPN Ostrich VPN HulaVPN VPN  (removed from App   
   Store in 2024) Best V2ray (removed from App Store) Alphaoo Net (removed from   
   App Store) SwiftLink VPN (removed from App Store) Speedy Quark VPN Now VPN   
   Incognito Net (removed from App Store) Pearl VPN   
      
   Next steps    
      
   With the deadline for the TikTok ban in the US looming in the background,    
   more people in the country may soon be tempted to download a free service to   
   find a quick and easy way to circumvent potential blocks.    
      
   If you aren't willing to invest in a premium VPN service, I recommend    
   checking Proton VPN and Privado VPN, as they currently are the most secure   
   freebies you can find on the market.    
      
   I also invite everyone who has previously downloaded one of the    
   aforementioned applications to delete their account and apps from their    
   device as soon as possible.   
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/millions-of-free-vpn-users-   
   have-inadvertently-sent-their-data-to-china   
      
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