The answer to the question, however, differs from country to country. That’s because some countries, like Russia and China, have declared VPNs illegal. Yet, other countries still allow the use of them. Before we dive into the legality of VPNs, it’s important to note that while VPNs might be legal, doing an illegal activity with them is not permissible. If you’re doing something illegal over a VPN, then you are bound to be prosecuted under the laws of your country. A VPN can help conceal your identity but selling drugs, copyright material, spreading viruses etc., is still illegal and can obviously land you in trouble.
Legitimate Uses for VPNs
Because some, unfortunately, do use VPNs for illegal matters, many people are under the impression that VPNs are not allowed. However, this is far from the truth. There are so many legitimate uses of a VPN that it simply overweighs the negatives. Below are some of the most common and popular uses of a VPN:
Is It Safe to Use a VPN in Restrictive Areas?
In terms of security, while using a VPN, most VPN providers protect their users with a strict no logs policy. This means that your information is not tracked, nor is your online activity monitored. This is so governments cannot obtain your information, even if they declare the VPN provider must report it. However, most providers have to comply with the authorities of the country in which they have registered their business. So they may hand over the logs to law enforcement agencies if required. To counter that, some VPN services operate in countries where such compliance rules are either missing or are very weak. This way they can get away with forcefully complying with the regulatory authorities as there is no law under which they are obliged to do so.
As we mentioned above, the legality of a VPN differs from country to country. While the USA, Canada, and the UK allow for VPNs, other countries do not. Below, we take a look at the countries where the use of a VPN is partially or fully banned: This is not an exhaustive list and the laws constantly change, so it is always a good idea to check with your country’s latest regulations. Our Live Updates page has all the current news on online censorship and VPNs.
The Bottom Line
Most countries allow using a VPN, so you should be good as long as nothing illegal is being done over the VPN. In my personal opinion, I favor net neutrality and believe that internet network should be available to everyone. There should be no restriction or favoritism by the ISP when it comes to providing content over the internet. It helps in keeping the internet transparent, useful and, fair playing ground for everybody. Employing techniques like blocking a VPN only hints at a larger problem which needs to be solved from the root rather than putting a ban which is just a workaround at best.
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