Surfshark VPN Review

 You cannot stress enough on the fact that your online privacy is in danger as companies are coming up with ways to capture as much data from you as possible.

Thankfully, there are some measures that you can adapt to keep your privacy intact. Speaking about measures to protect your internet footprints and make them untraceable, VPNs or virtual private networks top the list. VPNs offer you the security you would need against snooping ISPs and government agencies.

However, VPNs have limitations of their own such as bandwidth throttling, websites like Netflix and Hulu not working with most of the VPNs and slow servers. But there are plenty of options when it comes to VPNs. Today, we are going to review one such VPN service provider – Surfshark VPN which is a great and affordable VPN service and comes packed with plenty of features.

Surfshark VPN Review

When compared to other big VPN services in the market like Express VPN and Nord VPN, Surfshark VPN is a fairly new name but owing to its budget-friendly pricing and features, it has made its way into the list of big VPN companies.

While other VPNs advertise themselves for a specific feature, Surfshark VPN says that it is an all-purpose VPN that you can use for protecting your digital privacy, unblocking websites and torrent downloading. Surfshark VPN was launched recently in 2018 and has its headquarters situated in Tortola, British Virgin Islands and owns 800+ servers in more than 50 countries.

The fact that it has its main office situated in the British Virgin  Islands is an assurance that your data is under the eyes of government agencies as BVI falls under internet friendly jurisdiction. We know that this number is not as big as offered by many other VPN providers. For example, Express VPN offers more than 3000 servers and NordVPN owns 5700+ servers in over 60 countries.

But sometimes, big numbers are not important and quality wins over quantity.

Strict No Log Policy of Surfshark VPN

When choosing a VPN, it is important to know about the information that the VPN company records about you. If a VPN provider records information that could reveal your identity then it defeats the entire purpose of using a VPN in the first place. Therefore, it is important to choose a VPN with a strict no log policy.

Thankfully, Surfshark VPN is the one you can rely upon when it comes to keeping your privacy intact. The VPN provider says that it does not collect any of your personal information that could reveal your identity.

Under the information that is not collected by Surfshark includes your browsing history, network traffic, your IP address, and connection timestamps. You just need to provide your email address to the company to register an account.

Besides your email address, you need to provide your credit card or debit card details if you opt for the subscription. If you want anonymity, Surfshark VPN also offers you the choice to pay for your subscription via cryptocurrency.

CoinGate and CoinPayments are the two supported cryptocurrency providers that you can use for purchasing the subscription of Surfshark VPN.

Another reason why Surfshark could be your preferred choice if want a VPN for digital privacy is the fact that it has its roots in the British Virgin Islands which does not fall under any of the 14 eyes countries that have the right to access your internet browsing history.

Setup

A good VPN is known by the ease of its usage and the convenience it offers to users. Surfshark VPN excels in terms of user-friendliness.

The installation procedure of Surfshark VPN is fairly easy as you can get the VPN installed on your device within a few minutes. Once you launch the app, you will be surprised with the minimalist approach and the neat interface. All the buttons have been labeled cleanly so as to make it easy even for a noob user to use VPN services without facing any difficulty.

Surfshark VPN has apps for multiple platforms including macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android. If you want to use a VPN in your Android smart TV, Surfshark has got you covered with its apps for FireTV, Apple TV and other TVs. You will be surprised to know that the Surfshark VPN also offers dedicated apps for Xbox and PlayStation.

If you are not a fan of installing apps in your device, you can also use browser extensions of Surfshark. You can add extensions in Chrome and Firefox to run VPN and surf internet anonymously.

Now that you have read the essential details and vitals of the VPN service, here are some of the features that you must know about before purchasing the subscription of Surfshark VPN.

Features of Surfshark VPN

1. Privacy

Protocols

A decent VPN offers a number of security features and Surfshark VPN could be a decent choice if privacy is your concern. Every VPN works on a certain set of protocols to keep your information secured. Surfshark VPN supports most popular protocols including OpenVPN, IKEv2 and UDP and TCP.

Encryption

Encryption is another major feature of Surfshark VPN as it uses AES-256 bit encryption technology which is considered as one of the safest encryption techniques and is deployed in the US military for safeguarding confidential data. Surfshark VPN also comes with a kill switch which blocks the internet access if the VPN connection fails. Kill Switch is an important feature as it prevents identity theft when your connection drops.

Private DNS Servers

When it comes to privacy features, Surfshark VPN packs plenty of them. The VPN provider has its own private DNS on each server to offer impeccable security to users. These private DNS servers further reduce the chance of anyone spying on you.

Multihop or Double VPN

In fact, you can also use double VPN on Surfshark. The Multihop or double VPN feature of the VPN provider allows you to connect via several VPN servers for enhanced security. For example, you can connect to a New York server first and then connect to a server situated in Australia.

However, the Multihop feature affects the speed of the connection as your data is routed through two different servers. This feature is recommended for those who have security as their topmost privacy as it is nearly impossible to track your online activities if you are connected via two VPN servers.

Camouflage Mode

The camouflage mode of Surfshark VPN ensures that even your internet service provider or ISP cannot detect that you are using a VPN service to bypass the restrictions imposed by them or access websites that it has blacklisted. This feature is especially beneficial for regions like China where the government detect and monitor the internet usage of citizens. With camouflage mode, you can stay private all the time.

NoBorders Mode

Surfshark VPN believes that the internet should be open to all and which is why it has a NoBorders mode that allows users to use the VPN service in areas where it is restricted. You can use Surfshark VPN in countries like China where is it forbidden for citizens to use a VPN service as it considered against the norms set by the ruling government.

Verified By Cure53

To further gain the trust of users when it comes to security, Surfshark VPN has obtained the verified certificate from Cure53 which is an independent audit committee. A Cure53 verified VPN is the proof of the ultimate security features and measures deployed by the provider to keep the security of its users above everything else.

2. Ad Blocker

Surfshark VPN also doubles up as an ad-blocker. Its clean web feature allows you to surf the internet without annoying ads and irritating pop-ups. In addition to removing advertisements and popups, Surfshark VPN also protects users against potential attempts of phishing and tracking by malware and website trackers. When you buy the subscription of Surfshark VPN, you are also purchasing an ad-blocker as well as an anti-malware software for complete protection.

3. Unlimited Device

In my honest opinion, it is one of the most highlighting features of Surfshark VPN. While other VPN providers put a cap on the number of devices you can use with your VPN service, Surfshark VPN does not put any such cap. You can use unlimited devices simultaneously using the VPN. It is a great feature of offices and households where multiple devices need to be connected to VPN simultaneously.

4. Whitelister

At times, you want some websites and apps to bypass the VPN. There is a special feature called Whitelister in Surfshark VPN under which you can add some specific apps and websites like banking websites which do not work well with VPN.

5. Strict No Log Policy

Surfshark VPN does not monitor, record or store any of your information. It says that the company does not record your IP address, used bandwidth, browsing history, session information, connection timestamps, and network traffic when you are connected to the VPN. Surfshark has a clear policy when it comes to the data collected by them.

It clearly states that it collects the following information from users for diagnostics – aggregated performance data, crash reports on apps and unsuccessful connection attempts. Also, none of the collected data is tied to your account and there is no means using which the company can identify you using the information collected.

Surfshark VPN has the motto of “secure your digital life” and with the features it provides and its strict no-log policy is indicative that it stands true on its words.

6. Netflix and Torrenting

If your primary motive behind purchasing a VPN subscription is unlocking Netflix US catalog and torrenting then you can choose Surfshark VPN. In our tests, we found that most of the servers are compatible with Netflix and torrenting.

When you visit the Surfshark VPN, you will see that the company has described its product as P2P friendly and therefore, you can access any website by connecting to any server. Also, the VPN states that it does not limit bandwidth which is one of the major issues of other VPN providers. It means that you can use Surfshark VPN for streaming unlimited content without worrying about bandwidth.

7. Tor Compatibility

Tor or The Onion Router is an anonymous communication technique that passes your data through a series of servers to protect your identity. Surfshark VPN is compatible with tor but you need to know that when you use VPN with Tor, you are adding an additional layer of security but at the same time, it will slow down your internet speed as your data passes through multiple servers before reaching its destination.

8. 24 by 7 available customer support

It is important to have reliable customer support while choosing the best VPN for you. There must be someone to guide you through and troubleshoot if you are stuck somewhere. Surfshark VPN has a professional customer service that can be approached via live chat and email.

The absence of the option of contacting a customer support executive via phone is indeed disappointing but you can get your issues solved via live chat which is much faster as compared to phone support.

9. Pricing

Surfshark VPN is a fairly cheap VPN provider as you can avail the subscription plan for 24 months at $1.99 per month under the ongoing offer. If you opt for the subscription for 12 months, it can be purchased at $.99 per month. As with other VPNs, purchasing a VPN for a single month is always costly.

The one-month subscription of Surfshark VPN will cost you $11.95. If you are not happy about the services of Surfshark VPN, the company also offers a 30-day money back guarantee. Further, if you want to test the services before putting in your money, you can opt for free trials on Surfshark’s Android, iOS and macOS apps.

In each subscription you purchase, you get all the features including Cleanweb, Whitelister, multihop, kill switch and unlimited devices.

Pros

Following are the pros of Surfshark VPN:

• Strict no-log policy to ensure that users’ personal details are not compromised in any condition.
• You can connect unlimited devices simultaneously which is one of the biggest features of the VPN provider.
• The VPN comes with a built-in ad-blocker, tracker blocker, and anti-malware and phishing tools to offer overall security.
• You can unblock Netflix catalogs of different countries and all the servers are P2P compatible for downloading files via torrent.
• Live chat support for getting your issues resolved instantly.
• Cheap price if you opt for the 2-year plan
• Advanced security features such as private DNS servers, Multihop, camouflage mode, kill switch and NoBorders mode.
• Verified by Cure53.

Cons

Every service has some positives as well as some negatives. Here are some of the cons of Surfshark VPN:

• No trial on Windows app
• No phone support
• Costly if you opt for the monthly plan
• No indicators for server load or ping

Conclusion

Surfshark VPN ticks almost all the boxes for a decent VPN service provider. Apart from a handful of gripes, the VPN service provider has the potential to become the preferred choice for all the users. With impressive features and strict no-log policy, we strongly recommend using Surfshark VPN if you want to protect your online privacy and unblock websites with ease.

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