VPN.asia
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Many Internet users opt for a “Virtual Private Network” (VPN) since they want to protect their privacy and security while browsing the Internet. Are you one of them? You are likely wondering which VPN to choose since there are many VPN providers in the market. VPN.asia is one such service, and it’s from Virtual Performance Group Inc., a Belize-based company.
What do VPN providers promise to their users? Well, they claim to offer privacy and security, moreover, many of them claim to unblock geo-restricted streaming services like Netflix. Many VPN providers also allow P2P/torrenting. Quite a few VPN providers claim to bypass Internet censorship. Most of them claim to support all key platforms.
We have evaluated VPN.asia against these criteria. Does it meet your requirements and should you buy it? Read this review so that you can take an informed decision.
What features do you get by buying VPN.asia?
You will spend money on a VPN provider. Naturally, you would like it to offer useful features, wouldn’t you? Let’s examine how VPN.asia fares in this aspect.
Is your privacy in safe hands with VPN.asia?
You probably prioritize privacy while browsing the Internet as most VPN users do. How does VPN.asia perform here?
Well, this VPN implements a “no logs” policy. It states on the “Privacy Policy” page of its website that it doesn’t track or log any Internet traffic of its users. VPN.asia also states that it doesn’t track how its customers use its VPN service.
This VPN provider doesn’t collect any personally identifiable information when you visit its website. If you visit its site, then it collects your IP address and other analytics. This has no connection with its users’ activities using its VPN. VPN.asia lists the cookies it uses on its site, and we didn’t notice anything to cause concern here.
If you buy VPN.asia, then it collects personally identifiable information as part of creating your account. This information includes first name, email address, username, password, and payment information. The company states that it uses this information to provide its services and it doesn’t sell or rent your personal information to anyone.
VPN.asia clarifies that it shares aggregate and non-personally identifiable information with 3rd parties for marketing, advertising, and research purposes. The company secures all personally identifiable information it collects and processes them in accordance with applicable laws. Collecting this level of information poses no privacy challenge to its users.
Although its’ parent company is based in Belize, the jurisdiction of VPN.asia is the British Virgin Islands. While the British Virgin Islands is an overseas territory of Britain, it enjoys considerable autonomy. This territory has no data retention laws. The British Virgin Islands don’t belong to the “14 Eyes” coalition of countries that conduct mass surveillance. For a privacy-focused VPN like VPN.asia, the British Virgin Islands is the right jurisdiction.
We believe that VPN.asia fares very well in protecting your privacy. It implements an effective “no logs” policy, and it doesn’t sell or rent your personally identifiable information. Its jurisdiction is ideal for a VPN.
Data security at VPN.asia
Security is likely a high priority for you if you are shopping around for a VPN. Let’s examine how VPN.asia does on this count.
This VPN supports OpenVPN by default, which is the most secure VPN protocol. This protocol doesn’t have any known vulnerabilities. VPN.asia supports L2TP, which is secure too. For bypassing Internet censorship of the kind imposed by countries like China, VPN.asia uses the “StealthVPN” protocol. It’s a variation of OpenVPN.
While this VPN supports PPTP, we don’t recommend you to use it since it has security vulnerabilities. In any case, VPN.asia doesn’t need you to use PPTP.
You want to secure your sensitive information when you browse the Internet, don’t you? Strong encryption is the key to this, and VPN.asia does well here. It uses AES-256 encryption with SHA-256 hash authentication. This is the strongest encryption that you can get.
VPN.asia prevents all IP, DNS, and WebRTC leaks. This VPN has no virus in its infrastructure. VPN.asia has a “kill switch”, however, you need to manually activate it. This blocks your Internet connection if the VPN connection drops unexpectedly. We would like VPN.asia to provide an automatic “kill switch” so that users don’t need to manually turn it on.
VPN.asia doesn’t offer “Perfect Forward Secrecy” (PFS). We would like it to provide this since it adds to users’ security. Even if a cybercriminal gets hold of your encryption key, a VPN with PFS will change the encryption key regularly. This way, the cyber-attacker can’t use the stolen encryption key for any significant period of time. Market-leading VPN providers offer this.
In summary, we are happy with the security features offered by VPN.asia. However, it falls short when compared to leading VPNs since it doesn’t offer PFS and an automatic “kill switch”.
Where are the servers of VPN.asia located?
Speed is an important factor for most VPN users. Do you also consider it important? If you do, then you will want a VPN provider with a sufficient number of servers in all key geographies. Let’s see how VPN.asia fares here.
On its website, VPN.asia claims that it has 40+ servers across 30 countries. On its “Server Locations” page, it shows the countries and cities where it has a presence. The company has its servers in North America, Europe, Australia, Asia Pacific, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. In the Middle East, this VPN is present in Israel. VPN.asia has its servers in Russia and Turkey too.
VPN.asia has fewer servers compared to several market-leading VPN providers, moreover, it has no servers in Latin America and Africa. We found that VPN.asia offers reasonable speed, however, its limited number of servers could impact its speed. If you are looking for a VPN that offers great speed consistently, then consider using a market-leading VPN.
On what platforms can you take advantage of VPN.asia?
You want a VPN that you can use with all kinds of devices you have, don’t you? Let’s evaluate VPN.asia against this yardstick.
Among desktops, it supports Windows, Mac, and Linux. It offers custom apps for Windows and Mac, and it provides configuration guides for Linux.
VPN.asia claims to support Android, iPhone, iPad, iPod, Kindle Fire, Nook HD, and SurfaceRT. The company has custom apps for Android, iPhone, and iPad.
It doesn’t have a custom app for SurfaceRT, however, it claims to provide configuration guides. We couldn’t find custom apps for Kindle Fire and Nook HD, moreover, we didn’t find any configuration guide for SurfaceRT.
This VPN provider claims to support streaming media consoles like Apple TV, Playstation, and Xbox. It doesn’t have custom apps for these, and it claims to offer configuration guides. We couldn’t find the configuration guides for these platforms.
VPN.asia claims to support routers like Sabai, DD-WRT, Asus, and Tomato. It says that it provides configuration guides for these routers, however, we didn’t find any of these guides.
With one subscription, you can use VPN.asia simultaneously on one desktop, one mobile device, one streaming media console, and one router. Leading VPN providers don’t impose restrictions on the number of devices of each kind for simultaneous connections. By imposing such a restriction, VPN.asia lags behind its prominent competitors.
We would like it to offer a custom app for Linux. It’s a key platform and market-leading VPN providers have custom apps for all key platforms that they support. We also want VPN.asia to display the configuration guides for other platforms prominently. Also, market-leading VPN providers offer more simultaneous connections.
Unblocking streaming services using VPN.asia
Do you want a VPN to unblock geo-restricted streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, or BBC iPlayer? Let’s evaluate how VPN.asia performs in this regard.
VPN.asia prominently claims to unblock websites so that you can stream live broadcasts or download videos. In reality, though, you can’t consistently unblock such geo-restricted streaming services. If this is a priority for you, then you should try a market-leading VPN that consistently unblocks Netflix, BBC iPlayer, and Hulu.
Cany you run torrents while using VPN.asia?
Are you one of those Internet users that look for a VPN to use P2P/torrenting services safely? You will be happy with VPN.asia then since it allows P2P/torrenting.
Keep in mind that VPN.asia doesn’t support any violation of copyright laws. It states this clearly on the “DMCA” page of its website. If you are using VPN.asia for P2P/torrenting, remember to respect copyrights.
Can VPN.asia bypass firewalls?
Some countries like China and Iran impose Internet censorship and they block VPN traffic. They use a technique called “Deep Packet Inspection” for this, however, VPN.asia is able to bypass such censorship. This VPN supports the “StealthVPN” protocol, which can hide that you are using a VPN.
How much does VPN.asia cost?
You surely want a reasonable price when you buy a VPN, don’t you? Let’s examine the pricing plans of VPN.asia.
This VPN has 3 pricing plans and they vary by their billing frequency and associated discounts. Its plans are as follows:
· Monthly: You pay $5.99 per month.
· 6-months: You pay $29.99 every 6 months, which translates to $5 per month.
· Yearly: VPN.asia bills you for $49.99 for 1 year, and your average monthly cost works out to $4.15.
Each plan includes the following:
· VPN software and OpenVPN support;
· Money-back guarantee;
· Anonymous downloading;
· Access to all servers;
· “Stealth” VPN mode;
· All privacy and security features;
· All protocols that VPN.asia supports.
The pricing plans of VPN.asia look reasonable, however, are they? We will touch upon this shortly.
You can pay for VPN.asia by major credit cards like Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Diners Club International. VPN.asia accepts payment via PayPal, and you can pay using Bitcoin too. The company provides secure payment processes.
Note that VPN.asia sets up automatic renewals and the company mentions that in its “Terms of Service” page. If you plan to cancel your subscription, then you will need to do so explicitly.
You can get a refund if you are less than 100% satisfied with VPN.asia, and you need to make a refund request within 7 days of purchase. VPN.asia doesn’t honor refund requests made after 7 days of purchase, moreover, it doesn’t issue refunds to customers that used its free trial. We will touch upon the free trial shortly.
The company states that it will process refund requests based on the USD exchange rate on the day of refund. Since it doesn’t consider the exchange rates of the date of purchase or refund request, you may see a variation if you bought VPN.asia using Bitcoin. VPN.asia also clarifies that refund processes may see a delay or require service fees depending on the payment method you chose. These are reasonable terms.
The VPN.asia website states that it offers a free trial, however, we couldn’t find any option to avail of that. We have reached out to the customer support team of the company, however, we haven’t received any response. We would like VPN.asia to clarify whether it offers a free trial and how to sign-up for it.
We find that VPN.asia is expensive for the products and services it offers, and we say this based on the following:
· It doesn’t offer a custom app for Linux.
· While the website lists guides for setting up VPN.asia on Chromebook and Kindle Fire, you can’t access these guides if you click the respective links.
· It restricts customers to one device from each type while offering 4 simultaneous connections.
· VPN.asia doesn’t offer high-quality customer support or documentation.
· It doesn’t offer enough advanced security features for its price.
You can get a broader offering at the same or even lower price if you try a market-leading VPN.
The pros and cons of VPN.asia
A summary of the pros and cons of VPN.asia can help you to make an informed decision, and we have that for you. The advantages of using VPN.asia are as follows:
· You can browse the Internet privately, thanks to its “no logs” policy.
· VPN.asia secures your Internet traffic with its strong protocols and robust encryption, moreover, it offers a manual “kill switch”.
· You can use VPN.asia on your Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS devices.
· You can access P2P/torrenting without bandwidth restrictions.
· VPN.asia offers a reasonable speed.
· With VPN.asia, You can bypass the kind of Internet censorship that countries like China and Iran impose.
There are disadvantages too if you use VPN.asia, which are as follows:
· While it claims to support routers, you can’t find the configuration guides. You face this challenge with respect to some other platforms too, e.g., Chromebook.
· VPN.asia restricts its 4 simultaneous connections to one device each for 4 different kinds of devices like desktop, mobile, etc.
· While VPN.asia claims to unblock streaming services, you can’t consistently access Netflix using it.
· It offers fewer servers compared to leading VPNs, which can impact its speed.
· VPN.asia doesn’t have a searchable knowledgebase, moreover, you will find it hard to locate guides that it claims to offer. It offers a limited FAQ section on its website.
· Its customer service team doesn’t respond to messages even after many hours, and its “live chat” isn’t actually live.
· VPN.asia is expensive for its offerings.
· While it claims to offer a free trial, you can’t find this option on its website.
· For its price, VPN.asia should offer advanced security features like PFS, however, it doesn’t do that.
A few quick facts about VPN.asia
We provide a quick summary of VPN.asia since it can help you to decide whether to buy it. Here you go:
· VPN.asia is owned by Virtual Performance Group Inc., a Belize-based company. However, its jurisdiction is the privacy-friendly British Virgin Islands.
· VPN.asia has a “no logs” policy, and it provides robust security.
· It has 40+ servers in 30 countries, which is less compared to leading VPNs.
· It supports key platforms like Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS.
· It offers reasonable speed, allows P2P/torrenting, and bypasses Internet censorship imposed by countries like China.
· You can’t consistently unblock Netflix with VPN.asia.
· The website states that it supports platforms like Chromebook and Kindle Fire, moreover, it states that it supports routers. However, we couldn’t locate the guides to use VPN.asia on these.
· VPN.asia doesn’t provide sufficient documentation, and its customer support team doesn’t respond to queries within the time it commits.
· VPN.asia is expensive for what it offers. While it has a 7-days refund policy, we couldn’t find its free trial offer.
Is VPN.asia user friendly?
You want a VPN that’s easy to use, and we quite understand that. Let’s see how VPN.asia fares on this count.
Our first impression of its website was satisfactory since we could see all menu options clearly. Although the website talks about a free trial, we couldn’t find any option to avail of that. You can buy VPN.asia in a few simple steps, which are as follows:
· Selecting a pricing plan;
· Entering the required information;
· Choosing a payment method, etc.
The “VPN Software” page on the website lists the links for the custom apps VPN.asia offers. You can install these custom apps easily.
The support page of the website lists guides for different platforms, however, we couldn’t locate guides for routers. We couldn’t download any guide when we clicked the links for Kindle Fire and Chromebook.
Despite clicking the “Live Chat” button, we couldn’t see any live chat. While we saw a live chat button when we chose to send a question via its contact form, that too wasn’t a live chat! We didn’t find the VPN.asia website user-friendly enough.
Customer service at VPN.asia
You would want excellent documentation and robust customer service when you buy a VPN, wouldn’t you? During our review of VPN.asia, we noticed the following:
· This provider offers set-up tutorials on its “Support” page, however, you can’t get any guides if you click the links for Chromebook and Kindle Fire. We couldn’t find the guides for setting up routers either.
· While VPN.asia features an FAQ section on its “Support” page, this section provides limited information.
· VPN.asia lists 3 ways to contact its customer support team, namely, contact form, live chat, and email. We found that the chat isn’t live, and we didn’t receive any answer to our question even after several hours. We received an acknowledgment only.
· While this provider states that its support team will respond within 20 minutes of sending a query via its contact form, we received only an acknowledgment. We didn’t get an answer even after many hours.
· We didn’t find any searchable knowledge base.
We weren’t satisfied with the customer support capability of VPN.asia. It doesn’t do what it states, moreover, it doesn’t offer enough documentation either. If you want great customer support, explore other market-leading VPNs.
What's the jurisdiction of VPN.asia?
The jurisdiction of VPN.asia is the British Virgin Islands. This is an overseas territory of Britain, however, it enjoys autonomy. This territory has no data retention laws. VPN.asia can’t be compelled to hand over logs of its users’ Internet activities.
The British Virgin Islands isn’t a part of the “5 Eyes”, “9 Eyes”, and “14 Eyes” coalition of countries that conduct mass surveillance. We are satisfied with the jurisdiction of VPN.asia.
Does VPN.asia keep any logs?
VPN.asia has implemented an effective “no logs” policy. The company states in its “Privacy Policy” that it doesn’t log the Internet traffic of its users. Additionally, it states that it doesn’t track how its customers use VPN.asia.
When customers buy a subscription, then VPN.asia collected personally identifiable information. They do this to create customers’ accounts and serve them. VPN.asia collects information like first name, email address, username, password, and payment transaction details. This provider states that it doesn’t sell or rent this personally identifiable information.
VPN.asia tracks IP addresses and other analytics when someone visits its website, and they share aggregate information with their 3rd party service providers. This information is not personally identifiable, therefore, VPN users shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
In summary, we found that VPN.asia has a clear “no logs” policy. The company protects its users’ privacy.
Technical security and encryption at VPN.asia
Security is key for most VPN users, and you probably consider it important too. Well, VPN.asia fares well here. It supports OpenVPN by default, and it’s the most secure VPN protocol. VPN.asia also supports “StealthVPN”, a protocol that can bypass Internet censorship. This VPN supports L2TP, which is another secure protocol. While you have the choice of using PPTP, we don’t recommend it due to its security vulnerabilities.
With AES-256 encryption and SHA-256 hash authentication, VPN.asia offers the strongest encryption available in the market. This VPN prevents IP, DNS, and WebRTC leaks, moreover, it has no virus in its infrastructure.
While we find that VPN.asia has impressive security features, it doesn’t offer as many advanced security features that the leading VPNs provide. We would like it to offer an automatic “kill switch” instead of the manual “kill switch” it offers. VPN.asia should also offer “Perfect Forward Secrecy” (PFS).
Our short conclusion of VPN.asia
VPN.asia is one of the several VPN providers that claim to offer excellent privacy, security, speed, compatibility, flexibility, and access to geo-restricted streaming services. However, with VPN.asia, reality varies significantly.
VPN.asia has implemented an effective “no logs” policy and the company has a privacy-friendly jurisdiction. This privacy-friendly VPN also supports secure protocols and uses robust encryption. You can access P2P/torrenting services using VPN.asia.
You can’t unblock Netflix consistently though. VPN.asia has fewer servers compared to leading VPNs, and this can adversely impact its speed.
It supports Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS, which are key platforms. VPN.asia has custom apps for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS, however, it doesn’t have a custom app for Linux. It offers a guide to configure your Linux machine to use VPN.asia. While VPN.asia claims to support routers, Chromebook, and Kindle Fire, we couldn’t find any guide to configure this VPN on these platforms. It restricts its 4 simultaneous connections to one device from each type, which can be inconvenient.
VPN.asia doesn’t offer enough documentation, moreover, its customer service isn’t satisfactory. The company claims to offer a free trial, however, we couldn’t find how to avail of it. Given its offering, VPN.asia is expensive. You will find more robust offerings at a lesser price if you explore market-leading VPNs. We believe that VPN.asia isn’t a good buy.
