5 VPNs Not Located in Five Eyes Surveillance Regions
Virtual Private Networks are considered to be the ultimate in online privacy, but that’s not quite true. While your data and activity is encrypted, there remains a risk from government surveillance.
The Five Eyes alliance (and related arrangements) is designed to spy on citizens, via any communications provider. Ostensibly this is under the guise of “national security” but it can have wider implications, not least when it comes to encrypted internet connections managed by VPN providers.
Is your VPN subject to surveillance alliances? If so, which VPNs are not located in Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, or 14 Eyes countries?
What Is Five Eyes Surveillance?
The United Kingdom–United States of America Agreement is a surveillance alliance officially known as UKUSA. In truth, three other nations are involved: Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Unofficially, this is known as the Five Eyes alliance of countries. The alliance is the modern iteration of an agreement established during World War II, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation has stated that it allows the five governments to demand a “communications service provider” (e.g. an ISP or website) to provide information on a user or disrupt their internet access.
Additional alliances, known as Nine Eyes and 14 Eyes, are also in operation.
Ourguide to Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, and 14 Eyes surveillanceexplains these security arrangements in more detail.
5 VPNs Without Five Eyes and Intelligence Alliance Oversight
We’ve identified five popular andlegal VPN servicesoperating beyond the Five Eyes regions.
One of the most popular VPN services around, NordVPN offers a number of additional security features.
Arguably the biggest VPN provider around right now, NordVPN has shown a willingness to defend user privacy. Situated beyond the auspices of the Five Eyes (and other alliances), NordVPN nevertheless has servers and offices in countries subject to such surveillance.
With this in mind, NordVPN operates a zero logs policy, uses 256-bit AES encryption, and runs driveless servers.
2.ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is NordVPN’s main competitor, although it has seen its reputation affected by the 2021 purchase by Kape Technologies.
ExpressVPN is a major VPN provider located in the British Virgin Islands. Despite the name of this territory, it is based in the Caribbean with its own parliament and government.
As noted, ExpressVPN is currently owned by Kape Technologies a UK-based company that also owns CyberGhost, Private Internet Access, and ZenMate—all VPNs. Kape Technologies was formerly known as Crossrider, a company responsible for making adware.
Whether this has any impact on ExpressVPN’s trustworthiness or otherwise has yet to be seen. Similarly, the legal jurisdiction of ExpressVPN has yet to be tested since the buyout by Kape—as far as we know.
This VPN offers a wide selection of servers in 70+ countries, with offices worldwide.
PureVPN is comparatively unremarkable compared to other VPNs in this list. Like ExpressVPN it operates out of the British Virgin Islands, and has a considerable number of servers around the world.
However, it also has various offices in Five Eyes countries, which may prove problematic. When it comes to government or surveillance alliance interference, PureVPN remains untested.
4.Proton VPN
A VPN from the company behind the encrypted Proton Mail service.
Unrelated to Kape Technologies and not based in the British Virgin Islands, Proton VPN is worth considering for numerous reasons. Beyond its resilient network of no-logs VPN servers, Proton VPN is a sister product to Proton Mail, an end-to-end encrypted email service.
Parent company Proton AG is highly regarded by online privacy advocates.
As noted, Proton VPN has so far been untested when it comes to reacting against Five/Nine/14 Eyes surveillance or more local judicial requests. However, given its location in Switzerland—the world’s most famous neutral territory—it can be considered the most trustworthy VPN beyond the surveillance alliance’s reach.
5.CyberGhost
CyberGhost is a smart alternative to other premium VPN providers, and owned by UK-based Kape Technologies.
Based in Romania, CyberGhost is theoretically detached from the Five/Nine/14 Eyes alliance. However, Romania is a NATO member, which could be used to leverage surveillance data.
Despite its Romanian location, as with ExpressVPN, CyberGhost is owned by Kape Technologies. No one knows if CyberGhost would be able to escape from agreeing to surveillance alliance request due to this.
Do You Really Need a VPN?
Whichever VPN outside the 14 Eyes alliance jurisdiction you choose, be aware that further privacy issues await. For example, if you use a VPN server based in one of those countries or their territories, you’re potentially subject to surveillance.
If you’re looking for a recommendation, all of these VPNs represents the pinnacle of privacy. However, NordVPN is the only one that has repeatedly stood against government overreach. On the other hand, no VPN has publicly responded to a request from the Five Eyes or related alliances.
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