X-VPN is one of the most popular free VPNs today. The VPN service is based in Hong Kong and provides “forever free” plans for iOS and Android users. They also have VPN clients for Windows, Linux, and Mac devices. However, despite their “forever free” VPN plans, X-VPN falls severely short when it comes to safety.
Let’s take a look at their security stance and features.
X-VPN has a good jurisdiction because it is incorporated in Hong Kong, which is a country with no mandatory data retention laws and does not fall under the 5, 9, or 14-Eyes Surveillance treaty.
Companies located in Hong Kong are not legally bound by data sharing treaties with other countries. Hong Kong has user-friendly laws for Internet users which makes it a perfect location for a VPN company.
X-VPN has a transparent logging policy but unfortunately, the VPN service actually logs plenty of information. They don’t log your browsing history, IP address, server IP, or even DNS requests but they openly admit that they collect your connection data for performance purposes such as troubleshooting and server optimization.
Some of the data they log include the following:
Location of the server that you connect to
Your connection timestamp including date and time
The VPN protocol you choose
Your network type
The server’s bandwidth and CPU load
The good news is that X-VPN claims that the logs are usually deleted permanently after 96 hours. However, the fact that X-VPN logs exact timestamp should be a cause for worry because the authorities can easily cross-reference the data to show that you have visited specific sites within the last 96 hours.
The mere fact that the VPN provider logs your Internet usage data when connected to their servers makes it a less secure VPN for users who value their online security.
When it comes to encryption and protocols, X-VPN has a relatively good level of security but we still cannot recommend the service to anyone looking for a high level of privacy. The service does not have standard protocols such as OpenVPN but instead uses its own proprietary protocol simply known as X.
The VPN service does not provide information about their X protocol which makes it impossible to compare the protocol with leading protocols such as OpenVPN. Fortunately, X uses AES 256-bit encryption which is an unbreakable cipher standard used by all the leading VPN services.
It is also worth noting that X-VPN uses DNS servers with reliable leak protection. Without DNS leaks, your ISP or other third parties will not be able to track your online activities. The VPN also uses split tunneling which allows you to choose which traffic should pass through the VPN tunnel. The feature helps to ensure that all privacy-sensitive data is securely encrypted.
X-VPN also provides users with built-in kill switch feature that ensures that your real IP address does not get exposed if the VPN connection suddenly drops. The kill switch feature disconnects your Internet connection when the VPN stops working or when you change servers to protect your IP and online activities from exposure.
X-VPN does not provide the kind of security you’d expect from a truly reliable VPN. The VPN service admits that they collect some of your data and use a somewhat unknown protocol standard.
If you want a completely safe zero-logging VPN service, we recommend the following alternatives:
Is X VPN safe? Not really. X-VPN is only good for basic tasks but if you want a truly no-log and safer VPN, we highly recommend the alternative VPN providers listed in this article.