4 VPN Services You Should Avoid, According to Customer Reviews

Virtual private networks, commonly referred to as VPNs, have been a major part of internet browsing since the early 2020s. Data from Security.org suggests that 75 million Americans use some form of VPN. There are many reasons to use one, from bypassing region locks on content streaming to perceived security and privacy benefits, although it’s important to note that VPNs cannot necessarily provide anonymity on the internet.

Whatever you want to use a VPN for, though, there’s probably a service for you. The best VPN services out there, such as Nord VPN, Surfshark, and Private Internet Access (PIA), offer all the basics and often offer additional features such as ad blocking, threat protection, and tunneling. They also tested no-logs policies to assure users that their browsing data, allegedly, was not stored on VPN servers.

There is usually no need to hunt far and wide for a VPN; famous, for better or for worse, usually the best. That said, not all VPNs out there are good; others experience particularly bad based on user reviews due to issues including deceptive behavior, poor performance, and fake server locations. Here are four that are most avoided.

A quick note before we get started: VPN pricing is notoriously difficult to compare. Many VPN providers lure you in with steep discounts on your first billing cycle, and even the best providers require you to commit to a two- or three-year subscription to get the lower rates. So, while we’re going to touch on the price here, you should do your own research.

VirMach is not your average VPN provider. We mean that literally: It’s not a service like PIA or Proton VPN, which gives you a browser plugin or desktop app that does all the fancy VPN work for you. Instead, VirMach is in the business of virtual private servers (VPS).

This essentially gives you a virtualized server instance that lets you do almost anything you’d want with a server – including hosting your own private VPN. This is not as specific as a regular VPN service, but it offers several advantages, including a dedicated IP (which reduces the chances of being banned, for example), stability, and the fact that you do not see the wishes of the VPN provider or any changes to the Terms of Service. This is a feature set that’s hard to replicate with a travel-friendly VPN, although you can at least get a dedicated IP as an extra for an extra cost from most major VPN companies including PIA and Nord VPN.

If some of the benefits of a private VPS-based VPN appeal to you, you’ll want to switch to some of the more trusted names in the space, such as Kamatera, Ionos, or KnowHost. VirMach, on the other hand, has a bad reputation with customers, many of whom say it’s bad timing and an outright scam. Those of you tech-savvy enough to consider VPS will want a reliable provider, and VirMach looks far from that. Given that the website itself has been down since March 2026, we think this is a major case where judging a book by its cover is completely unfair.

One of the notable features of the VPN landscape of the mid-2020s is the consolidation of ownership behind the scenes. Virtual competitors like Nord VPN and Surfshark, for example, are actually under the same company umbrella. While that’s not really a problem, those of you looking for something different can get PrivadoVPN. However, customer reviews show that it’s not very good — even if we can categorize user opinions as “mixed” instead of “bad.”

The main reason to consider this VPN over others is its free plan. Privado offers free users 10 GB every month and claims to offer 12 server locations around the world. It’s compelling, but the free tier of Proton VPN offers unlimited bandwidth to one device and servers in 10 countries, though there’s no way to choose which server you connect to. Privado’s paid plans are not uncommon, and users can get very similar features from Surfshark, for example. Privado has a cost advantage, however, with even a one-month plan coming in at $12.99 compared to Surfshark’s $15.99 asking price for one month of its basic plan.

Although the price may be tempting, customer reviews show that VPN services do not deliver on promises. Users often say that the servers have a problem, or they are blocked by normal websites or they are simply called from different places than advertised. Customers also say that the company is not very good at honoring its 30-day money-back guarantee. You could do a lot worse, but we’d argue there’s little reason to try Privado unless you really need a free VPN. However, you might be better off trying Proton first.

As far as VPN services go, HMA is one of the originals. It was founded in 2005 by a 16-year-old schoolboy from the UK under a long time, and the name is more insulting, HMA in its original entry is probably the first free VPN that many users have tried, because it has gone viral more than two decades ago. HMA has now come a long way from its humble origins, having been acquired by AVG in 2015. AVG, in turn, was acquired by Avast! in 2016 – yes, that same Avast! who got into trouble for selling anonymous user data. Not a good start then.

HMA’s feature set is a good standard for VPNs but lags behind other prominent services when it comes to additional features. The VPN claims a no-logs policy, kill feature, tunneling, AES-256 encryption, and servers in over 100 locations around the world. That’s not bad, but a service like ExpressVPN has all that and more. For example, it has 105 sites, a split tunnel, and AES-256 encryption, and it adds nice features like an ad blocker, powerful gaming servers, and a threat manager. HMA also limits you to 10 devices per account, while ExpressVPN lets you connect up to 14.

HMA isn’t cheap, either. A 12-month plan for 10 devices will run you around $95, which is about the same as ExpressVPN’s non-discounted rate of $100 for 12 months. Most of all, users really don’t like HMA, with many complaints of scam behavior, poor performance, and fake servers that aren’t where HMA says they are. The latter is especially problematic, as finding a server close to you is ideal for high performance.

On the face of it, there isn’t much out there with UltraVPN. Sure, it relies on the same iffy discount-and-not-subscription model of many VPNs, which give you a steep discount for the first year (or so) and then hit you with full payment after that, but it’s not alone in doing so. Its advertised capabilities all seem decent, too, with must-have features like a power switch, a no-logs policy, streaming support, and AES-256 encryption. It even offers some value additions in the form of a dark web scanner and password manager – both included for free even in the cheaper tiers.

Unfortunately, customers say that UltraVPN’s business practices are not good. Complaints are rife from subscribers who say they are being charged an out-of-the-box renewal fee, even after canceling their subscription. Now, some of this may be due to not knowing how auto-renewing subscriptions work, but it doesn’t look good — especially when there’s nothing here that you can’t get elsewhere.

Most major VPNs will offer the same basic functions, although not all will have dark web monitoring. Two that do, thankfully, have a very high rating: both Nord VPN and Proton VPN offer functionality with their paid plans. Integrated password managers are perhaps not common, but you don’t need one: There are plenty of free solutions like Proton Pass and Bitwarden available. Sure, the idea of ​​integrating a password manager into your VPN might seem appealing, but there’s little reason to do so. UltraVPN isn’t that cheap, either, with its $99/year basic plan costing more than Proton VPN’s $84 annual plan (both prices after the discount period ends).