JANUARY 2022 PCWorld 59and the service is just one part
of a larger suite of privacy-
and security-focused
products. The desktop app is
very easy to use, and offers a
lot of different features,
including access to the TOR
network over VPN, multi-hop
VPNs, and ad-tracker and
malware blocking.
NordVPN has gone a long
way to bolster user trust. After
years of not being
transparent, the company is
now upfront about who’s
running the show. It also
undergoes third-party audits,
carries out vendor assessments, and uses
diskless servers.
FASTEST VPN:
HOTSPOT SHIELD
Price: $12.99 per month (fave.co/3slwaL7)
While our pick for best overall VPN,
ExpressVPN (fave.co/3pdBfDk), boasts
above-average speeds, Hotspot Shield is
on another level. No other service comes
close to hitting the speeds we’ve seen with
this service. This isn’t just a one-off
occurrence either; Hotspot Shield has
consistently been at the top with speeds
that are 12 to 15 percentage points above
the competition. In our tests, Hotspot
Shield maintained around 67 percent of the
base speed. That’s substantially faster than
you’ll see with most VPN services—though
your experience may vary.
On the downside, Hotspot Shield doesn’t
allow for a way to pay anonymously, and its
privacy policy may not sit well with some.
Still, Hotspot Shield has excellent speeds,
its desktop application is very nice, and as a
bonus it works with U.S. Netflix.BEST VPN FOR PRIVACY:
M U L LVA D
Price: ¤5 (around $5.65) per month
(fave.co/32eblXt)
As Hotspot Shield is to speeds, so Mullvad is
to privacy and anonymity. We’ve never seen
another VPN that actively resists knowing whoA live connection with Hotspot Shield.