OVPN Review 2020

OVPN claims to be the top choice for privacy-conscious users, starting at a high $7/mo. on a 12-months plan. Sadly, the high price is not justified, as the provider still has a long way to go.

It only offers 83 servers in 13 countries and that contributes to poor speeds due to server load, which means you will have to deal with slow streaming, browsing, and torrenting (which can get quite monotonous).

However, what really checks OVPN off the list of top-rated VPN services is the lack of ability to unblock streaming platforms like Netflix or bypassing the “Great Firewall” in China (no obfuscation available).

As a better alternative, I would suggest going for the feature-packed, PureVPN that starts at a low $1.48/mo on a 5-year plan. It faces no trouble in bypassing geo-restrictions on VoDs like Netflix or offering safety to users in China. 

Rating Criteria

1. Jurisdiction: Where is OVPN Based?
2. Security: Can OVPN Keep Me Safe Online?
3. Leaks: Does OVPN Leak Your IP, DNS & WebRTC?
4. Servers: How Many Servers Does OVPN Have?
5. Streaming: Can I Unblock Netflix US and Other VoDs?
6. Speed: How Fast are OVPN Servers?
7. Compatibility: Can I Use OVPN on All My Devices?
8. Pricing: How Much Does OVPN Cost Exactly?
9. Trustworthiness: Trustpilot Ratings, Reddit & Customer Support

Jurisdiction: Where is OVPN Based?

OVPN has its headquarters in Sweden, so it cannot exactly be considered a “safe” jurisdiction. Sweden is a member of the notorious 14 Eyes intelligence alliance.

This means that users’ digital activities can be monitored if deemed necessary by any of the member states’ authorities. Although the country does follow the GDPR regulations, it still indulges in intelligence sharing.

OVPN will have to cooperate with authorities in revealing logs when demanded. There is no workaround to it, hence why I always advise users to stay away from “Internet Enemy” locations.

Security: Can OVPN Keep Me Safe Online?

Yes, OVPN comes across as an incredibly safe option, thanks to a number of unique measures implemented by the service, discussed below. Furthermore, its transparency policy makes sure that users are constantly aware of what’s going on behind the scenes at OVPN.

Security Measures Implemented by OVPN

OVPN claims that all the hardware used by the service is owned and operated by the provider itself. Additionally, all its servers use RAM rather than hard drives, similar to the technology utilized by ExpressVPN.

Furthermore, OVPN disables OpenVPN’s write privileges, and syslogs ensuring that not even temporary logs are created anywhere in the RAM. The VPN servers do not support any form of physical access through a console, keyboard or even a USB port.

Does OVPN Store Logging Information?

The company goes to great lengths to maintain its strict no-logs policy. This makes it one of the few services that not only promise no logs, but also explains exactly how the service ensures that no logs are kept.

Furthermore, the service has legal insurance meant specifically to fight off legal requests by government agencies that might request user logs for any reason whatsoever, which is the first I have heard of a VPN doing!

Encryption & Protocols

OVPN encrypts users via AES-256-GCM and AES-256-CBC encryptions with HMAC-SHA, both following the OpenVPN protocol. Additionally, the service also offers Diffie‑Hellman and Perfect Forward Secrecy (DHE) using a RSA key with a 4096 bit key size, with a re‑keying every 45th to 75th minute.

VirusTotal Test

As part of BestVPN.co’s security analysis, I also make sure to conduct a complete assessment of all VPN apps from varied providers. This includes performing a virus check to ensure the files are safe to download and install. Here are the results for OVPN:

Leaks: Does OVPN Leak Your IP, DNS & WebRTC?

I wanted to see how good is this service in keeping users’ DNS, IP, and WebRTC safe from being exposed. I analyzed the service through ipleaks.net. I connected to a US server, while using the service from Europe and had the following results:

As the screenshot above indicates, my location is shown to be the US and nowhere is my actual European IP exposed. This makes OVPN a secure choice for keeping your identity hidden online and receive maximum anonymity for all internet-related activities.

Servers: How Many Servers Does OVPN Have?

OVPN currently offers users access to 83 servers across 13 countries. Admittedly, this may seem paltry compared to some of the other VPN providers on the market. However, unlike any of these providers, OVPN actually owns all of these servers.

Hence, OVPN has direct control over their performance and can take extra measures to ensure maximum security as far as user anonymity is concerned, which is something that not many VPNs can do as they “purchase” servers from data centers around the world!

Support for Torrents

OVPN offers dedicated support for P2P sharing thanks to its numerous servers spread across the world. These servers shield a users’ IP address and aids them in torrenting as much content as they want.

However, I would strongly suggest users to steer clear of the US servers because of the strong anti-piracy legislation in place in the country.

Does OVPN Work in China?

Unfortunately, as good as this service is it fails at unblocking Chinese content. OVPN was one of the numerous VPN providers that were blocked by the Chinese government’s censorship. As a result, users inside and outside China are unable to use this service.

Streaming: Can I Unblock Netflix US and Other VoDs?

OVPN did work initially for unblocking Netflix. Sadly, now the service fails at bypassing geo-restrictions on VoDs or give users access to the US library of Netflix and other geo-restricted libraries from across its servers.

I also tested OVPN on some other popular streaming sites like Prime Video, Hulu, Hotstar, BBC iPlayer, and Disney+. Every time I would start to stream a particular title, I would get the “VPN/proxy detected error”.

Speed: How Fast are OVPN Servers?

While the collection of servers on offer by OVPN is not comparable to that of the some of the other providers, I wanted to analyze how fast are these servers. Using a 100 Mbps connection, I used the standard speed test on 5 random servers i.e. UK, Germany, Canada, Australia, and France.

Compatibility: Can I Use OVPN on All My Devices?

Users will be glad to know that VPN offers an impressive amount of support in term of cross-compatibility. OVPN is available for use on Windows, Mac, Android, Linux, iOS, and Raspberry Pi thanks to the dedicated clients offered by the service.

Additionally, there are browser extensions available for use on Firefox, Chrome to make the overall user experience even better and secure. Best part of all: the apps are quite user-friendly and easy-to-use, meeting the demands of both: layman and tech-y VPN users!

OVPN Vilfo Router Review

There is a new and awesome trend prevailing in the VPN industry nowadays and that is, to offer a VPN enable Router to those users, who are a bit more uptick when it comes to protecting their privacy.

OVPN also offers a VPN router by the name of Vilfo. You can buy this VPN router for just $429 at Vilfo.com and it comes with 19 VPNs pre-configured including names like NordVPN and VyprVPN.

If you use Vilfo, you will never have to worry about setting up VPNs on all of your devices separately as all of your internet activity, irrespective of which device it is emanating from is guaranteed cover through a VPN automatically via the router.

Pricing: How Much Does OVPN Cost Exactly?

I was disappointed to learn that OVPN is easily one of the most expensive VPN options available on the market today. Users have the option to go for one of the following plans:

• Monthly ($10.99 per month)
• 6-Month ($8.33 per month)
• Yearly ($7 per month)

Payment options

OVPN offers a wide range of payment methods, making it easier for users to buy the service. In addition, to support for Visa/Mastercard debit and credit cards, the service also supports Paypal, Bitcoin, and all other major cryptocurrencies.  users can also pay for the service via cash by visiting the physical location of the service.

Refund policy

If users feel underwhelmed by OPVPN’s service or do not wish to continue with the provider for any reason, they can claim a refund within 10-days of their purchase. However, the refund policy is subject to Swedish law. Additionally, if you made the subscription payment via cash, you’ll have to visit the physical location of the service to avail the refund.

Trustworthiness: Trustpilot Ratings, Reddit & Customer Support

I looked at OVPN’s reviews and ratings on Trustpilot, Reddit, as well as on OVPN’s own website to see how trustable is the website as far as trustworthiness goes. Here an overall analysis:

OVPN Trustpilot Ratings

OVPN’s rating and reviews on Trustpilot may cause users uncertainty at first glance. There are only 3 reviews, and all of them are “bad” and “poor”.  However, I do not recommend relying on these reviews.

Most of the reviews are from before 2018. And ever since then, the service has gone through a major revamp and extended its capabilities, which are not reflected in these reviews.

OVPN Reddit Review

I decided to see what users on Reddit have to say about the service as well as their past experiences. As this user points out, the fact that unlike some of its competitors OVPN is an actual registered company inside a country with a proven past record regarding users’ online privacy.

However, there were some users that were easily able to find some glaring holes in the claims made by the service. Additionally, the user highlighted that the service appears to be good enough if users were fine with a high ping.

OVPN Support Review

OVPN comes across as being a fairly user-friendly service, thanks to its 24/7 live chat. Additionally, there is an FAQ section that has detailed answers to some common questions that most users have.

The blogs section also covers some interesting areas related to customer security and anonymity online. The video guides also make it easier for users to easily install and use the service across platforms.

Overall, the website, as well as the service itself, offers a user-friendly interface that elevates the customer experience in general, but the time they take to give answers can swell up frustration and make people go elsewhere.

OVPN Alternatives

There are not many other VPN providers that can offer the same features and assurances that OVPN can. However, the price is definitely amongst the most expensive in the market, as well as the inability to circumvent China’s harsh internet censorship could force users to look at other options

In such a case, PureVPN would be an ideal alternative because of its extremely affordable rates, Chinese servers, and numerous other equally important features that it offers. Similarly, Surfshark is another budget-friendly option that keeps users safe online without worries of any security lapses.

Do I Recommend OVPN?

OVPN does have a few things to improve but overall, it’s a recommended VPN from our end. There were no DNS leaks, the security was great, latency time was low and above all, we never encountered any breakdown.

The only characteristics that might cause some hesitation on the customers’ part is the price, inability of unblocking Netflix, and poor functionality in China, which is why I recommend going for PureVPN instead for a minimal $2.91/mo.