Is Hola VPN safe to use? This is one of the most asked questions over the past few months and it’s not hard to see why. This free VPN talks a lot of game but if you look closer you’ll find that it can actually do more harm than good.
According to Hola VPN, it’s a free service that serves over 177 million users around the world. On paper, it should be up there with the best VPNs on the market, and part of its appeal is the fact that it’s free. But, as with all things, you do get what you pay for, or rather what you don’t pay for.
Not only is Hola VPN unsafe, but it’s often the worst-rated if you look at various reviews online. There are a lot of back-end issues that come with this VPN which most people are unfortunately unaware of. A lot of these issues are what make this an unsafe and risky VPN.
Is Hola VPN Safe to Use?
If you want to find out is Hola VPN safe to use, read on to find out.
Here are some of the reasons why Hola VPN is very dangerous:
1. Logs Your Internet Activity
Most reliable VPN services have a strict no-log policy. This means they won’t store or record your online activity at all.
Is Hola VPN safe to use when it comes to protecting your Internet activity? Not really. Like many other free VPN services, Hola VPN does store user information including a full history of your Internet activity, cookies, screen resolution, device configuration, etc.
The best way to enjoy privacy online is to use a safe VPN like IPVanish which has a zero logs policy.
2. Uses Peer to Peer Routing
Unlike conventional VPN services whose goal is to protect and encrypt the user’s Internet connection by routing your activity through its servers, Hola VPN works differently. It operates on a P2P network which means that each user server serves as a proxy for another user’s traffic.
This is a big problem because a P2P network implies that your connection is use as a proxy to online activities that you’re not aware of. Someone might conduct illegal activities using your IP address thus exposing you to considerable risk. You could potentially find yourself having to answer for crimes that you’ve never committed and it’s generally unsafe.
3. Doesn’t Have Encryption
Hola VPN won’t encrypt your connection or your traffic in any way. That’s one of the reasons why it’s considered to be an unsafe VPN service.
A good quality VPN should be able to hide your online activity as well as the personal data you use while online. This protects you from third-party interference or data and identity theft. It means no-one will be able to snoop on your traffic at all.
With Hola VPN, anyone within their network can see your private information including your email addresses, credentials, credit card networks and passwords. That’s because Hola VPN doesn’t have any encryption protocols in place. Instead, it uses P2P nodes in the same way as normal proxy servers.
4. Has a Hacking History
In addition to selling your bandwidth and traffic, Hola VPN has a known history of misconduct which placed its users in jeopardy.
Hola VPN was used for a Botnet Attack to the 8Chan website, placing many of its users in danger of being hacked and moreover persecuted for things they didn’t commit.
5. Sells Your Traffic
Is Hola VPN safe to use when it comes to data privacy? No and here’s why. Hola VPN is known to sell user’s device bandwidth to third parties in order to make money. Keep in mind that when you sign up with Hola VPN you become a proxy server for another user within the service’s P2P network. Not only that but you’re also expected to be an exit node for Hola VPN’s paid option known as Luminati.
This makes you vulnerable to illegal conduct and hacking on a large scale. Pretty much anyone can access and use your computer to do illegal stuff online, thanks to Hola VPN.
Conclusion
What’s the verdict, you ask? Is Hola VPN safe to use? Clearly, the conclusive answer to this is no and it should be avoided like the plague. Luckily for you, there are plenty of safe and reliable VPNs available out there who will protect your online connection.
One such VPN is IPVanish, a service which offers a no logs policy, AES encryption and a comprehensive list of privacy features, and all for a couple of dollars per month.
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