VPN Reviews

VPN Shield Review – A Protective Shield For Your Online Activities

By Paul Liu
Wednesday, June 25th, 2014

VPN Shield is a privacy service from STIDIA S.A., a Luxembourg based company. Although its VPN service was launched in 2012, STIDIA has good experience in networking and security. In this detailed VPN Shield Review, we will take a detailed look at the features offered by the service and decide if it is worth the subscription cost.

Server Locations and Site Access

VPN Shield has VPN gateways in 7 countries including United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Hong Kong, Sweden and Singapore. The service can be used as an IP changing solution to access streaming services that are available only within the above countries as well as an anti-censorship tool to circumvent censorship and firewalls. When used as an IP changing solution, the service allows expats and tourists to unblock premium On-Demand sites like Netflix, Spotify, Hulu, BBC iPlayer, RTL, Deezer, Lovefilm, Das Erste, WimpMusic, HBO Go, Eurosport, Pandora, AT5, Mio TV, MyTV, Film1, Demand 5, Viasat, Voddler, CMore, FOX, 4OD, TV Lab, TVB, Sport1, STV, Arte, NHL, USA Network, ProSieben, RTVNH, Sat.1, Amazon Prime, Rara, WDR, SVT, Vox, Xfinity, Sky Go, CWTV, UK TV, CBS, iTV, Vudu, MTV, Vevo, TNT, NBC and MLB from any country in the world. Additionally, the service can be used to bypass the censorship measures deployed by schools, workplaces and governments of China, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE; and access sites like Gmail, YouTube, Facebook, Viber, Twitter and Skype from behind the censored networks. And since VPN Shield permits unlimited amount of server switching, you would be able to access local content from 7 countries (where the VPN servers are located) with just one subscription.

VPN Speed and Bandwidth

VPN Shield delivers ultra-fast connections with no bandwidth restrictions. The company monitors its server network round the clock plus it also adds additional servers as and when the need arises so the customers would be able to stream HD videos, download files, make VOIP calls and play games online without experiencing any lags, delays or buffering. The service also uses a data compression algorithm to compress traffic allowing you to save money on your data plans and experience faster connections on your mobile device. On the downside, the company does not permit torrenting traffic from within its network.

Privacy Settings

VPN Shield secures online activities and privacy through PPTP and L2TP/IPSec protocols. While these two protocols are not considered as secure as the OpenVPN protocol, they offer great compatibility with a wide range of devices and OS. The service protects personal information and online activities from surveillance as well as secures confidential data from hacking attacks at public places (Wi-Fi hotspots at parks, malls, airports, libraries and coffee shops). The service automatically connects to a secure VPN server as soon as it detects that your laptop or mobile device is trying to connect to an unsecured Wi-Fi network (feature not available on iOS).

The logging policy of VPN Shield is not mentioned on its website. However, since the company is based in Europe, it should be expected that the company would co-operate with the government authorities and hand over subscriber data to the third parties if demanded by law.

Supported Operating Systems

VPN Shield works on Windows (8.0 or higher), Mac OS X, iPads, iPhones, Android devices and Kindle Fire. The company offers apps for all the above systems so there is no need to set up the service manually. The service can be used to secure up to 5 devices at the same time which makes it possible to secure your laptops, desktop computers, tablets and Smartphones with just one subscription.

Customer Support

VPN Shield provides a ticket based support system. In addition, troubleshooting instructions are available for many systems so customers would be able to fix minor errors on their own.

Pricing Options

VPN Shield’s unlimited plans are available from $0.99 per week, $3.99 per month, $8.99 for 90 days and $24.99 for a year. New customers can try the service for free for 24 hours and they can also extend the trial period by 3 days by liking the Facebook page of the company. The service can be directly purchased from the official app stores (iTunes, Google Play, Windows App store and Amazon) so you don’t have to reveal your payment details to the VPN company.

Final Verdict

Overall, VPN Shield manages to impress on most parameters. While the service is not available for older versions of Windows, it delivers extremely fast speeds and high level of security through its custom apps. So, if you are looking for an easy to use VPN solution for your privacy needs, test drive the VPN Shield service today. For more information, please visit: www.vpnshieldapp.com.