Penguin Proxyy VPN Review & Test 2019 -What You Have To Know
Ariel Hochstadt
(Ex-Google, International tech speaker)
Penguin Proxy is a rare thing in the VPN market: a free VPN that does not rely on advertising or harvesting your data to make money. The VPN is currently a “proof of concept” and is not designed to be profitable.
The lack of any attempt to monetize your use immediately puts this free service above many of its competitors. The company makes clear that future profits will come from the addition of paid features, not from ads or exploitation of your data.
However, it should be noted that Penguin Proxy does collect some user information. The data stored is limited to anonymous request logs, which are kept for two weeks and only used for debugging purposes. The company states that this is only a short-term procedure that will be eliminated in the future.
While Penguin Proxy is a reliable service with fast speeds and stable connections, it does have some limitations. The security of your connection is the main problem.
Penguin Proxy is a P2P proxy, not a traditional VPN with a remote server network. This means that your encrypted data is routed through the connection of another Penguin Proxy user, and vice versa.
So while anonymous, Penguin Proxy is only about as secure as a public wi-fi hotspot. However, if anonymity and content access are your key concerns and you are running quality antivirus and malware protection software, then you shouldn’t discount Penguin Proxy as an option.
The lack of VPN protocol options is another issue. Data sent via the Penguin Proxy client undergoes TLS encryption, but unlike most VPNs, Penguin Proxy only supports HTTP and has no plans to support highly secure protocols like OpenVPN and IKEv2/IPsec.
The company’s website strongly recommends using HTTPS Everywhere so that all data you send or receive enters the network in encrypted form and is unreadable to the provider and other users. Again, if your need for anonymous access overrides your need for security, then Penguin Proxy might serve you well.
Since Penguin Proxy is a P2P service, the number of available connections depends on the number of participating users. There are currently servers in the UK, Canada, China, mainland Europe, and the USA. During testing, we had no problems connecting to servers in each region that the network covers.
Lastly, bear in mind that since your connection will be serving as a relay for other users’ internet traffic, your data usage for both uploading and downloading will significantly increase. So if your internet provider puts low caps on usage, Penguin Proxy wouldn’t be a good choice for you.
Penguin Proxy is a simple yet effective VPN that allows you to surf the web anonymously and with some degree of security. One of its most surprising features is its ability to bypass the stringent geoblocks and VPN blocking used by Netflix and the BBC iPlayer. We were so surprised that we checked this twice. Not only were we able to connect, but the playback was exceptional, with no lagging.
Overall, if anonymity and unblocking content are your main concerns and your internet access is unlimited, then Penguin Proxy should certainly be on your short list of VPNs to try.
| Features | Details |
|---|---|
| Number of countries with servers | 5 |
| Number of servers | 5 |
| Number of IP addresses | 5 |
| Does VPN keep logs? | Yes |
| Does VPN include a kill switch? | No |
| Number of devices per license | 1 |
PenguinVPN is extremely easy to install. Simply choose your platform and wait for the app to download. The app can then be opened from your menu, hot bar, or home screen, depending on your platform.
Using the VPN is just as straightforward. Just launch the VPN, choose the country that you want to connect to, and you are ready to surf the web anonymously. You can manually refresh the IP address that is fulfilling your request at any time by clicking on the refresh button on the home screen of the app.
While PenguinVPN has very few customizable features, you can set a bandwidth limit (which is important, since other users’ traffic will be routed through your connection), turn off the ad blocker, and choose between Proxy HTTPS and direct HTTP.
You can also set proxy exceptions and choose to always connect through random IPs. All these options are easily accessible through the settings button on the home screen of the app.
Penguin Proxy is a free-to-use P2P VPN. Unlike other free VPNs that make money by selling your data or hosting advertising, Penguin Proxy does neither because making money is not yet part of the business model. The VPN is currently a “proof of concept,” not intended to make a profit. The vendor does state that monetization is a consideration for the future, but that it will not involve hosting advertising or sharing user data in any way.
Penguin Proxy was reliable during our testing. IP address checks showed that it connected directly to the countries we requested and there were no drops in service.
Support is primarily comprised of detailed and clear FAQ pages on the vendor’s website. The customer support team can be reached via the email address provided in the FAQ section; live chat is unavailable. However, the vendor has one of the quickest email response rates that we have ever experienced.
We received a response to our first question within 10 minutes, and to our second within five. Answers to our questions were detailed, helpful, and resolved our concerns immediately.
Penguin Proxy is a well-designed free P2P proxy service that is nearly ideal for surfing the web anonymously. It offers speed and reliability, and can bypass geoblocks on websites and streaming services. However, security is a concern, as your traffic is routed through the connections of other users on the Penguin network.
- Free peer-to-peer (P2P) Proxy VPN
- Stable connections with good speeds
- Clear data use policy
- Able to unblock geo-restricted services, including US Netflix and BBC iPlayer
- Get started with Penguin Proxy VPN now
