Hotspot Shield Privacy Report

Privacy Rating
5.1
/10
The Hotspot Shield App  - Product Header Image

Hotspot Shield has one of the lowest privacy ratings of any VPN on this list. Although it encrypts data in transit, at rest, and across the entire network, its free version doesn’t require passwords, an obvious security issue. Additionally, the company logs information like when the service is used, how much bandwidth is used, the device and browsers used, the user’s location, etc. This is more information than necessary and it’s shared with third parties.

Encryption

In Transit Yes
At rest? Yes
All network communications and capabilities? Yes

Security Updates

Automatic, regular software/ firmware updates? Yes
Product available to use during updates? No

Passwords

Mandatory password? Do not need password or account for free version
Two-Factor authentication? No
Multi-Factor authentication? No

Vulnerability Management

Point of contact for reporting vulnerabilities? submit a ticket or email security@aura.com
Bug bounty program? No

Privacy Policy

Link https://aura.com/legal/privacy-policy/a>
Specific to device? No
Readable? Yes
What data they log Account information, billing information, help desk submissions, how often service is used, how much bandwidth used, how long you use the VPN, on what device you’re on, apps and browsers used, approximate location, diagnostic information
What data they don’t log Do not collect device’s GPS information, web traffic
Can you delete your data? No
Third-party sharing policies Shares with third parties

Surveillance

Log camera device/ app footage n/a
Log microphone device/ app n/a
Location tracking device/ app Yes by server location

Parental Controls

Are there parental controls? No

Company History

Any security breaches/ surveillance issues in past? No
Did they do anything to fix it? n/a

Additional Security Features

Anything like privacy shutters, privacy zones, etc.? n/a