What is the Kill Switch function of a VPN?

It can happen that a VPN connection becomes unstable due to network congestion, unstable protocol choice or the location of the chosen server. This can happen to even the best services. Regardless of the choice of a cheap VPN, it is imperative to choose one with the VPN Kill Switch feature.

In case of a connection interruption, your device may have reconnected without the VPN protection. These interruptions temporarily expose you and make you vulnerable again.

While most providers equip their apps with a kill switch, not all of them work optimally and sometimes the kill switch is not even available on some apps.

What is a Kill Switch?

The VPN Kill Switch feature cuts the Internet connection when your VPN is no longer connected to a secure server. It prevents information from leaking out without you noticing. A Kill Switch is specifically designed to add an extra preventative security measure.

One of the biggest advantages of a VPN is its ability to hide your IP address. Unfortunately, when your connection to the encrypted tunnel breaks, your computer defaults back to your individual public IP address provided by your ISP. When this happens, even for a brief moment, your real, unencrypted IP address is exposed, revealing your computer’s location and all the sites and protocols you are accessing at that time. A kill switch ensures that the VPN is connected.

NordVPN’s emergency shutdown

Without a doubt one of the most reliable Kill Switches on the market today. Available for all configurations, NordVPN’s emergency shutdown can be activated and deactivated in 1 click. The process does not create instability. NordVPN’s Kill Switch restores and recreates an encrypted tunnel automatically.
This security lock is integrated into all iOS and macOS applications.

It is called Network Lock at ExpressVPN

Network Lock is the name of ExpressVPN’s emergency shutdown system, and its function is exactly the same. As ExpressVPN is a VPN that is widely used by heavy bandwidth consumers, the designers have developed a very specific technology tailored to each application.

The Network Lock is available on Windows, iOS, Mac, linux. It is even available in their software dedicated to routers.

ExpressVPN’s Kill Switch is not a paid option. In fact, Network Lock is included in all subscriptions.

VyprVPN has a customizable Kill Switch

A popular VPN for small and medium-sized businesses, VyprVPN has integrated a dialog box where users can customize the kill switch settings of their VPN applications.

Reliable and not causing connection instability, theemergency shutdown of this Swiss virtual private network allows users to choose the situations where this safety net is activated. However, we recommend keeping it running at all times.

Why choose a VPN with Kill Switch?

Even with the most stable VPN, occasional micro outages are inevitable. A Kill Switch VPN ensures that you never connect to the Internet without VPN protection. If you depend on a VPN to keep your personal location and browsing information completely private, then having a Kill Switch is essential.

P2P users are especially vulnerable to having their identity and IP address exposed, as the information you transmit over unsecured connections openly displays exactly who you are and what you are downloading.

Should I set up a Kill Switch?

Clearly, your interest in certain features of a VPN may vary. However, the kill switch is as essential a feature as the encryption level.

The kill switch feature requires no setting and runs in the background all the time once activated. You will also be safe from typical IP leaks when a connection to a server drops. The switch killer works on all available protocols and without fail.

Beware though, developing such a device on Mac OS devices has given many engineers a cold sweat. ProtonVPN has designed, in partnership with Apple engineers, an emergency stop on MacOS devices based on the principle of an always-on VPN.

In conclusion

What other criteria are important when choosing a VPN?

• Make sure the VPN you choose covers enough simultaneous connections so that all your media are secure. There are multi-device VPNs that have made the choice to offer their users an unlimited amount of support.

• Your VPN should display a policy of not archiving personal browsing logs. This includes, DNS queries and session timestamps in the first place.

• Check that the geographic locations of the VPN servers you are interested in are available.

• The encryption level should be high (AES 256)

• Price is an important criterion as well. If your reasons for taking a cheap VPN are quite legitimate, make sure that the above mentioned criteria are met.

And outside the United States?

In recent years, more and more governments around the world have blocked access to social media.

To block individual sites, some countries may order the local Internet service provider to block the site’s IP address. They may also remove the site from their DNS servers, so that if you try to access that page, you will read that the site does not exist.

You can get around these blocks by using an expat VPN to connect to a server in another country where no blocks exist. Once the VPN connection is established, you will be able to access these sites.

Antivirus and VPN are complementary. Using a VPN does not exempt you from protecting your hardware. Some VPNs have the ability to detect malicious sites but they will never be able to identify a worm, isolate it and get rid of it from your system.