CyberGhost Review

Subscriptions can be taken out monthly, half-yearly, yearly, or two-yearly, depending on the payment method. Confusingly, subscribing through the iOS app offers a one-year subscription with a higher equivalent monthly fee than subscribing for six months through the website. The best deal available was the two-year subscription through the website that included additional free months and a heavy discount. With this discount, the basic service cost is competitive with comparable popular premium VPN service providers. Payment options were relatively limited, and it was noted that US subscribers were offered payment options that were not available to UK subscribers.

The standard subscription includes the CyberGhost ID Guard, a breach check service, and the third-party Boxcryptor Cloud Security service for no additional fee. In addition, a few bolt-on services are available. A security suite package costs £1/month and includes the third-party Intego Antivirus software plus the PrivacyGuard and Security Updater services for Windows systems. There is also a Premium Password Manager available for £1/month, and users can choose to have a dedicated IP address for an additional £3.20/month.

The VPN apps support the most popular devices and platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. There are also browser extensions available for Chrome and Firefox. The service also supports the manual configuration of Smart TV and streaming devices (Amazon Fire TV & Fire Stick, Android TV, Apple TV) and popular games consoles (PlayStation and Xbox). Guides for router configuration are also available for any device that supports OpenVPN, IPsec, PPTP, or L2TP/IPsec.

The VPN apps have very limited configuration options. For example, the iOS app has no Kill Switch setting or split tunneling capability to exclude specific apps from using the VPN connection.

Accessibility to most streaming services such as Disney+ and Netflix are reasonably reliable for users looking for legitimate access to these services while maintaining browsing history privacy. However, the service's website reports issues accessing HBO Max, HBO Now, Netflix France, and the UK's ITV and Channel 4.The CyberGhost service terms of use do not permit or encourage its use for illegal purposes..

The CyberGhost application supports a wide range of target devices and operating systems. The iOS application is straightforward to install, but configuration options are minimal. The features available vary significantly by host OS. For example, important functions like split tunneling are not available on all supported devices.

Applications are available for Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS. Browser extensions are available for Chrome and Firefox. Manual configuration guides are available for smart TVs and streaming devices, popular gaming consoles, and routers. For this review, the iOS app was installed on an iPad and evaluated.

The interface is clean and simple, with connectivity status indicated with the color of a central button and the presence of VPN server connection information.

The main display includes a button to choose the best location. The specific criteria for how the recommended server is determined is not provided but appears to be based on geographic closeness.

Switching to a different server was reasonably easy. A list showing recommended streaming servers or all servers can be pulled up to choose an alternate server. The list is by country, where multiple locations are available within a country, then these appear when that country is selected.

The main display does not list previous servers used or provide a useful world map, but users can create a list of favorite servers to speed up choosing locations.

The service supports a global network with less bias towards the US as its competitors. The application offers connections through 7,400 VPN servers located in 91 countries. It has options for 11 different locations in the US, 2 in Australia, 3 in the UK, and 3 in Canada. There are options for most major European countries, good support across Asia, and 6 locations across Africa.

The service includes servers optimized for streaming services, and for each server lists which specific services it is optimized to access. However, the service's website reports issues accessing several services, including HBO Max, HBO Now, Netflix France, and the UK's ITV and Channel 4. This transparency is great, but the limitations are not good for users looking to access these services anonymously.

The VPN service includes an automatic Kill Switch function if the VPN connection drops, which blocks the internet connection to prevent data leakage. However, this feature is not configurable for the iOS app evaluated.

Some supported platforms include a split tunnelling function that allows users to choose which specific applications or websites do not connect via the VPN, connecting directly via the ISP server. The network traffic encryption uses AES-256, not configurable by the user.

CyberGhost includes the option for dedicated static or dynamic IP addresses as an add-on service to the standard product subscription.

CyberGhost states that it operates a no-logging policy to ensure the privacy and anonymity of its subscribers. There are no details on how this is achieved technologically, just the claim that no connection logs or traffic data are collected or retained. The applications do have an option to collect anonymized analytics data for performance monitoring and fault diagnostics. Still, on the iOS app, the option to disable this function is one of the few configuration settings available.

CyberGhost is headquartered in Bucharest, Romania, a country with currently no data retention laws. However, Romania is a member of the European Union (EU) and is subject to GDPR. The local laws that implement data protection are under the scrutiny of EU regulators due to the deviations from these regulations.

Subscriber account and contact information are stored, comprising email address, associated payment information, and details of the devices that have been used to access the CyberGhost service. Interestingly, the payment information is exclusively held by third-party payment processing providers and not CyberGhost itself. The email address and device information are also used when online support functions are accessed. Therefore, total anonymity can only be achieved if the subscriber can provide a non-attributable email address and use an anonymous payment method.

Visitors to the website are presented with non-persistent cookies that manage the current session. In addition, Google Analytics and AdWords cookies are used, including some persistent cookies for third-party behavioral tracking. The use of these cookies is covered in the privacy policy for the website. This policy states that third parties have access to aggregated usage data.

CyberGhost is a reasonably priced premium service that offers good network speeds over connections through servers distributed in over ninety countries worldwide. It achieves good connection speeds by using the lightweight WireGuard protocol, designed for security rather than privacy. Coupled with its headquarters within an EU country and so subject to local implementation of GDPR, this raises questions over the levels of privacy the service offers, particularly in the long term should Romania's data protection laws be brought into line with other EU countries. It's also worth noting the CyberGhost is owned by the same company as Private Internet Access (PIA).

Costs are reduced if the two-year subscription is taken through the website. The price includes heavy discounting and free months, but the deal offered changes daily, so savvy users should watch prices to find the best deal. Subscription through the iOS app was seen to be significantly more expensive.

The CyberGhost service claims to operate a no-logging policy but without independent audit or transparency in the technology used to implement this. It retains limited subscriber information that, combined with the acceptance of anonymous payment methods, means that if connection logs are not kept for WireGuard, it is relatively straightforward to set up and operate an entirely anonymous VPN connection for users seeking privacy.

The CyberGhost iOS application was simple to install and set up due to the limited options available. CyberGhost has minimal configuration options and security features, and not all supported devices have all these options available.

Creating an account was straightforward. The unavailability of key features and questions over technical privacy controls lets down the service.

Tests for anonymously accessing geo-locked content were generally positive, with no issues encountered other than those declared on the status page of the website. Overall, the observed network speeds were good, and the service was seen to support access to the most popular online streaming services. The library of user guides and online support was good, and the live chat feature was available on the iOS app.