Anonymity Your VPN is a Trojan.

[Fixxx]

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Your VPN is a Trojan. It looks like Protection, but works like Surveillance​

Researchers from the Tech Transparency Project have reported that at least 17 free VPN applications with alleged ties to China are still available in the American versions of the Apple and Google stores. Major tech companies may be profiting from these apps despite the risks to user privacy. The first investigation by TTP was published in April. At that time, experts found that the data of millions of users from more than twenty VPN services could have been transmitted to China without their knowledge. Five of these applications are said to be linked to Qihoo 360, a Shanghai-based company that has previously faced U.S. sanctions due to potential connections with Chinese military entities. Six weeks later, an updated TTP report shows that most of these programs are still available in the American versions of the App Store and Google Play. Additionally, researchers discovered signs that Apple and Google may be profiting from these services. According to their data, more than twenty of the top one hundred free VPNs in the American App Store have hidden connections to China.

Among the applications associated with Qihoo 360 are Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN, Snap VPN and Signal Secure VPN. Some of these remained in the Apple store despite the initial report. The list also includes other services such as X-VPN, Ostrich VPN, VPNIFY, VPN Proxy OvpnSpider, WireVPN, Now VPN, Speedy Quark VPN, AppVPN, HulaVPN and Pearl VPN. ​

The situation on the Google Play platform is similar. In the U.S, the same four applications from Qihoo 360 are available, along with seven other VPN services of Chinese origin. New checks by TTP also revealed that many of these programs offer in-app purchases, meaning that Apple and Google could receive a share of user payments for subscriptions and additional features. Furthermore, some applications contain advertisements, which also serve as a source of revenue. As an example, researchers provided a screenshot of the Turbo VPN page on Google Play from May 8, 2025, which shows a note about the presence of advertising content. Researchers confirmed that these same VPN applications are also available in the British versions of the stores, indicating that the issue may affect users in other countries as well.