VPN Industry at Risk Due to Lack of Awareness Surrounding GDPR, BestVPN.com Reports

LIVERPOOL, England, May 25, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Many of the top VPN providers are putting the industry at risk by failing to comply with GDPR, according to research carried out by BestVPN.com.

Leading VPN comparison site, BestVPN.com, contacted nine of the market leading VPN providers and asked them to complete a compliance survey. While five said that they were taking the appropriate measures to ensure GDPR compliance, only three were fully transparent about their policies and were willing to document their processes.

Widely regarded as one of the most complex and far-reaching pieces of legislation in history, GDPR affects all organisations that are either established within the EU, or that store data of residents within the EU.

The legislation affords new individual rights to citizens including: the right to be informed, the right of access and the right to erasure. The financial penalties for organisations found to be non-compliant are significant and potentially crippling.

Out of the nine providers BestVPN.com spoke to, only Tunnelbear, Cyberghost, Buffered, and Private Internet Access were able to fully demonstrate their compliance strategy through a set of rigorous questions designed by the organisation's compliance team.

BestVPN.com is conducting additional research and working with providers to drive an industry-wide movement for responsible management of personal data. Further information will be made available in the coming days.

"Virtual Private Networks plays a vital role in protecting the rights of citizens around the world," commented Sean McGrath, editor of BestVPN.com. "From journalists to activists, VPNs are the last line of defense between privacy as we know it and a world where everything we say and do is visible to governments, ISPs and hackers. This is an industry built on trust, yet it is currently marred by a lack of transparency. If people can't trust VPN providers to protect their personal data, the foundations on which our industry was built begin to fall apart."

"GDPR is certainly not perfect, but it is ultimately a positive piece of legislation for privacy-conscious citizens and for the VPN market. We urge VPN providers around the world to adopt a more open and honest approach to data protection, providing customers with full details of how their personal information is handled."

Notes for Editors

BestVPN.com is a dedicated online service fighting for people's privacy and freedom to use the internet when, where and how they wish.

For Further information please contact: Sarah Barnard, Digital Marketing Manager - sarahb@4choice.com