Perfect Privacy VPN Review

Perfect Privacy is a recognizable name.

We use several of their free privacy services to check other VPN connections and proxy servers, for instance.

But this time, we’re turning the table to see whether their encryption and protocol offerings are up to snuff.

Perfect Privacy comes courtesy of the Swiss-based Vectura Data management Limited, which was founded in 2014.

And in this Perfect Privacy VPN review, we’ll spill the beans on their private network, including whether you should fork over your hard-earned dough or stick to their free resources, instead.

Perfect-Privacy VPN Overview

OVERALL RANK:	#4 out of 78 VPNs
USABILITY:	Very Easy, Supports All Devices
LOG FILES:	No Logging Policy
LOCATIONS:	24 countries, 55 servers
SUPPORT:	FAQ, Forum, & Email
TORRENTING:	Torrenting Allowed
NETFLIX:	Yes 1/5
ENCRYPTION/PROTOCOL:	256-bit AES/, PPTP, OpenVPN, SOCKS5, IPSec & SSH
COST:	$9.99/mo (yearly)
OFFICIAL WEBSITE:	www.perfect-privacy.com

 

Perfect Privacy Pros

Perfect Privacy doesn’t let us down, offering best-in-class protocols and encryption options. Their logging policy is legit, connection leak free, and application user-friendly.

Here’s a quick summary of their positives.

1. Industry-Standard Encryption and Protocols

Perfect Privacy starts strong, offering the OpenVPN protocol, along with IPSec and SSH, plus SOCKS5 and PPTP proxies.

OpenVPN should be your default choice in most cases, because it offers bank-grade 256-bit encryption. No one has ever been able to hack through this rock-solid standard. And no one will in the near future, either. It would even take today’s supercomputers decades to crack. So don’t expect it anytime soon.

The other protocol options are good for older or incompatible devices. For example, less expensive laptops might not be able to run OpenVPN. Where as iOS devices typically use IPSec.

2. Zero-Logging Policy

Perfect Privacy’s log-free policy is also free of any suspicious, technical jargon. (See what I did there?)

Many other VPN companies will use sophisticated legalese to give themselves some wiggle room. That way, users either won’t understand what they’re agreeing to. Or, they’ll be powerless to stop the company from using your personal data however they please.

That’s not even the worst part, though.

Because many times, when you dig below the surface of a VPN’s terms and privacy policy, you’ll discover that they outright lie about their logging policies.

Fortunately, you don’t have that issue with Perfect Privacy.

3. Leak and Virus-Free Connection

We use Perfect Privacy’s free IP check to make sure each VPN connection is telling the truth.

See, some connections will accidentally ‘leak’ your true IP address right from under your nose. Obviously, this completely negates having a VPN in the first place.

So this time, we turned the tables.

We double-checked Perfect Privacy’s connection in several different tests. And they came out clean in each case.

• https://ipleak.net/ (none found)
• https://www.perfect-privacy.com/check-ip/ (none found)
• https://ipx.ac/run (none found)
• https://browserleaks.com/webrtc (none found)
• https://www.perfect-privacy.com/dns-leaktest/ (none found)
• http://dnsleak.com/ (none found)

The other positive we found was that no potential viruses or malware showed up in their installation files, either.

This is great news, considering a few other VPNs we’ve reviewed, like StrongVPN for example, has produced as many as three viruses in their install files.

Forking over your cash for a VPN, only to have them inject your device with malware, would be a complete disaster. (Not to mention, a complete waste of money.)

You can rest easy knowing you’re in the clear with Perfect Privacy.

4. Easy-to-Use Application

Not every VPN app works flawlessly.

You’d expect them to all be pretty simple. Just fire it up, select a server, and hit “Connect.”

Simple as that, right? What could possibly go wrong?

Well… a lot in some cases, apparently.

Take Azire and SlickVPN. Each one crashed multiple times when we were trying them out.

In fact, it took up to TWO HOURS to properly connect.

Mercifully, Perfect Privacy was a breeze in comparison.

Their app is very minimal and simple. There were no bells and whistles:

Options allow you to change protocols or switch servers. Once you’re up and running, you can also run it from the taskbar so the client is hidden away for the most part (unless you need it).

We didn’t find any major problems with their app.

But we did have a few minor inconveniences.

First, server switching could take a long as thirty seconds. Kinda lengthy compared to the instantaneous experience we had with other VPNs.

Second, the app’s user interface was kinda old school. I know — totally minor. Still felt odd.

Not deal killers. Just stuff to be aware of before purchasing an entire year’s worth of service.

Let’s end on a positive, though.

Perfect Privacy’s app also includes a kill switch to make sure your browsing session isn’t exposed when your internet connection unexpectedly drops.

Interestingly, they also give you three different levels with it:

1. While tunnel is active (on-mode only when VPN is connected)
2. While program is active (on-mode when software is working)
3. Permanent (works even when software is off)

We also tested this feature out to make sure it worked as promised.

For example, we turned on the ‘second’ level and then tried accessing the internet. No dice:

Looks like the kill switch works perfectly.

5. Respectable Customer Support

Perfect Privacy offers support through the FAQ section, forum, and email.

No live chat available.

The FAQ page is OK for finding simple answers to common questions. The forum is decent, too.

But you’re going to need email help for complex issues.

We fired off a message at 10:25 PM one night to test both (1) quality and (2) speed.

A reply email hit our inbox almost exactly twelve hours later at 10:29 AM.

Not bad for email or ticket-based support systems.

Their response was simple but direct. They asked a few follow-up questions and we were able to get an answer pretty quickly after.

It was an actual back-and-forth conversation, as opposed to some VPN companies that try to automate the process with a bot or simply copy and paste some support links into the body of the email.

The other thing I liked is that Perfect Privacy will even hop on TeamViewer for screen sharing to help solve technical issues. So it seems like they’ll go the extra mile to help you out.

6. Netflix Seems to Work, For Now…

Perfect Privacy prides themselves on just that: “Privacy.”

Nowhere on their site will you find proud proclamations touting Netflix-friendly servers.

And there’s a reason for that.

Because we tested five of their servers and found that only one worked with Netflix. The dreaded Black Screen of Netflix Death reared it’s ugly head all five out of five times:

• U.S. Washington server – not working
• U.S. New York server – not working
• UK server – not working
• Canada server – not working
• The Netherland server – working

If you need a VPN purely for Netflix, consider finding something from this list instead.

 

Perfect Privacy Cons

Perfect Privacy started off great.

But they had trouble keeping pace across the finish line.

Server speeds started to slow.

Then, they completely dropped the Netflix ball.

Last but not least, server count and device compatibility ruined an otherwise good thing.

1. Server Speeds Consistently Slow

One of our favorite VPN tests zeros-in on their server speeds.

See, encryption often comes at a cost.

It doesn’t matter how secure a connection might be if the day-to-day use is virtually impossible.

This is also one of the first areas we see an otherwise strong VPN start to falter.

So it was with Perfect Privacy.

Things started well. We were positive.

Then, the speed test results started to trickle in.

And Perfect Privacy’s combined score was able to place them at 4th (out of 78).

Placed in the top 10, easily.

Our initial benchmark speeds included a 98.71 Mbps download, with a 53 Mbps upload. Strong, but not Earth-shattering.

Next, we connected to a Perfect Privacy server in the Netherlands, and here’s what we saw:

• Download: 62.21 Mbps (35% slower)
• Upload: 18.62 Mbps (64% slower)

Not a convincing start.

We then connected to a US server in New York, and things quickly went from bad to worse:

• Download: 32.78 Mbps (67% slower)
• Upload: 33.27 Mbps (37% slower)

Pretty ‘meh’ overall to be honest.

Not awful, but not near the top with the likes of ExpressVPN, either.

2. Torrenting Allowed, But Limited

Torrenting is user-friendly, but not always privacy friendly.

Connecting to so many other ambiguous devices on a big network can leave you exposed. Which is why a VPN becomes an essential security product if you’re a heavy torrenter.

The trouble is that although Perfect Privacy allows torrenting, they only do so on their “premium dedicated servers” (read: most expensive). This is a bummer considering that many other VPNs will simply give you full, unlimited torrenting across all their servers for the same standard price.

3. Low Server Network

Perfect Privacy boasts 55+ servers in 26 countries.

That’s not very many, to be honest.

Especially when you compare it to the thousands of servers that NordVPN or even PIA provide.

A low total server count translates to a poor user experience for a number of reasons.

The first is practical:

You have more users chasing the same few servers.

This leads to resources being spread thin, and slow speeds as a result.

The second issue deals with proximity.

The further away you are from the connecting server, the worse performance you can expect.

And when your VPN only reaches 26 countries to begin with? You might have to hop several borders to reach the nearest one.

Either way, the already-slow server speeds we saw from Perfect Privacy will probably only get worse.

4. Located Inside a 5-Eyes Cooperative Jurisdiction

Switzerland enjoys a privacy-friendly reputation.

And that holds true here, too, for the most part.

However, there is one tiny wrinkle:

The Swiss can (and will) cooperate with the Five Eyes security alliance if required.

If you’re not doing anything wrong? You’re in the clear.

If you’re walking a fine line? It’d be better to choose a VPN with a completely isolated jurisdiction, so you couldn’t possibly run into any of these problems.

We’ll admit that the likelihood of Perfect Privacy being forced to cooperate is pretty low.

But if it only takes one small, slim chance to have your personal data end up in security databases around the world, it’s worth re-considering.

5. Disappointing Device Compatibility

Perfect Privacy offers set-up tutorials for a range of devices, including:

• Mac – through OpenVPN and Tunnelbrick as well as native app (easy to set up)
• iOS – through IPsec protocol (easy to set up)
• Linux – through IPsec and OpenVPN
• Android – through IPsec and native app
• IPTV – AppleTV, SmartTV, Satellite TV, Playstation, XBox
• Routers – custom set up (guide here)

You can even connect unlimited devices under one plan! That’s awesome, considering other companies maybe give you three to five devices at a time. You can even use Tor, too.

So what could possibly be the problem?

They can do better when it comes to device compatibility. While they only used to have ready-made apps for Windows devices, they now have apps for Android and macOS. Still, more needs to be done as far as device compatibility is concerned.

You know all those others on the list above? You’ll have to use workarounds, like setting up the OpenVPN option, first, before manually creating your connection.

And if you don’t know your DNS from your ports? Good luck.

Too much manual labor in our eyes. Especially compared with the price…

Perfect Privacy Plans, Pricing, and Payment Options

 

Perfect Privacy has several plans, but the major difference is the term and price. Here’s a quick list, along with pricing in USD as of February 2019 exchange rates:

• 1 Month – $12.99
• 1 Year – saves 23% – $119.99
• 2 Years – saves 31% – $214.95

Payment options are extremely versatile. You can pay with wide-range of options like PayPal, Bitcoin, Mobiamo, Visa and Mastercard, Amex, and UnionPay.

If you like old-school anonymity, you can even pay in cash by sending your money in a concealed envelope to a remote address in Latvia. (No joke.)

Perfect Privacy offers a seven-day money-back guarantee. Except, if you pay with cash or Bitcoin. Anonymous payment methods are great for privacy. Not so great for getting a refund.

Do You Recommend Perfect Privacy?

Hard to tell…

It’s not that they bombed any one section. They weren’t the worst VPN we’ve tried.

But at the end of the day, you only need one VPN.

And there were just too many holes to overlook.

Consider the fact that speeds were consistently slow, they barely reach two dozen countries, Netflix doesn’t work at all, and anyone outside of Linux or Windows users will need to setup their own manual connections.

Plus, the current costs — whether due to the exchange rate or not — puts them among the most expensive providers we’ve reviewed.

There were some positives. The leak-free, virus-free connection was great. Protocols and encryptions were top notch. The app was easy to use and customer support was also good.

But again:

If you’re only paying for one VPN service, there are a few others I’d recommend you check out, first.

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