Google is launching its One VPN service on macOS and Windows, expanding beyond the initial iOS and Android offering.
VPN services are a popular way to protect privacy online, access geo-restricted content, and circumvent censorship. Google’s One VPN service is already available for iOS and Android, but the company is now bringing the service to macOS and Windows. The VPN is available for free on Google One accounts with a 2TB or higher account.
Of course, a major concern that some people may have is the company running this particular VPN. A VPN service works by routing all of a user’s traffic through a trusted server, thereby masking that traffic from outsiders. In order to be effective, however, the company running the VPN servers must be trusted implicitly, since it’s the one entity privy to ALL the user’s internet traffic.
At its core, Google is a company that makes money off of user data. Even now, the company is facing a lawsuit tracking users when Chrome’s Incognito Mode was active, despite leading users to believe their browsing activity was private.
So the real question is: Should users trust a company that profits from data, not to mention a company with a history of privacy abuses, with ALL of their most sensitive internet traffic?
Our answer is no. Users would be far better off using Mullvad, or another reputable service.