Η PureVPN, is a virtual private network provider company that claims to keep no log files exposing them users her. So the company that protects its users helped arrest a man from Massachusetts on Friday.
The log files, which PureVPN claims do not exist, were used to locate and arrest 24-year-old Ryan Lin.
Ryan is accused of stalking his ex-roommate, Jennifer Smith, also 24 years old.
According to Privacy Policy of PureVPN:
We do not monitor user activity or maintain any logs. Therefore, we do not have data about your activities, such as the software you used, the websites you visited, the content you downloaded, the applications you used, etc. when you connect to one of our servers.
However, according to documents compiled by the Register, these files exist, and not only do they exist, but they also contributed to Ryan's arrest.
The indictment states:
“Furthermore, records from PureVPN show that the same email accounts – Lin's gmail account and teleportfx's gmail account – have been accessed from the same WANSecurity IP address. PureVPN was able to determine that the service they had been used by the same customer but from two original IP addresses: the IP address of Lin's home where he lived at the time and the software company where Lin was working at the time.”
The monitoring activity started in April of this year and the authorities required PureVPN to maintain log files, which it probably continues to maintain to this day - regardless of the terms of service it mentions.
Deception:
If PureVPN has issued and has Terms of Service that explicitly state that they do not collect and store the services of users of the service in log files, it has an obligation even if it collects to keep this information private.
Although Lin did something that was against the law, there are many who use the service to gain additional anonymity without malicious intent. These reasons can be:
To access entertainment content from iTunes, Netflix, YouTube, etc.
To access existing networks and websites censorship from oppressive regimes.
For anonymity while browsing
For communication with friends and family abroad
Today one in four internet users use a VPN and of course not everyone can use it for malicious purposes.
So PureVPN was caught cheating its customers, promising not to disclose data that exposes them, when in fact it is secretly recording their actions…
