VPN Logging Policies in 2025: Which ‘No-Logs’ Providers Pass the Test?

Virtual Private Networks promise to cloak your traffic, but many privacy-savvy VPN users ignore the logging policies of their VPN providers. A single retained IP address or timestamp can de-anonymize everything you do online.

Below, we dissect the latest audits, police raids and subpoena battles of the world’s biggest VPNs so you can see whose “no-logs” vow is marketing fluff – and whose has been cryptographically, legally and forensically proven.

Even the best no-logs VPN can’t erase the embarrassing tweets you published in 2012, or posts that reveal personal information that could be leveraged against you. After you review your VPN against the list below, use Redact.dev to bulk-delete old social posts and complete the privacy circuit. If you’re interested in how Redact stacks up against other social media deletion apps – check out our comparison here.

Why VPN Logs Matter More Than Ever

• IP addresses are quasi-identifiers. Combine a timestamp with metadata from social platforms and an advertiser (or a court order) can triangulate you in seconds.
• Jurisdiction ≠ immunity. A Panama or BVI HQ helps, but only if the provider technically cannot store user data.
• Audits are the new norm. Big-four firms (KPMG, Deloitte) and boutique labs (Cure53, Securitum) now release annual “reasonable assurance” reports. No audit = red flag.

2025 VPN Logging Scorecard: Who’s Been Audited, Subpoena-Tested or Raided?

The table below looks at the headquartered location of each major VPN provider, and their relationship with intelligence alliances (5-eyes, 9-eyes, 14-eyes) along with the most recent independent audit (servers, code, privacy policies), and the outcome of real-world police raids, subpoenas, or breaches that challenge or exposes the provider’s logging stance.

The retention verdict is our synthesis of audit depth, jurisdiction risk, and incident records – this is a confidence score from our privacy experts, and not a legal guarantee.

We’ve included other details in the retention verdict, for example RAM-only fleets;

RAM-only fleets are servers that boot from read-only images, while runtime data lives exclusively in the system’s temporary memory store.

VPN Logging – Recent Security Incidents & Responses

Many VPN providers have been the target of cyberattacks and other security incidents. You should be aware of these incidents – and the responses from VPN providers.

ExpressVPN

• ExpressVPN was leaking DNS queries to other users sharing your network (and your ISP) when users engaged their “split-tunneling” mode on Windows.
• ExpressVPN disabled the feature within 24 hours, rolling out a hot-fix, and hiring penetrating-testing firm Nettitude to confirm the patch before re-enabling the feature 2 months later. They published blog posts and audit follow-ups on their website.

NordVPN

• In March 2018 a hacker exploited a management console at a third-party data-centre and briefly accessed one NordVPN server in Finland, potentially viewing live traffic on that single machine (logs were not stored).
• NordVPN’s response was strong – wiping the server the day of discovery, rotated TLS certificates, launched a full infrastructure rebuild, and instituted annual Deloitte audits.

Surfshark

• The 2023 “TunnelCrack” research showed that a rogue Wi-Fi hotspot could coax some VPNs -including Surfshark – into letting bits of traffic leak outside the tunnel.
• Surfshark patched their apps within days of coordinated disclosure, and published a clear advisory with no evidence users were harmed.

Windscribe

• Ukrainian authorities seized two Windscribe servers in 2021 that still held an outdated private key on disk. An attacker with enough time could have used the key to spoof the VPN and spy on connections.
• Windscribe publicly acknowledged the mis-step, migrated its entire fleet to RAM-only disk-less servers, shortened key lifetimes, and documented the overhaul in detail.

Hotspot Shield

• The vulnerability (CVE-2018-6460), allowed any local program to call a web API exposed by the VPN app and reveal your real IP address and Wi-Fi SSID – blowing your cover.
• Hotspot’s response was lacking – initial private disclosure went unanswered for weeks (prompting the researcher to take it public). Hotspot issued a patch within 48 hours. However, it still operates without an independent no-logs audit, so overall transparency is lacking.
• Also had an FTC complaint in 2017 from the Center for Democracy and Technology.

How to Choose a No-Logs VPN in 2025

1. Read the audit date, not just the headline. Anything older than 24 months is stale.
2. Check scope. Does the report examine server configs and authentication flow, or just policy docs?
3. Look for RAM-only architecture. It enforces log impermanence at the hardware level.
4. Google “[Provider] subpoena” or “[Provider] raid” for courtroom evidence.
5. Cross-reference transparency reports to verify how many data requests were refused for lack of logs.

VPN ≠ Time Machine – Delete Your Past Too

A VPN shields what you’re doing today. Your decade-old Facebook likes, ex-partner DMs, and spicy Reddit AMA are still floating in public and platform archives. Combine a no-logs tunnel plus a social-media wipe for more holistic privacy:

• Erase at the source. Use Redact.dev’s bulk deletion service to nuke old tweets, LinkedIn posts, and content from 30+ other platforms.
• Automate future cleanup. Schedule Redact.dev to auto-purge every 30 days.
• Own the narrative. Fewer breadcrumbs mean fewer data brokers, recruiter surprises, or aggressive OSINT sleuths.

Ready to get started? Download Redact.dev today for free and start cleaning up your Facebook, Reddit, Twitter/X and Discord content.