Cyberghost Review

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As an internet aficionado, I was introduced to VPNs early on in my career. And ever since then I’ve been a fan.

Do we need a VPN? That’s up to you to answer.

But since you had landed here, I assume you find a VPN sort of useful and important as well.

Whether it’s unblocking Netflix libraries, Torrenting, or gaming, I always make it a point to use a reliable VPN connection to protect my privacy.

This not only gives me complete peace of mind regarding the safety of my personal information but also improves my surfing and downloading speeds by leaps and bounds.

And unlike previously, when VPN services were only available to large organizations and business individuals, today the situation has changed drastically.

Just do a Google search for the most popular VPNs and you’ll see a mind-boggling array of results.

This is where the problem begins.

With every VPN provider claiming to be the best, how do you decide upon the right VPN for your needs?

That’s why to help you out, I’ve made it my personal mission to test out every VPN on the block and give you the complete lowdown on each of them.

And today I’ve decided to give you the deets on CyberGhost, one of the fastest and most reliable VPN services around that scores 78 over 100!

I’d only ever heard all good things about CyberGhost, but being the diligent person that I am, I decided to check things out for myself.

After giving the service a thorough shakeup, now I can confidently share my findings with you. The following are some of the important questions that I sought to answer:

• Does it provide reliable download and surfing speeds?
• Is it safe and secure?
• Does it allow Torrenting?
• Is it user-friendly?

I’ll give you the answers to all these questions, and much more, in this complete review of CyberGhost. So let’s not dally any longer and jump right in.

Sneak Peek: CyberGhost performs well on multiple fronts, and is reliable enough for most tasks. But it does have several pitfalls, and I’ll walk you through them all in due course.

Netflix And CyberGhost

First things first: how well does CyberGhost work with Netflix?

This is the first question I explored, as it’s the one I encounter the most often.

And the short answer: Yes!

CyberGhost and Netflix make the perfect couple.

The like of NordVPN and Netflix makes the combo killer but CyberGhost does it a little cheaper.

I have several associates located strategically across the world, and they help me decide whether a VPN service provides ample speeds from diverse regions.

While testing CyberGhost I got all of them to help me out, and the results were more than satisfying.

We tried out the Asian and UK libraries first and faced no latency in streaming.

Speeds remained consistent, and I encountered zero geoblocks during my adventures.

Next, I headed over to less popular libraries such as Canada and Australia and was happy to see that even there the service performed admirably.

I’ll have to admit that I did encounter some buffering when I accessed the Brazil libraries.

But considering that my traffic had to travel halfway around the world, I’ll say it’s still a good performance.

All in all, bypassing the Netflix VPN ban was an easy task here.

There’s one feature that I like about CyberGhost, and that’s the Optimized Streaming Server option.

Using this feature allows me to automatically connect to the ideal servers for my location at the touch of a button.

Apart from Netflix, CyberGhost also performs admirably with other streaming services such as HBO Now, Disney+, Eurosport, and Crunchyroll.

CyberGhost Speeds Testing

Now that we know CyberGhost to be perfect for streaming, let’s delve deeper and explore its speed.

When it comes to local surfing speeds, CyberGhost does a little better job in speed rather than intelligence.

I used the Best Server Location feature to hop onto the local servers, and to my surprise, I was on the Phnom Penh server for the first time.

I’m glad to say I clocked around 28Mbps most of the time even though Cambodia might not be the best server around me in my opinion.

I did try out a few MMOs, spent time on video chat sessions with my friends, and even indulged in ample Torrenting, with results that were more than satisfactory.

However, the farther I went with the server locations, the lower my speeds dropped.

The slowest speed I recorded was with some South American servers (such as Brazil).

Here the speeds often decreased by as much as 70% from my 30 Mbps broadband plan which is a pretty significant decrease for a given paid VPN.

So, my verdict: CyberGhost provides decent enough speeds when it comes to local destinations, but the farther you move from your home center, the greater the lag you’re going to experience.

CyberGhost And Security

Now the most important aspect of VPNs is security, and I’m glad to say that CyberGhost performs well in this aspect.

Let’s tackle the question of encryption first.

CyberGhost uses AES-256 encryption, which is one of the best standards available in the industry.

Here, 256 refers to the size of the key that’s used for encrypting your information.

Considering that it’ll probably take a quantum computer to crack this level of encryption, you can be sure that your information is safe from prying eyes.

Along with that, CyberGhost also incorporates 4096-bit RSA encryption and SHA-256 authentication that are guaranteed to protect your data during transmission.

While SHA-256 is strong enough to keep you safe and shield you from man-in-the-middle attacks, still I’d have been more than happy if it used SHA-512, which is a more secure protocol.

Apart from the above, CyberGhost also includes a bevy of competent security protocols, such as OpenVPN TCP/UDP, IKEv2, and L2TP/IPSec.

They had once and for all abandoned the PPTP protocol which was designed as the Windows VPN a long time ago.

Based on whether you require more speed or security, the app selects the right protocol.

But of course, you also have the option to select the protocol of your choice.

Do note that the mobile app only supports OpenVPN; however, it should be sufficient for most regular applications.

For Linux users, CyberGhost makes use of the WireGuard protocol, which combines both speed and security to deliver an awesome online experience.

There’s another interesting feature that I noticed while using the service with OpenVPN, and that’s the Random Port Connection feature.

Using this service allows me to securely connect to websites that don’t use HTTPS. This allows you to connect to legacy sites and older services without fear of leaking your information.

Another nifty security feature of this service is Perfect Forward Secrecy.

This helps further improve security by changing encryption keys on each log-on. This means that even if one of your sessions is compromised, the others will remain protected.

The kill switch feature is a common characteristic of most modern VPNs, and so I wasn’t really surprised to find it in CyberGhost.

I was, however, a little disappointed to discover that this feature is only present in the desktop app.

This means mobile users are not protected to the same levels as PC users. I sincerely hope that the developers will pay attention to this aspect soon.

But don’t be too put off, for CyberGhost has other nifty security features such as Split Tunneling, DNS & IP Leak Protection, and WiFi Protection to ensure that your browsing remains secure.

It even goes as far as to provide automated HTTPS redirects that protect you from malicious web attacks.

CyberGhost And Privacy

So we’ve established the fact that CyberGhost provides you with sufficient security features.

But what about privacy?

Does the company do enough to protect your personal information?

That’s what I set out to explore next, and the results surprised me pleasantly.

CyberGhost is headquartered in Romania, which is a rather privacy-friendly country.

It’s also not a part of any global spy alliance, which means the company is not obligated to share information with any government.

Which we are happy to list as the recommended VPN in Singapore.

The next interesting feature that I found in CyberGhost was the AdBlocker, which is present in all its apps.

However, it’s not working all the time and I verified that with CyberGhost. They had an explanation for it which I’ll put under the CyberGhost testing report here.

That’s a glitch for me but am happy to know that they are aware of it and are working on a solution.

Some other connection features protect against adware, malware, and unwanted tracking.

I prefer to keep all these features turned on to ensure the complete privacy of my browsing.

Coming to log keeping, I was happy to learn that CyberGhost has a strict no-logs policy, that ensures no connection information is recorded that can compromise your activities.

It only stores your email address for communication purposes.

And yes, the service does use cookies to improve the user experience.

But rest assured, your data is not going to be used for tracking and advertising activities. And you can turn them off manually as well.

This is a great help if you are using them as the work-from-home VPN where we mix our private kinds of stuff with working sometimes.

Finally, I’d like to mention CyberGhost’s NoSpy Server package, which is an optional service available for premium members.

You have to enroll in their 1-year plan and above to enjoy access to the NoSpy Servers.

These grant access to a range of servers from the NoSpy data center in Romania, maintained by a dedicated team, and fully owned by CyberGhost.

The NoSpy service offers access to exclusive hardware resources, larger bandwidths, and better uplinks.

The service also provides added protection during Torrenting, which is something I appreciate.

Server Locations

I took considerable time to check out the service’s server capabilities, and this timeCyberGhost also had me impressed.

With over 6000 servers spread across 90 nations, CyberGhost can easily rank among the best-connected VPN networks on the planet.

Similar to most other VPN providers, CyberGhost provides the greatest number of servers in the US and UK.

It also has a stable network in far-off nations such as Latvia and Saudi Arabia.

I was surprised to learn that it even operates servers in China, which as you all know is notorious for its online restrictions, and also the China VPN ban that all started in 2018.

With the latest injection of National Security Laws in Hong Kong, it doesn’t seem to be better in any way in the aspect of freedom of speech.

Find out my perception and how the VPN becomes the resistance symbol for the injustice in VPN for Hong Kong.

There is one significant point of concern, however, and that’s regarding the server technology that CyberGhost uses.

Unlike most other VPNs, I couldn’t find any mention of its server security standards. This means there’s no way to know whether they use RAM or hard drives for data storage.

So, I will just assume that all servers by CyberGhost run under conventional hard drives instead of RAM which ExpressVPN is so proud of, which they really should be.

CyberGhost also provides virtual servers and dedicated IP addresses (add-on purchases), which are delightful bonuses if you ask me.

Overall, I’d say CyberGhost takes care of most privacy concerns.

Torrenting

I know you guys have been waiting a long time for this, and here’s the answer: CyberGhost provides great facilities for Torrenting. In fact, one of the best in the industry.

The service even has dedicated Torrenting servers that have been specifically designed for P2P operations.

With over 80 P2P servers you can be sure to find one near to you.

The service provides you with all the necessary information such as server loads, distance, and latency expected.

And if you find some servers that work particularly well for you, then you can mark them in the favorites list for easy access.

But I must say I was disappointed to learn that all these features are only available for desktop users.

CyberGhost seems to favor its lot over its mobile user base, which is something rather rational given most torrent users downloading directly to their PC.

Also, the service doesn’t offer a SOCKS5 proxy, which is something I was hoping to find.

Device Compatibility And Ease Of Use

When it comes to compatibility, CyberGhost doesn’t disappoint.

The service is available on all major platforms and works with most devices.

As I’ve mentioned before the desktop app has significantly greater capabilities than the mobile one.

IOS and Android apps are simple to install and have essential features. Comparing the two, I found that the Android app is significantly better equipped than the iOS one.

Coming to browser extensions, CyberGhost is available for both Chrome and Firefox.

Though not as fully feature-rich as the apps, they do offer significant safe-browsing capabilities. Plus, they’re pretty nifty for overcoming geoblocks.

Finally, it’s important to note that the service also has apps for routers compatible with OpenVPN, using which you can connect an unlimited number of devices with the service.

Otherwise, you’ll have to remain content with the max limit of seven simultaneous connections at once.

Final Verdict

So, should you go for CyberGhost?

I’d say this: if you’re planning on using the service for Netflix, Torrenting, and regular gaming purposes, then CyberGhost can be a pretty affordable option.

Other than Surfshark that can go as low as $1.79/mo.

Did I mention that they smoothen out the buffering issue when using the Kodi add-on? They did.

It’s got state-of-the-art security, good privacy protection features, and dedicated support for premium users.

What’s more, it’s available on a large number of platforms, is simple to use, and has all the required nuts and bolts that protect your online activity.

However, if you’re looking for extremely fast speeds from faraway servers, then you might be a bit disappointed, as CyberGhost speeds don’t really measure up to many of its competitors.

All things considered, I’d say CyberGhost is certainly worth giving a shot at.