Ra4W VPN (review) was launched to the general public in September 2013. Since then, it has served more than 20,000 customers.
This VPN is owned and operated by US-based RA4W LLC, with access to 33 servers in over 20 countries.
Your website promotes security and anonymity. However, any VPN’s objective is to do this.
If 78 reviews (and counting) have taught us anything, it’s that all VPNs are not the same.
That’s why we started doing this Ra4W VPN review.
We will be covering everything related to:
- Safety
- Velocity
- General usability
- And customer service
And yes, we tried all of them. Have a look.
Table of Contents
Ra4W VPN Review
| OVERALL RANK: | 69 |
| USABILITY: | User-friendly |
| LOG FILES: | No Logging Policy |
| LOCATIONS: | 22 countries, 32 servers |
| SUPPORT: | Contact form with responsive customer support |
| TORRENTING: | Allowed |
| NETFLIX: | Blocks Netflix USA |
| ENCRYPTION/PROTOCOL: | AES-256; OpenVPN |
| OFFICIAL WEBSITE: | www.Ra4wVPN.com |
Ra4W VPN Pros
There are many things that I like about this VPN.
They don’t keep important log files, which is notable for a US-based company.
There are also top-of-the-line encryption and VPN technologies available.
Our installation and utility test were simple and effective. Also, their customer service department was incredibly fast and thorough.
Here’s a quick rundown of everything we liked.
Does Not Save Important Log Files
Ra4WVPN makes a bold claim on their homepage that they don’t keep any logs on their servers.
This is a repeating press release on all VPN services. you would like anonymity, and if someone is tracking you then you are not anonymous.
When trying to make up your mind about whether your VPN provider is honest, it’s best to roll up your sleeves and explore the not-so-exciting world of privacy policies.
I opened the Ra4W VPN Privacy Policy, started browsing, and was pleasantly surprised by the results.
Most companies keep your name, address, and phone number at a minimum. But Ra4w VPN doesn’t hold onto anything other than your email address.
They go on to mention that they “do not monitor or log any content from the VPN tunnels themselves.”
Phew. That is a big step in the right direction.
Secure Protocols and Encryption
The encryption and VPN protocols are not much more secure than those used by Ra4W.
For starters, they employ the industry-leading 256-bit AES encryption standard, which is the same level that the FBI and CIA utilize to keep data secure. There have been no reported hacks or breaches, making it highly impregnable.
On top of that, it uses the OpenVPN protocol to tunnel your connection. This is often the industry-leading standard as well, as confirmed by security experts.
This is the default pairing we’ve seen from the simplest VPN companies. So Ra4W is a good VPN provider.
Allow Unlimited Torrents.
Ra4W does not impose restrictions on torrents.
You can use it anywhere, anytime, and on any server.
That’s a huge advantage because P2P sharing can often expose your personal data. Blocking it with a VPN is the best way to stay safe while downloading giant files regularly.
Easy to Put On and Use
Downloading and installing the Ra4W app was simple and easy.
Only one file was needed so I clicked the green button and went to the races.
Installation took less than a moment. The program was downloaded during a compressed file, so I had to extract it first.
It is worth noting that the username and password you use to log into the device are not equivalent to the username and password for your account that you simply use at ra4wvpn.com.
I know, a little confusing.
Instead, your VPN login information is on the website, in your control panel.
I selected a server in London and dived.
Then I used to be ready to surf online smoothly and I watched a video on YouTube with no lag or lag.
Medium-Sized Server Park with Unlimited Connections
Ra4W VPN has a single plan that can be subscribed to for multiple commitment periods.
There is no limit to the number of connections you will use, however, each connection on your account must use a different server.
The server park is on the “average” side, with only 33 servers in more than 20 countries.
Despite that, unlimited device connections give them an added advantage, compared to most other VPNs that only offer three to five connections at a time.
Helpful and Ultra-Fast Customer Support
Contact forms make me pause.
They are by far among the slowest customer support options we’ve seen. While email and messaging are usually the simplest.
So we get a little anxious when that’s the only option. Our brains immediately begin to mark all the hours that we are getting to consider to urge a half answer.
So after taking a deep breath, I emailed them asking about their encryption and VPN protocols.
Said:
His reply came two minutes later. That is not an exaggeration. it had been literally in two minutes.
What a powerful response time! Furthermore, it had been an honest and informative response.
I loved the level and attention of their customer service department.
High notes everywhere.
Ra4W VPN Cons
No product is ideal.
Ra4W VPN is no different.
We detected some leaks through our testing process, and I was disappointed to find that there was no built-in disconnect switch.
No Netflix server support was a bummer. and therefore the device options were also limited.
But the question remains:
Does the big outweigh the bad?
US Jurisdiction Within the 5 Eyes Alliance
The Ra4W Privacy Policy is comparatively transparent.
Unfortunately, you can’t save them from a nasty starting place.
Generally speaking, you do NOT need a VPN company based in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. That’s because these are the first member countries of the Five Eyes surveillance alliance.
It means that these Iroquois League comply with the reservation and share all the knowledge that they have gathered through espionage efforts.
Even against its own citizens.
This means that as a US company, the US government could demand your information from Ra4W VPN and would be forced to comply.
In addition, your information may be transmitted to the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Then go ahead and add the remaining nine limbs from the 14 expanded eyes, too, measure permanently.
Anonymous web browsing loses tons of your anonymity when 14 federal governments can get their hands on your business.
Leaks Detected & Potential Malicious File
IP leaks are the VPN’s kryptonite.
Your VPN client provides a nice green “Success” signal. It is and it seems that you are safe.
Except, you’re anything but. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) can see everything with the clarity of the day. Your IP address comes from DNS or WebRTC leaks without you realizing it.
That is exactly why we tested them.
We run each VPN through a series of six tests to make sure your VPN connection is legitimate. Each test uses a trusted third-party provider, so we will rule out any bias as well.
However, Ra4W VPN gave us a red flag, failing one of the six tests.
- https://ipleak.net/ – Passed.
- https://www.perfect-privacy.com/check-ip – Passed.
- https://ipx.ac/run – Passed.
- https://browserleaks.com/webrtc – Passed.
- https://www.perfect-privacy.com/dns-leaktest/ – Failed!
- https://dnsleak.com – Passed
No IP Leak:
DNS Leak:
Unfortunately, this was not the only potential problem we encountered.
We also run their installation files through VirusTotal.com to make sure everything you download from them is legitimate.
Except, we got a conflicting result indicating that a malicious file might be lurking.
Not an excellent performance overall. Especially when security is a VPN’s favorite job.
Slows Internet Speed up to 92%
The question is not “Will this VPN slow my internet speed?”
What’s more, “how much will this VPN slow down my internet speed?”
Each VPN is going to be downgraded to a number of its performance. It is the inevitable trade-off for increased security.
But you shouldn’t have to put up with a VPN that sucks up your full speed, either.
We test the speeds of each VPN in exactly the same way. Were connect to servers within the US and therefore the EU. We record those speeds, compare them to our connection speeds without VPN, and judge accordingly.
Unfortunately, our EU test starts off badly. Download speeds plummeted while upload barely stayed within the proper range.
EU Speed Test
- Ping: 43 ms.
- Download: 7.51 Mbps (92% Slower Than 97 Mbps Benchmark).
- Upload: 27.96 Mbps (47.2% Slower Than 53 Mbps Benchmark).
Interestingly, our US speed test showed the exact opposite results, with download speeds in a suitable range and thus the upload had a huge impact.
US Speed Test
- Ping: 163 ms.
- Download: 44.01 Mbps (55% Slower Than 97 Mbps Benchmark).
- Upload: 9.35 Mbps (82.3% Slower Than 53 Mbps Benchmark).
This mixed performance only places the Ra4W VPN in 57th place out of the 78-speed tests we’ve run.
Zero of the 4 Servers that Worked With Netflix
If you’ve tried using a VPN with Netflix in the past two years, there is a fairly common view that will surely sound familiar.
Netflix content varies by region. Strict license agreements control which regions have access to which content options.
Even a couple of years ago, it had been easy to avoid this annoying problem with a VPN.
But today? It is the other.
VPN servers almost never work.
This is usually straightforward for VPN users. they just connected to a different country’s server and accessed its content.
Ra4W VPN is no different.
We connected to four of their servers and each of them was not streaming Netflix content.
Clearly, this is not news to Ra4W. On most of the pages on their site, they list a variety of Internet sites that work with their service. Netflix is not on the list.
Fortunately, there are a lot of high-quality VPNs that work with Netflix, too.
Limited Compatibility With “Official” Devices
At this time, Ra4W only offers a Windows application.
They can support Mac and Linux operating systems, as well as various routers, through manual configuration files.
Their VPN works on Android (again, via the OpenVPN workaround), and the iOS implementation “coming soon”.
I was curious if it could work with smart devices, like a game console or Fire TV. They reached out to their very responsive customer service department to ask.
It received an answer that did not thrill me.
“Technically” is not a word that I like very much.
Clearly, there are ways to fix the system to be compatible with some smart devices, but it falls outside the list of officially supported products, so I don’t count it.
There were no further instructions on what this “manual configuration” required, the information of which was not found anywhere on their website.
In addition to the currently limited compatibility, they also don’t offer a built-in kill switch.
This handy little feature comes into play when your connection drops unexpectedly.
Typically, your IP address and browsing session are exposed to your ISP.
But not with a kill switch. Instead, this shortens the entire session the instant, the connection is dropped.
That way, your ISP, government, and other Wifi trackers won’t be able to get their dirty hands on your personal data.
The lack of a kill switch is particularly concerning during this case due to the connection issues we already experienced.
Finally, the VPN does not support TOR.
Ra4W VPN Cost, Plans, & Payment Methods
This is a good value VPN.
There is only one plan with multiple levels of commitment. Its most expensive price is $ 4.99 for a month. That’s insanely cheap for a real month-to-month option that can cost you $ 10 at another competitor.
You can also get it all for an entire year for less than $ 34.99. That’s only $ 2.91 per month!
This is one of the only lifetimes offers we have seen. And definitely the most profitable.
Ra4W VPN allows you to pay with MasterCard (through Stripe), PayPal, and BitCoin.
Seat belt:
Because their refund policy is about to belong.
Basically, you will only get a refund if (1) your service suffers from a “major defect” or if (2) the service is not delivered for some reason.
Major defects are generally technical problems. While non-delivery applies to not receiving the correct activation requirements, for example.
Otherwise, no refund will be given.
The only way you will get a refund is if you notice one of those issues within seven days of registering. In addition, you may need to provide “clear evidence” of those problems. So take out your screenshots.
And inspect this line:
“Complaints that are simply based on the customer’s false expectations or wishes are not met.”
Therefore, you will NOT be eligible for a refund if you are simply not satisfied with the service. you have to prove that it is a drag or a technical problem.
If you violate its terms during use, you will not get a refund.
You will not receive a refund if you pay using one of the virtual currencies.
Then…
Yes, technically there may be a refund policy. But no, there is practically not.
Do We Recommend Ra4W VPN?
Ra4W VPN ranks 69th out of 78 options we’ve reviewed.
So no, we don’t recommend it.
There is tons of love about this VPN. tons to really like it, actually.
The logging policy and strong encryption made an honest start. Unlimited torrent downloading is an incredible bonus. it had been easy to use and the customer service was really helpful.
But there are still a couple of things that make me nervous.
I was always hesitant to defend the VPNs that belong to the 5 Eyes alliance.
Your connection issued leak warnings in addition to a potentially malicious entry in your application. Speeds were pretty slow across the board. and thus extremely limited device support makes using Ra4W VPN a problem outside of Windows devices.
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