Moreover, both jurisdictions are known to prosecute for minor copyright violations, which is important information if you want to use a VPN for torrenting. While TunnelBear’s headquarters are in Toronto, its new ownership means that it’s also subject to US data laws.īoth the US and Canada form an integral part of the Five-Eyes data-sharing alliance, an organization designed for powerful nations to collect and share surveillance intelligence. “Use your information according to Canada’s laws, regardless of which country you are located in.” Subject to Canada and US data laws The VPN company still operates a separate team within McAfee, meaning the same employees continue to work on the VPN post-acquisition.Īs the privacy policy states, by using TunnelBear you are authorizing the company to: It was subsequently acquired by antivirus software company McAfee in early 2018. TunnelBear was established in 2011 in Canada by Daniel Kaldor and Ryan Dochuk. There have been no known incidents of server breaches or logging scandals associated with TunnelBear. Worryingly, TunnelBear admits to confirming a user’s email address to authorities, although it has never handed over usage information. The company also issues an annual transparency report detailing any government requests for user data. There are no logs that reveal which websites you’ve visited. The only personally identifiable information TunnelBear logs is your email address, to prove you have an account.

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