Windscribe’s privacy policy is short, simple, and clear: The company retains next to nothing about its users. At no point is your source IP or browsing history logged. The company uses a bespoke authentication system that discards all unnecessary data regarding connections. It no longer needs to delete unwanted user data, such as usernames and session timestamps, after every session, as that data is never recorded in the first place.
You don’t need to give any personal information to Windscribe to sign up, so the only identifiers tied to your account will be your username or email, if you provided one. Data usage is tracked to prevent abuse of the free tier as well as to routinely prune inactive accounts. The specifics of what you download, browse, or stream are never logged. I recommend reading the policy over yourself as well. There are no red flags, but it’s worth being fully informed before you make a purchase and trust a company with your data.
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Beyond a standard privacy policy, Windscribe has a code of ethics, stating that the service is self-funded and self-hosted and that the team doesn’t participate in affiliate deals, advertising, or paid review content. Most competitors can’t say the same. More VPNs and privacy services should spell out their ethical policies to give users greater insight into how decisions are made and whether the company’s views align with their own.
You don’t have to take Windscribe’s word for everything, either. You’re right not to trust what a VPN claims. That’s why pretty much every piece of software the service puts out is open source, so you can take a deep dive and verify any claims for yourself. Additionally, a monthly transparency report is kept up to date with every DMCA and law enforcement request received. No requests have resulted in a handover of user data. The company’s founder also went through a lengthy court case stemming from a Windscribe IP address allegedly being used to breach a server in Greece. Long story short, no information was handed over, and the case was dismissed.
Windscribe underwent two in-depth audits in 2024 by PacketLabs. The full scope, results, and testing procedures are publicly available, and I recommend you give them a read yourself. The gist: a full penetration test was performed, as well as in-depth reviews of the VPN’s source code and policies. All vulnerabilities were remediated, and the overall report goes into detail regarding exactly what was done to improve security and privacy across the board. Plenty of VPNs undergo audits, but very few release the full, unedited reports to the public.
Windscribe is also clear on what a VPN can and cannot do. Many believe it to be a fix-all for privacy, but that simply isn’t the case. The company’s focus on privacy and transparency is clear in its public statements, and the fact that it avoids common industry practices like sponsored content, affiliate programs, and influencer sponsorships.
