What is a DNS leak?

A DNS leak is a problem with the network configuration that results in loss of privacy by sending DNS queries over insecure links instead of using the VPN connection.

DNS or Domain Name Servers are like telephone books that translate domain names (e.g. google.com) into IP addresses and as such are vital for Internet communication.

When you connect to a VPN tunnel, it is important that all your traffic is passed through the tunnel including DNS requests. Otherwise, if the DNS ‘leaks’ out of the secure tunnel, your online activity could be exposed.

Why does a DNS leak occur?

The reason why DNS leaks occur is normally due to misconfiguration of network settings on client devices. The most common DNS leaks occur on Windows Operating Systems due to the OS preferring to use DNS servers assigned by the LAN gateway rather than the DNS server assigned by VPN tunnel. This is especially common among Windows 10 PCs.

Are you affected by a DNS leak?

Connect to Zoog VPN on your device and go to www.dnsleaktest.com to test for DNS leak.

Check the IPs detected by the test. Do any of them look like they are from your ISP rather than the VPN tunnel? If yes, then you probably have the DNS leak! If not, then your VPN connection is fully secure.

How to fix a DNS leak?

Once you have identified a DNS leak, how do you fix it? It is of course device (OS) dependent, but below you can find how to fix DNS leak for Windows Operating System (10, 8, 7 etc..).

Fixing DNS leak on Windows 10/8/7

To fix the DNS leak you will have to manually configure your network adapters in an attempt to plug the leak. On your Windows machine do the following:

Click desktop tile from the ‘Start’ screen to go to the desktop.
Once on the desktop screen, hover the mouse to the bottom right corner of the window.
From the displayed options on the right, click ‘Settings’.
Click ‘Control Panel’ from the Settings pane.
On Control Panel window, click ‘Network and Internet’.
From the right pane of Network and Internet window, click ‘Network and Sharing Center’ category.
From the left pane of Network and Sharing Center window, click ‘Change Adapter Settings’.
Select your active network connection that’s not listed as being for the TAP adapter (should be named as ‘Local Area Connection’ followed by some numbers and showing as ‘Connected’).
From the context menu that appears, click ‘Properties’.
On network adapter’s properties box, double-click on ‘Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)’.
In Preferred DNS server field, type 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 as the ‘DNS address’.
Once done, click ‘OK’ to save the modified settings.

Save any changes made, restart the PC and run the DNS leak test again. With a bit of luck, your DNS leak test should now have no trace of your ISP in which case, your connection is fully anonymous and secure.

Fixing DNS leak on Ubuntu 10.4+

Add the following three lines of config into your .ovpn file, to the end of file as new lines.

script-security 2

up /etc/openvpn/update-resolv-conf

down /etc/openvpn/update-resolv-conf

This script will update your /etc/resolv.conf file automatically. It will force OpenVPN to use default DNS from your .ovpn file.

Run your .ovpn file.

sudo openvpn –config name_of_your_file.ovpn

Why use US VPN - Unblock streaming services with US VPN

A good example of perfectly legal purpose of using a US VPN is to access and use web services that allow you to watch high-quality TV programs such as Sling, Hulu and Netflix services. It is good to point out that there are many free VPN services available on the market, but those who want to enjoy the benefits of US VPN or VPNs in general should definitely use paid services. So, how exactly can we find out if one VPN service is good? This is a legitimate question because there are many different VPN providers on the market.

First of all, you should look for a reliable service. This means that the provider should be able to allow you connection at any period of the day without any waiting. Of course, the connection should have the highest quality and speed, because it’s practically useless to use a slow connection when watching live streaming for example. Furthermore, the VPN should provide the necessary privacy and security. It is VPN’s job to protect data when the users are connected to the public network. It should make any attacker or intruder go away without using or reading your data. Finally, you should definitely check out the price of the service and make sure that the features you are getting are worth the money. We hope we have answered the main question we set out to answer of “Why use US VPN” and you would strongly consider using a VPN service for the said reasons.