VPNs have never faced such scrutiny. In the past year, the industry has faced intense pressure to help people bypass age verification, streamers overcome geo-restrictions, and protesters avoid social media bans.
Will anything change in 2026? This looks unlikely.
The biggest dilemma of 2026
Age verification will be the defining theme of the year. As most countries continue to implement processes that can be bypassed using a VPN, these privacy tools will continue to be a topic of conversation even in 2026.
A key dilemma for governments is whether they can implement child safety measures on devices in a way that makes VPNs unnecessary. SafeToNet's collaboration with HMD offers a framework for such an approach.
Using SafeToNet's HarmBlock, the system blocks all nudity on the Fuse HMD at the operating system (OS) level. Since the blocking happens on the device itself, it works regardless of whether a VPN is used or not.
Governments could target the VPN industry itself.”
Reportedlythis approach is currently of interest to the UK government. However, if efforts to protect children continue to focus on network-level blocks that can be easily bypassed by VPNs, governments may target the VPN industry itself.
Talk of banning VPNs has already taken place in the UK and EU, and Australia's recent social media ban included measures to prevent the promotion of VPN services as a circumvention method.
Since banning—or tightening restrictions on—VPNs would likely be easier for lawmakers than rolling out OS-level security measures, it's possible that VPN restrictions could be introduced in various regions next year.
Technological progress
But it's not just about the regulatory challenges that VPNs pose; it is also about the technological threats they face. Quantum computing has been one of the biggest cybersecurity topics of recent years, and it will only expand in the coming year.
Without post-quantum encryption (PQE) capabilities, VPN encryption will become useless once quantum computing becomes a reality. Even now that quantum computing is not commercially available, “collect now, decrypt later” attacks pose a threat unless PQE is used.
VPN encryption will become useless.”
Most leading VPN networks have already implemented post-quantum encryption in at least one of their protocols, and 2026 will likely be the year when this standard becomes more common.
Currently, Surfshark and Proton VPN are the two largest companies that have not added PQE to their protocols. But both providers have it in their plans for 2026, while NordVPN and ExpressVPN will be looking to expand their coverage to the full range of protocols they offer.
Post-quantum authentication is another issue that cannot be ignored. The security of the authentication process protects the connection from the moment the user logs in.
While nowhere near as urgent as PQE, adding security to the authentication process is a huge step in the right direction, although it's unlikely to see widespread adoption in the coming months.
Daily improvements
Beyond these advanced developments and threats, everyday security capabilities will continue to be a major focus for the industry in 2026.
VPN security is the best it's ever been. Protocols like NordLynx have fixed the shortcomings of WireGuard, providers including NymVPN or ObscuraVPN have new connection methods that improve privacy, and the broader industry has begun to adopt advanced protocols like OpenVPN DCO or QUIC obfuscation.
Now that most of these fundamental flaws have been fixed, companies are free to invest in developing everyday security tools.
VPN security is the best it's ever been.”
Features like NordVPN's Threat Protection Pro and Surfshark's privacy alerts are quickly becoming key factors when choosing a provider. And while they are becoming more advanced, there is plenty of room to improve existing tools.
For example, NordVPN's Threat Protection Pro is the best VPN threat protection software available, according to our testing. However, all of its capabilities are still only available on computers, and it is still not nearly as effective as the best antivirus tools.
As everyday security becomes more important due to the increase in data breaches, improving these security tools beyond VPNs will undoubtedly become more important throughout 2026.
If VPN providers can achieve three goals—bypass legal restrictions, improve post-quantum security, and improve their advanced security features—they will not only be safer than ever, but also more useful to us all.
Next year may not be the year of flashy, revolutionary VPN launches, but their newfound attention could push them to heights that make them even more valuable.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal entertainment use. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protect your online security and enhance your online privacy when you're abroad. We do not support or condone the use of a VPN service to break the law or conduct illegal activities. The use of paid pirated content is not condoned or endorsed by Future Publishing.
