this post was submitted on 19 Sep 2025
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Outcry over ExpressVPN ownership: What the Israeli connection means for user privacy (www.middleeasteye.net)
submitted 1 week ago by geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml to c/privacy@lemmy.ml
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Social media users are calling for the mass cancellation of ExpressVPN subscriptions after it was revealed that a cybersecurity firm with Israeli ties owns the popular privacy service.

In 2021, The Times of Israel reported that Kape Technologies, a British-Israeli digital security company, acquired ExpressVPN, one of the world’s largest virtual private network (VPN) providers, for nearly $1bn.

The calls for cancellation intensified after social media users began circulating information about Teddy Sagi, the Israeli billionaire and owner of Kape Technologies. Many shared that in 2023, as reported by The Jerusalem Post, Sagi donated $1m to transport soldiers during the Israeli war on Gaza.

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[–] otter@lemmy.ca 33 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Even ignoring any ownership issues, it's an awful service. If you look up "ExpressVPN cancel" you'll find lots of posts and comments from people complaining that they were charged again after cancelling, that the interface makes it difficult to cancel, that they needed to reach out to support multiple times, etc.

Instead:

  • Use a different VPN
  • Check if you actually need a VPN for your situation

I check this guide from time to time to see if anything has changed with the usual recommendations:

https://www.privacyguides.org/en/vpn/

[–] icelimit@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I don't know why people don't use crypto or one time cards for this kind of purchase. You pay for anonymity, you pay for it anonymously.

[–] LemmingOnTheEdge@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

Crypto takes a lot of effort to trace, but it's not necessarily anonymous. https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/crypto/are-cryptocurrency-transactions-actually-anonymous/

[–] Babalugats@feddit.uk 27 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Have a look at who owns the other big names (this article doesn't include all VPNs under their umbrellas)

https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/3-companies-control-many-big-name-vpns-what-you-need-to-know/

Search 'ziff Davis Israel'

Search 'Tesonet Israel'

https://vpnpro.com/blog/hidden-vpn-owners-unveiled-97-vpns-23-companies/

[–] kami@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 1 week ago

Thanks a lot for these links mate!

[–] DieserTypMatthias@lemmy.ml 25 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Just use Mullvad.

[–] Suburbanl3g3nd@lemmings.world 3 points 1 week ago (5 children)

Does mullvad accept the use of gift cards?

[–] Tenkard@lemmy.ml 10 points 1 week ago (1 children)

You can send them an envelope with the cash (seriously)

[–] Suburbanl3g3nd@lemmings.world 1 points 1 week ago

I know that but if I just had a preloaded card that would accomplish the same but quicker. Too bad it doesn't seem to work

[–] humorlessrepost@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Proton accepts bitcoin and mailed envelopes of cash.

https://protonvpn.com/support/payment-options/

[–] sun@slrpnk.net 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

They accept mullvad gift cards.

[–] Suburbanl3g3nd@lemmings.world 2 points 1 week ago

That's pretty cool. Thanks!

[–] DieserTypMatthias@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

No, but you can pay with XMR.

[–] sidebro@lemmy.zip 20 points 1 week ago

I've never used it, and now I never will.

[–] inclementimmigrant@lemmy.world 14 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Considering that Kape Technologies also owns PIA, this is not great news, consolidation of VPN companies isn't a good thing here and especially not with Kape. Heck I cancelled asap when PIA was bought because that company is shady AF.

[–] DexterRSX@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 week ago

Did you get Mullvad?

[–] quick_snail@feddit.nl 10 points 1 week ago (3 children)

There's a handful of great VPN proiders, and this isn't one of them. Just do like 10 minutes of research before you buy.

[–] sifar@lemmy.ml 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

The thing is that 10 min search results in - trust all of them, trust none of them. A lot of folks also have affordability issues. So that makes this issue even more complex. When they turn a bit more "respected" forums they are told to "self host" or are given recommendations that they already knew of but couldn't afford. So the problem lives on. All this lead to shady and heavy marketing VPNs come to the front.

[–] HiddenLayer555@lemmy.ml 4 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Wouldn't self hosting a VPN make you even more identifiable though? Now instead of an generic ISP IP address that changes every few months all your traffic is from a single static IP from a single cloud instance. Not to mention you're now trading your ISP seeing everything to your VPS provider seeing everything (and not just the internet traffic, everything in your server including the keys used for the VPN transport). And if at any point the packets exiting your VPS ends up back on your own ISP's network, they now know it's you who generated them because no one else ever connects to that server. I feel like a public VPN service would have slightly more anonymity simply because you're not the only source of traffic.

[–] sifar@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

I would assume that they mean 'VPN not for anonymity' when they say that. I agree with you though.

[–] DexterRSX@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Mullvad is cheaper than all the other options by far.

[–] sifar@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

No, I am afraid it's not. Just because it has a clear one pricing doesn't make it cheaper. One barely buys a VPN for one or just seven months or so.

[–] otter@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Just do like 10 minutes of research before you buy

The average person might not know what's reputable and what's not. A lot of the VPN review sites are also secretly run by the VPN companies, or get paid off by them. Someone might even mix up the bad PrivacyTools for the legitimate PrivacyGuides

[–] harmbugler@piefed.social 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

You're not kidding. While reading this post, I checked in on ThatOnePrivacyGuy's VPN table in Google sheets. At the bottom of the table, there's a link to ThatOnePrivacySite.xyz (the real site) but an ad popped up, as if it was the link you should click on, to ThatOnePrivacySite.net (a fake site). How are people told to 'just do 10 minutes of research' supposed to deal with things like aggressive dark patterns and soft linkjacking?

Edit: The fake linkjacked site recommends ExpressVPN as the top VPN. Haiyaaa.

[–] eldavi@lemmy.ml 4 points 1 week ago

the problem w this is that google or chatgpt is going to point you to the most popular ones; which might include this vpn.

[–] cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone 8 points 1 week ago (2 children)

expressvpn was my first vpn and they've been great but i have switched to windscribe (for port forwarding) and mullvad now that i know a bit more about vpns

[–] inclementimmigrant@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Just fyi, mullvad no longer provides port forwarding.

[–] cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone 5 points 1 week ago

yeah mullvad is just a quick vpn for w/e, windscribe for port forwarding :)

[–] NotJohnSmith@feddit.uk 1 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

What's the selling point of mullvad pls?

Brit here thinking I only needed a vpn to watch Eastenders for my week in Magaluf each year :)

[–] cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone 10 points 1 week ago (1 children)

for me i just like mullvad as a company;they're small, eu based, and have clear goals for internet freedom.

[–] NotJohnSmith@feddit.uk 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Thanks, I'll give them a try

[–] PolarKraken@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Disclaimer: Below is only parroting what I've heard elsewhere on Lemmy.

To add on, I believe they are one of very few that have been served legal demands to provide customer data and were unable to provide it. From what I understand that's basically the only evidence that can credibly validate claims of "we don't retain your data", which is pretty important.

[–] mnemonicmonkeys@sh.itjust.works 5 points 1 week ago

Not only that, you don't need to provide any identifying information to them during signup. You can even pay them by sending cash through the mail

[–] mazzilius_marsti@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

not sure about price and speed, but their subscription model is designed such that you may not need to give away your info. E.g. pay with crypto and even cash in mail.

[–] Kyrgizion@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

I expect this scenario to repeat several times in the coming months/years. Willing to bet the "clean" ones are all infected with mossad spyware as well. Using a VPN makes you a target rather than helping you stay anonymous nowadays.

[–] otter@lemmy.ca 8 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] HiddenLayer555@lemmy.ml 6 points 1 week ago

I mean, if you're using Facebook as your VPN provider I don't know what to tell you.

[–] sic_semper_tyrannis@lemmy.today 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

How about using an open source and audited one with a good track record? That would most certainly be better that letting your ISP see all your traffic

[–] DexterRSX@lemmygrad.ml 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Mullvad.

[–] sic_semper_tyrannis@lemmy.today 1 points 1 week ago

Mullvad is a great example. They also have created numerous anti censorship techniques and work with Obscura for even more privacy

[–] fort_burp@feddit.nl 5 points 1 week ago

This is like 2 posts up from this post on my feed:

Samsung Embeds Israeli Surveillance App on Phones Across MENA

[–] interdimensionalmeme@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Obviously intelligence agencies are going to be all up in VPN's juicy businesses. I wouldn't be surprised if they were all actually run by them and below cost so that nobody who would do it for real and not sell them access could actually be profitable.

[–] Philharmonic3@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Consider me entirely unsurprised. VPN companies do not protect your data, they simply use it for themselves

[–] DexterRSX@lemmygrad.ml 2 points 1 week ago

Unless you are Mullvad.

[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 week ago

it means its not trustworthy.

saved you a click.