McAfee Safe Connect VPN Review 2024: Is it Worth Buying?

Inconsistent (and Slow) Speeds on Long-Distance Servers

McAfee’s speeds were relatively good for servers close to me – but the performance on servers longer distances away was disappointing. I also found that the results of my speed tests were very mixed, even for local servers.

Speed Test Results

In my evaluations, I observed an approximately 35% decrease in download speed when connected to the servers of McAfee Safe Connect VPN. Although this reduction is not as severe as what I’ve encountered with certain other VPNs, it still has an impact on activities like streaming and gaming.

Even in my local speed tests, the results weren’t great. McAfee’s UK servers struggled the most out of all the European servers I tested, even when I repeated the tests. My speeds dropped by 28% using the UK servers – compared to just 5% with the German servers, even though I’m staying in the UK.

My long-distance server tests were even more disappointing. Testing the US server, my download speed dropped by 37%. There’s no wonder I couldn’t stream US Netflix in UHD, considering my speeds dropped to 23.13 Mbps when connected to McAfee’s US servers. If you have a lower baseline speed than mine, streaming would be even more difficult.

The results from McAfee’s Australian server were even worse – my download speed fell by 43% and the ping was over 250 ms, so online gaming was out of the question using Australian servers. For regular browsing, however, the speeds were okay. If you’re connecting to servers in a part of Europe, McAfee Safe Connect VPN may be fast enough – but for long-distance servers, I can’t recommend it.

McAfee’s VPN also provides consistently impressive upload speeds, averaging around 8.12 Mbps. Again, I found that short-distance servers provide sufficiently low ping time, which is crucial for multiplayer gaming. This greatly benefits many VPN users, as it not only improves their gaming experience but also ensures a smooth and enjoyable time overall.

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Server Network — Limited Server Countries – But Well Distributed

McAfee Safe Connect VPN relies on a network of servers spread across 48 countries. While its servers are distributed reasonably well, one problem that tends to arise when a VPN only has a small server network is that servers can quickly become overcrowded – resulting in slower speeds.

The provider’s server distribution is primarily focused on the United States, Europe, and other well-known locations. However, it also has servers in places where other VPNs often don’t (e.g. Japan, Kenya, Nigeria), but it lacks specialized servers like CyberGhost, which has optimized servers for streaming on different platforms.

The 50 countries where McAfee Safe Connect VPN has servers are:

Unlike numerous top-tier VPNs, McAfee does not provide the ability to select specific server locations within a country. Despite this limitation, it is important to mention that there are indeed multiple server locations available in certain countries. Unfortunately, you are not granted the option to choose these locations individually.

Security — No Clear Information

I was surprised by how difficult it was to find information about McAfee’s VPN security – in fact, the support team told me that information about its security protocols is not available to the public. Most VPNs are very clear about their security features, so this was a bit of a red flag.

If you choose to use McAfee Safe Connect VPN, you can expect the same features regardless of the device you are using:

• Military-Grade Encryption – Safe Connect’s website states that it employs AES 256-bit encryption as its default, ensuring that data traveling through its VPN is safe and secure. This encryption is incredibly strong, requiring supercomputer years to crack.
• Catapult Hydra protocol – the lack of clarity from McAfee regarding its VPN protocols is quite frustrating. However, after some research, I discovered that it uses Catapult Hydra, which was developed by Pango, the same company that created Hotspot Shield. This protocol is based on OpenVPN and adheres to TLS standards. Its primary goal is to bypass firewall restrictions and prioritize performance, which sets it apart from UDP and TCP standards.
• Safe reconnect – during my evaluation of McAfee Safe Connect VPN, I noticed that it does not have a kill switch feature. However, I did find a comparable function called Safe Reconnect in the software’s settings tab. This feature can reconnect the VPN to a working server if the connection is lost, which helps to preserve the confidentiality of data. It is essential to note that Safe Reconnect is not enabled by default, and users who are unfamiliar with the kill switch may accidentally expose their genuine IP and internet requests.
• Split tunneling – this feature enables users to optimize their internet connection and prioritize specific traffic to avoid congestion and improve speed. If you’re not worried about your privacy or don’t want to experience the decreased speed that comes with using VPNs, then this feature is beneficial. However, it’s important to note that this feature can only be accessed on McAfee Safe Connect for Android.
• TCP Override – the TCP Override feature, exclusive to Windows, replaces OpenVPN’s standard UDP connection with a supported TCP method. It offers a stable connection but at a slower speed and should be used as a last resort if connection drops occur repeatedly. If necessary, use it temporarily, and remember to turn it off and test the connection again later.

There is some good news regarding McAfee VPN’s security, though. I ran extensive leak tests to ensure that it could keep my IP address and identity hidden – and there were no IP, WebRTC, or DNS leaks on any of the servers I tested.

The information displayed above pertains to Belgium, despite my physical location being in the UK. My IP address, DNS information, and visited websites were kept hidden from my Internet Service Provider by McAfee Safe Connect VPN.

Privacy — Keeps Information Other VPNs Don’t

McAfee includes its VPN as a component of the Total Protection antivirus suite, but it lacks a no-logs policy for its VPN service. Additionally, the privacy policy for the suite does not explicitly state a zero-logging policy, which is concerning. The lack of transparency regarding this issue in the policy adds to our concerns.

Adding to this issue, during the McAfee VPN review, I discovered that the company collects personal information such as a home address and phone number, in addition to payment info and an email address. Furthermore, it logs private information, including traffic data, session times, IP addresses, geo-location, mobile identifiers, and browser type. This practice clearly contradicts the basic principles of using a VPN.

McAfee’s headquarters in the United States is a cause for concern as it is part of the 5/9/14 Eyes Alliance. This alliance mandates companies to provide the government with requested data. Consequently, if the US government demands access to your online activities and information, McAfee must comply. As a result, your online privacy may not be as secure as you would prefer.

Choose ExpressVPN for a premium VPN service that guarantees no identifiable data collection. It’s slightly pricier, but the company’s location outside the 5-9-14 Alliance and numerous independent audits ensure user privacy.

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Torrenting — Allowed on All Servers

McAfee VPN allows for torrenting and offers unlimited bandwidth as long as you’re enrolled in their auto-renewal program. However, I wouldn’t recommend using it for torrenting due to the potential risks involved. While torrenting itself is not illegal, McAfee Safe Connect VPN logs identifiable information and is located within the 5-Eyes Alliance, which could pose a risk to your privacy and security if used for this purpose.

Bear in mind that it’s illegal to download copyrighted material in most parts of the world (although rules and regulations vary from country to country). If you use McAfee Safe Connect VPN for torrenting, you should carefully check every file you access to ensure you’re not downloading copyrighted material.

Does McAfee Safe Connect VPN Work in China? No!

Regrettably, McAfee Safe Connect VPN is not suitable for use in China due to its absence of stealth or obfuscation technology. In order to verify this, I reached out to the provider’s live chat support team since I am not currently residing in China. The first representative I spoke with was unable to answer my question. Consequently, I was directed to another agent who called me, but unfortunately, was also unable to provide a satisfactory response regarding the VPN’s functionality in China.

China’s notorious Great Firewall is something that even some of the top VPNs in the industry can’t bypass, so it’s no great surprise that McAfee Safe Connect VPN can’t bypass it either. Using a VPN while traveling in China or planning a trip to the country is highly recommended. If you want a VPN that works in China, I recommend ExpressVPN – it has military-grade security and is proven to bypass China’s firewalls – but you need to download it before you travel to China.

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Safe Connect offers 3 levels of customer support – email-only support for free users, and live chat and telephone support for paid users. McAfee also has a limited set of FAQs, which are well organized for Android, iOS, and PC users in order to serve as the first port of call for troubleshooting. You can access the general and very extensive McAfee customer support forums for issues with Safe Connect, too.

My experience with McAfee’s support wasn’t great. When I submitted a ticket to ask a question, I received an email advising me to use the live chat support instead. That was frustrating enough, but then I had to wait for a while.

After waiting for a chance to talk to someone, I finally got through to an agent. However, to my disappointment, the agent lacked knowledge about the VPN service. The agent clarified that the live chat support was mainly designed for antivirus software. Nonetheless, the agent assured me that someone would contact me to discuss my VPN queries. As promised, I received a call from another representative. Regrettably, instead of addressing my concerns, the representative seemed more focused on persuading me to renew my subscription.

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