Microsoft is defined to kill the free VPN service included with its Defender application on Windows 11, MacOS, Android and iOS devices. The reason? Lack of use and efficiency.
As reported for the first time by Windows, The Big Tech Giant informed users of the modification via its assistance page. The date of the end of the Virtual Private Network (VPN) service is set for February 28, 2025.
Although you have time before the end of the month to find a better free VPN replacement, other Microsoft Defender features – Protection of devices, Identity flight and credit surveillance (United States only) – will not be assigned .
Why does Microsoft remove its VPN functionality from the Defender security suite?
According to Microsoft’s own words: “Our goal is to make sure you and your family stay safe online. We regularly assess the use and efficiency of our functionalities. As such, we delete the protection functionality Privacy and invest in new areas that will be better align the needs of customers.
If you never use the Microsoft VPN Defender feature, this ad may not be a total surprise. Launched in 2023, Microsoft’s VPN tool came with a lot of considerable limitations compared to some of the best VPN services on the market.
To start, this does not allow you to choose the location in which you want your Internet connection to be reached. This means that you cannot use Microsoft’s tool, for example, as a streaming VPN to watch your favorite TV shows abroad, or to bypass the Internet censorship.
Another possible reason behind the lack of use is that Microsoft only deployed the VPN functionality for the individual and family subscribers of Microsoft 365 across the United Kingdom and the United States. As the last underlines underline, Microsoft originally shared plans for the VPN defender to reach new regions “but that never happened”.
Once Microsoft has removed its VPN Defender functionality for good, no action is required from Windows 11, MacOS and iOS users. If you use Android, however, you will need to manually delete your VPN profile from the device if you have used this tool. You can do this by heading to your phone settings, pressing VPN and the information bar on the Microsoft Defender VPN profile to delete it.
This is not the first time that a big technology giant has decided to kill its VPN functionality for lack of use. Google sent its Google One VPN for similar reasons in June 2023.
As mentioned above, Microsoft Defender VPN users until the end of the month to find an alternative. If you are not familiar with the VPN world, you can check all the advantages of using a VPN in 2025 here.
NordVPN is currently the first choice of Techradar. It is an excellent full service, with lots of confidentiality and security features, some of the fastest connection speeds and easy -to -use applications on all the main platforms. If you are looking for a free VPN service, Privadovpn and Proton VPN are currently the most secure.
