Are VPNs Legal In Canada? All You Need To Know About The Legality Of VPNs In Canada
The censorship of the Internet does not exist in Canada. However, through geo-restrictions, Canadians are generally prevented from viewing some streaming services outside the country.
Also, it could be possible that the government is monitoring you since Canada is part of the Five Eyes Alliance.
Due to this, one of the best ways to avoid these is through using VPNs in the country.
However, some people may be worried about using VPNs, thinking they may be illegal.
If you are one of such people, this article will shed some light on the issue.
This article will examine whether VPNs are illegal to use in Canada. We will look at why you should use a VPN app in Canada.
Are VPNs Legal In Canada?
Canada has over 36 million people, and about 95% use the Internet.
This means that Canada has one of the highest internet usage in the world.
One thing you would be glad to know is that the usage of VPN apps is legal in Canada even though the country is part of the Five Eyes alliance.
The government of Canada has not passed any laws forbidding the use of VPNs in the country.
Therefore, you will likely avoid any legal problems if you use a VPN to access the Internet.
However, that is not all. There are some things that you should know before you make use of VPN apps in Canada.
If you are using the VPN app to keep you anonymous so you can carry out illegal activities on the Internet, you will be held responsible for this when you are caught.
You should know that any illegal activities will remain illegal even if you use a VPN app to cover them up, and you will have to answer for it.
Another thing is that the terms of use by most streaming services are violated by VPN usage.
You could get your subscription plan canceled in case they find out that you have been using a VPN app to access the streaming service.
However, this only sometimes occurs. What streaming services typically do is make use of technology that blocks the use of VPN apps.
There is little you can do about these VPN blockers when you come across them.
So now, we have seen that using VPN apps in itself is not illegal in Canada.
We have also seen that although the use of VPNs is not illegal in the country, you will still be made to answer for them should you use them in any unlawful activities on the Internet.
Let us now consider why you should use a VPN app in Canada. The VPN app has many functions, some of these are:
- To protect your online activities
- To keep you from the prying eyes of advertisers or anyone trying to snoop on you
- To keep you from hackers
Here are some of the main reasons you should use a VPN app for your internet connections.
Why You Should Use A VPN In Canada
Avoiding Online Surveillance
At the beginning of this article, we stated that Canada is part of the Five Eyes Alliance.
This means that the government may try to monitor the citizens’ online activities in the country.
So, if you do not want your online activities to be monitored by the government, you will have to use a VPN app to keep you anonymous wherever you go online.
The VPN app will keep you hidden from the prying eyes of the government.
If you do not want your online activities recorded by the government, you should use a VPN wherever you go online.
With a VPN app, you get all your communications and internet traffic guarded with the best possible encryption.
This makes it impossible for anyone snooping on you to see what is going on. They will also not be able to get their hands on your data.
However, note that if your online activities are illegal, you will be made to answer for them eventually.
Against Data Retention
Another reason you should use a VPN app for internet browsing is to defeat data retention.
Most people do not need to learn that their internet service providers have been keeping logs of their online activities and monitoring the times they browse the Internet.
Internet service providers are required to store the data of their customers for about 6 months, and this is due to the Copyright Modernization Act.
The probable way to get around this act is to use a VPN app when you go online so that the internet service providers do not monitor your internet traffic.
A premium top-of-the-line VPN app comes with military-grade encryption and masking of your IP address, making it hard for anyone to snoop on you or gather your online data.
Through this, you can evade any intrusion on your online privacy and protect your online data.
For Business Purposes
More than a million individuals and businesses use VPN apps to ensure they have security and privacy to conduct their business online without anyone monitoring them.
Most businesses use VPN to access their internal applications and data remotely to their employees.
They are also used in establishing shared networks.
Streaming Contents Of Streaming Services That Have Been Blocked In Canada like VH1, Youtube TV, HBO Max, and more.
When you try to access a streaming service not allowed in Canada, you will encounter a geo-restriction.
The geo-restriction has been placed on these streaming services to keep out anyone trying to access their content outside the supported areas.
So if the streaming service you want to access is not allowed in Canada, you will meet an error message displayed by the geo-restriction.
One of the best ways to get around this and access the streaming service is to use a VPN app.
The VPN app will mask your location and change your IP address to the country it has been connected to.
So if you connect the VPN app to the country where the streaming service is based, you are shown on one as browsing from that country, allowing you to access the streaming platform to watch its contents.
However, streaming services do not support this move, and you could get your subscription plan scrapped in case you are caught.
However, that can only happen when you use a free or cheap VPN to access the streaming platform.
For such endeavors, you should only use top-of-the-line VN apps such as ExpressVPN, NordVPN, Surfshark, and PrivateVPN.
You can use any VPN apps above to bypass the geo-restrictions of streaming services such as the following.
- BBC iPlayer
- Netflix
- 9Now
- Disney
- Epix Now
- ESPN
- HBO Max
- FOX TV
- Showtime
- Screambox
- SBS
- Redbox on demand
And many other streaming services from different countries
How To Use A VPN App In Canada
If you have decided that using a VPN app will benefit you, let us look at how you can use a VPN if this is your first time trying to use the tech app. Let us follow the steps shown below.
- Sign up for an account with a VPN app. We recommend CyberGhost VPN, which ranked our number one VPN after testing.
- After the signup, download the VPN app onto your device and log in using the details you gave when signing up for the account.
- Now, choose a location where you would like to connect to a server from the list that will be shown to you, e.g., an Atlanta server in the United States.
- After connecting to the server and getting a good connection, you can now start browsing the Internet, and the CyberGhost VPN app will protect you from hackers and snoopers.
If you are also into streaming or would like to stream your favorite streaming platforms that have been geo-restricted in Canada, CyberGhost VPN can also help unblock these streaming platforms, some of them are:
Frequently Asked Questions
This is relatively easy. You must purchase a subscription plan with a VPN provider by signing up for an account on their website.
You then download the app onto your device and log in with the account details.
That is a sure yes. You need a VPN in Canada if you want to avoid being monitored and spied on whenever you go online.
The VPN will also protect you from hackers who may snoop on your information or trick you into entering malware-infected websites.
The VPN will also keep you safe from any intrusion from the Canadian government since using VPNs is not illegal so the government will have no option but to stop snooping on you.
No. The use of P2P is entirely legal in Canada. You will not encounter any problems with the law for using a P2P in the country.
You can download and share movies, TV shows, video games, music, and other media.
Ensure that the content you share has not been copyrighted and you are clear to go.
Conclusion
We hope this article has shed proper light on the stance of the Canadian government on the use of VPN apps in the country.
If you have been worrying that your use of a VPN was against any laws in the country, we are sure that you are now at ease after reading this article.
As we have seen, there is no law prohibiting the use of VPNs in Canada, even though the country is part of the Five Eyes Alliance.
You can use a VPN app in Canada to protect your online activities and keep hackers and advertisers off your back.
You can also use it to gain access to geo-blocked streaming services without any issues.
Ensure you always use premium VPNs, not free or cheap ones, and you will be fine online.