Monica J. White

Socket’s Threat Research Team identified 737 fake VPN and proxy extensions across at least 40 Chrome Web Store developer accounts, with more than 75,000 combined installs. At least 274 impersonated trusted VPN and privacy brands such as NordVPN and Proton VPN, while hundreds routed browser traffic through infrastructure linked to the Russian VPN subscription business Myxa VPN. The extensions could expose browsing activity, IP addresses, TLS metadata, and unencrypted data, and advertised premium servers that testing found did not exist. Google had removed 221 extensions, but 516 remained listed when the research was conducted. Users are advised to remove suspicious extensions, restore Chrome’s proxy settings, and change credentials entered on non-HTTPS sites.

Private Internet Access has expanded its Streaming Optimized VPN network from 13 to 35 dedicated locations by adding 22 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East. The new labels appear automatically in PIA’s apps without an update, reinstall, or plan change, helping users identify servers that are regularly tested for streaming compatibility. The expansion is intended to reduce trial and error caused by streaming platforms blocking known VPN IP addresses, although results can vary by service and account and may conflict with platform terms. Users can find the new servers by searching for “streaming” in the PIA app’s location list.