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IPVanish: is it safe? For everyday privacy, the evidence today is reasonable. Leviathan Security Group audited its no-logs policy in 2022 and Schellman in 2025, and Schellman found no logging of activity, traffic metadata, DNS queries or user IP addresses. The record also includes a serious failure. In 2016, under previous owners, IPVanish told investigators it kept no logs, then gave US Homeland Security a user’s name, email, real IP address and connection times.
This guide covers the 2016 case, the ownership changes, the audits, US jurisdiction and who should look elsewhere.
What Happened in 2016, and New Owners Since
In a 2016 child exploitation investigation, Homeland Security sent a summons to Highwinds Network Group, IPVanish’s owner then. IPVanish first said it had no logs, then handed over the suspect’s name, email address, real Comcast IP address and IRC connection timestamps. TorrentFreak reported the court papers in 2018.
That contradicted the zero-logs policy IPVanish advertised at the time, and it remains in the record.
Highwinds sold IPVanish to StackPath in 2017, and J2 Global, now Ziff Davis, bought it in 2019. Ziff Davis also owns StrongVPN and other VPN and security brands, which makes IPVanish one part of a larger group.
The audits below cover the current company, not the 2016 one; they show how it operates now rather than undoing what happened then.
The 2022 and 2025 Audits
Leviathan Security Group examined IPVanish’s systems in 2022 and found them consistent with its no-logs policy. Schellman’s audit, finalised in February 2025 and published that April, found no logging of internet activity, traffic metadata, DNS queries, user IP addresses or services visited.
IPVanish also publishes quarterly transparency reports through its Trust Center, PCWorld reported. Our no-logs guide explains what audits prove.
What the Schellman Audit Checked, and Transparency Reports
All Things VPN describes the 2025 audit as broader than the 2022 one, testing whether user activity or metadata was logged across server configurations. The kind of data that would matter in a legal request, such as IP addresses and connection times, was not found.
Audits are snapshots: they show what was true when the auditor looked, which is why repeat audits matter.
IPVanish publishes quarterly transparency reports through its Trust Center, PCWorld reported. They list the legal requests it received, which helps you judge how often data is sought.
A no-logs service should report that it had nothing to hand over, and checking those reports is a practical habit.
IPVanish Under US Jurisdiction: Is It Safe?
IPVanish is based in the US, a Five Eyes country, so it can receive legal requests such as subpoenas. A no-logs design limits what it can hand over; the audits are the evidence that little exists. The 2016 case shows why that evidence matters.
Our Five Eyes VPN guide explains what jurisdiction means in practice.
Security Features, Streaming and Torrenting
IPVanish uses WireGuard, OpenVPN with Scramble and IKEv2, and a kill switch that cut traffic within a second in Security.org’s desktop tests. It owns its servers rather than renting them, Top10VPN notes. Desktop apps add Double Hop, which routes traffic through two servers.
Keep the apps updated, since security fixes arrive through updates, and turn on automatic updates where offered.
When Is IPVanish Safe Enough, and When Is It Not?
VPN.com judges IPVanish unsuitable for journalists, activists or anyone with a serious threat model. It cites the US base and the 2016 case, even with the 2025 audit. For those users, providers with more audits and no history of handing over data fit better, such as Mullvad or Proton.
Our IPVanish alternatives guide lists options.
For streaming and everyday browsing, IPVanish’s audited no-logs policy and strong encryption are enough. For torrenting, it allows P2P and adds a SOCKS5 proxy, but offers no port forwarding.
Our IPVanish torrenting guide covers that use.
Using It Safely
Keep the IPVanish app updated on every device, turn on the kill switch and choose WireGuard or OpenVPN rather than older protocols. Run a DNS and WebRTC leak test after setup.
Those habits matter as much as audits: a VPN only protects traffic that actually goes through it, and leaks bypass even the best no-logs policy.
How It Compares, and Price
Two audits is fewer than NordVPN’s six or Mullvad’s more than ten in our table, and ExpressVPN lists 27 by May 2026. Windscribe’s no-logs claim held in a Greek court case in 2025.
Our NordVPN vs IPVanish page compares the two in full.
IPVanish costs $57.22 for the first 24 months and renews at $89.99 a year, VPNOverview lists, with no device limit. Yearly website plans carry a 30-day refund; monthly plans carry none.
The 30-day refund window gives time to judge the service yourself.
How We Research
This page draws on TorrentFreak’s 2018 report via Wikipedia and reviews, All Things VPN’s audit timeline, IsTrustworthy’s summary of the Schellman findings, VPN.com’s review, Security.org and our IPVanish tables. We cross-checked these sources against each other, and where they conflict or something can’t be verified, we say so in the text rather than guessing. We checked time-sensitive figures, including prices in US dollars, on 8 October 2026. The main source we relied on is IPVanish’s Wikipedia entry. Our full approach lives on the About Us page.
Is IPVanish Safe FAQ
For everyday privacy, its 2022 and 2025 audits support its no-logs claim.
Yes, in 2016 under previous owners, to US Homeland Security.
Ziff Davis, since buying it as J2 Global in 2019.
Leviathan in 2022 and Schellman in 2025.
VPN.com advises against it for serious threat models.
The Verdict
IPVanish: is it safe? For everyday use, the 2022 and 2025 audits are reassuring. For high-risk users, the 2016 case and US base argue for a provider with a cleaner record.