The problem has been around since November, but no one seems to be planning to fix it.
As you know, Google has long provided its own VPN service as part of a monthly Google One subscription. It was initially only available on mobile devices, but was later rolled out to desktop platforms as well.
In November of last year, users of the Windows version of the product encountered a problem: according to an open bug report on GitHub, Google's VPN application violates DNS in Windows, which leads to the fact that the DNS settings of all system network adapters are changed to Google's DNS servers.
This happens regardless of whether the VPN is activated or not. And even if you manually change your DNS settings, they will automatically change again the next time you connect to Google networks.
Most other VPN apps do not do this, and the same VPN from Google, but in the Mac version, also does not behave this way. Users of the Windows version of the service are concerned about its strange operating principle, worrying about their privacy and security. Not to mention the fact that incorrectly configured DNS can in some cases simply disrupt the operation of other programs or VPN services of competitors.
A few months after the issue report was published, on January 26, Google employee Ryan Lothian responded to user complaints by pointing out that installing DNS on Google servers is designed to protect users privacy from potentially insecure DNS servers. In other words, this behavior of the service was registered by the company intentionally, and this is not a bug at all.
"We believe that this is a good default value for most users. However, we recognize that some users may want to set their own DNS or restore the past DNS value when the VPN is disabled. We will consider adding this functionality to future versions of the app," Lothian said.
It's already April on the calendar, but the program's behavior has not been updated: it functions exactly the same as in November. Experts in the field of cybersecurity recommend that users who are critically important to privacy and flexibility of settings, do not consider the solution from Google until the company fixes this problem, which for some reason is passed off as an advantage.
And in general, the principle of operation of Google's DNS servers implies storing the history of users visits to websites for 48 hours, which can potentially be used, for example, by law enforcement agencies if you decide to search the Web for something illegal.
In cyberspace, there are much more reliable VPN solutions than what Google currently offers, but do not forget that in Russia the use of such services is allowed only for certain tasks. So, the use of VPNs, for example, to bypass blockages, is officially banned from the first of March this year.
As you know, Google has long provided its own VPN service as part of a monthly Google One subscription. It was initially only available on mobile devices, but was later rolled out to desktop platforms as well.
In November of last year, users of the Windows version of the product encountered a problem: according to an open bug report on GitHub, Google's VPN application violates DNS in Windows, which leads to the fact that the DNS settings of all system network adapters are changed to Google's DNS servers.
This happens regardless of whether the VPN is activated or not. And even if you manually change your DNS settings, they will automatically change again the next time you connect to Google networks.
Most other VPN apps do not do this, and the same VPN from Google, but in the Mac version, also does not behave this way. Users of the Windows version of the service are concerned about its strange operating principle, worrying about their privacy and security. Not to mention the fact that incorrectly configured DNS can in some cases simply disrupt the operation of other programs or VPN services of competitors.
A few months after the issue report was published, on January 26, Google employee Ryan Lothian responded to user complaints by pointing out that installing DNS on Google servers is designed to protect users privacy from potentially insecure DNS servers. In other words, this behavior of the service was registered by the company intentionally, and this is not a bug at all.
"We believe that this is a good default value for most users. However, we recognize that some users may want to set their own DNS or restore the past DNS value when the VPN is disabled. We will consider adding this functionality to future versions of the app," Lothian said.
It's already April on the calendar, but the program's behavior has not been updated: it functions exactly the same as in November. Experts in the field of cybersecurity recommend that users who are critically important to privacy and flexibility of settings, do not consider the solution from Google until the company fixes this problem, which for some reason is passed off as an advantage.
And in general, the principle of operation of Google's DNS servers implies storing the history of users visits to websites for 48 hours, which can potentially be used, for example, by law enforcement agencies if you decide to search the Web for something illegal.
In cyberspace, there are much more reliable VPN solutions than what Google currently offers, but do not forget that in Russia the use of such services is allowed only for certain tasks. So, the use of VPNs, for example, to bypass blockages, is officially banned from the first of March this year.
