The internet situation in Yemen, regarding online surveillance and online censorship, is very similar to, if not worse than, that of its neighboring Arab countries. The government possesses a high level of online censorship for both political and religious reasons. Any online content that shows even a remote opposition to the regime or to the country’s religious beliefs is immediately banned. In addition to that, all online communications or online activities are highly monitored to ensure that no one is posing a threat to this situation. This is considered a very irritating matter to internet users and especially expats and international reporters and journalists which their freedom of speech is always fought against. Accordingly, serious actions need to be taken to regain the internet users’ online privacy, online security, and online freedom. The solution to all 3 issues can be combined into one answer which is for all internet users in Yemen to start using a VPN.
How a VPN Protects Online Privacy and Freedom
A VPN service operates a network of serves all over the world and allows its users to connect to these serves. This connection allows the users to bypass any restrictions placed by the local ISP (in this case, the local ISP’s in Yemen) and also the users can connect to servers located in countries with websites that are geo-restricted to that country (e.g. users can connect to servers in the US and access Netflix USA as if they are located inside the country). Once a connection is established between the user and the server, the server replaces the user’s true IP address with one of its own shared IP to hide their true online identity hence protecting their online privacy. Most of the high-end VPN service providers have very strict no logs policy in that they do not record or keep logs of their users’ online activities to add to their online privacy.
How a VPN Protects Online Security
Most reliable VPN service providers use high level encryption to secure all data travelling between their users and the servers these users are connected to. The VPN applications created by the providers also support multiple security protocols to further protect their users’ online security. In addition to that different VPN services offer their users different additional security features.
According to these features, we now know the importance of using a VPN in Yemen and how beneficial it will be. This is why we now need to know which the most suitable VPNs for Yemen are out of the countless names in the market. We have used these exact points to compare several reliable names in the field and pick out the 3 best VPNs that would be perfect for the online situation in Yemen.
Best VPNs for Yemen
WaselPro VPN
WaselPro is the most popular VPN service provider in the Middle East and one of the strongest as well. It has recently merged with the internationally known provider; BVPN, which is also known for its innovative and powerful online security measures. Even though WaselPro is not as old as its competitors yet it has succeeded in proving its place among the big names in the industry through its competitive features related to online security, privacy, and freedom. This is why it was undeniable that it would be a great recommendation for Yemen.
Level of Security
- The entire network is secured with a military grade 256-bit encryption
- Multiple advanced and unique security protocols supported (OpenVPN with TCP/UDP. L2TP/IPSec, SSTP, SSH, and BVPN’s own Smoke Tunnel)
Additional Security Features
- Public Wi-Fi Protection
- Internet Kill Switch
- IPv6 Leak Protection
Network of Servers
- More than 20 strategically placed server locations around the world
- Each server provides the users with a wide range of shared IP’s
Additional Features
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switching
- Up to 6 simultaneous connections
- Arabic speaking customer support (very important advantage in the Middle East)
- No logs kept
- 7-day money back guarantee
PureVPN
PureVPN started operating back in 2007 from Hong Kong. Being based in Hong Kong is an advantage on its own, since Hong Kong is unlike the rest of China when it comes to online issues. Hong Kong is one of the places that support the right to online privacy and freedom. Other than that, PureVPN has expanded over the years to become one of the biggest names among its competitors with a large variety of impressive features. It has been recommended in countless occasions before. Some of them were even tougher than that of Yemen and this is why it is a good recommendation for the online challenge in Yemen.
Level of Security
- 256-bit encryption is used to secure network
- Multiple security protocols supported (OpenVPN, L2TP/IPSec, PPTP, SSTP, IKEv2, and its very own Stealth Protocol)
Additional Security Features
- Antivirus/Antimalware
- Intrusion Detection System/Intrusion Prevention System (IDS/IPS)
- URL Filtering
- App Filtering
- Automatic Protocol Selection
- Wi-Fi Security
- Internet Kill Switch
- NAT Firewall
- DDoS Protection
Network of Servers
- More than 750 servers spread across 141 countries around the world
- This network provides the users with more than 88,000 shared IP’s and the availability of requesting dedicated IP’s
Additional Features
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switching
- Up to 5 simultaneous connections
- Ad-blocking
- Split Tunneling
- Smart Purpose Selection
- No logs kept
- 7-day money back guarantee
NordVPN
NordVPN was officially launched in 2012 and is based in Panama City, Panama. In a matter of a few years it succeeded in becoming one of the biggest names in the VPN industry. From an impressively large network of servers to countless online security and privacy features. It has been known for its fight for the right to online privacy, security, and freedom all over the world. Accordingly we have recommended it for Yemen.
Level of Security
- NordVPN network is secured with an AES 256-bit SHA encryption
- All data is encrypted twice as it passes through 2 separate serves (Double Data Encryption)
- Advanced security protocols supported (OpenVPN, L2TP/IPSec, PPTP, SSTP, and IKEv2)
Additional Security Features
- Automatic Kill Switch
- DNS Leak Resolver
- Onion over VPN
- Anti-DDoS Servers
Network of Servers
- 1037 servers spread across 59 countries around the world
- This network is able to provide its users with countless shared IP’s and also dedicated IP’s upon request
- Optimized servers for different purposes
Additional Features
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Unlimited server switching
- Up to 6 simultaneous connections
- No logs kept
- Smart Play
- 3-day free trial and 30-day money back guarantee
Conclusion
Even though Yemen has been slowly advancing technologically, yet it is still considered an internet illiterate country due to its high level of online censorship and online surveillance. This is actually a very common issue in the Middle East and among most Arab countries but Yemen can be considered one of the worst cases among them. This is why whether you are staying in Yemen temporarily or residing in it, using a VPN is of undeniable importance. The above VPNs have been chosen among countless names in the market due to that they have exactly what it takes to take on a challenge such us that in Yemen.
