VPN too laggy/slow to use

torq

VPN has been extremely slow for the past days. I have to load most pages at least twice before the website loads at all, videos are impossible to watch. I can basically only use internet when I turn VPN off. Is there anything I can do?

spn

Switching the VPN protocol from OpenVPN to IKEv2 fixes the problem for me.

PawełP

Hello @torq

We welcome you to our forum and thank you for your post.

Regarding and internet speed problems with VPN enabled, we would need some additional information to help you effectively.

First of all, we would like to determine if this is primarily related to long loading of web pages, for example when opening them in Firefox. In this situation, it may be about the recent problem that has arisen after the introduction of a new feature in web browsers - TLS 1.3 hybridized Kyber support.

In this situation, the tips we published in this article will help: https://www.kb.f-secure.com/s/article/Windows-MacOS-I-cannot-connect-to-the-internet-using-Edge-Chrome-or-Firefox-while-the-F-Secure-VPN-is-turned-ON?language=en_US

If the application of these tips does not bring improvement then we will need additional technical data to determine the cause.

Please, let us know if disabling TLS 1.3 hybridized Kyber support in your browser has resulted in improvement.

Best regards.

Pawel

torq

Thank you @spn ! Seems to work.

torq

@PawełP I also followed your advice and disabling tls13 kyber definitely sped up all loads in all my browsers so possibly that was also an issue.

ReneWAS

Slowly frustrating...Since the last update VPN almost doesn't work anymore.I actually turn it off because it constantly crashes every second.it is no longer possible to work.the well-intentioned tip from PawełP doesn't bring me any success at all.clear cache,IKEv2,Repu Cache all that doesn't bring any success.I understand well that updates have to be, but something like that is so extremely annoying. Nobody publishes any info and you search and search as if you had nothing else to do all day...when I took out a subscription in 2023 everything was so stable.lately banking protection doesn't work then the VPN again.this page is safe message then disappeared again.and about Android almost the same circus.too bad that instead of getting better it's getting worse and worse at the moment.this is an honest and objective opinion of mine

sorry for my english but i did not find the german section

hope it gets better again soon

I don't know where the error lies or with whom, but usually this only happens after a new update, at least for me.

The support from FS is really good without question. Thank you! So don't take this the wrong way

PawełP

Hello @ReneWAS

Thank you very much for your post. We are sorry that in your case the steps given earlier did not work. We need to investigate the situation on your device more closely. Therefore, we will need diagnostic data from our program. In a private message on our forum I will send you instructions for downloading the diagnostic data. Please check your inbox.

I still have an additional question. Do you use Fritzbox to connect to the Internet?

This information can be very helpful for us in analyzing your problem.

We will look forward to news from you.

Best regards.

Pawel

FergFrog

Since being forced off Freedome, I purchased the VPN product and it just doesn't work. It is effectively a denial of service attack on all of my devices: Macbook, Android Phone, iPad.

How do I get. a refund and can you recommend a VPN that works as well as Freedome did for me in the past.

Kind regards,

Fergus.

ReneWAS

Hello @PawełP
Thank you very much for your answer.yes I have a Fritz Box 7530 AX.with which I am connected to the internet.I have also sent such a diagnostic report to the help chat named Olivia by e-mail.I am waiting for an answer.the VPN connection has become a little better but unfortunately it still breaks down from time to time more often during the day.best regards Rene

Edit

yes but today it's extreme again you could even say every minute. i don't understand. in any case the connection is stable without VPV. when i turn it on the problems start.

then again it runs a little longer.i have no idea what is going on there

I also have the feeling that it sometimes depends on the server, but it has never been this bad

spn

While switching from OpenVPN to IKEv2 seemed to fix the problem for me previously, this only appeared to work for a short period of time. Disabling hybridized Kyber support in my browser, however, did 'solve' the problem.

But that bears the question, how is it even possible that a update in an application's TLS protocol affects a VPN, which should act as a mere transport layer routing packages back and forward. What's happening inside the F-Secure VPN that causes this issue?

The hybridized Kyber support implementation is there in the browsers for a reason. It increases our security similar to what F-Secure/Freedom does for us. The two shouldn't be mutually exclusive. This leads to a second question: does F-Secure have any plan or timeline in fixing this issue?

ReneWAS

if I select VPN to IKEv2 the VPN does not connect at all, it just says "Connection is being established" and nothing happens.

I will try chrome instead of Firefox, although it also affects programs that do not require a browser where it then breaks off

Or am I thinking wrong?

I have the same feeling right there

PawełP

Hello @ReneWAS , @spn , @FergFrog

We understand very well the difficulties that have arisen due to the slowdown of the Internet or the inability to use it with the VPN enabled.

In many cases, we have found it helpful to disable TLS 1.3 Hybridized Kyber in web browsers. Of course, this is a temporary solution, and we are working on a solution that will allow the VPN to work properly in parallel with the TLS 1.3 Hybridized Kyber function activated.

Another issue is to improve VPN operation on devices where deactivating the TLS 1.3 Hybridized Kyber function did not solve the problem. Our technicians are working hard to determine the cause of this. Therefore, we are grateful to everyone who has so far provided us with their diagnostic data from our program. We also thank you for your responses to our questions and for additional information. There are many indications that the problem affects people who use Fritzbox devices, but we need to analyze this well. The more data we have, the faster we will be able to find a solution.

We will keep you updated on our progress.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards.

Pawel

ReneWAS

Thank you dear @PawełP
I realize that we are all only human, and if not everything runs perfectly 24 hours a day, we immediately start complaining, although you don't really understand that something that has been running for years suddenly stops working and that you can't immediately locate and fix the error, and we first think it's our own PC and we tinker around until we tear the whole system apart, I'm already satisfied that we are at least kept up to date here, then at least I know it will be fixed at some point.

Thank you very much for your information

but as I said it is now much more stable than 10 days ago

if it's the fritzbox, it flies octagonally out of the window

😀😉

(No, that was a joke)

ReneWAS

I also noticed today and days before that it also depends on the server location.Germany was constantly crashing today or loading and loading.if I switched to e.g. Portugal the problem was not and it seemed to run better and much faster

JOnes

And according present service status-url: https://status.f-secure.com/ : no problems(pretty useless service at the time being)😎

torq

I'm now having the same problem as @ReneWAS. I've disabled tls13 kyber on all browsers and pages seem to load okay when VPN runs correctly. But mostly it doesn't, I have to randomly jump around trying different locations until something connects (it's the same with the mobile app). Or some location is just slow and switching location fixes it. This is extremely frustrating because I don't want to spend my time guessing and trying where I might possibly get a connection. And it really becomes a problem when a service requires a specific location. E.g. my bank app won't let me login unless I connect with a Finnish IP.

I would appreciate some information from F-secure about this because the issue has been around for months. I don't appreciate having to navigate around my pc settings constantly and changing things I'm not sure are smart to change. All the information and solutions must be searched on the forum here or generally on the web because F-secure seems to think this is not a big deal and customers don't deserve to be notified. I'd like even just a quick message of "sorry it sucks for some (or all?) users, we'll let you know when we've fixed it, we're working on it". Totally disappointing service after using F-secure products for nearly 20 years without issue. I don't see any reason to renew my license when the time comes.

ReneWAS

Hallo Friends

it is more stable than 14 days ago.i have now installed chrome and tried the tip from Pawel.the browser is definitely running better and it depends on the server where i connect.but it should work 100% again at some point,because as torq has already written it is always a game of chance.the bank protection works for me again.hope it is not gone again with the next UPDATE.support told me it is probably due to the fritzbox according to my diagnostic package.but they didn't really tell me what should be with the Fritzbox.or i have read it over.🤔

have a nice week rene

whiskerubs

i'm in australia, don't have a fritzbox, and tried kyber both enabled and disabled - got same problems as others describe above since a few weeks ago.

PawełP

Hello @whiskerubs

Thank you for your tow post.
Our technicians are trying to determine the cause of this problem, so we are collecting as much information and diagnostic data as possible.
Please take a look at your inbox on our forum. I have some questions for you there.
Thank you.

Best regards.

Pawel

Flopper

I have similar issues on multiple devices for weeks now. Most of the time, browsing or watching videos with VPN turned on is a nightmare. With VPN turned off, browsing performance is as expected. Rarely, everything works as expected (like it did in the years before). These issues appear to be service related, there were no changes on my end and the fact that it occasionally works just fine might underline the situation.

Please bring back a reliable service experience. Thank you.