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CyberGhost vs Private Internet Access

Comparing
two VPNs
Decided by
Independent no-logs audits
Last reviewed
2026-08-26
CyberGhostTakes bitcoin

Three Deloitte audits and a Romanian base outside the intelligence alliances, from the third Kape-owned brand on this page.

Private Internet AccessTakes bitcoin

The only service here whose no-logs claim has been tested in open court twice, sold cheaply from inside the Five Eyes.

No verdict

No verdict: both carry 3 independent audits, so the rows below decide by jurisdiction, price and how you want to pay.

Criterion
Independent no-logs audits
CyberGhost
3
Private Internet Access
3

CyberGhost and Private Internet Access, fact by fact

Every row is from the two reviews as of their review dates, with sources on each. A check marks the side a decidable criterion favours; rows without one are information, not a score.

CyberGhost and Private Internet Access compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
FactCyberGhostPrivate Internet Access
Independent audits3, latest 20253, latest 2025
Real-world tests02
Incidents on record00
Market exits01
OwnerKape TechnologiesKape Technologies
JurisdictionRomaniaUnited States
Eyes allianceOutsideFive Eyes
PriceFrom $2.19/mo on the 2yr planFrom $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan
Money-back45 days30 days
Crypto acceptedbitcoinbitcoin
Anonymous signupNoNo
Free tierNoneNone
ServersVendor states thousands of servers across around 100 countries, running in ephemeral RAM-only containersVendor states RAM-only servers across 91 countries, including all 50 US states
Last reviewed2026-08-262026-08-26

No-logs evidence, side by side

Dated audits and real-world tests from each review. An empty column is a finding: the claim has not been independently checked.

CyberGhost

  • 2025Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: third assurance engagement under ISAE 3000 (Revised), covering the server network, configuration and change management, incident response and the dedicated IP token system
  • 2024Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: second assurance engagement on the no-logs policy
  • 2022Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: first assurance engagement, inspecting the VPN server network and management systems against the stated no-logs policy

Private Internet Access

  • 2025Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: third no-logs assurance engagement
  • 2024Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: second no-logs assurance engagement on the server network
  • 2022Audit by Deloitte Audit Romania: no-logs policy and server configuration as of 30 June 2022, under ISAE 3000 (Revised)
  • 2018A federal hacking trial in San Jose examined PIA IP addresses used to reach Embarcadero Media email accounts: PIA testified in open court that it keeps no logs of customer activity and could not tie any IP address to a person
  • 2016An FBI subpoena in a bomb-threat investigation demanded usage logs identifying a Private Internet Access user: PIA reported it held no identifying usage logs and could say only that the traffic came from a server cluster

Frequently asked questions

Is CyberGhost or Private Internet Access better for privacy?

No verdict: both carry 3 independent audits, so the rows below decide by jurisdiction, price and how you want to pay. Audits, court and seizure records and incidents are dated on each review with their sources.

Can I pay CyberGhost or Private Internet Access with bitcoin?

CyberGhost takes bitcoin (processor: BitPay). Private Internet Access takes bitcoin (processor: BitPay). Each review quotes the vendor's own refund sentence for crypto purchases verbatim.

Which is cheaper, CyberGhost or Private Internet Access?

CyberGhost: From $2.19/mo on the 2yr plan. Private Internet Access: From $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan. Money-back: CyberGhost 45 days, Private Internet Access 30 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are CyberGhost and Private Internet Access based?

CyberGhost: Romania (outside the five, nine and fourteen eyes alliances). Private Internet Access: United States (five eyes member). A jurisdiction matters less than a court record showing what the provider could hand over; the reviews carry those where they exist.

Are CyberGhost and Private Internet Access the same company?

Both are owned by Kape Technologies. Shared ownership means shared infrastructure decisions and shared jurisdiction risk, whatever the brands say about each other.

The full reviews: CyberGhost and Private Internet Access, each with its sources, and every VPN we review.

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