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Private Internet Access vs Windscribe

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

WindscribeTakes bitcoin

Seized twice and prosecuted once, with nothing to hand over each time; no email needed to sign up, and it takes bitcoin over Lightning.

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
Private Internet Access
3
Windscribe
3

Private Internet Access and Windscribe, 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.

Private Internet Access and Windscribe compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
FactPrivate Internet AccessWindscribe
Independent audits3, latest 20253, latest 2024
Real-world tests23
Incidents on record01
Market exits10
OwnerKape TechnologiesWindscribe Limited
JurisdictionUnited StatesCanada
Eyes allianceFive EyesFive Eyes
PriceFrom $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan$69/yr Pro, or from $3/mo
Money-back30 days7 days
Crypto acceptedbitcoinbitcoin, bitcoin lightning
Anonymous signupNoYes
Free tierNone10 GB a month with a confirmed email, 2 GB without, across 11 countries
ServersVendor states RAM-only servers across 91 countries, including all 50 US statesVendor states servers in more than 69 countries on paid plans, all running from RAM after the FreshScribe rebuild
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.

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

Windscribe

  • 2026Dutch authorities physically seized a Windscribe server from a data centre rack: The company reports they found a stock install running entirely in RAM, with no drives, logs or user data on it
  • 2025Greek prosecutors, with INTERPOL involvement, charged co-founder Yegor Sak personally over activity traced to a Windscribe server: The case was dismissed on 11 April 2025 after a two-year fight, because Windscribe held no user data to produce
  • 2024Audit by PacketLabs: the full FreshScribe server infrastructure, 20 repositories and roughly 80,000 lines of code, with external and internal penetration testing
  • 2022Audit by Leviathan Security Group: security audit of the mobile applications
  • 2021Audit by Leviathan Security Group: security audit of the desktop applications
  • 2021Ukrainian authorities seized two Windscribe servers: No user activity logs were found, but the unencrypted disks exposed an OpenVPN certificate authority key; Windscribe disclosed this publicly and rebuilt its network to run only in RAM

Frequently asked questions

Is Private Internet Access or Windscribe 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 Private Internet Access or Windscribe with bitcoin?

Private Internet Access takes bitcoin (processor: BitPay). Windscribe takes bitcoin and bitcoin lightning (processor: In-house). Each review quotes the vendor's own refund sentence for crypto purchases verbatim.

Which is cheaper, Private Internet Access or Windscribe?

Private Internet Access: From $2.03/mo on the 3yr plan. Windscribe: $69/yr Pro, or from $3/mo. Money-back: Private Internet Access 30 days, Windscribe 7 days. Prices are from each vendor's own page as of the review date.

Where are Private Internet Access and Windscribe based?

Private Internet Access: United States (five eyes member). Windscribe: Canada (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.

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

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