Can AirVPN start logging?

[e88b23 0]

Hello,

I would like some information regarding the possibility of AirVPN collecting IP addresses. AirVPN does not collect IP addresses by default, but would it be possible to set up a protocol dedicated to analyzing the behavior of a single user in particular following a judicial request?

ProtonVPN makes it very clear how this logging works “upon judicial request”: https://protonvpn.com/blog/can-be-tracked-using-vpn#police

Switzerland is a jurisdiction I'm familiar with, which doesn't allow a VPN provider to start recording logs about users. Is it the same in Italy?

Can AirVPN staff comment on the legal requests they receive, and if they are forced to start a specific logging on a user at the request of justice? Does Italian law prevent this, or has it happened in the past?

I'm an AirVPN user and I support the project being an activist too. These are just legitimate questions that I hope will be addressed by the staff. @Staff

Good day to all

[e88b23 0]

Hello,

I see that the account used by @Staff did not answer to my question, but seems to be quite active on the forum.

Is it possible to get more information about the legal claims you are collecting ? I've also found several documents that might conflict (I'm not asserting this, I wish airvpn staff could answer clearly) with your no-logs policy :

- Article 132 - Dati relativi al traffico (https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:decreto.legislativo:2003-06-30;196!vig=2025-06-03😞 this article requires providers of publicly accessible electronic communications services to retain certain categories of traffic data for the purposes of detecting and punishing criminal offences. Is AirVPN subject to this?

- Article 266/267 (and following) - Intercettazioni di comunicazioni o conversazioni (https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:decreto.del.presidente.della.repubblica:1988-09-22;447!vig=2025-06-03😞 the Italian judicial authority can order the interception of communications. If a VPN is used, and the provider is subject to Italian jurisdiction, technical measures may be required to allow access to communications. How can AirVPN comply with this law without agreeing to create an “isolated protocol” to identify a user's connection?

- Article 2 (and following) - Disposizioni per la prevenzione e la repressione della diffusione illecita (https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:legge:2023-07-14;93!vig=2025-06-03😞 VPN providers could be forced by AGCOM (according to my reading and understanding) to take measures to prevent access to illicit content, and as part of piracy-related investigations, the judicial authority could use its general powers to request information. Can AirVPN refuse to pass on any information to AGCOM without obtaining any sanction?

I've translated these documents into English for a better analysis, sorry if it's not accurate. But I haven't found any information shared by AirVPN on Italian legislation. Like other providers who defend internet freedom, you should be much more transparent about the requests you've received, how many you've refused and whether or not you're subject to these laws.

I sincerely hope to get a clear answer as to whether AirVPN can be used by activists. Some governments use anti-terrorist laws to arrest activists (as was the case with Protonmail not long ago), so it's legitimate to wonder whether AirVPN offers sufficient security.

Thank you for your answers,

Have a nice day

Edited ... by e88b23

[OpenSourcerer 1483]

25 minutes ago, e88b23 said:

Can AirVPN refuse to pass on any information to AGCOM without obtaining any sanction?

Well, most probably not. AirVPN's measure was to simply cease providing service to Italy to render themselves out of scope of Piracy Shield. All the server locations are subject to the laws of those server locations.If you're not in Italy, you're anyway free from any of the worries you stated. Italian authorities asking for info on someone who is not in Italy, or simply connected to a server not in Italy, is just plain impossible on so many levels. They can try, of course, but it'll probably never pass.
Also, torrenting as the #1 reason around here to connect to the VPN might be a crime, too, but it's not terrorism justifying hunting people to the end of the world. Clearly define what you want to be protected against and ask the forums for measures you can take; there'll be tons of recommendations. But curb your paranoia, it is not productive.
 

35 minutes ago, e88b23 said:

Some governments use anti-terrorist laws to arrest activists (as was the case with Protonmail not long ago), so it's legitimate to wonder whether AirVPN offers sufficient security.

The prevalent recommendation even across these forums is not to use the VPN alone. Always combine with Tor if you need the safety, and harden whatever apps you want to use over it, most importantly the browser. Mass tracking is done by automated tracking measures such as browser fingerprinting against which a VPN won't help you. This tracking is done to generate money out of you, not for surveillance or some such, anyway.

[e88b23 0]

I don't think I'm being paranoid ; it's a fact that some governments exploit terrorism as a justification for surveillance. And it's not really an opinion or a deep concern, it's factually what's happening today in some countries that were supposed to respect a lot of individual freedoms.

Unfortunately, Tor and other networks are not compatible with certain protocols, such as torrenting. Downloading or sharing a torrent with sensitive content, whether intentionally or unintentionally, which may include a dozen or so words sensitive to state security (a term very often abused), has already encouraged certain governments in the past to exploit Europol to obtain information with the help of the judicial authority of a country concerned.

This is typically what has happened in Switzerland on several dozen or even hundreds of occasions, according to Proton's transparency reports. Proton could not respond to Europol's request directly, but since the request first went through the local authority, they were obliged to respond. Please note, however, that this only concerns access to Protonmail and not ProtonVPN, which is not subject to this use of the law.

The concerns are real and laws are sometimes used for purposes that go well beyond their basic limits. Thank you for taking the time to reply, but I insist that legal transparency remains an essential point for a provider like AirVPN wishing to defend net neutrality and user privacy. It's really a wish, not a criticism of the great work AirVPN been doing for so many years.

[OpenSourcerer 1483]

9 hours ago, e88b23 said:

Downloading or sharing a torrent with sensitive content, whether intentionally or unintentionally, which may include a dozen or so words sensitive to state security (a term very often abused), has already encouraged certain governments in the past to exploit Europol to obtain information with the help of the judicial authority of a country concerned

Please refer me to a few of those publically known occurences.
 

9 hours ago, e88b23 said:

according to Proton's transparency reports

You mean these largely uncategorized numbers? How do you know it's downright abuse? The number of orders contested was 6% and 7% for 2024 and 2023, respectively.
 

9 hours ago, e88b23 said:

The concerns are real and laws are sometimes used for purposes that go well beyond their basic limits.

The concerns are rather speculative and highly dependent on your specific location, aren't they?
In Germany and Switzerland, you may criticize your governmental bodies to your heart's content and the most you may get is a slap on the wrist from other people (figuratively). The fact that right-oriented troupes can talk shit to the government (and not much is done unless it goes into the realm of death threats and more) is proof that a certain level of freedom is practiced. That's what it means to live in a constitutional state: You are not being repressed there.
But of course, the concerns get very real very fast if you do live in a country with authoritative tendencies such as Iran, China or even Hungary or the US (maybe Poland shortly). One can and probably must make sure they're safe.
Or better yet, just don't talk shit to the governmental bodies there, period. There's a limit for everything, and Freedom of Speech does not mean Freedom of Insults.