Stop New VPN Opera From Leaking Your IP Address
Opera added VPN to its developer version of its browser last week, which was certainly good news. The bad news is that unlike the more reliable VPNs it tries to replace, there is a data leak that needs to be encrypted everywhere, namely your private IP address. Here’s how to fix it.
Update : The developer version of Opera released after this post, 38.0.2213.0, addresses this issue. We tested it and once the VPN is enabled (you will need to disable and re-enable it if enabled by default) Opera will no longer leak your IP address. If you have an older version, follow these steps or update to the latest version.
Reader Jeff Baines emailed me shortly after our story to let me know that he tested Opera’s new VPN and of course found it leaking your private IP address even if you have a VPN and are connected to one of Opera. exit servers. You can test yourself in the tester leakage IP-addresses of the WebRTC Roseler , which we mentioned last time, when discussing how to check, do not give if your VPN leak the IP of your .
Of course, after turning on the VPN, you will see Opera’s IP in the browser, but the WebRTC leak test will show your actual IP as provided by the ISP. (Visible in the image at the top of this post.)
Fortunately, the solution is just as simple: install the WebRTC Leak Prevent add-on for Opera. Please enable it, restart your browser and try again. Your local IP address is now blocked, but your private IP address provided by your ISP is still missing.
To fix this, go to the add-in settings, click the drop-down menu at the top and select “Disable UDP without proxy (forced proxy)”. Then check the box next to “Prevent WebRTC from using UDP without proxy”. Try the test again and now you will see that the leak test is not reporting ANY IP addresses from you as WebRTC is being blocked. In the end result, you will see something like the screenshot below:
This is likely the reason many of you reported that using Opera VPN doesn’t help you bypass content blocks like Netflix or Hulu. Of course, this is not Opera’s fault entirely – most web browsers will pass your private IP address through WebRTC when making a STUN request, including Chrome and Firefox. Either way, the add-on is a simple fix that will improve your privacy, and that – if you’re going to try out Opera’s new built-in VPN – you should do so as soon as possible.
Thanks to Jeff Baines for the feedback!