VPN Block: What Is It and How to Stay Undetected

VPNs, those magical tunnels that help us explore parts of the internet typically out of reach, are increasingly under fire from network administrators, governments, and streaming services. From schools cracking down on their tech-savvy students to governments imposing digital boundaries, the question arises: How can you stay undetected while using a VPN?

In this blog post, we’ll dive into what VPN blocks are, why they exist, and some clever methods to bypass VPN restrictions without raising red flags. Let’s make VPNs unblocked for you again, with an educational twist (and a dash of cheeky fun).

How Do VPNs Get Detected?

VPN detection is not some black magic thing, though it may look like it sometimes. Basically, when you are using a VPN, your requests flow through an encrypted tunnel that changes your IP address and makes your online activities invisible to everyone, even your very own ISP. Though, as VPN technology evolves, so does the detection methods, and they can now spot unusual patterns that can be easily traced to VPN usage.

Here’s how VPNs often get detected and what the methods are:

• IP Address Recognition: The unfortunate truth about many VPN providers is that they use shared IP addresses. Now, it is unnatural for a single IP address to be used by a truckload of people, and that’s how VPN usage is caught by some websites – if hundreds of users are coming from a single IP address, it means it is a VPN. Websites and services then blacklist those IP addresses and mark them as VPNs, preventing further access. Moreover, most VPN services use datacenter IP addresses – these are IPs that are hosted in datacenters and are not tied to actual residences or actual people. When a website sees that the IP used is datacenter one, it is a giveaway that the end user is using a VPN.
• Deep Packet Inspection (DPI): DPI is like airport security for the internet. Your data packets are scanned as they pass through the network. While DPI can’t peek inside encrypted data, it can analyze packet metadata, flagging VPN protocols. This is particularly effective in restricted countries where internet authorities use DPI to sniff out VPN traffic.
• VPN Protocols: OpenVPN, PPTP, L2PT, and so on are all different VPN protocols, and it comes as no surprise they have distinct patterns that make them easier to spot. In this case, some websites and services can see those patterns and block all traffic coming from these protocols. One way to combat this detection is using an obfuscated server as it can disguise VPN traffic and make it look like regular traffic.
• Port Blocking: VPNs rely on specific ports for data transfer, especially ports used by OpenVPN and other popular protocols. By blocking these ports, administrators effectively throttle the VPN.
• DNS Filtering and Caching: Sometimes, your request for a website goes to your network’s DNS server before being rerouted to the VPN’s. If the DNS server “caches” the restricted page, you’ll see a blocked message before the VPN even kicks in. This is especially true in network environments like schools.

These key methods are advancing rapidly and are becoming more sophisticated each day. Yet, they are not undefeatable. The key point of an undetectable VPN is to create traffic that blends in seamlessly with regular traffic that appears without a VPN.

Why Do Websites and Services Block VPNs?

We’ve all been there – you turn on a VPN to privately watch some streaming service without your ISP or anyone else knowing, and you get stopped by a “VPN detected, please turn off your VPN” message. Now, why do certain websites and services don’t allow you to access them if you have a VPN on?

• Regional Licensing Agreements: Various streaming services, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and so on, have legal obligations to comply with various regional agreements. These agreements determine which content can be shown in some countries and which content should not be streamed there. VPN blocking, in this case, is a preventive measure against possible legal nightmares that streaming companies may get themselves into.
• Security and Data Integrity: Various services tend to block VPNs for enhanced security. While a VPN, from the user’s perspective, is a tool for security and privacy, for institutions, a VPN could mean increased fraud cases and similar unwanted things.
• Network Traffic Management: In some use cases, VPN traffic can be quite a difficult thing to handle on a network, especially when traffic-heavy use cases are exercised (streaming, gaming, downloads, etc.) That’s why schools, workplaces, and, in some cases, even ISPs block VPNs in an effort to prevent network overload and thus ensure smooth access to the internet for everyone else.
• Preventing Academic Dishonesty: Academic institutions tend to use VPN blockers to prevent students from accessing unapproved sites, illegal content, journals that are not affiliated with the institution, gaming platforms, and so on. Though students are often savvy enough and find out what is the bypass code for school and how to bypass internet restrictions. Unfortunately, the latter often involves VPN use, and that’s why administrators increase their VPN detection efforts.

By blocking VPNs, websites, services, and administrators try to enforce compliance, keep content region-locked, and ensure network integrity. And while VPN blocks may seem unstoppable, there are plenty of tricks for VPN unblocked status.

Why Are Schools So Extra About VPN Blocking?

Have you ever tried to unblock a certain website on your school computer and succeeded, only to find out it is blocked again after a few minutes of jumping up and down in joy? Well, the network administrator was somehow one step ahead of you. This may raise the question of why schools are so extra concerned about VPN blocks. The main reasons are these.

Student Focus and Productivity

Schools have a big job balancing education with technology, and it’s no surprise that they’re wary of VPNs. When students have unrestricted access to the internet on a school computer, the temptation to scroll TikTok, stream videos, or even dive into gaming can easily take priority over the day’s lesson plan. Schools block VPNs to help keep the focus on academics and away from distractions, ensuring that online resources are strictly for educational purposes. With no VPN to bypass safe searches or restricted websites, students are more likely to stick with the curriculum, at least in theory.

But it’s also about maintaining structure in a digital age where distractions are just a click away. Teachers and administrators can only do so much to keep students engaged, so eliminating easy access to certain online “black holes” helps maintain a steady flow of attention in class. Plus, when students constantly seek out ways to get around blocks—whether by looking up what is the bypass code for school or sneaking onto unblocked VPNs—it disrupts the entire classroom environment. School VPN blocks are, in their eyes, a line of defense against an army of distractions, meant to keep young minds dialed into learning (even if students are sometimes more interested in unblocking websites than math problems).

Security Policies and Sensitive Data

While the main purpose of schools is, of course, learning, they still keep loads of sensitive data: student records and health information, parental contact details, and other private information that’s protected by law and must be kept safe at all costs. In this case, unrestricted VPN access can possibly open up various vulnerabilities that expose this sensitive data to unauthorized access and, in a more nightmarish scenario, to malware and hackers. Schools aim to minimize even the slightest chances of any security risks, and that’s why they employ VPN blocking. By monitoring and regulating private internet access, schools try to prevent accidental or malicious data leaks.

Although it may look like these school’s security policies are merely focused on students’ digital habits, that is not the case – these measures extend to the broader network itself. With a VPN block, it’s harder for various external threats to slip through the cracks, thus making it less likely that a student or some visitor may unknowingly introduce risky content or malicious software onto the network. Needless to say, school IT administrators know very well how quickly viruses or phishing scams can spread, and blocking VPN access is a great help in controlling this environment. All these policies are there not only to protect sensitive data, but also the network’s functionality as well – they help reduce downtime and the need for tech support calls to fix a system ruined by a rogue connection or suspicious site.

Bandwidth Management

Schools hold many students, and since the virtual world is completely inescapable and everything is based on the internet, bandwidth management can become a very frustrating task. When students use VPNs for traffic-intensive activities, such as streaming, gaming, and downloading their favorite TV series, they use up an astronomical amount of the school’s bandwidth. This makes it a challenge for teachers and other staff to access class materials and online testing without hiccups, and this is unfortunate since schools are for learning, after all, and these are legitimate use cases where bandwidth is required. When everyone tries to get the best speed, the network can slow down to the pace of a snail, causing issues for students who are doing their schoolwork and for teachers who are trying to load pages during lessons. In this case, VPN blocking can help keep a balance between ‘primary’ use cases and secondary ones (such as streaming and so on.)

Limited internet capacity that has to cover every student, teacher, and device on campus also comes into play here. VPN traffic can not only overload the bandwidth but it can also make the network unstable, leading to annoying crashes and headache-inducing connection issues. Think about it – a teacher tries to run an online exam or a digital presentation, and everything freezes because a handful of students are using unblocked VPNs to bypass school restrictions and play online games that clog up the network. Strict bandwidth management and VPN blocking help schools prevent these bottlenecks and ensure a smooth online experience for everyone on campus. Though it sounds like the administrators are pulling the “no fun allowed” card, it should be understood that keeping the digital traffic flowing is what allows learning to happen. After all, schools are for education, right?

Enforcing Content Restrictions

Schools have a duty to create a safe and distraction-free environment during school hours, and that’s why blocking access to certain (oftentimes inappropriate) online content is crucial for the administration. To keep things in check, schools use various filters that prevent students from reaching content that is not related to education in any way or could even be considered sketchy and inappropriate for a school setting. However, unblocked VPNs can break those filters and allow students to access content that would be inaccessible by default. Because of this, schools choose to block VPNs altogether to make sure that the rules are not broken, and no “bad” content gets on students’ computers.

These content restrictions also have a way more serious purpose – it just so happens that in a lot of regions, educational institutions are required by law to protect students from explicit, violent, and other unsuitable content while they are on campus networks. When a student uses an unblocked VPN to bypass these restrictions, they could expose themselves and others to inappropriate material and get the school in trouble on legal grounds. These strict rules are there not only to keep the students safe on the internet but also to protect themselves from potentially horrible legal consequences.

VPN Detection in Restricted Internet Countries

VPNs are often essential for accessing unfiltered content in countries with restricted internet. However, the rules in these regions can be strict, sometimes to the point that VPN usage can be punishable by law. For governments in those countries, it is in their best interest to block VPNs altogether, and they use various techniques to achieve this goal.

Deep Packet Inspection (DPI)

In countries with restricted internet access, Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) is a go-to weapon for identifying and blocking VPN traffic. DPI works like a hyper-vigilant digital customs officer; it examines each data packet as it passes through the network, looking not just at where the data is going but at the “fingerprints” it leaves. Even though VPN traffic is encrypted, DPI can still detect telltale signs, such as specific packet sizes, timing, or patterns associated with VPN protocols like OpenVPN or WireGuard. This inspection doesn’t mean DPI can read the content inside the VPN tunnel, but it’s remarkably good at spotting encrypted traffic that’s trying to mask its origin, essentially labeling it as “suspicious” and blocking it accordingly.

Countries like China and Iran have taken DPI to near-legendary levels of sophistication, actively developing DPI technologies that can adapt and improve at spotting new VPN patterns. This approach makes DPI a massive headache for VPN users in these regions, where even some of the best VPNs can get detected and blocked in minutes. To counteract DPI, VPN providers have created obfuscated servers, which disguise VPN traffic as regular HTTPS traffic. This makes it much harder for DPI to distinguish it from other everyday internet activities like browsing or streaming. However, not every VPN has the resources to invest in obfuscation technology, so if you’re trying to keep your VPN unblocked in a DPI-heavy country, you’ll need a provider that’s up to the challenge. In short, DPI is a clever, ever-evolving gatekeeper, making it one of the toughest barriers to bypass for internet users navigating around government restrictions.

Port Blocking and Throttling

Port blocking and throttling are two of the most frustrating techniques used to clamp down on VPN traffic in oppressive, restricted internet regions. Here’s how it works: VPNs often use specific ports, like OpenVPN’s common port 1194, to establish secure connections. Governments or ISPs can block these ports outright, preventing the VPN from creating its tunnel and effectively cutting off your access before it even begins. It’s like shutting down a specific toll road so that no one can use it to sneak around traffic. The idea here is simple—if users can’t get onto the VPN highway in the first place, they’re effectively trapped on the “government-approved” network.

But some restrictions go beyond just blocking; they also throttle VPN traffic, slowing down connection speeds to a frustrating crawl, which discourages people from trying to use a VPN at all. VPN throttling makes streaming, downloading, and even regular browsing so painfully slow that it’s often not worth the effort. To bypass port blocking and throttling, some VPNs let users switch ports, even running on ports commonly used for regular HTTPS traffic, like port 443, to make it harder to block without impacting general web usage. Others may have features like “stealth mode” or “scrambling,” which mask the VPN’s traffic as ordinary data. So, if you’re in a restricted country dealing with port blocking or throttling, these features can be lifesavers, allowing you to stay connected without announcing your VPN usage.

Country-Level IP Blocking

Oppressive governments that wish to control what their citizens see online utilize another popular tool – country-level IP blocking. The process is rather simple: governments, together with internet service providers, create lists of IP addresses that are known to be associated with VPN servers. After the list is complete (or updated, for that matter), they completely block your access to the internet if you are connecting with those particular IP addresses. This blocks VPN traffic rather efficiently, as without a proper internet connection, VPN becomes useless. Most of the biggest VPN providers recycle IP addresses across users and use mostly datacenter IPs, which is an obvious giveaway that they belong to a VPN service, and they are very easy to put on the blacklist. And once those IP addresses are blocked, every single person connected to that server IP is left without any internet access. Dedicated IP addresses are a possible solution. However, they, too probably originate in a datacenter and are not tied to an actual household like a residential IP would; thus, even if you have a unique IP address that is not shared with anyone, your chances of bypassing a VPN block are slim.

VPN Ban Legislation

Some countries even go the ultimate step in oppression by banning VPNs outright through legislation, rendering VPN use illegal or terribly restricted. Blocking access to the open internet is just one side of the coin—laws like these create legal consequences for individuals and companies alike who are caught using unauthorized, illegal VPNs. Governments regulate VPN providers themselves in countries like China, Russia, and the UAE, requiring them to register with authorities and agree to strict content monitoring, effectively removing the key point of VPN service – privacy and anonymity. Getting caught using an unregistered VPN in these regions can lead to substantial fines and even jail time. The main idea of these draconian laws is to keep a tight grip on information, ensuring that citizens only access what the government wants them to access. This makes the internet a parody of itself – a tool for sharing information is kept from doing so. In these regions, finding an unblocked VPN can be a tough task, and regular VPNs, even with obfuscated servers and stealth mode capabilities don’t always do the trick.

The Importance of Staying Undetected

Staying undetected with a VPN is about more than just convenience; it’s about privacy, security, and sometimes even safety.

• Safe Streaming: A stealthy VPN means you can enjoy all your favorite streaming sites with full privacy and security without the annoying “VPN detected” error. Getting access to Amazon Prime blocking VPN or unblocked VPN for YouTube means that your viewing habits remain private, and no third party, including your ISP or government, can see what you are watching.
• Bypass School or Work Network Restrictions: Whether it’s using a VPN to get around blocks at school or unblocking social media at work, an undetectable VPN lets you operate below the radar, without network administrators raising any red flags.
• Avoiding Surveillance in Restricted Areas: In certain oppressive regions, accessing “disallowed” sites can put you on the government’s naughty list. Staying undetected is crucial as being caught with a VPN on in these countries can lead to a hefty fine and, even worse, jail time or other horrible repercussions.
• Freedom for Journalists and Activists: VPNs are critical for those dealing with sensitive data that helps create a news story or organize protests in restricted regions. When staying undetected isn’t optional but necessary, using VPN services that are based on residential IP addresses, as opposed to datacenter ones, is a way to stay online securely.
• Maintaining Privacy for Everyday Users: Even outside of high-stakes environments, online privacy matters. Staying undetected on a VPN gives you peace of mind, knowing that your browsing, searches, and location aren’t being tracked.

To ensure that the mission of VPN bypass is successful, savvy users choose decentralized VPNs that offer unlimited bandwidth, port-blocking resistance, and residential IP addresses that are way less likely to be marked as belonging to a VPN.

Finding an Undetectable VPN 

Now that you understand how a VPN block comes to life, what the methods are, and why using an unblocked VPN is important for your online (and sometimes offline) security, let’s see how you can find an undetectable VPN yourself.

To put it bluntly, many (if not all) well-known VPN providers rely fully on datacenter IP addresses. As mentioned previously, these IP addresses are based in massive datacenters and do not have any connection to ISPs that provide internet access to households. The most basic check a website or service can do is to see if the IP address you are using is a datacenter IP, and if that’s the case – it means you are using a VPN.

Though it may seem that there’s no way out – after all, most VPNs use datacenter IPs – some VPNs use only residential IPs, obfuscating your VPN usage perfectly. Residential IPs, in contrast to datacenter IPs, are tied to actual households and are connected to ISPs that provide home internet. If you are using such an IP address, the website or service you try to access sees your connection as organic. In other words, it thinks that an actual, regular internet user is connecting to their servers, not a nameless entity that exists in a massive data center in some warehouse. And when the connection looks completely real, the website in question has no way of saying, “that’s a VPN,” and that’s what makes an undetectable VPN a reality.

Powered completely by a community that believes in the idea of open and unrestricted internet, Mysterium VPN is a VPN service that provides only residential IPs. There are no datacenter IPs in the pool, and that ensures that your VPN usage is undetectable. With residential IPs, you are using a VPN without anyone knowing you are using one.

With over 135 countries covered and more than 20 358 virtual servers run by actual people with residential IPs, Mysterium VPN might be the best choice if you are looking for a truly undetectable VPN. Stay safe and undetected while keeping your data private.