One of the questions we get asked a lot is “is it illegal to use a VPN to access Netflix.” Our answer is – it is not, despite the fact that Netflix is banning the use of VPNs. But “banning” doesn’t imply “suing” so you can get away with a good VPN and watch all shows and movies Netflix has to offer — and that’s a lot.
Let us quickly describe why Netflix is trying to ban the use of VPNs?
Why is Netflix blocking VPNs?
Netflix has no problems letting anyone access its own content from all corners of the globe. The problem is when you want to access a Netflix catalog in a country where you are not physically located at that time.
For instance, you may be living in America but are traveling to Italy for a holiday. You will, naturally, want to keep your Netflix access but that’s easier said than done.
Netflix has content rights to deal with as it may have licensed some content (a movie or TV show) only for select markets and will thus no let you access your own Netflix account from another country. As far as they (don’t) know, someone may have stolen your Netflix username and password, and now wants to watch some quality TV.
Netflix can tell by your IP address that you are located in, for instance, Italy and would only let you subscribe and later watch the content that is made available for that (Italian) market. If there are some shows exclusive to U.S. Netflix, you won’t be able to access them.
As mentioned, this happens when Netflix has only managed to secure content rights for U.S. and not for other countries. And it is those content rights owners that are forcing Netflix to prevent users from other (unlicensed) countries from accessing their content. They do this because, in most cases, someone else (another streaming service) has paid them for that privilege.
So if Netflix detects that you’re using a VPN, it will show you the appropriate message and ask you to “try again.” Not sure what that means, but in my book – I just connect to a different VPN server, and then I’m able to access every bit Netflix has to offer.
But the question is different…
Is it illegal to watch Netflix with a VPN?
Netflix’s Terms of Service (ToS) says that you may view a movie or TV show through the Netflix service “primarily within the country in which you have established your account and only in geographic locations where we offer our service and have licensed such movie or TV show.”
The ToS continues: “The content that may be available to watch will vary by geographic location. Netflix will use technologies to verify your geographic location.”
That’s all nice, but since most people already PAY for access to content, the lawyers say that using a VPN to watch Netflix is NOT illegal.
There is one exception though but it has nothing to do with Netflix. Rather, in some (high-censorship) countries – the use of a VPN is illegal. But that my friend is another story.
The action point – visit our page with the Best VPNs for Netflix and grab yourself a VPN you can trust. All of the services listed there have been tested for years and will keep your back for Netflix and everything else. So go ahead and find yourself a VPN today!