SurfsharkReviews 37

I recently purchased a two-year subscription to Surfshark VPN, excited to secure my online activities and maintain privacy across all my devices. However, my experience with Surfshark has been nothing short of a disaster.

First and foremost, Surfshark VPN abruptly blocked my account, claiming I had violated their Terms of Service. I reached out to their customer support for clarification on why my account was suspended, and the response was nothing short of disappointing. They informed me that my account was suspended because I had logged into more devices than permitted.

What's particularly frustrating is that I initially purchased Surfshark's service specifically because they advertised support for up to ten devices. The fact that they then turn around and block my account for logging in on fewer than the advertised limit is a blatant breach of trust and false advertising.

To make matters worse, Surfshark refused to unblock my account and provided zero assistance in resolving the issue. It's astonishing how they treat their paying customers. But the most egregious part of this ordeal is the fact that they refused to provide a refund, despite their clear violation of the terms they promised in their subscription package.

In the end, I'm left with a two-year subscription that I can't use, and my money has essentially been stolen. This level of customer service and disregard for their own terms is completely unacceptable. I strongly advise potential customers to think twice before considering Surfshark VPN as their service provider. There are plenty of other VPN options available with better transparency, customer support, and adherence to their stated terms. Surfshark has left me thoroughly disappointed and frustrated with their services, and I cannot recommend them in any way.

Avoid this company! I paid £80 for a 2 year subscription and then they said they hadn't received any payment. I had to contact my bank to reverse the payment as they refused to accept receiving it.
I was warned not to use this company but thought otherwise. I was wrong.

If you want to spend your money wisely and not lose it to a scam outfit, with non attentive bots as a customer service, do not use this company!

My experience with Surfshark has been incredibly disappointing. Their VPN service was useless in the Russian region, prompting me to cancel my payments. Despite canceling, I was charged again.

The customer support was unresponsive and unhelpful. Despite proof of cancellation, a refund was refused based on a vague policy clause.

I caution anyone considering Surfshark. Ineffectiveness and poor customer support are major concerns. I'll be sharing my negative experience to prevent others from facing the same issues. **Rating: **

I used another VPN-service for free before with no hassle at all. But there was the time to get a complete VPN-service to be covered 24/7.
I chose SURFSHARK, because they offered a fair price and had a quite good rating at various websites. After installing SURFSHARK VPN on my computer I could not connect to various email servers via Thunderbird anymore:
The email servers sent a popup message that the (now new) VPN is being blacklisted.
Unfortunately SURFSHARK´s support service could not advice me to solve the problem, so I had to cancel their service within the 30-day-trial period.
SURFSHARK tried hard to keep me as a customer, but when I repeatedly told their customer service that I want to quit, if they don´t solve my problems with receiving AND sending emails - and they couldn´t - they finally let me go.
They promised to fully refund my money within 10 days. If they -again - fail with that, I will keep you updated.
For me it appears that SURFSHARK cannot handle yet all problems coming along with a VPN service - I wish them all the best to solve their problems quite soon!

Unable to connect. Spent several hours undergoing diagnostics and attempting fixes without restoration of service. That is all the time I am going to spend. They refuse to give me a pro-rated refund. Filed case with PayPal, After that, I will file a case with my credit card company.

My account auto renewed on 6/3/23. I was never contacted by SurfShark or Apple regarding this issue. I contacted Apple wondering why Apple Pay was cited. There is no credit card other than Apple Pay, on files with SurfShark. There is no way of cancelling auto pay on Surf Shark. I was "chatting" with one of your reps earlier and he seemed very ill-informed. I find that I've paid for one year of service at a two year rate. Surf Shark is using deceptive methods. Why wasn't I informed of renewal and never received an invoice after the fact? Why didn't Apple have a record of transaction even though they are cited as payment method. I do not want auto renew activated yet there is no way to turn this off. DO NOT AUTO RENEW

I've had a Surfshark subscription for a little over a year, now. At first, everything seemed OK. It didn't take long for the issues to start, however.

First, while running the service, I was unable to access multiple websites. And not shady sites; I'm talking about sites like Amazon, a major US Supermarket chain, and a major US retailer. If I have to turn off the service to place online orders that require a password and credit card information, what's the point of having a VPN?

Second, despite all the claims made by this company, it is apparently impossible to access streaming service libraries from other countries. As a US resident, I thought it might be fun to see if Netflix UK had anything I couldn't access in the US. Too bad it was impossible to access Netflix UK with the VPN running. Not sure how that allows me to watch Netflix UK.

Finally, for the past six months (currently August 2023), every time I shut down or restart my PC, when I try to connect the VPN, I get an error message about Windows Background Services not running. Using their automated fix within the Surfshark software doesn't fix the problem. Following their written guides don't resolve it. Clicking the 'Contact Support' button after the other options have all failed actually just triggers a broken link...meaning you can't actually contact support for this error. I had to submit a ticket through their website. Currently pending a resolution, though, based on everything else I've read about these jokers, I'm not hopeful.

Do yourself a favor; get a different VPN. I'm currently looking for a new one, and have already cancelled my subscription. At least I got a pretty hefty discount by using a YouTuber's discount code.

I reported the Webcam protection feature doesn't work on my MacBook Pro, and the customer service / technical support I have received has been appalling.

It takes 1 week to get an email reply, which comes from different employees each time, and they request you repeat the same instructions with zero success.

To cut down on time wasted, I requested a screen-share or telephone call and was informed they don't offer them.

Today, I requested a refund of my two-year subscription and was informed the 30-day money-back guarantee has expired, so No, and Goodbye.

So, I'm left with a product that doesn't work from a platform that isn't talented enough to fix a problem and provides atrocious customer service.

A word to the wise, steer clear of these sharks!

Surfshark is quite competitive when it comes to features and price. The actual user experience leaves much to be desired. For servers in the Northeast, bad actors have caused the servers to be blacklisted by many sites. In fact, Comcast has prohibited email traffic from passing through them. Financial institutions, CVS, and many others have made logging in from a Surfshark IP address impossible. This means that, unless you have a dedicated IP, for which they'll be happy to charge you, you'll be constantly switching servers and, most times, just turning off the VPN in order to use the internet freely.

Folks, please be aware of this company, they are charlatans and crooks. From and HONEST review I have been dealing with them and now reported them to MasterCard Fraud Investigation team.
They are refusing to return my monies and as I promised them in my last contact, I will on these review sites call them out as what they are Petty Thief's.and as I told them FEEL FREE to press charges against me for naming you this way if you have the courage!
As like others I have been duped for the subscription fee and now warned them I will continually demean their name on these review sites until they return my money or press legal charges against me
Also folks do not be duped by these positive reviews?...is it not strange that every time there is a negative?.out flows a bunch of positive reviews!...it is automated AI Bot replies as are the response nonsense letters you receive from them when questioning them and pursuing your fees return

For a considerable period, I've been a committed user of Surfshark, enticed by a 2-year plan promising 'unlimited use.' I heavily relied on their platform for a range of services associated with multiple client websites, such as email, social networks, and Google accounts.

Regrettably, my previously positive experience took an unforeseen turn when my account was suddenly suspended, citing a supposed breach of their Terms of Service (ToS). This came as quite a shock since I have always taken care to utilize Surfshark's services in a manner consistent with their guidelines.

Adding to the frustration was the denial of a refund for the remaining duration of my subscription. Despite having a considerable length of time left on my 2-year plan, I was told I had lost my right to a refund due to this alleged ToS violation.

In search of answers, I reached out to their customer service, only to be met with a response that lacked detailed explanation or specifics about the supposed violation. This lack of clarity has left me unsure about the exact circumstances that led to my account suspension.

While I fully understand the necessity of adhering to fair usage policies, I'm compelled to stress that Surfshark needs to enhance their communication on what precisely amounts to a ToS violation. Users should be given clear rules to follow and not face sudden account suspensions without a thorough explanation.

Currently, I am waiting for a more detailed response from Surfshark and remain hopeful about resolving this issue. If you're contemplating a long-term engagement with this VPN service, I would strongly recommend a meticulous review of their ToS to prevent similar misunderstandings.

Despite the recent challenges, I still believe that Surfshark can offer a valuable service. However, they must prioritize enhancing customer communication and transparency, especially when it impacts users' access to the service and their financial commitments.

This is the message I received from them:

"Your account is blocked

Hi,

Since your account was blocked, you will not be able to use it further.

Due to violation of our ToS, you have lost your right to a refund.

However, you will not be charged again as auto-renewal has already been disabled.

You can read more about our fair usage policy here: Terms of Service

Stay cyber-safe,

The Surfshark Team"

I took off 2 stars because of issues connecting first the good its a solid VPN at a great price and support is really good and available 24/7 I got the two year script when connected I see no lag in my computer speed, the bad is it takes a long time to boot up and connect, I timed 2 minutes and 45 seconds just to show up on my computer after double clicking the icon, then since the last two updates I get a message "detect another VPN" I dont have another VPN so I have to dismiss that message at least 3 times then I get a "Surfhark not responding" message so all in all I timed 4 min and 45 seconds to connect very annoying, I contacted support they told me to uninstall the program with Revo uninstaller which I did 5 times but still getting the messages I tried all protocalls with the same results, not sure if anyone else is having these issues but despite that I would recommend Surfshark

Be warned they bill according to their location not yours. Even though you receive a invoice or confirmation with the date you placed the ordered in your country it will actually be based on their location, for me it was a day prior.
They cost me $166CDN in charges because of this. They billed before my credit card cycle began IN THEIR COUNTRY!
I contacted them and honestly I was shocked by the lack of intelligence. They needed to move the date by one day. They would not address the issue and asked me to remain a client anyways. As if!
I cancelled the service - there isn't actually anything special about it.
Zero for customer service
Zero the accommodating global customers

Far too many websites will not work. Tech support has you change one thing after the next. The number of breaks is overwhelming. The felt performance is about 2x normal with this VPN added thus very slow. I end up having to turn off this VPN often just to get websites and apps to work. That defeats the purpose. Note, unfortunately many other VPNs are unacceptable too.

I bougth 2 years ago a VPN plan with Surfshark for a $48 value, and for 27 months. They sent me an e-mail at that time stating the next plan will be the same offer I got. False. In 20 days my plan is finished and they already sent an e-mail the new plan is just for an year and for $58. I replied that I have the company commitment for 48 & and for 27 month, as I got. They said because I am a loyal customer, they are going to offer me 2 years for the same amount, $58. And they sent a link that I can use to quit their services! I verified on their site and this is the current offer for new customers! So, first they wanted to overcharge, second they wanted to offer " as for my loyalty " the current offer they have! Companies that are not respecting the commitments and the customers should not be allowed to make business on US territories. What a disrespect to not mention that not all the time the VPN software did a good job on my interest area - Canada. They only have an IP address for a specific city that can be easily guess by Bell Media software and block the streaming. I would definitely go with other VPN suppliers, more respectful with their clients and better positioned on reviews.

I will relate my personal experience with SurfShark about two years ago. I purchased a membership because of the great reviews and good pricing. However all was not as secure as one would assume. SurfShark uses a kill switch feature, which means anytime the VPN is not connected, ALL internet traffic is blocked. For example if you are browsing a site using the VPN and the VPN connection suddenly drops, the software will completely block all access to the internet so long as the kill switch feature is on. Here's what I discovered... With the kill switch turned on and the VPN disconnected, it appeared the internet was blocked. I accidentally launched TOR browser, which is a secure browser that accesses the internet using relay points, and it connected as if there was no kill switch at all. I could browse and download software as if SurfShark wasn't installed. But my other browsers were blocked. My question is... If TOR could bypass SurfShark's security with such ease, then how many other apps could do the same without me ever knowing? BIG SECURITY RISK. When I reported it to SurfShark, they basically called me a liar and said what I had described was impossible. However when I demanded my money back, they refunded it within an hour! They knew there was an issue, but refused to admit it. So I don't trust them and won't use their service. A final note... quite often their app would say you are connected to one location, but Ipleak, net or ip8.com would show differently. For example, I would tell the app to connect to Netherlands. It would connect and report that it was connected to the Netherlands. However, launch Chrome and go to ipleak.net or ip8.com and it would tell me I'm connected to London, UK by the IP address. Would you trust them after all this?