ProtonVPN published results from two significant independent audits in 2026. The first is its fourth consecutive no-logs audit conducted by Polish security firm Securitum. The second is its first-ever SOC 2 Type II audit, which verified the company’s broader business security practices rather than just its privacy policy.
Together, these results extend ProtonVPN’s position as one of the most thoroughly audited privacy-focused VPNs available.
What the Securitum no-logs audit found
Securitum’s fourth ProtonVPN audit follows the same methodology as its previous three: auditors attempt to access VPN connection logs, metadata, and user identifiers through the live production infrastructure, with no logs to show them. The 2026 audit confirmed that ProtonVPN’s production servers do not retain connection timestamps, IP addresses, session duration data, or any other information that could be used to identify or track users.
This type of audit, sometimes called a “live audit,” is more meaningful than a simple policy review because it tests actual infrastructure rather than just documentation. If auditors find logs that a privacy policy says don’t exist, the provider fails.
ProtonVPN has now passed four consecutive Securitum audits without failure. This places it behind NordVPN (seven major audits, including a Deloitte no-logs verification) but ahead of Mullvad (four Cure53 audits) and Surfshark (two audits) in terms of cumulative audit history.
What SOC 2 Type II actually means
SOC 2 is an auditing standard designed for service organizations that handle customer data. Type II specifically means the audit covered a period of time (usually six to twelve months) rather than a single point in time, testing whether security controls operated consistently throughout that period.
For VPN users, a SOC 2 Type II certification signals that ProtonVPN’s business processes, employee access controls, incident response procedures, and data handling practices meet a recognized enterprise security standard. This is different from and complementary to a no-logs audit.
A no-logs audit confirms that the VPN’s servers do not retain user data. A SOC 2 audit confirms that the company running those servers has robust operational controls around who can access systems, how incidents are logged and responded to, and whether security policies are actually followed rather than just written down.
ProtonVPN is among the first consumer VPN providers to achieve SOC 2 Type II certification. NordVPN has an ISO 27001 certification (a related but different standard) and its infrastructure audits. Mullvad does not currently hold SOC 2 certification.
Want to compare all VPNs side by side? Check our full VPN comparison table with scores across 18 criteria.
How this affects ProtonVPN’s score
Our scores come from the Excel database and are updated periodically. ProtonVPN currently scores 4.3/5 overall, second behind NordVPN’s 4.6/5. The audit results reinforce but do not change this ranking on their own, as ProtonVPN’s privacy infrastructure was already among the strongest in our dataset.
The SOC 2 Type II certification is more meaningful for enterprise and business users than for individual consumers. Organizations evaluating ProtonVPN for team accounts or corporate VPN deployments now have a recognized compliance artifact they can present to IT security teams.
The Swiss jurisdiction advantage
Both audits occurred within the context of ProtonVPN’s Swiss headquarters, which remains one of its structural advantages. Switzerland is not a member of any intelligence-sharing alliance (not Five Eyes, Nine Eyes, or Fourteen Eyes) and has among the strongest statutory data protection laws in the world.
When Securitum auditors confirmed no logs exist, that confirmation carries extra weight because Swiss law does not require ProtonVPN to secretly retain logs for law enforcement purposes, unlike providers based in the US, UK, or EU.
The combination of Swiss jurisdiction, four no-logs audits, and now SOC 2 Type II certification makes ProtonVPN’s privacy stack genuinely comprehensive.
What privacy-focused users should take from this
If your primary reason for using a VPN is privacy rather than streaming or speed, the audit results strengthen the case for ProtonVPN. The gap between ProtonVPN and NordVPN on privacy-specific criteria has narrowed, even if NordVPN retains its overall lead due to superior streaming performance and slightly faster speeds.
For users who previously hesitated on ProtonVPN because its business security practices were less documented, the SOC 2 Type II certification removes a legitimate concern.
ProtonVPN's 2026 audits reinforce its position as the strongest choice for users who prioritize verifiable privacy over all other criteria. The SOC 2 Type II result is the more novel achievement, validating business-level security practices that no other consumer VPN has independently verified to this standard.
Keep reading: ProtonVPN Review 2026: The Privacy-First Choice and How to Verify a VPN’s No-Logs Policy: What Audits Actually Check.