''In May 2025, Ars Technica reported their research into this issue, as more complaints started coming in; "In March, complaints started appearing online about lifetime subscriptions to VPNSecure no longer working".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harding |first=Scharon |date=12 May 2025 |title=VPN firm says it didn't know customers had lifetime subscriptions, cancels them |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/05/vpn-firm-says-it-didnt-know-customers-had-lifetime-subscriptions-cancels-them/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250513003807/https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/05/vpn-firm-says-it-didnt-know-customers-had-lifetime-subscriptions-cancels-them/ |archive-date=13 May 2025 |access-date=13 May 2025 |website=Ars Technica}}</ref>''
VPN Secure is a [[wikipedia:Virtual_private_network|virtual private network]] service that, from around 2018 to 2023, offered lifetime VPN service for a fixed, non-recurring price through online software storefront StackSocial. In 2023, InfiniteQuiant Ltd purchased VPN Secure from BoostNetwork Pty Ltd. In April 2025, thousands of these lifetime licenses were abruptly terminated, causing outrage among users.
==Background==
==Acquisition and Deactivation==
The license was purchased in 2018 through StackSocial. The full name of the item was "VPNSecure: Lifetime Subscription". For a period of time the VPN worked as expected.
VPN Secure was acquired by InfiniteQuant LTD in May 2023. According to their email to customers, they acquired "the technology, domain, and customer database — but not the liabilities." On April 28, 2025, all lifetime deal accounts were deactivated. <ref>{{Cite web |last=Vigliarolo |first=Brandon |date=14 May 2025 |title=VPN Secure parent company CEO explains why he had to axe thousands of 'lifetime' deals |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250515211209/https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/14/vpn_secure_axe_lifetime_deals/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250515211209/https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/14/vpn_secure_axe_lifetime_deals/ |archive-date=15 May 2025 |access-date=12 Aug 2025 |website=The Register}}</ref> InfiniteQuant LTD is a company based in Nassau started by Frenchman Romain Brabant. The company offered expatriation to the Bahamas to reduce tax burdens. It is unclear why they may have purchased a VPN. <ref>{{Cite web |title=Epatriation aux Bahamas {{!}} InfiniteQuant.com |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250216125557/https://www.infinitequant.com/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250216125557/https://www.infinitequant.com/ |archive-date=2025-02-16 |website=InfiniteQuant LTD}}</ref>
==Company acquisition and deactivation==
InfiniteQuant LTD claimed that they were not made aware of the lifetime subscriptions when they made the acquisition, stating: "Unfortunately, the previous owner did not disclose that thousands of Lifetime Deals (LTDs) had been sold through platforms like StackSocial."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harding |first=Scharon |date=12 May 2025 |title=VPN firm says it didn’t know customers had lifetime subscriptions, cancels them |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/05/vpnsecure-owner-says-it-had-to-cancel-unsustainable-lifetime-subscriptions/ |url-status=live |access-date=12 Aug 2025 |website=Ars Technica}}</ref> At least 500 lifetime subscriptions were sold through Stacksocial for $39.99. <ref>{{Cite web |title=VPNSecure Online Privacy: Lifetime Subscription {{!}} StackSocial |url=https://www.stacksocial.com/sales/vpn-secure-online-privacy-subscriptions?sid=zd-ea1790eba0524f29a74ab340d594c48c-amp&aid=a-ceempx7z&c_correlation_id=ea1790eba0524f29a74ab340d594c48c&c_tenant_id=src_1kYsAcdpfzbZ8UlNLYht1RPg3m2&srsltid=AfmBOopfHrB7l9r1Iw5rRmvyG-A9GK9cUvw8aX30gMubcF8l5NYwv2N3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250816191114/https://www.stacksocial.com/sales/vpn-secure-online-privacy-subscriptions?sid=zd-ea1790eba0524f29a74ab340d594c48c-amp&aid=a-ceempx7z&c_correlation_id=ea1790eba0524f29a74ab340d594c48c&c_tenant_id=src_1kYsAcdpfzbZ8UlNLYht1RPg3m2&srsltid=AfmBOopfHrB7l9r1Iw5rRmvyG-A9GK9cUvw8aX30gMubcF8l5NYwv2N3 |archive-date=2025-08-16 |website=Stacksocial}}</ref>
According to an article from the registers from May 14th 2025, VPN Secure was acquired by InfiniteQuant Ltd in May 2023. According to their email to customers, they acquired "the technology, domain, and customer database — but not the liabilities." On April 28, 2025, all lifetime deal accounts were deactivated. https://web.archive.org/web/20250515211209/https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/14/vpn_secure_axe_lifetime_deals/
The new owners claimed that they were unaware of the lifetime subscriptions when they made the acquisition, stating: "Unfortunately, the previous owner did not disclose that thousands of Lifetime Deals (LTDs) had been sold through platforms like StackSocial."
==Inactive Account Policy==
From the Terms of service page, we can see the company owner changing from Boost Network Pty Ltd, to HOLDXB on April 18th 2024, to InfiniteQuant Ltd on May 28th 2025.
In May 2024, VPN Secure's Terms of Service were updated with the following policy, regarding the deletion of inactive accounts:<blockquote>To maintain the integrity and efficiency of our services, any account with no active login for a period of six months will be automatically erased. Please note that this includes accounts with lifetime deal access.[[File:VPN Secure email to customers.png|thumb|E-mail sent to lifetime deal holders on the day of the shutdown, April 28th, 2025.]]If you have purchased a lifetime deal but fail to connect to your account within the specified six-month period, you will lose access to the lifetime deal. It is essential to log in at least once every six months to keep your account and lifetime deal active.
Here is an Internet Archive page from March 1st 2024 where the company owner had not yet been changed: https://web.archive.org/web/20240301013017/https://www.vpnsecure.me/terms-of-service/
We encourage all users to maintain regular activity on their accounts to avoid deactivation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=VPN Secure Terms of Service |url=https://www.vpnsecure.me/terms-of-service/}}</ref></blockquote>
Here is an Internet Archive page from April 18th 2024 where the company owner changed to HOLDXB: https://web.archive.org/web/20240418204008/https://www.vpnsecure.me/terms-of-service/
===VPN Secure's response===
Here is an Internet Archive page from May 28th 2025 where the company owner changed to InfiniteQuant Ltd: https://web.archive.org/web/20250528093817/https://www.vpnsecure.me/terms-of-service/
==Adding active logins as a requirement==
VPN Secure hasn't responded to a support ticket asking to clarify the issue. However, affected customers report receiving emails claiming the new owners had provided "two additional years at no cost" as a "gesture of good will" and offering significantly discounted renewal rates.
The VPN service hadn't been used in a while and then at the beginning of 2025 any attempt to connect to any servers was failing. Also the server list on the members page is showing following message: "INFORMATION: You will need to purchase a valid VPN membership to view server information. Select Buy Now from the menu" even though the profile page shows 2263 days of 7300 used (don't ask about why a LIFETIME Subscription equals to 7300 days).
{| class="wikitable"
|+
Play Market page of the app is gaining more and more reviews from affected customers: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vpnsecure.pty.ltd&hl=en
!Pricing
!1 Month
====Inactive Account Policy====
!1 Year
'''The''' following policy was introduced in May 2024, which was substantially after the user's purchase.
!3 Years
|-
Here is an Internet Archive page from April 18th 2024 where the policy had not yet been written: https://web.archive.org/web/20240418204008/https://www.vpnsecure.me/terms-of-service/
The company states they cannot issue refunds and directs customers seeking compensation to contact StackSocial or "the previous VPN Secure owner based in Australia."
Here is an Internet Archive page from May 11th 2024 where the policy had been written: https://web.archive.org/web/20240511012147/https://www.vpnsecure.me/terms-of-service/
== Consumer friendly alternatives ==
This is a case of changing the terms of purchase after the fact.<blockquote>To maintain the integrity and efficiency of our services, any account with no active login for a period of six months will be automatically erased. Please note that this includes accounts with lifetime deal access.[[File:VPN Secure email to customers.png|thumb|VPNSecure's email to customers which has the template appearance of having been written by chatgpt <ref>{{Cite web |title=reddit |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/vpns/comments/1ka40gh/vpn_secure_deactivated_all_lifetime_deal_accounts/#lightbox}}</ref>]]If you have purchased a lifetime deal but fail to connect to your account within the specified six-month period, you will lose access to the lifetime deal. It is essential to log in at least once every six months to keep your account and lifetime deal active.
* [https://mullvad.net/vpn Mullvad VPN]
* [https://protonvpn.com/ ProtonVPN]
We encourage all users to maintain regular activity on their accounts to avoid deactivation.
Company hasn't responded to a support ticket asking to clarify the issue. However, affected customers report receiving emails claiming the new owners had provided "two additional years at no cost" as a "gesture of goodwill" and offering discounted renewal rates ($55 for 3 years, $19 for 1 year, or $1.87/month billed annually).
The company states they cannot issue refunds and directs customers seeking compensation to contact StackSocial or "the previous VPN Secure owner based in Australia."
VPN Secure is a virtual private network service that, from around 2018 to 2023, offered lifetime VPN service for a fixed, non-recurring price through online software storefront StackSocial. In 2023, InfiniteQuiant Ltd purchased VPN Secure from BoostNetwork Pty Ltd. In April 2025, thousands of these lifetime licenses were abruptly terminated, causing outrage among users.
VPN Secure was acquired by InfiniteQuant LTD in May 2023. According to their email to customers, they acquired "the technology, domain, and customer database — but not the liabilities." On April 28, 2025, all lifetime deal accounts were deactivated. [1] InfiniteQuant LTD is a company based in Nassau started by Frenchman Romain Brabant. The company offered expatriation to the Bahamas to reduce tax burdens. It is unclear why they may have purchased a VPN. [2]
InfiniteQuant LTD claimed that they were not made aware of the lifetime subscriptions when they made the acquisition, stating: "Unfortunately, the previous owner did not disclose that thousands of Lifetime Deals (LTDs) had been sold through platforms like StackSocial."[3] At least 500 lifetime subscriptions were sold through Stacksocial for $39.99. [4]
In May 2024, VPN Secure's Terms of Service were updated with the following policy, regarding the deletion of inactive accounts:
To maintain the integrity and efficiency of our services, any account with no active login for a period of six months will be automatically erased. Please note that this includes accounts with lifetime deal access.
E-mail sent to lifetime deal holders on the day of the shutdown, April 28th, 2025.
If you have purchased a lifetime deal but fail to connect to your account within the specified six-month period, you will lose access to the lifetime deal. It is essential to log in at least once every six months to keep your account and lifetime deal active.
We encourage all users to maintain regular activity on their accounts to avoid deactivation.[5]
VPN Secure hasn't responded to a support ticket asking to clarify the issue. However, affected customers report receiving emails claiming the new owners had provided "two additional years at no cost" as a "gesture of good will" and offering significantly discounted renewal rates.
The company states they cannot issue refunds and directs customers seeking compensation to contact StackSocial or "the previous VPN Secure owner based in Australia."
