VPN usage in France almost doubled in 2021

More and more French people are interested in using a VPN, so much so that the use has almost doubled between 2020 and 2021. It must be said that there have been several factors, including telework / confinement , security and new possible uses.

The VPN is attracting more and more French people

There were 3.43 million VPN downloads in France in 2020, compared to 6.1 million in 2021, an increase of 75.66% in the space of one year according to AtlasVPN. There had already been an increase in 2020 and now it continued last year. France is the 56th country in terms of the number of VPN downloads. 9.22% of the population uses one, compared to 5.25% in 2020.

Globally, there were 785 million VPN downloads in 2021, compared to 277 million in 2020, a figure that has almost tripled (+184%). The countries that have downloaded a VPN the most are Qatar with 69.69% of the population using one, the United Arab Emirates (59.52%) and Singapore (49.14%).

The uses are many. VPNs are used in particular to unblock access restrictions to certain VoIP services. There are precisely blockages in the countries mentioned. Also, it allows to have a new IP address and encryption of Internet traffic. What’s more, it is possible to access content from other countries. For example, a VPN can allow access to films and series available on streaming platforms in neighboring countries and thus bypass the media chronology in France.