In 2023, Microsoft began including a VPN feature in the Microsoft Defender app for all Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscribers at no additional cost, enabling millions of users to take advantage of a “free” VPN as part of the subscription. Microsoft called it a privacy protection feature, designed to let you access sensitive data on the web via a VPN tunnel.
While functionally limited compared to other VPN services, it was an awesome addition to the Microsoft 365 subscription, one that I’ve found myself using whenever I’m accessing the web on an open network. Unfortunately, Microsoft has now announced that it’s killing the feature later this month, only a couple of years after it first debuted.
“Our goal is to ensure you, and your family remain safer online. We routinely evaluate the usage and effectiveness of our features. As such, we are removing the privacy protection feature and will invest in new areas that will better align to customer needs” reads a Microsoft support document confirming the removal of the VPN feature.
To add insult to injury, this announcement comes just days after Microsoft increased subscription prices across the board. Both Personal and Family subscriptions went up by three dollars a month, which the company says is the first price hike Microsoft 365 has seen in over a decade.
The increased price does now include Microsoft 365 Copilot, which adds AI features to Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and others. However, it also comes with the removal of the free VPN in Microsoft Defender, which I’ve found to be much more useful so far.
Microsoft says the VPN feature in Microsoft Defender will be removed on February 28, 2025.This means users have around a month to find an alternative. Be sure to check out our roundup of best VPNs in 2025 if you're looking to another service to jump to.
