Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/18/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  They are over charging me several times a month even after they where cancelled. They will not personally reach out to resolve the issue they just say the issue is being handled and then go right back into my account. They are basically taking money when ever they want to (over drafted my account today). Theyve taken funds out of my account 3 times in this month and 4 times in March, 2 times in February (before the so called second Subscription which was supposed to be a renewal). Instead of being professional, seeing the problem and fixing it immediately. They seized the opportunity to just take more money.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/04/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I was auto-renewed with Private Internet Access on 3/3/23. I didn't recall ever doing business with them in the first place. I received a notice saying I they renewed my service on 3/3/23 (nothing before that - just a notice they "renewed" me AFTER the fact). Not recognizing the name, I thought it was bogus email - SPAM or a phishing attempt. By the time I notice I had been charged on my online credit card bill, it was 4/1/23. I called my credit card company to dispute the charge. My credit card company asked me if it was a fraudulent charge. I told them I didn't recall doing business with them in the past, but I MAY have order their service a couple of years ago. They said they would contact the company to dispute the charge and encouraged me to do the same. I tried to contact them on 4/1/23 via their online customer service chat, but abandoned the attempt after waiting for an agent for at least 30 minutes. When I finally reached a customer service rep on 4/4/23, they told me it was too late to cancel since it had been 30 days since the charge. I didn't asked to be auto-renewed with Private Internet Access, I received no prior warning I was to be auto-renewed; I was just billed. In addition, they billed me for an entire year, 11 months of which HAVE NOT elapsed yet. At the very least, Private Internet access should refund the 11 months of service remain on the contract, as I do not and never intend to use their service. I would prefer they refund the entire price, since they auto-renewed me (without prior warning) for a service I do not want. But if they would refund me the 11 months of charges I have not used, that would be fine. As long as they cancel my service and I never have to deal with Private Internet Access again, a refund of the 11 months of unused service would be fine.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/04/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I travelled through ************** used public wifi briefly and a recurring monthly charge for this service appeared on my cc.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/27/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased "Private Internet Access" so I could have private internet access while working on security materials for a course. The service drops so often and is so slow, that I was unable to connect to the internet at times if I was connected to the VPN.I reached out to the business and they did not seemed concerned about selling a product that did not perform as advertised. Since the product does not perform at all, let alone well, at times frequently dropping in my area, it is sadly too risky to continue to try to use. I have ****** fiber internet and an apple pro M1 chip. A full refund should be issued.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/02/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have had no service on their product for 4 months. The software worked fine for years. I could not get a resolution the first time I had a problem. I have over 25 years of experience in computer service management and support. This company only cares about paying them. I renewed in November 2022 was paid up for almost a year and a half. I have been in contact with their so-called support system over 50 and 70 times, trying to get a resolution. The problem is that you either can't log in or get dropped in the first couple of minutes. Their support system is a chat board. If you are asked to try something and do not acknowledge the chat, you are dropped. Whenever you sign up with the problem, the new technician apparently has no notes from the prior conversation (which were written texts and can be stored), .resulkting in explaining what the problem is and what has been done in the past. The techs know only one way to troubleshoot the problem: to start from the beginning and repeat what has been done. This has gone on at least 50 or more times. They won't give a refund after 30 days even though they can't resolve my problem. As ********? I believe said, "doing something over and over again and expecting a different result is insanity" Filled out support tickets useless, asked to be connected to ******* forget it. Go to main office phone number is never answered. Reading your complaints they are all the same connection and drop outs, No Refunds.My costs a year a year and a half of future dis service.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/10/2023

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  This company offers vpn service, my equipment is not compatible with their service, therefore I wasn't able to use them, the problem is I am unable to get a refund, and apparently I am not the only one, this is something they do. Thank in advance.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/15/2022

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Purchased VPN with PIA. I was double charged totaling $79.90 because their website wouldn't load. I had to refresh the page and did not expect it to charge me twice due to this issue. When I went to use the service I paid for it would not work no matter what I did - changed the password multiple times, typed in my information instead of copy and paste, re-dowloaded their software, nothing worked. They have a 30 day money back guarantee so I requested a refund for the double charge and also the subscription. My receipt numbers are PIA-JRC8BUE and PIA-TNRZKYR. I have not heard anything back from their Support team except for the initial "please don't cancel email." I would like my money back immediately. Thank you so much.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/12/2022

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased the product based on their advertised features. They recently had an issue where some features are no longer available to some customers, which they admitted on a support ticket, and refuse to give me a prorated refund for the last 4 months of the contract.The issue is that the Split Tunnel feature no longer works on MacOS. I have been happy with the product for the first ***** months of the product and simply would like a refund for the remainder of the contract so I can switch to another service that offers the split tunnel feature.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/26/2022

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased Private Internet Access, *** on November 26, 2021 for USD $79.00. , which provides 39 months of network Access support, but in the recent past, Private Internet Access, ***. I stopped providing support in my area. I talked to their customer service and they acknowledged the issue and were unable to provide any effective solutions.When I purchased this service, I was promised that it would be available in my area, but now it is no longer available and I should not have to pay for further subscriptions, but they have refused my request for a refund.I found a lot of people on ******** and Reddit reporting on this, but Private Internet Access, ***. It doesn't solve the problem.I hope you can help me complete the refund.This is my account number and order:The Order No: PIA - ******* Account: p1232209 Thank you very much

  Business Response

  Date: 11/07/2022

  Hello there,

  Thank you for reaching us. 

  I am sorry to hear that our service no longer works in your area. Could you please submit a ticket here: ********************************** or through this link https://helpdesk.privateinternetaccess.com/new-ticket for us to further investigate this. 
  
  Please include the following details.
  The area or region that you are located to.
  The device that you are using.
  The error message received.
  Your account order id.

  
  Please indicate in the subject ATTN:SMR
  
  Thank you and we are looking forward to hearing from you soon. 

  
  Thank you and we are looking forward to hearing from you. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/08/2022

   
  Complaint: 18314644
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I have given feedback according to their scheme for many times, and i have reported this problem to their customer service and technical staff for many times, but they did not give me an effective solution, only told me that I could not get a refund.

  A lot of users are reporting this problem, but they are not trying to solve the problem, they are just waiting for my service subscription to expire, this is a blatant fraud.

  
  Sincerely,
  
  Zsm *****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/29/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I pay a service fee to use the *** service private Internet access, which is supposed to come with technical support. Whenever I contact technical support, I get a laissez-faire response at best. The so-called tech-support agents who monitor the emails don't really bother to try to help. It's obvious that they could care less about ***************** There is no way to contact this company other than to fill out a form on their website, and wait to get a token reply from a very uninterested tech-support representative. There is no way to escalate a case any higher than the person who responds to that email. I have experienced this just about every time I have had a problem with my *** service.I want to be contacted (by phone) by someone in the administrative offices of private Internet access company. An email will not suffice. I need to speak to someone on the phone.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/04/2022

  Good morning,

  As a privacy and security company, we make every attempt to anonymize the user experience as much as possible. As a result, we offer no phone support of any kind for any technical support issues. Furthermore, the device in question is outside the scope of support for the application (Third party hardware/software configurations), therefore, a verbal discussion would result in little impact toward a resolution.
  
  As noted by the user in their correspondence:
  
  Did it ever occur to you to suggest that I use the *** browser extension? 
  
  
  That was actually the solution to the problem.
  
  The issue is now resolved and the user has decided to move on to another VPN service with a subscription expiry of October 3, 2022. No further measure can be taken on our end to resolve the issue and as such we ask that this inquiry be closed. Thanks.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/04/2022

   
  Complaint: 18144860
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  The statement "...the user has decided to move on to another *** service with a subscription expiry of October 3, 2022" is UNTRUE. Attached is a screenshot of my receipt. Regarding the resolution of the issue, it was only after I researched the problem at great length ON MY OWN, was the issue solved. The agent did not make any attempt to help the customer and the attitude of the agent was ********. This same snotty attitude was reflected in the business's response here. It is as simple as this: their horrible customer service has nothing to do with anonymitythat doesn't even make senseit is simply the cheapest, outsourced customer service they can find with the sole intent to save money. The *** service this company provides is quite goodhowever, their TECH support is the worst on the planet!
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *********************