Best VPNs for Algeria

The UAE have some of the fastest internet speeds on the planet and Dubai is its biggest city, which makes it one of the places with the best overall network performance. And while Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other popular services are open, there are many online restrictions when it comes to websites that criticize the government, disrespect religion or provide harmful content such as gambling, for instance. In addition, some VoIP and messaging apps are completely blocked in the region, too, though accessing them is still possible with a VPN. However, depending on the way they’re used, VPNs are also illegal in the whole of the UAE area and there are already user reports of ISPs throttling connections.

Mostly due to the location and the language, the majority of the Algerian population watches satellite broadcasts of French or Arab stations, a fact that has led to the French Canal+ cable provider to sign a special agreement with Algeria. Nonetheless, there are also Algerian based channels that are owned by the state and broadcast nationally and are accessible online. There are also more specific regional ones that require an Algerian IP address to gain access.

On the other hand, though, according to users with internet access in Algeria, it is often required to buffer a YouTube video before watching it, because download speeds are usually limited to 1.5MB/s – at the best they might sometimes reach 2MB/s – depending on how crowded the service is at the moment. However, there are actually 4MB/s and even 8MB/s plans available commercially, though it is very rare to find someone actually achieving such speeds. An Algerian IP address used under a VPN can in fact achieve a much greater speed, since servers are not ruled by Algerian ISPs, although this will also depend on your physical location too.

There is no evidence of any government intervention on user emails, chat rooms, or social media, and in the same measure there are no records of any website filtering by any entities. However, as other reports have pointed out, many believe that the Algerian government is actually regulating online activities through other means. These include controlling the entire internet infrastructure and attributing penalties to those who have posted material that might be seen as working against public order or decent morality – although it is more complex than this, since some journalists have been pardoned in the past while others are still being subject to these enforced penalties.

But the truth is that this government intrusion is said to be used primarily as a means of terrorism prevention, one of the country’s biggest combats. To give a little more insight, since 2007 cybercafes have been forced to collect the names and IDs of their customers and report them to the authorities should any suspicious activity arises. It is believed that many terrorist acts were being planned under the assumed anonymity that cybercafes offered, which resulted in police raids at several places. However, other than some adult websites and anything that could be construed as inciting or recruiting for terrorism, there are no blockages – even on usual targets such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and so on.

Since Algeria doesn’t raise many concerns with regards to internet usability and access to foreign content, as is the case for many Arab countries. Algeria also has its own versions of some services, such as Netflix or Spotify for instance. The Netflix library for Algeria is not as vast as the American equivalent, obviously, despite still having some of the biggest series and movie titles and even its own self-produced content. There is also access to various French channels, including online streams of news, sports (most European football leagues are quite beloved) and cultural TV stations. However, as you might expect Algeria is not an exception when it comes to services blocked to foreign visitors, such as BBC iPlayer for example, and the only way to access this content will be through circumvention tools like VPN software.

Algeria is quite an unusual destination for VPN providers to install their servers. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t some options available, though, so if you’re looking to utilize an Algerian IP address, increase your overall speed while situated in Algeria, or want to enable access to its foreign content, then here are some of the VPN options that are open to you.