Just lost $45 on a VPN that promised uncensored access in Turkey

I paid for a year of FastShell VPN after they claimed they could bypass Turkey's social media blocks, but it stopped working after only 2 weeks when I tried to use it from Istanbul. Their support team said 'the government changes protocols daily' and offered no refund, just a link to a forum with DIY workarounds. Has anyone else had a VPN that actually works reliably in places with heavy internet censorship?

3 comments

3 Comments

blake3021mo ago

Man these VPN companies are getting out of hand with their promises. It's like buying a "waterproof" jacket that only works if it's not actually raining. The whole subscription model feels like gambling now - you pay upfront hoping it'll work but they already got your money before you find out it's junk. I swear this is the same pattern with everything from streaming services that drop shows to phone plans that hide fees in the fine print. We just keep falling for the sales pitch because of the promise, not the reality.

johnthompson13d ago

I got burned bad by a VPN service called Shieldify back in 2021. Paid for two years upfront because of their "30 day money back guarantee" but it took over three weeks to realize their speeds were terrible and they logged my data anyway. They fought my refund so hard I had to do a chargeback through my bank. @elizabeth_king you hit the nail on the head about the vending machine comparison. What finally worked for me was switching to a smaller VPN that does month to month only, no contracts, and I test them for a full cycle before committing. Lost some money learning that lesson but at least now I treat every subscription like a trial run first.

elizabeth_king1mo ago

Holy cow, wait, did you say the subscription model is like gambling? I mean, I guess you're right, but that just hit me hard. You pay your money and then cross your fingers that the service actually does what it says, and if it doesn't, you're out of luck. It's like putting quarters in a vending machine and hoping it gives you a soda instead of just taking your cash. And the worst part is these companies know we've all gotten burned before, but they still make the next promise sound so good. It's honestly wild how we keep letting them do this to us.