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Preventing DNS leaks in Avast SecureLine VPN

 

To prevent DNS leaks, we strongly recommend that you update Avast Antivirus to the latest program version. Alternatively, you can continue to use an older version of Avast Antivirus or your standalone version of Avast SecureLine VPN, and prevent DNS leaks by disabling the "smart multi-homed name resolution" policy setting. Based on your preferred version of Avast SecureLine VPN, refer to the sections in this article for instructions.

DNS leak prevention in Avast SecureLine VPN does not apply to Windows Vista or Windows XP systems. If you are experiencing DNS leak issues on these operating systems, we strongly recommended to upgrade to a more recent version of Windows.

Avast SecureLine VPN in the latest version of Avast Antivirus

Avast SecureLine VPN now actively prevents DNS leaks on IPv4 for Windows 10, Windows 8 / 8.1 and Windows 7 SP1 (Service Pack 1) by blocking DNS requests to third party DNS servers. This feature is intended to reduce privacy vulnerabilities due to web activity monitoring and DNS hijacking while using SecureLine VPN. To use the latest version of SecureLine VPN, update your Avast Antivirus program version:

On Windows 10 update to the latest version of Avast Antivirus by following the instructions in the article below:

On Windows 8 / 8.1 update to the latest version of Avast Antivirus by following the instructions in the article below:

If you have configured your Avast Antivirus to perform updates automatically, the latest version of SecureLine VPN is available by default.

Upgrade to Windows 7 SP1 (Service Pack 1) and download the Microsoft Windows hotfix as described in the steps below:

  1. Upgrade to Windows 7 SP1 by following the instructions in the article below:
  2. Update to the latest version of Avast Antivirus by following the instructions in the article below:
  3. Download and install the Windows hotfix from the Microsoft website:
  4. After the hotfix installation is complete, you need to reboot your computer to benefit from DNS leak prevention.

Older version of Avast Antivirus or the standalone version of Avast SecureLine VPN

If you prefer to use an older version of Avast Antivirus or the standalone version of Avast SecureLine VPN on systems running Windows 10 or Windows 8.1 / 8, we advise to disable the "smart multi-homed name resolution" policy. This setting is enabled by default and is intended to optimize DNS queries and improve performance. However, when enabled it leaves you vulnerable to DNS hijacking as well as DNS leaks (which can result in web activity monitoring) even when you are using a VPN.

The "smart multi-homed name resolution" setting is especially risky on Windows 10 systems. Therefore we highly recommended to disable the service.

You can find the settings for this service in DNS Client settings within Local Group Policy Editor.

To disable the "smart multi-homed name resolution" service:

  1. Open the Start menu and type gpedit.msc in the search bar, ...and double-click gpedit.msc to open the Local Group Policy Editor.
  2. Within Computer Configuration select Administrative Templates ▸ Network ▸ DNS Client ▸ Turn off smart multi-homed name resolution.
  3. Select Enabled to turn off the service. Click Apply.
  • Avast SecureLine VPN 5.x for Windows
     
  • Avast Ultimate 20.x
  • Avast Premium Security 20.x
  • Microsoft Windows 10 Home / Pro / Enterprise / Education - 32 / 64-bit
  • Microsoft Windows 8.1 / Pro / Enterprise - 32 / 64-bit
  • Microsoft Windows 8 / Pro / Enterprise - 32 / 64-bit
  • Microsoft Windows 7 Home Basic / Home Premium / Professional / Enterprise / Ultimate - Service Pack 1, 32 / 64-bit
     

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