Bitdefender VPN seems to block many email messages and legitimate web sites from loading

Bitdefender VPN seems to block some email messages (they come up as "no content" unless I turn VPN off) and legitimate web sites from loading (the sites simply time out, just plain won't load). This includes messages from legitimate companies with whom I have accounts, and from some friends, as well as from our synagogue. I have only had this problem since I upgraded my Mac to OS Monterey. Is there any solution, besides turning VPN off ... and then back on again ... and repeating that, multiple times a day? It is annoying and inconvenient.

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Alexandru_BD

Hello @CarolB and welcome to the Community!

While the vpn is connected, does the problem occur on a specific location or all locations?

Does the problem occur only on mobile data or only on wifi or present on both? Preferably try multiple networks and see if there are any changes in the behavior. Does the VPN return any errors?

Try the steps described in the article below and let us know if the situation persists afterwards:

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/answer/30765/

More troubleshooting steps for the VPN are available at the link below:

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/answer/11311/

Best regards.

CarolB

Both my husband and I have had the problem, on our Apple MacBook Pros (both OS 12.2.1), Apple iPhones (both iOS 15.4.1) , and Apple iPads (also 15.4.1), at home, on WiFi (if I turn WiFi off and use Cellular access only, the sites and messages are no longer blocked). All are Apple devices.

I have had the problem in Google Chrome, Safari, and Firefox, pretty consistently. It's worst -- and pretty consistent -- with trying to log into our synagogue's site, www.bethelheights.org, but happens randomly with other web sites and email messages.

Essentially always, toggling Bitdefender VPN on, if it's off, or off, if it's on, will let me into the site or message that I'm trying to access.

We have had multiple hours' worth of upper echelon help from ATT's support folks, who can find no indication whatsoever that the issue has anything to do with their fiber internet service to our home...

...and again, toggling Bitdefender VPN (usually turning it on, sometimes turning it off and then back on) usually fixes the issue, but it's annoying to have to do, and makes me very unlikely to recommend Bitdefender to others.

Alexandru_BD

Hello,

Based on your description of the situation encountered, I would recommend contacting the Technical Support Teams, as more information might be required to troubleshoot this. If the steps provided in the above articles do not fix the issue, you can get in touch with our engineers by choosing one of the contact methods available here:

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/

Stay safe.

LarryAZ

I'm experiencing this too on three different ISP's so far over the last 6 weeks, and usually when the VPN is on. I'm trying another VPN and am considering canceling BitDefender VPN. Increasingly problematic using it. EDIT: Tried another VPN, no errors. Went back to BD VPN and got a different IP and it is working. It appears that some BD VPN IPs are blocked by SpamHaus and that disconnecting and reconnecting to and (sometimes?) getting a different IP address will fix it.

Alexandru_BD

Hello @LarryAZ,

Sometimes connectivity issues can be resolved simply by changing the server. There can be situations where the protocol must also be changed and there are cases where the websites are blocking a VPN connection altogether. Usually, the first step is to try a different location, then toggle through the protocols and use the split-tunneling feature when necessary.

Regards

Reg Curry

This has been a constant problem for iPadOS for years. I periodically reinstall in my iPad and it immediately blocks my emails, so I immediately delete the app again. Today is no different. Bitdefender has always worked well on Windows but never on Apple devices. I got tired of reporting the problem and never getting a satisfactory fix. I gave up using it on all my Apple devices. Even the reply boxes on this site are poor.

Alexandru_BD

Hello @Reg Curry,

Certain services have mechanisms that block VPN traffic. This can also lead to issues with apps and email clients when Bitdefender VPN is turned on. For example, you might notice that a particular app can’t connect or that sending/receiving emails becomes impossible.

It's also possible that the email provider has blacklisted the IP of the VPN server, as this may happen. First thing, check if it happens when connecting to different countries. Usually, this is solved if you contact the email provider and tell them to remove that IP from the blacklist.

If some apps still won’t work when connecting the VPN, consider changing the DNS settings on your device. A DNS (Domain Name System) works like a phonebook for Internet-enabled devices: it lets you access websites and other online services by using domain names instead of IP addresses.

You can change DNS settings on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with the following steps.

Go to Settings > Wi-Fi.
Tap the ⓘ icon next to the Wi-Fi network that you want to change DNS servers for. Scroll down to find the DNS section and tap Configure DNS.
Tap Manual and add Google IP addresses. Optionally you can also remove all default DNS servers in the list.
- For IPv4: 8.8.8.8 and/or 8.8.4.4
- For IPv6: 2001:4860:4860::8888 and/or 2001:4860:4860::8844

Switching back to Automatic will restore the DNS server specified by the Wi-Fi network.

Should you reconsider Bitdefender VPN on your iOS devices, follow the steps above and see if they solve the issue.

Regards,

Alex

Stickman

Sadly, more than 3 years later, a brand new installation on Windows still does this. They seem unable to fix it.

Stickman

It's exactly as the title states - "many" websites. I have the same thing, and without using their firewall. The solution every time is to disable the VPN while accessing the website. This is on Windows - on Android, I don't have the problem. In contrast, Nord VPN didn't have this problem on either platform.

Stickman

Okay, but those mechanisms weren't effective with Nord VPN on Windows, where I have this problem with Bitdefender VPN. So it's not something that can't be handled, but they don't seem able to, since this report is over 3 years old, and there are MANY of them.