VPNs

A federal judge has blocked Utah's crackdown on VPNs, halting the state's effort to restrict access to virtual private networks. The ruling is being discussed in privacy, tech, and law circles as a win for digital privacy advocates who opposed the measure. Supporters of the law had argued it was needed to enforce age-verification rules, while critics said targeting VPNs would undermine online privacy for everyone.

A proposed US bill would require internet providers and DNS resolvers to block access to designated piracy sites, but would not impose obligations on VPN services. Critics of site-blocking measures have long warned such mandates risk censorship and are easily circumvented, and the VPN carve-out highlights that weakness. The proposal is drawing attention from copyright holders, digital rights groups and internet infrastructure experts.