Open an app, and there it is: another VPN. Your browser? Check. Your favourite streaming app. Of course. Even your cloud storage has one now. It’s like Oprah dropped by the app store, “You get a VPN! You get a VPN! Everybody gets a VPN!!”
The headlines did the heavy lifting: breaches, hacks, leaks on repeat. And VPNs offered the quick fix: one click and you’re “safe.” As for tech companies? It’s the upsell that sells itself.
The rise of VPN adoption and everyday use
Not long ago, virtual private networks (VPNs) were a niche accessory for IT staff, gamers, or foreign correspondents. Today, an estimated 1.75 billion people (about one-third of all internet users) have one running in the background. So, what changed?
It started with privacy. Everyone knows their clicks and searches are being tracked. By data brokers, ad networks, and possibly even the guy sitting next to you at Starbucks. What’s less clear is where all that data goes, and 77% worry about it. VPNs became the quick fix, with nearly 87% of users saying they feel safer surfing with one switched on.
Then came remote work. Suddenly, millions of people who’d never touched a VPN needed one just to log into the office from their living room. And once they realized the same login doubled as a hall pass for “working” from a Paris café or sneaking into Netflix catalogues abroad, it stuck.
Privacy fears and everyday convenience pushed VPNs out of the margins and into everyday life. And once people get used to that kind of cover, they rarely let it go.
VPN bundling in Canada: how local players are shaping the trend
Once VPNs stopped being the mysterious thing your “techie” cousin set up and started showing up on everyday apps, the floodgates opened. Chrome, Edge, and Opera now come with built-in VPNs. Antivirus giants like Norton, McAfee, and Avast treat VPNs as the natural sidekick to malware protection. Even productivity suites are baking VPN access into their subscriptions, selling VPN access as the shield remote teams need, whether they’re logging in from cafés, airports, or kitchen tables.
And Canada hasn’t sat out this wave. Homegrown companies are shaping how VPN bundling plays out for both consumers and enterprises. Some fold it into larger security suites, while others build their whole identity around it.
- Telus tucks a secure VPN into its consumer security plans, making privacy part of the package instead of an afterthought.
- Pavliks, an IT services firm out of Barrie, bakes VPNs into hybrid-ready setups with encrypted access, multi-factor authentication, and device management, so SMB teams stay secure without constant IT fire drills.
- CDW Canada plays to the enterprise crowd, bundling VPN and SASE solutions like Prisma SASE + SD-WAN to keep hybrid teams secure across every connection.
- Windscribe, a Toronto startup, went all-in on VPN with a freemium model that lowered the barrier to entry and scaled to a global audience.
- TunnelBear, also Toronto-based, made VPNs approachable with a friendly design and plain-English transparency. When McAfee acquired them back in 2018, it proved Canadian startups could compete on a global stage.
VPNs are a baseline expectation now. And for tech companies, that shift isn’t just about keeping up, it’s about cashing in.
Why companies bundle VPNs: quick wins and real payoffs
VPNs are the obvious sidekick for antivirus companies. For other tech companies, adding VPNs to the stack is more about these quick wins:
- New revenue streams: One more subscription line to add, without having to chase a new lead or reinvent the product.
- Retention by convenience: When privacy is packaged into the tools people already use, there’s little incentive to download something else.
- Competitive differentiation: In categories where features blur together, “includes VPN” is a small detail that feels like a safer upgrade.
- Low lift to add: Compared to building a new product, VPN functionality is relatively straightforward. The effort is small, but the value signals are strong.
A crowded VPN market doesn’t mean a lack of opportunity
Just because VPNs are everywhere doesn’t mean the door is shut. If anything, it’s wide open. Why? Because half the bundled versions don’t do what they promise. Consumer Reports found weak security and overblown claims across some of the industry’s biggest players. Free and freemium models? Even worse. Some straight-up sell user data back to advertisers.
Users are tired of false promises, and governments are stepping in with stricter privacy laws to force companies higher. That push gave Canada’s TunnelBear the chance to show another path. One built on independent audits and plain-English policies people could actually understand.
The lesson isn’t limited to VPNs. SaaS, AI, and even productivity tools are being judged on whether people trust them. Build it in from day one, and you’re the one rewriting the market.
Key takeaways for founders: turning privacy into an advantage
VPNs didn’t become everyone’s side hustle by accident. Privacy sells, and companies know it: that’s why it’s showing up in browsers, antivirus, and productivity tools alike. But trust isn’t something you can add with a feature. It comes from actually following through on your promises.
For founders, that’s the opening. Expectations are high, patience is low, and the next wave of trust-first tools is up for grabs. BHive’s here for the builders ready to take it, offering mentorship, funding, and a community that gets what you’re building. Whether you’re tucking privacy into a bigger suite or making it your whole product, the next wave of security belongs to startups that put trust at the center—and prove it.