ExpressVPN announced that all their VPN servers ran solely on random-access memory (RAM), without the need of hard disk drives. In theory, as soon as a computer is shut down, all information on the server vanishes and cannot be recovered; the next time the server reboots, a fresh version of the VPN infrastructure is spawned. This was the first example in the VPN industry for such a server security setup, and was referred to as TrustedServer. In February 2022, ExpressVPN announced a $100,000 bug bounty for anyone who was able to hack its in-house technology, TrustedServer. As of August 2022, ExpressVPN's server network covered 94 countries. Lightway protocol Lightway is ExpressVPN's open source VPN protocol. Launched in 2020, it is similar to the WireGuard protocol, but uses wolfSSL encryption to improve speed on embedded devices such as routers and smartphones. It does not run in the operating system's kernel, but is lightweight to support auditing. It is reportedly 2.5x as fast as OpenVPN and other older protocols, improves reliability by 40%, and supports TCP and UDP. In August 2021, ExpressVPN announced the full public release of Lightway as well as full open-sourcing of Lightway’s code. Research In 2020, ExpressVPN announced its new digital security research initiative Digital Security Lab, which investigates digital rights and security issues while educating consumers. In 2021, Digital Security Lab released a new report that examined data collection practices in apps for opioid addiction and recovery. Research found that the large majority of all these apps provided third parties, including Facebook, Stripe, Inc., and Google, access to user data. In a similar 2021 study, Digital Security Lab analyzed 450 apps and found that all studied apps contained questionable location trackers. Digital Security Lab also conducted a study on Generation Z’s mental health, finding that 86% of Gen Z participants perceived that social media had a direct impact on their happiness. A 2022 survey on remote workers found that 78% of employers digitally monitor their employees without staff knowledge. See also Comparison of virtual private network services References Notes External links ExpressVPN's official website Internet privacy Internet properties established in 2009 Virtual private network services Computer security software companies Information technology companies of the British Virgin Islands YouTube sponsors