How To Avoid DNS Leak
Avoiding a DNS leak is crucial for maintaining online privacy—especially if you’re using a VPN to hide your activity. A DNS leak happens when your device sends DNS requests (website lookups) outside the VPN tunnel, exposing your real IP address and browsing habits to your ISP or others, even if your main traffic is encrypted.
🛡️ How To Avoid DNS Leaks
✅ 1. Use a Trusted, Leak-Proof VPN
- Choose a VPN with a no-logs policy and built-in DNS leak protection.
- Recommended VPNs: Mullvad, ProtonVPN, ExpressVPN, NordVPN, IVPN.
Avoid free or sketchy VPNs—they often don’t route DNS properly.
✅ 2. Enable DNS Leak Protection in VPN Settings
- Most good VPN apps have a “DNS Leak Protection” setting—turn it on.
- This forces all DNS queries through the VPN’s secure DNS servers.
✅ 3. Manually Set Your DNS
Use secure, privacy-respecting DNS servers such as:
- Cloudflare –
1.1.1.1,1.0.0.1 - Google DNS –
8.8.8.8,8.8.4.4 - Quad9 –
9.9.9.9
Set them at:
- The OS level (Windows/macOS/Linux)
- Your router (affects all devices)
- Or inside the VPN settings (if supported)
✅ 4. Use DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) or DNS-over-TLS (DoT)
Encrypt your DNS traffic separately from your VPN.
- Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 app or NextDNS are easy DoH solutions.
- Some operating systems (like Android 9+) support DoT natively.
✅ 5. Avoid IPv6 Leaks
IPv6 can sometimes bypass VPNs, causing leaks.
- Disable IPv6 on your device if your VPN doesn’t support it.
- On Windows: Control Panel → Network → Adapter Settings → Uncheck IPv6
- On macOS: Use Terminal or system settings
- Or use a VPN that supports and protects IPv6
✅ 6. Check for DNS Leaks Regularly
After connecting to your VPN, visit:
Your IP and DNS server location should not point to your real ISP or country.
✅ 7. Use Secure Browser Settings
Browsers like Firefox and Chrome support DoH:
- Firefox: Settings → General → Network Settings → Enable DoH
- Chrome: Settings → Security → Use secure DNS
⚠️ Watch Out For:
- Split tunneling features, which can exclude DNS from VPN routing
- Browser extensions that bypass the VPN tunnel
- Public Wi-Fi networks that hijack DNS queries (always use a VPN!)