Longstanding Android 16 bug is affecting some VPN apps
Given the increased global awareness about online surveillance, VPN apps continue to surge in popularity. Android users have a wide selection of VPNs to choose from, though some big names continue to stand out.
One such popular VPN app, Proton VPN , has raised concerns about a bug specific to Android 16 , which could leave users exposed. In a thread on X , the VPN provider explains that the bug was reported to Google in September 2025, but no action was taken.
" The bug corrupts Android's network stack at the system level after a VPN update, causing users to blame their VPN provider ," Proton VPN says. In simpler terms, this means the VPN randomly disconnects right after an update without warning the user, thus leaving them vulnerable online.
Understandably, a user's natural instinct may be to blame the VPN provider when something like this happens. Proton VPN is making sure its customers understand what's going on while also raising awareness about Google's lack of response, even after several months and complaints from multiple VPN providers (via Android Authority ).
Other VPN providers are also impacted
Kris Henges / Android Police
Fellow VPN providers like Mullvad and WireGuard are also facing this specific issue with Android 16, with the former raising a complaint on the issue tracker page in late August. Meanwhile, TunnelBear confirmed the appearance of this same bug in December 2025. So this certainly isn't isolated to just the one VPN service, which makes it all the more surprising that Google or the Android team hasn't yet taken the time to address and fix this bug.
This bug surfaces when the VPN is set to always-on mode, and the app is reinstalled or updated. In its bug report, Proton VPN specifies that restarting the phone, clearing app data, or removing VPN permissions don't remedy this particular connectivity issue.
Zeroing in on the root cause of this bug has been challenging as well. Mullvad states that they can only reproduce this bug " ~5-10% of the time ," while Proton VPN shares a similar sentiment, adding that this issue is affecting some of its users "frequently."
The fact that the issue persists even today suggests that the Android 16 updates since September 2025 (QPR2 and QPR3) may not have fixed it. All that's left now is for the Android team to determine the cause and roll out a fix at the earliest. However, since it's not particularly easy to replicate, it may take some time to figure out.
Have you faced any of these issues with your VPN provider since the Android 16 update last year?
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