Android 16 Disrupts VPN Connections: Why Google’s Fix Is Delayed

Published Mar 19, 2026, 12:16 PM EDT

Dave Schafer is a passionate storyteller and tech enthusiast. He’s been writing professionally since 2014 and has covered a wide range of topics, from cable and internet providers to VPNs to web hosting. Dave’s work has been featured on publications like All About Cookies, SatelliteInternet.com, and HighSpeedInternet.com, among others. 

As a writer, Dave enjoys taking complex topics and making them understandable and relatable to everyday readers — whether that’s exploring the intricacies of a VPN or helping someone choose a better piece of software. 

When not writing, Dave enjoys spending time with his family, running, playing the guitar, camping, and serving in his community. His favorite place is the Blue Ridge Mountains, and one day he hopes to retire there (hopefully his fear of heights will have retired by then, too!).

Summary

• Several VPN makers have reported an issue causing VPNs to drop connection when their apps are updated.
• The issue appears to be due to a deeper problem with Android's network stack.
• It was first reported in August 2025, but Google has been oddly silent on the matter.

There's a sneaky bug affecting VPNs on Android 16. The bug breaks VPN connectivity with no warning or error message, and it's not specific to any one VPN. In a post on X, Proton VPN went public with the issue, along with claims that Google has essentially been ignoring the problem for months.

What's the issue?

The bug is primarily triggered when a VPN app is updated while it's active. According to one of the bug reports on the Android Issue Tracker, the VPN "may end up in a state where the VPN app is no longer able to reach the internet." The report further asserts that this is "very confusing for the users as they can't connect using the VPN and then are unable to reach the internet since it is stuck in a connecting state/fail to connect."

It seems that simply restarting the VPN doesn't work. Instead, you have to try one of these solutions:

• Restart your phone.
• Switch to another established VPN profile and then switch back.
• Reinstall the VPN app.

While very inconvenient, Proton's X post highlights the real concern here: the bug leaves users "exposed with no warning or error, just a VPN app that stopped working in the background." If you're relying on your VPN for safety, this is a potentially catastrophic issue (although your VPN may not be hiding what you think it is).

In its analysis, Proton found that the bug is actually corrupting Android's network stack, which may be why simply restarting the VPN doesn't resolve the problem. Frustratingly, it doesn't occur every time there's an update, which makes it hard to pin down the exact issue.

There's history here

Unfortunately, this is not a new issue

Proton claims it first reported the bug to Google in September 2025, and that others, including Mullvad and WireGuard, reported it back in August. Google responded to the reports, saying, "We have shared this with our product and engineering team and will update this issue with more information as it becomes available."

However, after seven months, the issue persists, and it seems VPN makers are getting fed up. Proton called the tech giant out directly: "After 7 months of waiting, we're now asking publicly: Google, when are you fixing this?" The company is also asking anyone who uses a VPN on Android to help it get Google's attention and get the matter resolved — or at least get an update.

Related

How to (hopefully) avoid the bug

You may be able to work around the primary cause

If you're on Android 16 and using a VPN, the first thing you want to do is make sure you're using it correctly. After that, you should consider turning off automatic app updates. This may not guarantee you won't have issues, but if the main cause is a VPN app updating while active, this should at least avoid that situation. To turn them off, open the Play Store app and head to Settings > Network Preferences > Auto-update apps.

You might also consider adding a comment to the issues on the Android Issue Tracker to get more attention on the problem:

• Mullvad's Issue Tracker link
• Proton VPN's Issue Tracker link

Have you experienced this issue? Drop us a comment and let us know!

Proton VPN

Proton VPN is a VPN service from the makers of the famous Proton Mail. It's got a strict no-logs policy and a heavy emphasis on user privacy and security.