iPhone showing VPN symbol at the top but NordVPN app not connected

VPN
1

Has anyone seen this?
I’ve tried deleting the vpn profile from settings and recreate it while I try to connect.
Whether I am connected or not the VPN symbol stays on

2

I have had countless times, where my iphone wrongly indicates the VPN is connected but was not. And then times where I have autoconnect enabled but it has not autoconnected.

And then there is the big apple bug that is well known. If Apple has connections to servers prior to VPN connection, then these connections continue to bypass the VPN (any VPN … not just NORD) after the VPN is established. The only way to stop this behavior is to go into airplane mode prior to establishing the VPN

My solution:

  1. At home, I have installed NORD on my router. Now all connections must go through the VPN.

  2. This NORD website “https://nordvpn.com/ip will tell me if my iphone is connected to the VPN or not. When I am not at home or travelling, I check this website to confirm my iphone is actually using the VPN (but won’t tell me of Apple background connections bypassing the VPN).

3

I know that Speedtest has a vpn included in the app that could be on. Are there other apps that have a way to turn on the VPN besides the dedicated VPN apps like NordVPN?

4

Check the Nordvpn app to see if you have Meshnet activated. This could show up as VPN on your iPhone even if you’re not connected to a VPN server.

6

I don’t see that option, how can I check?