Best VPNs for Oman in 2024

The Sultanate of Oman is an absolute monarchy, meaning that there is no democracy, and the Sultan can change the laws on a whim. The legal climate in Oman, as in the rest of the Arabian Peninsula, does not encourage freedom of expression. As a result, you must be careful about what websites you visit and must self-censor to avoid criticizing the regime and local religious beliefs.

Local laws are vague and broad – giving the authorities free rein to interpret them how they wish. Being a foreigner in the country also offers no protection from arrest or prosecution, so you must be on guard when visiting the country.

Because of this, a VPN for Oman is an essential privacy tool. In this article, we discuss the best VPNs for Oman, and show you how to bypass Oman’s strict censorship.

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Best VPNs for Oman

We have listed the best VPNs for Oman below. To find out more information about any of these services, scroll below the list to see our in-depth analysis of each VPN.

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To ensure you get the best VPNs for Oman, we made sure all of our recommendations have the following features:

• Fast servers
• Strong encryption
• A no-logs policy
• Unblocks content

Best Oman VPN – Summaries

All of the VPNs recommended above have been picked because they have what you need to access the internet with high levels of privacy in Oman. However, if you require more details, you can read the summaries below to find out more about each VPN service and its features.

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How to use a VPN in Oman step-by-step

Using a VPN in Oman is not difficult if you pick one of the VPNs in this article. This is because they all have custom apps for all platforms that come with the important security and privacy features you need to stay safe in Oman. To help you out, we will explain the entire process below:

As soon as the VPN connects, your data is encrypted by the VPN, and you can use the internet without being tracked by your ISP or the government. You can also bypass any local censorship or circumvent international geo-restrictions. 

Why you should consider a VPN in Oman?

The main purpose of all media controls in the Sultanate is to maintain the moral and religious standards of the population. These controls do not just apply to internet access. TV and music are also subject to tight censorship. Furthermore, there’s frequent monitoring of phone calls for seditious or blasphemous content.

The second aim of the authorities is to stamp out potential political unrest. All government workers are direct employees of the Sultan. One of their main tasks is to keep him in power without any restrictions on his rights to control the population. Thus, even a favorable comment about democratic procedures abroad can get you into trouble.

VOIP/Internet telephone ban

Oman also bans internet telephony. The state owns and operates the only landline. Mobile services are a lot more deregulated. Omanis can get their 3G service from Omanmobile, a division of Omante, or from Ooredoo. The state operates the former and the Sultan of Qatar runs the latter. He has similar views on freedom of expression to his Omani counterpart. You can access the mobile networks of two other companies in Oman (Renna and Frendi), but neither offers data packages.

Skype is not available in Oman. Neither are Viber, IMO, or Google Hangouts. Chat systems in social media sites are available, but providers disable their voice and video functions. Surprisingly, WhatsApp and Signal work occasionally, although no one can predict when they will work and when they won’t.

You can access banned sites if you can circumvent the blocks that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) implement. However, Oman blocks both proxy servers and the Tor network. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are legal and popular in the country. Thus, if you want access to better entertainment, or to visit dating, porn, gay, gambling, or political sites, you had better use a VPN.

Internet controls in Oman

Keeping internet access in the hands of just the state-owned telephone company, and a mobile company that a friend of the Sultan owns makes centralizing internet controls easy. You can only connect to the internet with your computer or phone if you have a contract with an ISP – which means Omantel or Ooredoo.

WiFi hotspots are non-existent in the Sultanate, so you won’t gain anonymity by surfing at an internet café. The owners of these establishments have to get a license to operate. In order to get that permit, owners have to submit floor plans of the space, showing that all screens are visible by a centrally-located human invigilator. Internet cafes also have to install network proxies, which block access to banned sites. They also have to log all the activities of their computers.

ISPs in Oman operate blocklists of sites. These restrict access to a long list of addresses. Individual webpages on permitted sites can also be blocked for delivery if they contain images of indecently dressed people, or include any of a list of alert keywords. A piece of software (SmartFilter) by a division of McAfee in the United States carries out these checks. Just about every government in the Middle East enforces its use, including Oman.

Censored entertainment in Oman

There are 13 TV stations in Oman. All of their shows are heavily censored. The same is true of the music that is available in the country. Movies and shows are edited to remove offensive content, in many cases to the point of being unwatchable. Furthermore, many popular TV shows around the world are just not shown in Oman.

Fortunately, you can access entertainment from other countries over the internet. There is even an Omani branch of Netflix. However, you don’t get the version they show in the US. The entertainment library that you get access to in Oman is pretty similar to the shows that you would see on TV there.

If you have a Netflix subscription in Oman, you can watch Netflix anywhere in the world. The service is different in each country. The library you get access to depends on your location when you enter the website. As such, if you’re in the US when you log in, you get access to all of the great entertainment available to customers in that country.

Therefore, if you have a VPN, once you’ve connected to a suitable server, you’ll be able to change Netflix region and unblock shows not available in your location. However, not all servers and providers support this, so check the current VPNs that work with Netflix.

Are free VPNs safe in Oman?

Most free VPN services available on the market have been revealed to be extremely insecure. Studies have shown that free services have unreliable apps, critical leaks, invasive privacy policies that let them harvest your data, and apps that contain malware. This makes it extremely dangerous to use those VPNs.

The good news is that there are some free VPNs out there that will not put you at risk. Some VPNs provide a limited free plan to advertise their service and to give consumers a chance to trial the VPN. Those free plans are limited in various ways:

• Fewer server locations
• Slower connections
• Monthly usage limits

Despite these drawbacks, those free services are generally safe to use. However, due to the political situation in Oman, we generally recommend against using any free VPN in Oman if it does not come with a kill-switch and obfuscation (features that you are very unlikely to get with a free plan).

For this reason, we must recommend that anybody accessing content that has been blocked by the government of Oman uses a secure paid subscription with the advanced privacy features you need to stay safe. Luckily, all of our recommended VPNs have money-back guarantees, which means you can try the best VPNs without risking your money.

How to access Skype and VoIP services in Oman – step-by-step

Accessing VoIP apps that have been banned in Oman is easy using a VPN. Simply follow the steps below to access and use those services in complete privacy:

Using a VPN with a kill-switch and auto-connect function will help you stay protected when unblocking VoIP apps in Oman.

Conclusion

You may grow impatient with the restrictions and surveillance on what you can see on the internet in Oman and may hope to access banned websites. All of the VPNs in this review work well in Oman and will keep you private and secure.

Not only will they protect your identity, but they will let you access overseas streaming services. Remember to cover your tracks in Oman with a VPN that offers advanced privacy features, such as a kill-switch and obfuscation. If you want to access a free and open internet without putting yourself at risk, here’s a reminder of our top picks for VPNs in Oman:

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FAQs

[[post-object type=”accordion” question=”Are VPNs legal in Oman? 👮‍♂️” answer=”The use of VPNs is not illegal in Oman. Indeed, a large percentage of the population uses them. However, as with all things in Oman, you have to be careful with what you talk about, and to whom. This means that asking around for help to get your VPN working could be risky.

Therefore, it’s important to get a VPN that is self-installing and easy to use. A strong customer support team at the VPN company is also important. That will enable you to get advice from experts who won’t report your activities to the Omani government.

VPNs get around ISPs’ basic blacklist strategy because they obscure the destination address of the traffic they carry. The VPN client software on your computer establishes a connection with its home server. This is known as a “tunnel”. The client and server encrypt all communications. That encryption even covers the header information, which contains the source and destination addresses. Therefore, if you use a VPN, your internet activities will be completely private.” /]]

[[post-object type=”accordion” question=”Is WhatsApp banned in Oman? 💬” answer=”Yes. All VoIP apps are banned in Oman, which means they are not available unless you connect to a VPN server outside of the country.” /]]

[[post-object type=”accordion” question=”What services are blocked in Oman? 🚫” answer=”In addition to VoIP services, the government of Oman blocks access to websites and services due to religious, political, and cultural reasons. As a result, any content that refers to alcohol, drugs, gambling, nudity and pornography, LGBT content, or any content critical of Islam or the government of Oman is restricted” /]]

[[post-object type=”accordion” question=”What should I do if my VPN is blocked in Oman?” answer=”If you realize that your VPN is blocked and you are still unable to access restricted sites or apps, the first thing to try is to switch to another server or server country. If this doesn’t work, you might need to switch to another VPN provider. Using a VPN with obfuscated (stealth) servers in Oman is always a good idea. These servers disguise your VPN traffic as regular HTTPS traffic, helping you bypass various geo-blocks. Most VPNs from above offer this advanced feature.” /]]

[[post-object type=”accordion” question=”Can I use a VPN for streaming in Oman?” answer=”Yes, many people use a VPN to stream content in Oman – usually, people on vacation who wish to continue watching their favorite Netflix shows unavailable in the country. Aside from protecting your privacy online, a VPN can help bypass geographical restrictions and fight censorship, allowing access to specific streaming catalogs. It can even improve streaming quality by circumventing ISP throttling.

Although using a VPN for streaming is legal in Oman (in most cases), it’s essential to respect local internet laws and use VPN services responsibly, considering the ethical and legal implications of circumventing geo-restrictions.” /]]

[[post-object type=”accordion” question=”How risky is using a VPN with poor encryption in Oman?” answer=”Using a VPN with poor encryption in a country like Oman, where internet censorship and government monitoring are prevalent, is very risky. It significantly increases the chances for online surveillance and cyber threats. It’s always a good idea to use a VPN that comes with strong encryption standards and is up-to-date to protect your sensitive data online, especially in countries like Oman.” /]]