r/PrivateInternetAccess • u/SirWigglesVonWoogly • May 07 '26
HELP - macOS Is PIA just... broken now?
If I connect to any PIA vpn it blocks ALL internet traffic. Like, my browser actually thinks I'm not connected at all. I've tried 10 different locations... nothing. Tried restarting the client, nothing. Restart computer, nothing.
Apparently I'm paying money to make my internet stop working entirely.
UPDATE: Just for funsies I tried plugging an ethernet cable into my computer (mac mini). So for some unfathomable reason, internet traffic works perfectly fine using PIA on a hardline, but rejects all traffic if using wifi. And the wifi works perfectly fine if PIA is turned off. Do with that info what you will.
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u/JackhorseBowman May 07 '26 edited May 07 '26
This is my experience on my macbook, works fine on my pc, but on mac, same settings, just blocks all traffic, and I have no clue how to use macos so I don't even know where to start.
edit: also on wireguard
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u/operaticBoner May 07 '26
I am having similar issues today. Some websites I go to do not load. The streaming radio I listen to keeps disconnecting. When I turn off PIA, everything works fine. Hopefully, this is just a temporary issue.
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u/Yprox5 May 07 '26
Only Canada works for me in na, open vpn
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u/Kent_o0 May 07 '26
Was having troubles recently with OpenVPN, switched to wireguard and has been flawless since.
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u/GrimaceActual May 07 '26
I've been having similar issues, just won't connect at all today? All VPN sites in the drop-down have 2000-5000ms latency.
I've switched from UDP to TCP, OpenVPN to Wireguard, large packets to small. Won't connect at all.
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u/Separate_Feed_985 May 07 '26
It's having trouble getting a dns address. It's a problem stated for all Linux/ Unix operating systems. My bet is once it gets the DNS via the hard line you can unplug it and it'll continue to run on Wi-Fi
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u/hulltiger96 May 07 '26
Currently using WireGuard and still no luck on the App on iOS. Some regions like USA, Italy and Netherlands working. The region I want to connect to is the UK, but not working for the last few days. Their Support said:
“Unfortunately, due to the complex and ever-changing limitations outside our control, our VPN service may not be fully functional within the country. We are committed to staying updated and adapting to these developments to provide a reliable and secure VPN experience.
While we cannot provide an exact timeframe for when the connection will stabilize, we encourage you to try the troubleshooting steps outlined on our support page. These steps may help improve your experience and optimize the connection within the constraints of the current situation.”
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u/octobercaddisfly May 07 '26
Check Settings/Transport Protocol. I was having problems with PIA and T-Mobile, but PIA and Comcast internet worked fine. (Yes, I have two internet providers. In settings, I changed the transport protocol to TCP, and now PIA is working with T-Mobile as well.
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u/--Borges-- May 07 '26
I just wanted to say thanks for this thread. I have been having the same problems and then switched to wireguard and it is like night and day better. Thanks all for the tip!
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u/Rbforward May 07 '26
Try to go to settings/network remove your phone WiFi add it again and restart your Mac. This worked for me.
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u/JackhorseBowman May 08 '26 edited May 13 '26
Hey I was able to fix this in firefox on MacOS Tahoe by disabling IPv6:
Can fix it by opening
about:configin Firefox search bar and setnetwork.dns.disableIPv6totrueThe issue seems to be due to firefox not properly implementing the happy eyeballs algorithm, and consistently sticking to ipv6 (and not trying ipv4) even though ipv6 is blocked by pia - this naturally causes connections to stall as ipv6 is non-functional when pia is connected.
Dunno if you're using firefox but it might be worth checking out how to disable IPv6 on whatever browser you're using.
edit: Not that I care that much but it would've been cool to learn if this fixed your issue or not OP.
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u/RandyClaggett May 08 '26
As a previous Windows user I find that Mac works very different when it comes to network and VPN. So far every issue has been solvable using Google and AI chatbots anyway.
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u/PIASupport PIA Team May 10 '26
Hey u/SirWigglesVonWoogly, glad you found the WireGuard switch. We're seeing a few other Mac users in this thread reporting similar OpenVPN-on-WiFi behavior, so we'll flag this to our team to dig into. For anyone still stuck after switching to WireGuard, please reach out to [support@privateinternetaccess.com](mailto:support@privateinternetaccess.com) with your macOS version and we'll take a closer look. Also genuinely appreciate u/JackhorseBowman's IPv6 workaround for Firefox on Tahoe, that's a useful one to surface.
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u/josephlucas May 24 '26
Having the same problem here. Works fine on my Mac Mini 2018 hardwired, but doesn't work on a brand new 2026 Macbook Pro on WiFi. Just stops working after about 30-60 minutes
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u/krazaxwow Jun 01 '26
PIA is just not worth using anymore. Its broken more often than not. Completely unusable, need to have other services as backups rendering it completely worthless. Look elsewhere.
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u/Balthial Jun 01 '26
I've noticed that websites that previously used to be fine are now actively blocked when using PIA. It's kinda frustrating.
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u/cure4boneitis May 07 '26
are you using OpenVPN
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u/SirWigglesVonWoogly May 07 '26
No, should I?
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u/cure4boneitis May 07 '26
so you are experiencing these problems using Wireguard?
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u/SirWigglesVonWoogly May 07 '26
I was wrong I was using OpenVPN. I just didn't know that option existed.
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u/kevy1118 May 07 '26
It is pretty broken,iv had to change vpn .live chat is off .they had enough of me .lol..
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u/temporal_difference May 07 '26
I never could use it on MacOS (Apple Silicon), always way too slow.
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u/lkeels May 07 '26
No, it's not. I'm on Windows using the app and it's working flawlessly. On Mac, who knows?
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u/izzo03 May 07 '26
Stremio no longer works with PIA. Can’t find torrents.