New Delhi

Leading virtual private network (VPN) service provider NordVPN on Tuesday announced a new feature called Meshnet that allows users to connect directly to other devices instead of routing their traffic through a VPN server.

With Meshnet enabled, users on holiday can route their traffic through a laptop left at home, allowing them to browse the internet with their own IP address. "Whereas a traditional NordVPN connection redirects your internet traffic through servers, Meshnet lets you create your own NordVPN server, made up of only your own or your friends' devices, regardless of their location.

All that's needed is a NordVPN subscription," said Vykintas Maknickas, product strategist at NordVPN. Whereas a regular NordVPN service routes your internet traffic through VPN servers, Meshnet lets you create your own NordVPN server through your own or your friends' devices, no matter where they are in the world. With Meshnet, users can send or receive files from their family members, friends, or colleagues with ease and no longer need to host their work projects on a server.

Meshnet works as a virtual Local Area Network (LAN), so users can play multiplayer games with their friends without needing any LAN cables. To utilise Meshnet, users need to update their NordVPN app and make sure they are connected via the NordLynx protocol, then just turn it on in the NordVPN app and link up to 10 personal or and 50 external devices. NordVPN last week announced it will remove servers from India over a recent cybersecurity directive from the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In).

Panama-based NordVPN joins Surfshark and ExpressVPN in removing its servers from the country over the April 28 directive from India's cyber agency that seeks additional compliance requirements for all VPN providers whose users are in the country.