If a website or app misbehaves while NymVPN is connected, there are three usual causes: the service restricts content by region (and reacts to your exit location), the service blocks traffic it identifies as coming from a VPN, or the traffic type is not covered by the Nym network's exit policy. Each has a different fix, and most are quick.
Cause 1: geo restrictions at your exit location
Services that vary content by region respond to your exit node's location, not yours. If something is unavailable or degraded, try a different exit country, or reconnect for a new exit node. If the exit region itself censors the service, see Why do online activities get censored when choosing certain exit locations?
Cause 2: the service blocks VPN traffic
Some services, commonly streaming platforms, banks, and ticketing sites, refuse connections from IP addresses they associate with VPN use. Switching exit locations sometimes helps, since different nodes have different reputations with these services. For services you trust, such as your bank, the simplest workaround is to pause the VPN briefly for that one task.
Cause 3: the Nym exit policy
The Nym network has a built-in exit policy: a port-based allow list that restricts certain types of traffic. Nym opposes all forms of censorship; the policy exists to prevent abuse by spammers and to keep the network healthy for the independent operators who run it. As of January 2026 the policy is quite permissive and allows a mostly unaltered online experience, so everyday browsing, streaming, and messaging are unaffected. You can read the current policy at exit-policy.txt.
If an application uses an uncommon port that is not on the allow list, its connections will fail while everything else works. You can propose adding ports: suggestions are made on Nym's community channels and voted on by the community of operators through Nym Improvement Proposals (NIPs). Previous votes are visible on the Nym Governator.
Related questions
How do I tell which cause I am hitting?
Switch exit countries first. If the service works from another exit, it was geo restriction or IP reputation. If it fails from every exit while normal browsing works, and the app uses a non-standard port, the exit policy is the likely cause.
Everything is slow rather than blocked. Same problem?
No, that points elsewhere. See Why do I experience slow speeds on NymVPN?
Does the exit policy log what I do?
No. The policy is a port-based filter applied at the network level. It does not inspect or record your activity, and the Nym network's architecture prevents any single node from linking your identity to your traffic.