Fighting piracy or censorship? Denmark revises law following public criticism

In December 2025, Denmark found itself at the center of a global debate about the fundamentals of digital freedom. What began as a routine update to copyright law nearly became a precedent for restricting the use of VPN services in Europe.

The initial draft of the bill, submitted by the Ministry of Culture, contained language that effectively criminalized the use of "technical means" to circumvent territorial content restrictions. Simply put, viewing the American catalog of a Copenhagen-based streaming service could have become an administrative offense.

However, faced with harsh criticism from cybersecurity experts and accusations of privacy violations, the Danish government was forced to make an emergency retreat. This case became a shining example of the fine line between protecting intellectual property and invading users' privacy.

A VPN is, first and foremost, a tool for cyber hygiene.

The story of the "VPN ban" that never happened leaves us with an important conclusion: user security and privacy should not become a bargaining chip in the fight against piracy. Ultimately, citizens' trust in the digital environment is a far more valuable asset than the ability to strictly control content. The Danish precedent confirms that effective laws of the future must be written not in spite of security technologies, but alongside them.