What is a WebRTC leak?

WebRTC is a browser feature for real-time audio and video. To connect two people directly it collects your device's network addresses, and a page can read them with JavaScript. If one of those addresses is your real public IP, it leaks past whatever VPN or proxy you're using.

Does a WebRTC leak mean my VPN is broken?

Not necessarily. Your VPN can be routing your traffic perfectly while the browser still exposes a local or public address through WebRTC. It's a browser behaviour, not a VPN failure — which is why a VPN alone doesn't always fix it.

How do I stop WebRTC from leaking my IP?

In Firefox, set media.peerconnection.enabled to false in about:config. In Chrome and Edge, use an extension that disables or restricts WebRTC. Some browsers and privacy-hardened phones limit it by default. Re-run this test afterwards to confirm.

Why does the test show a scrambled address like a1b2c3d4.local?

Modern browsers replace your real local IP with a random mDNS hostname ending in .local specifically to reduce this leak. Seeing one of those instead of a 192.168.x.x address is a good sign, not a problem.

Is anything from this test sent to a server or stored?

The candidate gathering happens entirely in your browser. We only look up the single public IP the connection already reveals to every site, and we store nothing — there's no account and no log tied to your visit.

Network & leak testing

WebRTC leak test

WebRTC lets browsers talk to each other directly for calls and video. To do that it asks your network for its addresses — and that request can reveal your real IP even when a VPN is active. This test gathers those addresses in your browser and compares them with the IP the internet actually sees.

Runs entirely in your browser. It gathers your connection's WebRTC candidates and compares them with the IP the internet sees.

What the result means

No obvious leak detected means WebRTC only revealed masked .local addresses and no public IP — the outcome you want.

Possible leakmeans a public IP or a raw local address was exposed. If the public IP matches the one every site already sees, it's no worse than normal browsing — but on a VPN it means WebRTC is undoing the tunnel.

Likely leakmeans WebRTC exposed a public IP that differs from your connection's visible IP — the textbook VPN bypass.

Unknownmeans WebRTC was unavailable or gathered nothing. Good for privacy, but we can't conclude anything for the other browsers you use.

How to stop WebRTC leaks

Firefox: open about:config and set media.peerconnection.enabled to false.
Chrome / Edge / Brave:use a WebRTC-limiting extension, or Brave's built-in fingerprinting protection.
Prefer a VPN that explicitly handles WebRTC, and re-run this test to confirm the fix worked — a setting that looks applied isn't always active.
On mobile, a privacy-hardened browser limits WebRTC exposure without any per-site fiddling.

WebRTC leak test — common questions

What is a WebRTC leak?: WebRTC is a browser feature for real-time audio and video. To connect two people directly it collects your device's network addresses, and a page can read them with JavaScript. If one of those addresses is your real public IP, it leaks past whatever VPN or proxy you're using.
Does a WebRTC leak mean my VPN is broken?: Not necessarily. Your VPN can be routing your traffic perfectly while the browser still exposes a local or public address through WebRTC. It's a browser behaviour, not a VPN failure — which is why a VPN alone doesn't always fix it.
How do I stop WebRTC from leaking my IP?: In Firefox, set media.peerconnection.enabled to false in about:config. In Chrome and Edge, use an extension that disables or restricts WebRTC. Some browsers and privacy-hardened phones limit it by default. Re-run this test afterwards to confirm.
Why does the test show a scrambled address like a1b2c3d4.local?: Modern browsers replace your real local IP with a random mDNS hostname ending in .local specifically to reduce this leak. Seeing one of those instead of a 192.168.x.x address is a good sign, not a problem.
Is anything from this test sent to a server or stored?: The candidate gathering happens entirely in your browser. We only look up the single public IP the connection already reveals to every site, and we store nothing — there's no account and no log tied to your visit.

Related free tools

IP, DNS & IPv6 checkerSee the public IP the internet sees, whether IPv6 is exposed, and what DNS leaks mean.Browser fingerprint checkerSee the signals your browser exposes and how identifiable they make you.Do Not Track & GPC checkerCheck whether your browser is sending Do Not Track and Global Privacy Control signals.

All free privacy tools

What NordSecure does about it

A free test tells you what's leaking. Fixing it usually means changing the device or the connection, not just the browser tab — which is exactly what NordSecure sells, without a name or an account.