Some apps say no internet connection

some apps are saying no internet connection and won’t work but others work and im connected to internet. ive restarted phone, reset all settings including network settings and updated to latest softwware and tried wifi and certain apps work. Why does this happen, it does not open with cellular data, it works with WiFi

Also deleted the apps and reloaded and still no good can someone please help iPhone 12 pro max

I am having issues connecting to different apps. Doesn’t matter is I’m connected to WiFi. Reset my network settings. Ensured No VPN connection. Tried restarting. Turning airplane mode off and on. Nothing is helping. Yet I’m able to access this forum through the browser. But my apps say no internet connection. iPhone 11 Pro. Phone system updated. Yet I’m getting notifications for the apps.

iPhone 11

Things work on cellular but not Wifi- it's my personal network. It's also my personal phone.

It just started earlier today. I hadn't made any changes to the phone settings or downloaded anything new. I've reset network settings (no change), reset all settings (no change). When I turn off wifi things work on cellular, but when I turn the wifi back on everything causes problems again. My wifi is working fine on all of my computers.

I don't have any add on security or malware apps.

It should absolutely not be the VPN. This use to happen to me on my Brand new XR while never having a VPN, I was never able to use Snapchat on that device and other apps would go in and out I’d be lucky if the apps worked and I gave up trying to figure it out. I now have a new 12 pro. Same exact problems before my VPN and now with my VPN. It’s been such a hassle. Lucky I haven’t had a permanent problem with an app like I did with the XR but apps will suddenly stop working and say “no internet connection” and will eventually start working again. I have tried EVERYTHING Apple has recommended. It has to do with the updates Apple provides corrupting the apps and I cannot believe Apple hasn’t been able to figure out or prevent this from happening and since I didn’t get Apple care like a dummy I am screwed for their mistakes in the coding of their updates.

I have the same issue and i was frustrated after trying every solution mentioned above, even i don't have VPN.

What really worked with me is setting time and date to automatic.

I wanted to screen record an app on my iphone for a tutorial with time and date set to manual with old date, then i forget to set it back to auto, then there it goes. Spent few days trying every possible solution without result.Twitter wasn't loading, google maps and some other important apps. I even thought of bying a new device but once i remmemberd that it was set on an old date and changed it (Viola) everything back to normal.

I’m having the same issue, both with WiFi and cell service. Certain applications say I have no internet connection. Started with iOS 14.5 upgrade. Only with a minority of apps, some that worked before stopped working and some new installations give internet access error messages. Tried resetting networks, uninstalling and reinstalling apps, no luck.

My iPhone 8 says it is connected to the internet but the apps say it is not. This has only happened recently. Tried switching off and on again but no better. Apps working on iPad. Any suggestions?

I have the same problem- started suddenly with no trigger. I can’t connect to what’s app or Facebook messenger on wifi or mobile data. I get a constant error message saying what’s app is connecting; on FBM messages just don’t send.

Safari, App Store, other apps work. I don’t have a VPN or any unknown apps. Have tried restoring network settings, rebooting the iPhone (11 pro) and updating the apps and iOS.

Any other ideas? Thanks!

sandhopper58 wrote:

Who knew. Even without the VPN app fully downloaded it caused this network connection issue AND it prevented me from downloading certain other apps. Not only that it stopped my ability to live stream my outdoor Blink camera system which their support staff could not figure out. Fully deleted app and now everything is good.

VPN frequently creates more problems than it solves. But one important fact is that when you install VPN it configures itself to the specific hardware, iOS version and network that the phone uses. If any of those change it can break the VPN. So any time you change any of these you may need to delete the VPN app and profile, restart your phone then add them back (if you still want to use VPN) so it can configure itself to the new environment.

Here's Apple's advice on VPN→

Check VPN (Virtual Private Network) and third-party software to help resolve network connectivity issues - Apple Support

Something to think about→Don't use VPN - GITHUB

There are two legitimate purposes for using VPN:

• To allow access to a private network such as a school or business when you are not on site. 
• To allow access outside of a country with a repressive government that has restricted Internet access. (This has suddenly become more important)

Any other use is risky, and can lead to problems like the one discussed in this thread. VPN disguises your location by making you appear to be somewhere else in the world. But you usually can’t control that “somewhere else”, and if it is in a location that an app isn’t approved for the app won’t work. Plus the fact that the provider of the VPN knows everything about you and your location, as well as what sites you access through the VPN. So you are totally dependent on the VPN provider’s honesty. As a start, if the VPN is free, DON’T USE IT. The provider has to make money somehow, and if you aren’t paying them then they are selling your private data to make money. But even those that charge can’t necessarily be trusted. For example, a few years ago Avast was caught selling user browsing data. They claim they have stopped doing so. 

You don’t really need VPN when using public Wi-Fi, because all communications between your device and the servers it accesses are end-to-end encrypted.

If you want VPN for privacy about the sites you visit, that’s not a good choice as discussed; instead you should download and use the TOR browser.

The other use for VPN is to “steal” content that is not available in your area. I leave this question to your personal ethics.

With iOS 15.2 and later for iOS/iPadOS and MacOS Monterey 12.2 and later Apple now has iCloud+ Private Relay, which is not VPN, but provides a safer browsing environment than VPN, and it doesn't spy on you→About iCloud Private Relay - Apple Support

Something to think about→Don't use VPN services. · GitHub

The intended purpose of VPN is to allow access to a private network such as a school or business when you are not on site. Any other use is risky, and can lead to problems like the one discussed in this thread. VPN disguises your location by making you appear to be somewhere else in the world. But you can’t control that “somewhere else”, and if it is in a location that an app isn’t approved for the app won’t work. Plus the fact that the provider of the VPN knows everything about you and your location, as well as what sites you access through the VPN. So you are totally dependent on the VPN provider’s honesty. As a start, if the VPN is free, DON’T USE IT. The provider has to make money somehow, and if you aren’t paying them then they are selling you to make money. But even those that charge can’t necessarily be trusted.

I'm so happy that this is happening to others! This just started happening to me, only with two apps (my weather app and my bank app, annoyingly). I get the message that I need to "check my internet connection" or "cannot connect to the server", even though I have no trouble getting on those sites on my computer using the same wifi. I've done everything...updated my phone, removed and reinstalled those apps, restarted my phone, checked to see about the VPN situation (I don't have any and cannot find where to delete "hidden" ones that a few of you seem to have found that was causing the problem), etc. I get this message using data and wifi, and have tried it in two different states/homes, so I know it's absolutely not my connection. I have an iPhone 8 Plus iOS version 14.6. Thanks for any help you guys can give...I use these two apps a lot and am getting seriously frustrated!

Deleting the VPN from my iPad and iPhone did fix the problems with wifi and apps, but doing that will cause quite a problem when I go to a public place and NEED to use a VPN! I won't want to download it from a public internet!

Hello Dlb4455,

Thanks for choosing the Apple Support Communities. If we understand correctly, you are unable to connect to the internet using some apps. We can understand why you'd reach out for a solution.

Does this happen on Wi-Fi, cellular data, or both?

If on Wi-Fi, check out recommended settings for your router.

Recommended settings for Wi-Fi routers and access points

If on cellular, check to ensure they have cellular data access.

View or change cellular settings on iPhone

Cheers!

marshafromhanover wrote:

Deleting the VPN from my iPad and iPhone did fix the problems with wifi and apps, but doing that will cause quite a problem when I go to a public place and NEED to use a VPN! I won't want to download it from a public internet!

I understand that you do need your data centrally collected, logged, and your traffic and activities monitored, and providers in this position will certainly at least be tempted to re-sell your network access activities—this data logging and resale was confirmed with an anti-malware package a while back—for the added revenues.

As for the state of the security business, some VPN providers claimed no logs were kept, though were later found to be logging after those providers' logs were subsequently disclosed. And VPN providers have been breached, as well.

Based on an earlier discussion here, some of the VPNs discussed here do seem to install a digital certificate as trusted, and that could quite conceivably allow even your SSL/TLS encrypted traffic to be decrypted and accessed f by an intermediate host with the associated private key for that trusted certificate—and this interception would explain some of the issues folks are having accessing pinned and secure websites, too; that an intercepting host is being detected and blocked by the target server.

There are of course other and possibly even easier ways to have all your connections intercepted by little-known providers and your activity both logged and resold, so I'd suggest starting with those; with removing the VPN client, and finding a different means to disclose your activities.

As for the current state of things? Your existing network connections using SSL/TLS are already encrypted and tunneled. This is part of why folks have been encouraging everybody off of unencrypted mail connections, for instance. (And various of the commercial VPN providers also use widely-known VPN credentials, which makes intercepting and decrypting the VPN-wrapped network traffic rather easier for attackers so inclined.)

As for where this is all headed later this year, iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 arriving later this year provides both IP masking, and an added VPN capability, both provided via Apple. This alleviates some of the concerns around the privacy and marketing of data by third-party entities providing the existing VPN services.

If you need a solution between now and this fall, VPN servers using open source and your own hosted VPN servers include both the Streisand and Algo projects. These allow you more control over the VPN server and its activities.

Links to some details and concerns and trade-offs around the VPN industry, and links to some of the alternatives mentioned above:

• https://gist.github.com/joepie91/5a9909939e6ce7d09e29
• https://greycoder.com/stresiand-makes-installing-your-own-vpn-easier/
• https://www.wyden.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Wyden%20Letter%20to%20NIST%20Re%20Gov%20Use%20of%20Secure%20VPNs.pdf
• https://mobile.twitter.com/kennwhite/status/1186075645962526720
• https://www.theregister.com/2020/03/06/nordvpn_no_auth_needed_view_user_payments/
• https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/craigsilverman/vpn-and-ad-blocking-apps-sensor-tower
• https://mobile.twitter.com/CiPHPerCoder/status/1044625129278443522

nb: above does not apply to VPNs and add-on VPN clients used to connect directly into the private network of an organization that you are associated with. That VPN can and does have value.