Remote desktop privacy ratings
Software for controlling another computer over the network.
8 remote desktop are rated against 4 public criteria, and 8 have enough evidence for a letter grade. Of the 5 with a known jurisdiction, 2 are based in a Five Eyes country, and 4 in the wider Fourteen Eyes.
Open-source remote desktop only · Criteria for this category · Suggest an addition · Markdown
| Name | Grade | Score | Data | Jurisdiction | Open source | No trackers or telemetry | No ads or data sales | Independent audit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Clientless remote desktop gateway that runs on a server and gives browser-based access to machines over VNC, RDP, SSH and Telnet using HTML5, with no plugin or client software needed. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Self-hosted web server for remote device management, offering remote desktop, terminal and file access to Windows, Linux, macOS and FreeBSD machines through an installed agent. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Remote desktop client for Linux and other Unix-like systems that supports RDP, VNC, SPICE, SSH and other protocols through plugins, with a tabbed GTK interface. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
VNC server and viewer implementation focused on performance, with TLS encryption and extensions for advanced authentication, used for remote access to graphical desktops. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Open-source remote desktop software that works with RustDesk's public relay servers or a self-hosted server, with a paid Pro server edition for teams. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | Singapore Outside Eyes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Proprietary remote access and support software that connects to computers and mobile devices through TeamViewer's relay servers, free for personal use and paid for commercial use. |
Grade F | 30 | 100% | Germany Fourteen Eyes | No | No | Yes | Partial |
Proprietary remote desktop software that connects to computers and mobile devices through AnyDesk's servers using its DeskRT codec, free for personal use and paid for commercial use. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | Germany Fourteen Eyes | No | No | Partial | No |
Free remote access tool from Google that connects to Windows, macOS and Linux computers through a web app or mobile apps, using a Google account and Google's relay servers. |
Grade F | 0 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | No | No | No | No |
Questions
What is the most private option among remote desktop?
No pick has been made yet. The table above is sorted by score, based on public evidence.
How are remote desktop rated?
Each entry answers 4 questions: open source, no trackers or telemetry, no ads or data sales and independent audit. Answers need links to evidence. See the full criteria.
Does jurisdiction matter?
Jurisdiction decides which laws can compel a provider to hand over data. Each entry shows its country and whether it is in the Five, Nine or Fourteen Eyes. The data a provider can hand over depends mostly on what it stores and who holds the keys. Read about jurisdictions and the CLOUD Act.