Opera is making its built-in free VPN a little harder to forget.

The company has added a new setting to Opera’s desktop browser that can automatically activate the browser’s free VPN when you connect to a public Wi-Fi network. Once enabled, the feature is designed to remove one of the most annoying parts of using a VPN on the go: remembering that you should turn it on in the first place.

Opera introduced its free browser VPN back in 2016, and the company is now marking its tenth year by adding automatic protection for public Wi-Fi. The feature is rolling out initially to Opera users in the U.S. and France, with additional regions expected to follow.

The idea is pretty straightforward. You connect your laptop to Wi-Fi at an airport, café, campus, hotel, library, or another public location, and Opera can detect that you’re on a public or unsecured network and switch its VPN on automatically.

There is one important catch: the feature is opt-in.

You have to enable “Always use VPN on Public WiFi” in Opera’s settings under Settings > VPN. Once switched on, Opera handles the activation automatically when it detects a qualifying public Wi-Fi connection.

That small change could make a meaningful difference for people who regularly work from cafés, travel with their laptops, or simply jump between different Wi-Fi networks throughout the day. Public Wi-Fi has become much more common, but remembering to manually activate a VPN every time isn’t exactly the sort of thing that stays at the top of everyone’s mental checklist.

Opera is essentially trying to remove that friction.

The company’s built-in VPN is also unusual compared with many browser-based alternatives. Opera says its free VPN does not require an account, has no bandwidth limit, and is available without a subscription. The company says it has offered those characteristics since launching the feature in 2016.

Opera also says its VPN operates as a no-log service, with that policy independently audited by Deloitte in 2024. The company says its VPN security code was separately tested by cybersecurity firm Cure53 in 2022.

The VPN is part of Opera’s broader collection of built-in privacy features, which also includes its native ad blocker and tracker blocker. Opera says the goal is to provide privacy tools directly inside the browser rather than making users install additional software or sign up for separate services.

The automatic public Wi-Fi feature is particularly interesting because it changes the VPN from something you have to remember to use into something that can respond to the network you’re connecting to.

And honestly, that’s probably the more practical approach.

Nobody walks into a coffee shop thinking, “Ah yes, time to inspect my VPN status.” You’re usually thinking about finding an outlet, ordering something, opening your laptop, and getting work done. If the browser can recognize the situation and activate protection after you’ve opted in, there’s one less thing to remember.

Opera says the new feature is rolling out today in the U.S. and France, with more regions to follow. The company continues to position its free VPN as one of the distinguishing features of its browser, particularly because Opera doesn’t impose a monthly data allowance or require users to create an account to use it.

For anyone who spends a lot of time on public Wi-Fi, the update turns Opera’s VPN into a more set-it-and-forget-it privacy feature. You still have to make the initial choice to enable it, but after that, Opera can take care of the repetitive part.

That may not sound like a huge browser update. But when it comes to security features, removing the step people routinely forget can be more useful than adding another button nobody remembers to press.