If Hotspot Shield isn’t working or has stopped working on your Firestick, the service you’re trying to watch has blocked Hotspot Shield’s IP addresses.
Don’t panic, there are several fixes you can try to resolve Hotspot Shield not working on Firestick.
If you want to know why this has happened and how you can prevent it from happening again, read on to the end of the article.
See also:
- Hotspot Shield not working with Netflix?: Here’s an EASY fix! (September 2023)
- Hotspot Shield not working with BBC iPlayer? There’s a SIMPLE fix! (September 2023)
Hotspot Shield not working on Firestick: Fixes
To fix Hotspot Shield not working on Firestick, try these fixes in order. If one doesn’t work, move on to the next one until you can use your Firestick with a VPN again.
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Clean your Firestick cache/data
Cleaning your cache is essentially the “turn it off and turn it on again” solution for your Firestick apps.
If Hotspot Shield has stopped working, the VPN app may have run into an error that can be fixed with a restart.
Cleaning your cache will restore Hotspot Shield to its default settings and this could fix the error that’s making the VPN not work on your Firestick.
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Change to a different protocol
VPNs use different protocols. These are a set of rules that the VPN follows when providing you with an anonymous internet connection.
Some of these protocols prioritise security while others prioritise speed.
Hotspot Shield might not be working on your Firestick because the protocol you’re using is no longer providing a secure anonymous connection.Try changing to a different protocol to fix Hotspot Shield not working on Firestick.
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Reinstall Hotspot Shield
While not the most technical or in-depth solution, if it works, it works.
Reinstalling Hotspot Shield will give you a fresh install of the app and any errors your current installation may have will be erased.
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Change to a different server
If Hotspot Shield has suddenly stopped working on your Firestick, the service you’re trying to watch has blocked the IP address Hotspot has given you.
Changing to a different server will give you a different IP address and if that one hasn’t been blocked, Hotspot Shield will work with your Firestick again.
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Upgrade to a better VPN
If you’ve made it this far then the service you’re trying to access has identified and blocked all the IP addresses Hotspot Shield can provide.
This has happened because the measures Hotspot Shield uses to stay ahead of IP blocks are no longer working.
Hotspot Shield will need to fix or implement measures to allow it to stay ahead of streaming service blocks, but this could take a long time and is expensive.The easiest and best way to fix this issue is to upgrade to a better VPN. We recommend ExpressVPN ($6.67/month). ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) has fast servers all over the world, and most importantly, it has measures in place that will stop all of its IP addresses from being blocked by streaming services.
When an IP address is blocked by a streaming service, ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) closes that IP address and opens a new one ensuring you can use the VPN on your Firestick consistently.
This will prevent you running into the same problems you’re coming across with your Hotspot Shield.
Why has Hotspot Shield stopped working on Firestick?
The reason Hotspot Shield has stopped working on your Firestick is because its IP addresses have been blocked by the service you’re trying to access.
To avoid copyright and licensing breaches, streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max and BBC iPlayer try to block VPNs from accessing their services.
Copyright and licensing breaches are a problem for streaming services because they’re usually met with substantial financial repercussions.
Because the use of VPNs could result in these breaches, streaming services block VPNs. Hotspot Shield isn’t working because it’s been blocked.
How do streaming services block Hotspot Shield?
Streaming services block Hotspot Shield by monitoring for an abnormal amount of connections coming from the same IP address provided by the VPN.
Hotspot Shield is a popular VPN. It has a lot of customers but it doesn’t have enough IP addresses to provide each customer with their own IP. This creates a problem where customers are forced to share IP addresses.
Normally, only 8-10 devices or a small household worth of devices will connect to a streaming service via the same IP address. Because Hotspot Shield forces its customers to share IPs, hundred or even thousands of devices now use the same IP and streaming services deem that as abnormal.
Once the IP address has been identified as abnormal it’s blocked and you’ll no longer be able to access the streaming service using that IP.
Over time streaming services are able to identify all of the IP addresses Hotspot Shield can provide. And this is why it’ll no longer work on your Firestick.
Do VPNs still work on Firestick?
The VPNs that still work on Firestick are the ones that have measures to get around these VPN blocks.
The best VPNs for Firestick are ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month).
When a streaming service blocks an IP address that has been provided by these VPNs, ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) or Private Internet Access ($2.03/month) will close that IP and open a new one. This will allow you to reliably use a VPN on your Firestick, and it ensures that you never run into the same issues you’ve come across using Hotspot Shield on your Firestick, again.
The best VPNs on Firestick
1. ExpressVPN 🥇
Why You Should Use ExpressVPN? It’s the fastest and MOST reliable VPN of 2023
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
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Get 3 extra months free when you sign up for a 12-month ExpressVPN plan. That’s 15 months in total for the price of 12.
Number of servers: 3,000+ | Speed: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 160 in 94 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $6.66/month for 15 months
- $9.99/month for 6 months
- $12.95/month for 1 month
ExpressVPN ($6.66/month) is still the best VPN. And importantly, it ALWAYS has servers that are open with major streaming sites such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, etc.
ExpressVPN is usually very good at playing Cat and Mouse with online streaming sites. Meaning, whenever one of its servers is blacklisted it creates a new one – giving its users a constant stream of servers that aren’t blocked. Needless to say, this is a valuable attribute if you’re looking for a VPN to unblock streaming sites.
Its app is easy-to-use and free to download on pretty much any device you can think of. Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, FireStick, Android TV, Roku, PS4, Xbox, Linux, even Apple TV (with a workaround). It’s got it all covered.
The app is another main reason this VPN is so good at unblocking TV streaming sites (that claim they block VPNs) is that its software takes a pragmatic approach to user management. While other VPNs tempt customers by promising them access to hundreds/thousands of servers in multiple countries, ExpressVPN does things differently.
With ExpressVPN you only have a handful of server locations to choose from. Once you select your location the app takes care of the rest. Assigning you to the fastest available server that’s not oversubscribed. This simple technique is so important, as it keeps ExpressVPN’s servers operating at lightning-fast speeds and prevents its IPs from getting blacklisted for “abnormal” usage in the first place.
Check out our full ExpressVPN review.
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(30-day money-back guarantee)
2. NordVPN 🥈
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ No logs
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 6-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ No refunds for purchases from iTunes/App store
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for a 3-year plan with Private Internet Access and save 83% + 3 months free. That works out at $2.03/month.
Number of servers: 5,000+ | Speeds: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 62 countries | Devices supported: 6 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $3.49/month for 2 years
- $6.99/month for 1 year
- $11.95/month for 1 month
NordVPN is the most widely-used VPN in the world. And it’s easy to see why. It’s a polished app that delivers fast connections (more on this later) to a massive network of VPN servers.
It’s the most reliable at unblocking popular streaming services too – US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. This is because NordVPN hired a full-time technical team (that’s responsible for monitoring its servers’ connections with popular TV streaming services) and has been aggressively investing in its network of IP addresses in key locations.
Another interesting thing to note is that NordVPN is an industry leader in its development of Nordlynx technology. Nordlynx is built using the WireGuard, a new VPN tunneling protocol designed to outperform current standards (OpenVPN and IPSec). The benefits, according to NordVPN, are dramatically faster transfer speeds while connected to a VPN. My tests – New Zealand to London – confirm that Nordlynx is currently the fastest VPN on the market. However, the difference isn’t dramatic, a few Mbps is all.
Read our NordVPN review.
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3. Private Internet Access
The BEST low-cost VPN for streaming!
Pros
- ✅ Fast and reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Only 48 server locations
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for a 3-year plan with Private Internet Access and save 83% + 3 months free. That works out at $2.03/month.
Number of servers: 25,000+ | Speed: >75% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 70 in 74 countries | Devices supported: 10 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $2.03/month for 3 years
- $7.50/month for 6 months
- $11.99/month for 1 month
Private Internet Access is one of the leading no-log VPN services with over 1-million paying customers.
This VPN is one of the best in the industry at beating streaming sites’ VPN bans. It provides reliable connections with US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney+ Amazon Prime Video, etc. It also allows 10 simultaneous devices to be connected to its servers at the same time, so you can share the account with your close friends.
If – for whatever reason – you’re not happy with Private Internet Access, there’s a 24/7 live chat support available to assist you with your problem. PIA also offers the industry-standard 30-day money-back guarantee.
From my tests (from New Zealand) I was able to get download speeds of 70 Mbps while connected to a UK server using the Private Internet Access VPN (my non-VPN speed is 100 Mbps).
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4. Ivacy
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ Dedicated streaming servers
- ✅ 5-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
Cons
- ❌ Only 5 devices
- ❌ Sometimes runs slow
- ❌ Occasionally block by streaming sites for several days
Special Offer for you!
Sign up for Ivacy and enjoy a 7-day trial with no strings attached
Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $1.16/month for 5 years
- $3.50/month for 1 year
- $9.99/month for 1 month
If you’re looking for an excellent VPN, with an even better price tag, Ivacy ($1.16/month) is a great option.
This VPN has all the features you need to stream BBC iPlayer, in HD, from any country in the world. I’ve been testing the app recently on Mac, PC, Android, iOS and FireStick and the results have been impressive – unlocking BBC iPlayer, US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. with ease.
The Ivacy app is a little different in regards to its UX (user experience). Instead of just selecting a UK server, you need to select the specific BBC iPlayer server. Don’t worry, this isn’t a bad thing – by connecting to a dedicated BBC iPlayer server, it simply means that you’re connecting to an IP address that Ivacy knows works with BBC iPlayer.
For an extra $1.99/month (£1.74) you can add-on a dedicated IP. This will buy you sole access to an IP address in a country of your choice, meaning you won’t have to share your IP (and speeds) with any other use. I don’t recommend this though, using the regular Ivacy servers is enough 95 per cent of the time.
Special Offer – 7-day FREE trial!
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5. CyberGhost
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ 1-day free trial
- ✅ Reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 7-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
- ❌ Average speed scores
SPECIAL OFFER – 1-DAY FREE TRIAL
Take advantage of CyberGhost’s 1-day FREE TRIAL!
Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $2.75/month for 3 years
- $3.69/month for 2 years
- $5.99/month for 1 year
- $12.99/month for 1 month
CyberGhost is one of the more established VPNs on the market. It has a well-established, and well-tested global network of servers that perform well.
From my tests over the past several months, CyberGhost has no trouble at unblocking major streaming services – US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max etc. This VPN performed well at maintaining download speeds, well above 65 per cent of my regular (non VPN) ISP speed.
That said, there’s nothing really unique about the service. Which forces you to look at its price-point. And there’s nothing special here. Its short-term $12.99/month price tag puts is well above the industry average of $10.10/month. Similarly, its long-term $2.75/month for 3 years deal isn’t much of a “deal” either.
Oddly, CyberGhost’s most unique feature is its a 1-day, no obligations, free trial. This is an appealing offer to customers who are new to VPNs. However, it’s important to remember that most reputable VPNs will offer customers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so try not to be too seduced by the offer.
SPECIAL OFFER – 1-DAY FREE TRIAL
(30-day money-back guarantee)
