Keenetic

MAX Desktop Client Tested for VPN Detection on Windows, No Tracking Signs Found

A Habra user named Slava_B conducted an experiment on September 8, 2026, to determine whether the MAX desktop client on Windows could detect or route traffic through a VPN configured at the router level. The setup used a Keenetic router that directed Russian resources directly while sending other connections via an OpenConnect tunnel to a European VPS, with no VPN client or virtual adapter present in Windows itself. Monitoring tools including Process Monitor, Wireshark, TCPView, and tcpdump revealed that MAX.exe and MAX-service.exe processes communicate locally and connect to MAX/ONEME infrastructure along with AppTracer services. The application repeatedly accessed MachineGuid, computer name, proxy settings, device IDs, and microphone/camera information, though these reads may support diagnostics and anti-fraud functions. No connections appeared on the VPN interface, and the client did not attempt to reach IP-checking services, Telegram, or WhatsApp. The researcher noted that TLS traffic was not decrypted, so actual transmission of identifiers could not be confirmed, and results apply only to this router-based configuration.