NordVPN (5.4.0) will connect but not allow internet access. Downdetector comments indicates that it appears to be an issue with a kernel update. Any idea when this will get fixed?
Looks Like NordVPN has the action and will provide a fix in NordVPN 6.0.0.
1 Like
SAPien
October 12, 2026, 3:12pm
3
Hello and welcome to the forum,
opened 08:32PM - 11 Oct 26 UTC
Environment
OS: Linux Mint 22.3 Zena
systemd version: 255.4-1ubuntu8.17
NordVPN … version: 5.4.0
DNS resolver: systemd-resolved
VPN protocols tested: NordLynx
NordVPN firewall: enabled
Kill switch: disabled
DNS resolution stopped working on my Linux Mint system while connected to NordVPN. Websites fail to load in multiple browsers, although external IP addresses remain reachable. (Sorry if this issue structure is bad, this is my first time making one)
The issue occurs with Nordlynx, I have also tried OpenVPN but it gives the same error as with Nordlynx. I've also tried reinstalling NordVPN, switching VPN protocols, restarting my PC, and configuring custom DNS servers did not resolve the problem permanently. When running "resolvectl query google.com", the following error is returned:
google.com: resolve call failed:
DNSSEC validation failed: missing-key
System logs show similar DNSSEC validation errors for the DNS root (.), .com, google.com, spotify.com, and other domains. Here are the steps to reproduce this:
Connect to NordVPN.
Run resolvectl query google.com.
Observe that the query fails with a DNSSEC validation error.
Run dig @1.1.1.1 google.com to test DNS resolution directly against Cloudflare.
Compare the results of the two queries.
Direct DNS queries to Cloudflare using dig @1.1.1.1 google.com return normal public IP addresses, but resolvectl query google.com continues to fail with the same DNSSEC error. Websites cannot resolve domain names normally while the VPN is connected.
The expected behavior should be that the DNS resolution should work normally while NordVPN is connected, without requiring manual changes to DNSSEC settings. My other observations are that the NordVPN DNS servers (103.86.96.100 and 103.86.99.100) returned 192.0.0.88 when queried for google.com. I've also configured custom DNS servers to:
nordvpn set dns 1.1.1.1 1.0.0.1
NordVPN reported that the custom DNS configuration was applied successfully. However, resolvectl query google.com continued to fail with the same DNSSEC validation error. The VPN interface also reports the following DNSSEC status:
DNSSEC=allow-downgrade/supported
The temporary workaround I found is running the following command:
sudo resolvectl dnssec nordlynx no
This disables DNSSEC validation on the nordlynx interface. It is a temporary workaround rather than a permanent fix, and I have not established whether it applies to the OpenVPN interface.
Could this be related to how NordVPN configures DNSSEC on the VPN interface, or an incompatibility between NordVPN 5.4.0 and systemd-resolved? The behavior appears consistent with a DNSSEC validation problem, but I have not established the underlying cause. There's also similar issues like #1321 and #551.
(Linux Mint 22.3, like Zorin 18, is based on Ubuntu 24.04)
To check whether it is present on your system, run the following command:
journalctl -u systemd-resolved --since "1 hour ago" | grep -i dnssec
You should see errors such as DNSSEC validation failed: missing-key or incompatible-server
Also check the status of the interface:
resolvectl status nordlynx
You will probably see DNSSEC=allow-downgrade/supported which triggers the DNSSEC validation, which fails silently.
Restoring the kernel is unnecessary
Immediate solution
sudo resolvectl dnssec nordlynx off
This restores internet access straight away. It is a temporary fix.
Permanent solution
sudo resolvectl dnssec nordlynx allow-downgrade
I hope this helps
4 Likes
I ended up uninstalling then reinstalling NordVPN. That ended up working for me, at least for now.
