I got this message:

Type
Login blocked. Self-service unblock allowed.
Reason
Used an unauthorized WeChat plug-in, non-official app, or simulator

Anyone else had this?

Would a VPN app cause this?

It's possible in theory, but I would first check if there really is some WeChat related "plug-in, non-official app, or simulator" installed in your phone's WeChat.

It had to have been the VPN so be careful.

I deleted it on my phone.

Some VPNs have a smart mode that doesn't activate for local sites like WeChat

I put on my wechat a link to some stuff i had done, and could afterwards see who had went to check it from that wechat link, (through the page i had linked). And i have only 30 ppl, that i all know, on my wechat as friends. Two logs from pakistan went to the page i linked that same day. Really gets the imagination going.

I have had spam come up in Wechats, from another chat member. I think this is malware, using the other persons address book. Whatever, I would never follow a 'link' to a third party site to download a fix, as that is a common avenue for malware.

I'm careful but still don't know what happened. Oh well!

Someone asked a while back if foreigners could use WeChat to pay while outside China. I just tried and failed. The message disappeared very quickly but said something about due to policy etc. So looks like the answer is no.

What about Alipay?