It is safe to say that these days, nearly everything revolves around the internet. In fact, the internet has become an integral part of our life that we find it difficult not being connected online at some point on a single day. Whether we do it for work, social, news, entertainment, information, business, for purchasing, or for any stuff that requires the internet for that matter, we need to connect online to be able to do these properly.
There are many ways to connect to the internet – through your home connection, through your office connection, through mobile data, and through public Wi-Fi. However, you cannot always say that most of these connections are safe, especially on public Wi-Fi, since your browsing activity on non-HTTPS is visible to everyone nearby, if they know how to look. These days, the best way to safeguard your privacy and browsing history is through the use of a VPN or Virtual Private Network.
It is likely that you have already heard of VPN and you probably don’t use one. The truth is that if you are into security and would like to stay safe online, then you should probably be using one. After all, a VPN is the best way in securing anonymity online.
What Exactly is a VPN?
Well, a VPN extends a private network across a public network (the internet), and enables users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network. This means that when you connect your computer (or smart device) to a VPN, your computer acts like it is on the same local network as the VPN. The benefit of this is that you get to have a secure connection that guarantees all of your internet communication is encrypted and safe from prying eyes.
Adding such level of safety and security online is not that complicated. Once you have subscribed to a VPN service, connecting to it is relatively easy as most operating systems are equipped with creating a VPN connection. Some VPN providers even provide a client that does the configuration for you such as this very fast VPN that is available for all major operating systems.
Aside from the all-important security feature you can get when using a VPN, there are also other beneficial uses to using one. This will include:
- Accessing Geo-Blocked Websites – if you live in a country or travel to different countries that prevents you from accessing certain geo-blocked websites, using a VPN will allow you to access these location-restricted websites. Basically, by connecting your VPN through one of their exit location located within the country of these blocked websites, you will make their servers think you are accessing their website locally and thus allow you access.
- Anonymity – aside from hiding your browsing activity from your local network and ISP, using VPN will also help you stay anonymous, especially if you are downloading files via BitTorrent. In addition, if your ISP is throttling down BitTorrent and making your downloads extremely slow, using a VPN can help make your download speeds faster.
- Bypass Internet Censorship – if your country prevents you from accessing certain types of websites, such as that of China that blocks certain foreign websites, limiting access to information sources and other internet tools, the use of a VPN will enable you to bypass these regulations.
Other uses of VPN may involve specific user needs. However, it is important to keep in mind that not all VPNs are created equally, which is why you may need to choose one based on your particular needs. This may include the protocol used, logging, exit locations, data capacity, other features, and pricing.
The Internet surely has made a lot of things easier and convenient for us. However, this useful tool has also made it easier to gather private and sensitive information by knowledgeable individuals with malicious intent. Despite this threat on security, staying safe online is still an overlooked priority. Being vigilant is often not enough to protect ourselves. In order to safeguard your privacy and be able to stay safe online, subscribing to a VPN is potentially the best thing you can do to protect yourself whenever you use the Internet.
This was a good read! I agree with your point that a VPN helps you in securing data. I got to learn a lot about VPN by visiting Anonymistic, where you can find VPN guide for your operating system and device along with other informative blogs.