Most of us have heard somewhere or from someone about a VPN, but we don’t know enough about it. How does it work or why do we need it, is completely unfamiliar to us. But let me tell you, you need it.
What is a VPN?
VPN or a Virtual Private Network is a connection method which adds an extra layer of privacy and security while browsing the internet on a public network such as WiFi hotspots. Even when you are connected to the internet on a private network, it is advised to use a VPN to protect your private data and save yourself from being tracked online.
A VPN increases your privacy by replacing your initial IP address with a new one provided by it. Every VPN allows you to choose an IP address from several countries. Just select a city, and now you’re live from that city.
VPNs are used by almost every corporation to protect their sensitive data. But, VPNs are becoming more and more popular among the general public every day. People are already aware of the online privacy situation of our country. And with more power given to the ISPs, it is very important to invest in a good VPN to save yourself from being tracked.
Advantages of a VPN
Along with hiding your IP address, a VPN can do a lot of things to help keep your data safe. Here are they:
- Hide and Change IP Address
Hiding your IP address has many advantages. One of the many perks of it is you will be able to browse any website anonymously. Especially when accessing the internet over a public WiFi, there is always a threat of being tracked and/or getting hacked by a hacker. Changing your IP address saves you from it.
- Encrypted Data Transfer
While downloading any file over private or public WiFi, it is very important to use a VPN. While your ISP can keep an eye on a private network, the public WiFi’s are always lurked by hackers. They can go through your data anytime. VPN encrypts whatever data you transfer through it, and no one can look into it other than you.
- Access to Blocked Websites
Switching your location can have many advantages. You can access websites which are not available to your IP addresses geolocation. At a time, thousands of websites are blocked by our government. Even Netflix blocks some content from you because certain shows and movies aren’t allowed to be shown in your country. You can unblock Netflix using a VPN and watch any show/movie on it bypassing the geolocation-based restrictions. Visit any website using a VPN.
- Hide Internet Activity
The most important one, hiding your online activity. Your ISP (internet service provider) can see every website you visit on the internet. Every click of yours is being tracked by them. Surely, there isn’t a person sitting on the other side watching your every move. But, they do collect anonymous browsing data. And these browsing logs are then sold to advertising companies. With this data, the advertising companies create content to target people of certain regions according to their browsing habits.
There are several VPNs available on the internet. Some of them are free to use but not so secure, while the paid ones offer better security. The paid ones offer free software, robust gateways, proven security and unlimited speeds. Look for the best VPN which suits your needs.