When faced with the term VPN, most people will have absolutely no idea what the heck it is. VPNs are often encountered in the corporate world since employees use it to connect to their corporate LAN. However, they have more uses for the average Joe than we suspect. Surprisingly enough, this service is readily available and it doesn’t cost too much either.
So what does having a secure VPN connection mean anyway? Imagine the VPN company that provided you with your connection is somewhere in New York, and you are located elsewhere. While connected to VPN, everything you do will be transmitted through the VPN Company in New York. In light of this, everything that travels from New York to your computer is encrypted.
Now that we have an idea of what VPN is, how can it be useful for everyone? Apparently, there are many tricks one can do in order to take advantage of the secure network known as a VPN. For starters, here are a few:
It is a nearly common knowledge that the connections provided by hotels and public locations are not secure at all. Because of this, some people opt to utilize the wired internet connection offered by some hotels as a workaround internet source while traveling. However, these wired connections are not secure either, in fact, the privacy risks involved when connecting to either one is nearly the same.
When connecting to a public Wi-Fi connection, you are at risk of being spied on, literally. People with enough skill in reconfiguring networks can easily take advantage of your risky connection and watch everything you do online.
There are several ways to counter these online predators who prey on unsuspecting average Joes who just want to use public Wi-Fi. One tedious way to do it is to reconfigure and encrypt Web browsing while protecting e-mails is another story.
Fortunately, users can opt for a Virtual Private Network in order to encrypt everything you do online. Doing so will allow you to confidently connect to a public Wi-Fi network and surf freely, knowing that whoever dares to spy on your activity will only get a handful of encrypted data.
Another way to utilize the availability of VPN connections is to protect oneself from censorship and surveillance. Although most US citizens enjoy nearly complete internet freedom, the same cannot be said for other countries.
China, the Middle East, and Russia all strap a pair of virtual shackles on their internet using citizens. The Great Firewall of China, for instance, has the strongest web censorship program heavily limiting internet freedom in the country.
Fortunately, VPN has the power to counter nearly any means of internet censorship including IP address blocking, URL filtering, and DNS filtering. All this is made possible because having a VPN connection allows the user to browse the internet with an IP address that doesn’t belong to your computer. VPN grants the user the ability to adopt a different identity and to mask their true geographic location.
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Many tech-savvy users look to VPN connections in order to download legal files via torrent programs like BitTorrent. While downloading torrents without using a VPN, your ISP can cause the torrent download to be unbearably slow. Luckily, users can set up a VPN connection in order to improve downloading speeds.
Some travelers may have already accepted their fate once they leave the safeties of their home, particularly all the goodies that come with their home connection. Traveling often means farewell to the availability of streaming television, games, video feeds and whatnot.
Fortunately, the VPN tunnel connection can allow the user to access everything as if they were in their home country. One VPN app we can recommend is Rocket VPN, available on Android and iOS. Free to test, Rocket VPN will allow you to watch your favorite shows if they have a geographic restriction in the place you are traveling to.
Must Read: Best Affordable and Fastest VPN Providers for Windows Users
If you are aware that you may be sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong, it is best to use a VPN connection to protect yourself. For instance, you are researching on sensitive topics like human or drug trafficking, turning your computer into an untraceable device is definitely in your best interest.
Having a sense of security and confidence while browsing to your heart’s content is a norm some take for granted. Fortunately, VPN connections can protect netizens from being tracked, spied on, and provide conveniences to those who are traveling. It goes to show that signing up for a VPN connection is one of the first steps to make internet browsing safe again.
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Great information for iOS developers.