Over the past year, we have often heard words like 'privacy' and 'online safety'. Many tech corporations have been accused of collecting and selling user data, and the logical question is, what are smaller companies doing with our data? So far, few people can guarantee full transparency and security of the services provided, which means that the information of millions of unsuspecting users is under threat. Cybercrime is also developing at a rapid pace, and you involuntarily start looking for ways to protect yourself.
VPN has long ceased to be just a service for bypassing blocking
How to improve internet security
The more time we spend on the Internet and the more often we 'live' on the Internet, the higher the likelihood of becoming another victim. Cybercriminals are highly motivated and often outstripping technological progress. They steal everything – correspondence (to blackmail or pretend to be you), any personal data, and if possible, they take your bank cards with them, because now everything is online. You can live even without a physical card, but make only a virtual one.
Fraudsters often intercept bank card data
Therefore, there is nothing surprising in digital paranoia! The Internet is not only a treasure trove of incredible resources, but also a hotbed of crime. How do you protect yourself? There are actually many ways, but one of the simplest and most popular is a virtual private network or, as it is called for short, VPN.
We often review VPN services because we understand how useful they are. Whether you are looking for the best VPN for your smartphone or even a free VPN for your computer, VPN comes to the rescue in all life situations. These services replace your IP address with their own, which provides additional protection by hiding your location and identity.
Why you need a VPN
Public Wi-Fi
The simplest example is that you are not at home and want to connect to local Wi-Fi – in a cafe, hotel, or just at a conference. Anyone can create such a network, and what you think of as 'official' public Wi-Fi can actually be a fake network that attacks devices with malware. However, if you use a VPN, you can safely connect to public Wi-Fi. For example, the Surfshark application uses an encryption algorithm with 256-bit AES keys. This is especially important when using public Wi-Fi hotspots in airports, subways, cafes and restaurants and other similar places.
Protect yourself from surveillance
There are organizations that have formal (or informal) authority to access your data. Whether they use their tools to sell your data to advertisers or scan mail, in fact you are being followed every time you go online. They are 'catching up' with endless advertising and so on. Turn on your VPN for an extra layer of protection from prying eyes.
VPN makes it much more difficult for attackers to gain access to your files
Watch Netflix and other services from Russia
But a VPN isn't just about security. Such networks allow viewing content that is not available to Russian users for geographic reasons. For example, include the latest TV shows on Netflix from the US. A VPN offers an IP address that masks your location and allows you to bypass geo-blocking. This allows you to easily register with the desired service as if 'domestically' and view the desired content without any problems.
Many Netflix TV shows are only available from the US
These are just some of the reasons for using a VPN, and there are many services on the market that offer speed, privacy, security, and the features you need. As we can see, in 2020, virtual private networks are no longer some kind of whim, but a necessity.