Nowadays, almost anything can be done over the internet. From shopping and ordering takeout food to taking a cooking class and binging Netflix, everything can be done without having to leave the comfort of your home. With the emergence of Covid-19 and nearly people the whole world over having to stay home, the need to be able to communicate and work online has never been greater.
However, the internet is as dangerous a place as it is useful especially when we are using public wi-fi network or doing some financial transactions online. I certainly have had my share of email breach and financial scams and this is where having a VPN can really come in handy.
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
– J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
What is VPN and Why you need one
VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. It basically creates a secure, encrypted connection so you can browse the internet, shop and bank online, or work remotely from home while protecting your data and identity. It allows you to access the internet anonymously. Every time we surf the web or shop online, we expose our private information and browsing habits to our internet service provider and the sites we are visiting. With VPN, your Internet Protocol (IP) address is masked (routed through an encrypted tunnel) hence anonymity is attained. An IP address is a unique number assigned to your devices (such as smartphones, PCs and tablets) every time you connect to the internet. This IP address can reveal private informations such as your location and in combination with other information sourced from cookies, metadata and other trackers, the websites you visit can profile you with decent accuracy.
VPN makes it seem like you are surfing the internet from another place. For example, if you are in Japan and you connect to a VPN location in Singapore, you will appear to be in Singapore because a VPN will make it seem like you are in the same place as the server location (the visible IP address is the one coming out of Singapore).
Pros and Cons of VPN
The Pros
In addition to a more secure connection and anonymity, a VPN also enables you to bypass any geo-block restriction. If you happen to live in or visit a censorship-heavy country and need to access blocked websites, or maybe you subscribe to Netflix in your home country but wish to access the streaming giant’s movie database from another country, a VPN will enable you do all that.
The Cons
However, despite all those benefits, there are a few potential downsides from using a VPN such as: slower connection speed, unreliable connection and the emergence of Anti-VPN software. The process of encrypting your online activity might take a toll on your internet speed and connection and Anti-VPN software is obviously a retaliation against breaches on geo-restriction. Fortunately, the big boys in the VPN industry have also upped their game by adding more servers in various countries hence making it possible for you to connect to a server closest to your location and improve connection speed.
Which VPN service should you get ?
Today, there are a lot of choices of VPN services out there, including free ones. However, I would definitely not recommend to use those for a variety of reasons. Despite the fact that free VPNs still offer anonymity and bypass censorship (due to the nature of the technology), the potential risks are much higher. Free VPNs are free for a reason, they generate their revenue through other channels such as advertising and selling your private data to third parties. Based on a CSIRO study, 38% of free Android VPNs contain malware (source: CNET.com) Some VPNs even secretly place ad-serving trackers in your browsers which could stay permanently.
Paid VPN service is the way to go !
In conclusion, paid VPN service is the better way to go and the good news is prices of some of the top VPN services have become affordable. I personally use Express VPN and would highly recommend it to anybody looking for a dependable and trustworthy VPN solution.
I have used it together with my family for quite a few years now and have been satisfied with their connection speed and customer support. One important feature this company has implemented is the Network Lock kill switch which will keep your data safe in the event you experience connection drops by blocking all internet traffic until protection is restored. Using TrustedServer technology, the company’s VPN servers run only on volatile memory (RAM), not on hard drives and all software and data on a server is wiped every time it is powered off and on again.
My family of five do a lot of online activities and we have been able to use five devices simultaneously without any problem. From Laptops and Macs to iPhones and android phones, you can install an Express VPN app on each device easily.
Furthermore, Express VPN owns a huge network of VPN servers, over 3000 servers in 160 locations located in 94 different countries. This large selection of servers will enable you to select a location closest to you hence improving your speed of connection.
In a world where internet security has become a major concern and source of headaches for many people, a bonafide VPN provider would at least provide some comfort. A small price to pay for greater privacy and peace of mind.