While this technology has surely made it a lot easier for us to remain anonymous, protect our online privacy and data. Unless you are completely sure about the virtual private network to subscribe to, it can become quite challenging to select the right VPN service for yourself.
But what exactly is a VPN? And why is it one of the most secure and effective methods to safeguard your online privacy, security, and data? In today’s article, we will try to answer these questions and a few more along the way.
Before going into all that, have you ever wondered why choosing the right VPN for yourself can be a real head-scratcher sometimes? There are tons of VPN services available in the market, and if you don’t know what you want to get for yourself, you can find yourself in a lot of confusion.
But don’t you worry, there are websites that rank the best VPN providers for various purposes so you can make the right choice for yourself. Take a quick look at the best VPN Providers listed by VPNRanks for more information.
With that outside of our way, let’s see what a VPN really is and why it is still one of the most secure ways to maintain ultimate privacy.
Virtual Private Network
A virtual private network or VPN is an online security tool that, once connected, masks your actual location, IP address, identity, and even internet traffic from anyone that could be potentially prying into those details.
When you establish a VPN connection, you are connected to a VPN service that utilizes military-grade AES-256-Bit encryption, private DNS, RAM servers, DNS/IPv6 leak protection, and several other security features to ensure your anonymity and privacy remains intact over the internet.
These encryption protocols ensure that your internet traffic data is scrambled so that the information isn’t read by anyone, even if the transmission is intercepted halfway through.
In today’s world, where everything we do, say, and see is available online, we need a tool to guarantee anonymity, privacy, and our online data protection.
A virtual private network is exactly what you need to remain on the radar when browsing the internet anywhere, especially public Wi-Fi hotspots.
If we set aside the security and privacy aspect for a moment, you’ll also see that a virtual private network can also be quite helpful for various other purposes.
This tool possesses the ability to allow you to bypass geo-restrictions that are implemented by streaming services. When your actual IP address is swapped with a VPN IP address, you can easily get access to geo-blocked content from other countries or regions.
A virtual private network is quite useful for purposes that require you to have low ping and lag such as online gaming. With its servers spread across various countries and cities, you can easily connect to any server and join your favorite online game server with the lowest ping results.
Obtaining Complete Privacy
Let’s look at a few of the things that, if not protected by the virtual private network, can easily expose your actual location, IP address, and identity to anyone.
1. Browsing History
Whatever you do and wherever you go on the internet, your ISP and internet browser can easily keep track of it. So make sure you never forget that.
Internet browsers can also record your search history and connect that information to your actual location and IP address.
Let us explain how dangerous this can be by giving you a simple example.
For a moment, let’s assume you have a medical condition and you are using the internet (without VPN) to find some information about a particular medicine, the medical procedure of looking for an appropriate doctor’s appointment.
What you just did right now is share that piece of information about yourself, and soon you will start receiving targeted advertisements concerning the same subject.
Also, it is a likely possibility that your internet service provider may sell your browsing information/history to various third-party advertisers.
To ensure that your internet browsing history is completely safe, secure, and private then start protecting it with a reliable virtual private network.
2. IPv4/IPv6 Address and Location
Your actual IP address is a key for finding out your browsing history and actual location. If revealed on the internet, it can lead anyone back to where you are sitting right now.
A virtual private network solves this problem. Since it assigns you a fake VPN server IP address, it allows you to remain anonymous and protect your online privacy on the internet.
With a virtual private network server IP address, your actual IP address, location, and identity will completely be hidden from anyone trying to pry on you.
3. Geo-Restrictions
Many video-on-demand streaming services have various geo-restrictions placed on their content. With a VPN, you can easily mask your actual IP address and bypass this restriction to get access to geo-blocked content.
On some occasions, your internet service provider can also throttle your connection if you use too much bandwidth due to streaming.
The VPN can also resolve this problem. After establishing a VPN connection, your internet service provider won’t determine what you are doing on the internet. Hence, you won’t fall victim to internet service provider throttling.
4. Identity Theft
Cybercriminals and hackers can sometimes impersonate you and commit various crimes by using your personal information. This is called identity theft.
A virtual private network can help you safeguard your personal information and data by transferring your internet traffic via a VPN tunnel. This tunnel is completely encrypted with the state-of-the-art encryption algorithm.
This protection is very much essential in case you are using a public Wi-Fi network. This is because cybercriminals and hackers usually use these networks to steal valuable information from different users on the network.
No technology is perfect today, but a virtual private network is currently the best bet against various cyber attacks. With its robust encryption and security features, you can have ultimate control over your internet privacy.
Kim Marks 
Nicola Holder