Over the last couple of years, the prevalence of hackers intruding on internet users’ privacy has dramatically increased. From celebrities to presidential candidates to regular households, few individuals have not had their privacy intruded on in the last few years. Since most computer users transfer highly important personal data with general internet use, using a VPN to safeguard personal data has become key to maintaining internet privacy.
VPN helps maintain internet privacy by creating a private and controlled network between the user and the rest of the internet. The connection between the user and the internet is encrypted instead of unencrypted as it would be if the user only connects to the internet through an ISP. The user also appears to be located where the VPN server is located instead of the user’s actual location.
Anyone trying to eavesdrop on the connection should only see a repeated connection between the user and the VPN and not be able to determine what information is contained in the traffic. Most VPN’s do not keep logs of internet traffic unlike an ISP, so determining internet usage of a user would usually be very difficult.
In order to use a VPN, the user will first need to be connected to the internet. The user will need to select a VPN service and generally obtain a username and a password. There are both paid and free services. There are a lot more features with paid services, and also many of the free services limit bandwidth and usage. If a user selects a paid service, it is a good idea to pay through a more private method such as Bitcoin. Once you have selected a VPN, many of the VPN companies offer a downloadable program to connect to their VPN. Downloading a program can create other security risks, so there are other ways to connect without software such as L2TP or PPTP. Many companies will provide instructions on how to connect to their particular network.
Many VPN companies also provide the ability to connect to a network through a mobile phone; generally, VPN companies will provide additional instructions on how to connect a mobile phone to the internet through a VPN. VPN companies generally offer the ability to connect by mobile phone through either an app or through a non-downloadable connection method such L2TP or PPTP.
There are some uses of the internet that can make a user of particular interest to eavesdrop. If a user is using any sort of torrent system be it for legitimate or illegitimate purposes, the user should be very careful to use a VPN. If a user is interested in learning more about torrents, here is one of the best places where to find torrents in 2017 If a user plans to reach any controversial website, using a VPN is an excellent idea. One additional recommendation is to research the VPN company selected for use to make sure the VPN company respects internet privacy.