Privacy on the Internet is slowly deteriorating, and we are left to rely on special tools to protect it at all costs.
One of the most popular tools available on the market today is a virtual private network.
If you’ve already heard something about VPNs, you might be wondering, “Why is this tool so widely used?" "What does a VPN hide?"
In this article, we are going to answer your questions by listing 9 amazing things that a VPN can hide.
So, keep reading.
1. VPN Hides Your Internet Traffic
A word VPN might someday become a synonym to “encryption” as most people go for a paid VPN service for this very purpose.
Indeed, what the latest VPN technologies excel at is the encryption of your Internet traffic.
But how is this achieved?
Simply.
A VPN creates a safe virtual tunnel that encapsulates and ciphers all information passing through it: just a couple of clicks, and you can rest assured that all your data is hidden from hackers, ISPs, and other prying eyes.
Currently, there exists a variety of VPN encryption standards, the most reliable being AES-256.
2. VPN Hides Your Geolocation
VPNs offer you access to an extensive network of remote VPN servers scattered all around the world.
By connecting to one of these servers, you can easily hide your real IP address and watch geo-censored content, visit government-restricted websites, and much more.
In 99% of the cases, your physical location won’t matter unless you live in a heavily restricted state like China.
Luckily, services like SwitchVPN work there as well.
3. VPN Hides Your Search History
Some people believe that no one except themselves can view their search history.
Unfortunately, that’s not true.
Сybercriminals, ISPs, marketers, and even your WiFi owner can see your browsing history.
What is worse, in countries like the USA, ISPs are permitted to sell your browsing history by law.
And though you can’t change your country’s laws alone, you can always use a virtual private network to hide your browsing history from your Internet Service Provider or those who want to spy on you.
4. VPN Hides Your P2P Traffic
P2P file-sharing networks are quite a controversial thing.
For example, in countries like Switzerland, P2P networks are deemed to be legal.
In others, they are severely prohibited.
Now, if we think carefully about this, P2P networks aren’t really illegal, but piracy is.
Unfortunately, there is no way to tell whether you use them to share legally obtained content or the one you got by violating copyright laws.
And, given that ISPs can see and trace back all the traffic that goes through such networks, you always put yourself at risk of getting into some serious legal troubles.
So if you actively share files on a P2P network, it’s better to subscribe for a paid VPN service complying with the best industry standards.
This way, you’ll be able to share files in complete privacy without worrying about privacy issues.
5. VPN Hides Your Social Media Identity
Most people love to socialize.
Sometimes more on the Internet than in real life.
Social media, blogs, forums — these networks are all out there to make communication even more engaging.
But often Internet users forget about two important things:
- Social networks are not the best place to start throwing your opinions around;
- A fancy nickname guarantees you little to no anonymity.
Of course, we all have something to say, but in some cases, our words and actions can cost us too much.
Facts speak for themselves.
For instance, the European press once reported that in Russia, a 23-year old woman was sentenced to 6 years in jail for reposting memes.
This may be a bit funny, but in reality, all of us can get into a similar situation, no matter what country we reside in.
What we need to remember is that social networks aren’t safe, and all our information, including our location, can be tracked and passed to third parties or local authorities.
Therefore, we always encourage you to mask your online identity by using a VPN.
6. VPN Hides Your Online Spending Habits
Online spending habits tell lots about us and our personal lives.
They also constitute a practical way for marketers to pitch us specific product offerings.
By connecting to a virtual private network, you can prevent marketers from tracking your IP address and bothering you with their “special” deals.
7. VPN Hides Your Online Activities On A Mobile Phone
In recent years, the number of people accessing the Internet on smartphones has grown so much that even Google started changing its algorithms to serve mobile surfers better.
Yet, the Internet itself hasn’t become a safer place.
Those who browse websites on a smartphone are still exposed to the same online privacy and security risks as people using desktop devices.
That means that snoopers are still able to see your IP address, online activities, and other private information that you’d rather keep to yourself.
Fortunately, mobile VPNs are just as good as their desktop versions, so you can use them to your advantage.
8. VPN Hides Your Activities On Office WiFi
Free office WiFi is a temptation no worker can resist.
Because why not watch some Youtube videos or chat on Facebook in a spare minute?
But what you probably don’t know is that your boss can see exactly how many hours you spend on side activities.
While we aren’t going to judge if web surfing at work is a good or a bad thing, you can certainly avoid being monitored by using a VPN on your device.
9. VPN Hides Unwanted Ads
When was the last time when your screen wasn’t bombarded with ads?
We can’t recall either.
But here is a way to get rid of unwanted advertisements.
Use a VPN while you’re visiting a shopping website to stop marketers from showing you banners everywhere on the web.
A VPN will hide your IP address, preventing marketers from discovering your online identity and shopping habits.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, a VPN can hide many things, from your online identity and geolocation to your browsing history and sensitive data.
If you take privacy and security on the web as seriously as you should, a reliable VPN will definitely find its place in your arsenal of must-have tools.
