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The Internet is an indispensable part of modern life, but with it comes convenience Security risks From external actors who want to track your every online move.
You may have heard that A Virtual private network It is one way to protect against these risks, but many Internet users do not fully understand the consequences of not using it. according to Recent CNET pollless than half of Americans report that they use a VPN.
But spending time online without a VPN leaves your digital life vulnerable to countless forms of digital hacking. “It’s no different than driving a car without a seat belt,” especially if you use a lot of public Wi-Fi, he says Fred Kwongvice president and chief information security officer at DeVry University.
“[A]VPN is just a great way to help you have better cyber hygiene,” Kwong says.
Here’s what you need to know about the risks of not using a VPN, and why you might want to start.
Your Internet provider may be snooping on your activity
Believe it or not, the company that provides you Internet service may be Collect a good amount of data upon you.
“This is honestly a big problem right now,” he says. Marius BridisChief Technology Officer at NordVPN.
Your ISP may track your location, the dates and times you connect to the Internet, and even the websites you visit. VPNs route your activity through an encrypted tunnel so that no one, not even your ISP, can see what you’re doing while you’re online. Some ISPs also hand this information over to governments or sell it to third parties, Bridis says.
ISPs could also be subpoenaed in court to hand over this data, which could pose a privacy risk, Kwong says.
Security risks on public networks
VPNs can provide an extra layer of protection to your public Wi-Fi browsing experience.
Cybercriminals – or “threat actors” – can break into your connection on an unsecured public network and Collect that data Or even pose as a fake public network for the express purpose of stealing your data, Kwong says.
However, he said the risk of hackers stealing passwords and credit card numbers on public Wi-Fi networks is less prevalent now due to the widespread use of HTTPS to secure sites that handle sensitive information. Attila TomashekCNET’s resident VPN expert. Although the risk of fake public networks or “evil twin hotspots” is real, a VPN won’t protect you from sending data directly to cybercriminals, Tomaszyk said. If you’re redirected to a phishing site and enter your personal information, for example, a VPN won’t be able to protect you here. However, a VPN can keep the websites and services you use hidden from anyone trying to snoop on your online activity.
Primary interest with Public Wi-Fi service Network administrators or ISPs may track your browsing activity and sell your data to third parties, Tomaszyk says.
Geographic and content restrictions
You may have noticed that you can no longer access certain online content when traveling to other states or countries. These geographic restrictions are based on your IP address, which contains information about your general location, and which websites use to determine what content you can access.
Browsing the web without a VPN in certain regions may expose you to government-imposed restrictions on online content and social media platforms. Although these content restrictions are a big problem in many countries, they are not an issue in the United States – currently. What most Americans care about are geographic restrictions on streaming, usually dictated by regional copyright laws and licensing agreements between studios and streaming services.
A VPN can circumvent this by bouncing your web traffic off a server in a different location. But Kwong says that’s not always the case. “In theory, that’s true, but a lot of content providers are also smart enough to know that you’re using some kind of VPN service and may block the content anyway,” he says.
It’s an ongoing battle between VPNs and streaming services, Tomaszyk says. Streaming services try to block IP addresses that they know belong to VPNs, and VPNs are constantly obtaining new IP addresses to circumvent these blocks.
That’s why, at CNET, we make sure we get tested Unblock geo-blocking capabilities for Every VPN we review So we get a good idea of which ones are doing this consistently across sites and services. ExpressVPNFor example, it has proven to be one of Best for streaming.
We recommend checking your streaming service’s terms of service agreement to make sure you’re not violating it by using a VPN.
Online tracking and profiling
When you see targeted ads online, it’s the result of various tracking technologies that help advertisers identify you. This information remains unless you request its removal or opt-in Data removal services To clean it for you.
When you’re not using a VPN, these advertisers can see your IP address (and therefore general location), which may result in you seeing certain ads or prices online.
Using a VPN can prevent some of this information from being collected, but not all of it, Bridis says. Advertisers also use tools like cookies or JavaScript, which a VPN cannot protect you from.
But if you suspect that your flight or hotel prices might be cheaper from a different country, you can use a VPN to “trick” online retailers into thinking you’re buying from somewhere else.
Tomaszyk says in his experience testing this theory, he hasn’t been able to find significant price differences when trying to use a VPN for price hacking. “That doesn’t mean it can’t be done. I haven’t had much success in my limited, anecdotal testing of it,” he said. “You may need to be persistent in your efforts to find deals this way.”
Bottom line
Ultimately, not using a VPN exposes you to a range of threats, from invasion of privacy and targeted advertising to serious security vulnerabilities.
the Best VPN services Cost of money. But Kwong sees it as a worthwhile investment in cyber hygiene and the security of your most sensitive information.
Our VPN experts have found that most free VPNs pose risks, including weak encryption, data collection, and malware, as well as crowded servers and bandwidth limitations. only Free VPN We currently recommend the free tier they offer Proton VPN. It offers the same basic privacy protections as the Premium plan, without bandwidth or usage limits; However, the trade-off is fewer servers and concurrent connections.
Ultimately, VPNs give you an essential extra layer of privacy by encrypting your internet traffic and masking your IP address, giving you more control over your online experience. However, it is just one piece of a larger one Cyber security puzzlewhich should also include services such as Antivirus and Password managers.