You shouldn’t believe everything that you hear. Sometimes, the truth may seem a little outrageous and unreal, especially when it comes to our privacy and security on the Web. If you haven’t heard, our online privacy is not safe. Whenever you connect to the Internet, your traffic starts getting tracked and recorded, making it easy for your online identity to be hacked or scammed. Scary, huh?
Fortunately, there is a way for us to protect our online identity. But how? Thanks to a service called Virtual Private Network or VPN. Because there are a lot of misconceptions about VPNs, what’s true and what’s a VPN myth, we are going to get to the bottom of it all. Read along as we uncover some of the most common VPN myths.
Before we get started, let’s dive into VPNs: VPN is something we all should know. Though it has been around for quite some time, it’s increasingly becoming a popular technology because of its beneficial factors, such as allowing any computer to connect securely to private and public networks. So for instance, if you are connected to a VPN provider in Los Angeles, it will appear as you are in New York or London or a number of gateway cities.
Anyone has the capability to use a Virtual Private Network. However, it is most commonly used by corporations to protect sensitive data. The security that VPN provides is the main reason why corporations have been using VPNs for years. Especially when it comes to protecting yourself from hackers and identity thieves.
So why would anyone not want to use VPN? There are many people who believe the horror stories of VPN. Those who do are uninformed and are missing out on good benefits.
Below is a list of VPN myths that are simply not true, and here’s why:
1) VPN Myth 1: VPNs are illegal
There’s a huge misunderstanding about VPNs that if you get caught using one, you’ll end up in big trouble.
Although, there are a few shady people out there who probably use VPNs for illegal purposes, the use of a VPN by itself is not illegal.
VPNs are used for businesses and individuals to allow them to transfer sensitive data securely. For instance, if you are conducting online banking using a public wifi network, you might want to rethink your options because connecting to VPN makes for good use here.
As long as you’re not using a VPN for criminal purposes, using it is perfectly legal and safe.
2) VPN Myth 2: VPNs are used only by privacy freaks
Yes, that could be true, but also very false. While some countries (China, etc.) censor the Internet, there are times like identity fraud you should be worried about generally.
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You could take other actions to protect your privacy and identity online, VPN might be the fastest and most inexpensive option out there. Think about it.
3) VPN Myth 3: VPNs slow down your Internet connection
Because when you connect to a VPN provider and it gives someone the impression you are elsewhere, it may appear that your Internet connection slows down significantly, but that’s not entirely true.
Depending on the speed of your connection to the Internet, and the location of the server to which it’s connecting can make a difference. That is why when you choose a VPN provider, it’s essential you choose one with well-maintained servers in a variety of locations, this way you are guaranteed a better connection.
4) VPN Myth 4: Free VPNs are just as good as the paid version
Which brings us to this myth. They say, “you get what you pay for,” and they are right. If you want a great connection, do not choose free overpaid.
The word “free” might seem appealing at first, but think again; free VPN providers have to get paid somehow — right? There are a number of ways free VPNs can make money at your expense:
- Selling your information: VPNs that are free admit to selling the information of their users to advertisers.
- Showing ads: This is another way for advertisers to get your information.
- It’s not all free: The company usually offers you a free trial for x amount of days. And then they trick you into buying the full product when the trial expires. Watch out for these, read all the terms and conditions before making your move.
While free is nice, you shouldn’t consider it when choosing a VPN server. Besides losing your privacy beats the whole purpose of using a VPN service.
5) VPN Myth 5: All VPNs are the same
All VPN providers may seem like they could be all alike but guess again. There are so many VPN servers and if you take a closer look, each and every one of them offers customers a wide range of different services.
Here are some things you should look out for when selecting your VPN:
- User Experience: Sadly, not all VPN servers are easy to install nor are they user-friendly. Make sure you do your research on this one and take a look at what needs to be done before committing to one.
- Customer Service: Look to see if the VPN has customer support available. The better services will invest in customer service, which is what is important if you want to get your problem fixed quickly while remaining a happy customer.
- Simultaneous Connections: If you plan on using a VPN for the whole family, it’s essential to pay attention to this feature. This part refers to the number of devices that can be connected to the VPN server at one time. If you don’t, you might end up having to pay for extra connections once you reach a specific number, which is not something you want.
- Connection Protocols: Most people don’t realize there are different levels of encryption. Some will offer weaker encryption while others offer higher encryptions.
Are there any other myths about VPNs you have heard about? Hope the above list was helpful and has made you rethink your thoughts about which VPN service you should choose.