Virtual Private Networks (VPN) have become increasingly popular in recent years, as a raft of Internet issues become more obvious and prominent. VPNs were perhaps the preserve of more experienced and knowledgeable Internet users until recently, but large numbers of everyday people are now installing VPNs as well.
There are several reasons for this trend, so let’s examine some of the most important examples.
Increased Privacy
Probably the most obvious reason that people choose to install VPNs is in order to enhance their privacy while online. VPNs enable Internet surfers to mask their IP address and location, ensuring that both websites and hackers will be unable to identify you while you’re online. This provides peace of mind, ensuring that you can browse the worldwide web without any privacy concerns.
Enhanced Security
Hand-in-hand with the privacy aspect of VPNs is enhanced security. This is become ever more critical in a world in which cybercrime is rife. Cybercrime already became the second most prominent criminal offence worldwide in 2016, with Microsoft estimating the total value of cybercrime globally to be in excess of $500 billion per annum.
Clearly there are a huge amount of threats out there online, and while more conventional security measures can help protect you, they can also be considered somewhat insufficient. The potential for your data to be intercepted is always there while you’re surfing the ‘net, and this can be disastrous if you are targeted by a cyber criminal.
VPNs enact strong encryption on your data, meaning that it will be almost impossible to hack, and that anyone working on such nefarious activity is far more likely to target those unfortunate enough not to have VPNs anyway.
Advert and Tracking Blocking
It seems as if you’re constantly targeted by advertising and tracking online nowadays. Companies treat the data that you generate online as a valuable commodity, but if you’re not happy about being turned into a product while online then VPNs have the answer.
Modern Virtual Private Networks often feature built in tracker and ad-blockers, while also offering extra protection against viruses and malware. This means that you’ll see far less advertisements when you’re surfing the Internet, while it will also be much harder for companies to gather your data, in order to create targeted ads.
Geo Restrictions
There is nothing more annoying than finding a juicy website, and then finding out that you can’t access it due to your geographic location. This is particularly prominent on video sharing sites such as YouTube…yet the problem can be eliminated with great ease.
VPNs ensure that websites cannot identify geolocation, meaning that you can access anything and everything on the Internet at all times. Suddenly a world of content that would otherwise be behind virtual brick walls is made open and accessible for you, whenever you need it.
So these are just some of the major reasons that Internet users are opting for VPN setups as 2019 begins. Let us know which one is most important to you in the comments section.
