A VPN (Virtual Private Network) creates a private, encrypted tunnel between your PC, tablet, or phone and an endpoint.
For example, let’s say you’re staying in a hotel in Anaheim, California, USA. You connect to the hotel’s wifi, and then connect to a VPN in Los Angeles. Once connected, all traffic between your device and the VPN is encrypted. This has numerous benefits:
- Any weaknesses in wifi security are handled because you’re only transmitting already encrypted data over the network.
- Your IP is hidden.
- Your ISP can’t spy on what you’re doing, throttle your traffic based on what you’re doing, etc.
- If you want to appear as if you are in Los Angeles, this is one way to do it because you’ll appear to have the VPN’s IP.
- Some VPNs have integrated ad blocking, malicious site blocking, etc.
- If you live in a country more prone to, shall we say, proactive investigation, you may find the privacy benefits of avoiding Big Brother helpful. Then again, if you’re using a VPN, it will be obvious so they may just come with a rubber hose.
Owner at LowEndBox
I'm Jon Biloh and I own LowEndBox and LowEndTalk. I've spent my nearly 20 year career in IT building companies and now I'm excited to focus on building and enhancing the community at LowEndBox and LowEndTalk.
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Because you are only sending data that has already been encrypted over the network, any vulnerabilities in the wifi security are effectively eliminated.