How Can You Tell if a VPN is Safe to Use?
With more and more of our interactions and transactions taking place online, it’s only logical that many people would wish to take steps to protect themselves while doing so. VPNs offer a way to secure the connection between your device and another one online, which explains why they have become increasingly popular in recent years.
However, when choosing a VPN provider, it’s important to ascertain that the company in question and the product they offer is safe and secure to use. Otherwise, you run the risk of diverting all of your internet traffic through a corridor that actually makes you more exposed to cyber crime, thus completely defeating the purpose of the whole exercise. With that in mind, the page https://surfshark.com/blog/are-vpns-safe offers a handful of ways that you can make sure the VPN you favor is safe to use and fit for purpose – some of which are summarized for your convenience here.
Protocols
In tech terms, a protocol is a set of rules which govern how a piece of software will behave in action. When it comes to VPNs, the protocols involved determine how connections are established. Different providers employ different protocols, each of which carries different levels of security. Some examples of secure protocols include IKEv2 and OpenVPN, while PPTP and L2TP are unsecure protocols which should be avoided. If in doubt, simply search for reviews of the protocol in question to learn what tech experts are saying about it.
Log policy
Since you’re likely to funnel all of your online activity through a VPN, you want to be very careful about selecting one which won’t hang on to that data for its own gain. Indeed, it’s possible that the government of the country in which you reside can demand that a log of your online activity be handed over to them, which runs counter to the main purpose of using a VPN in the first place. As such, it’s imperative you choose a VPN provider with a no-log policy.
Price
Nothing in this world is free, right? Well, there is certainly no shortage of free VPN options available – but users should beware that the lack of a financial charge will come with a price in other areas. Namely, that concerns the security and privacy of the data that is being sent over it. Budget-conscious internet users might prefer to cut corners when it comes to shelling out for a VPN – but they may be made to paid for that stinginess further down the line.
2FA
Two-factor authentication – or 2FA for short – has become common practice for a number of software companies these days, especially in the world of finance, healthcare and government. As a means of corroborating that you are who you say you are by entering a separate piece of identifying information in addition to your log-in credentials, 2FA can help to further secure your VPN and ensure no unsavory types are able to access it.
While VPNs can be an excellent way to boost your security online, they’re only as safe as the provider behind them. Doing your homework to determine which features your chosen VPN carries can be instrumental in finding one that’s robust and reliable.