What is a VPN?
VPN stands for ‘virtual private networking’, which is a popular internet security method. The latter involves technologies that aim to add a layer of security to both private and public networks. These include broadband and internet hotspots.
A VPN (virtual private network) is therefore a secure and private solution within the wider internet itself that allows users – whether they are individuals, or part of an organisation, or business – to send and receive data while maintaining the secrecy of a private network.
That means you could use one to create a secure "tunnel" into your company network to enjoy access to private internal systems, but also means you could browse in complete privacy online and access content you might otherwise not be able to get such as Netflix or BBC iPlayer.
All the traffic that passes through your VPN connection is secure and cannot, in theory, be intercepted by anyone else, making it the safest mainstream way to browse the web privately (but not always anonymously).
Just bear in mind though that VPN setups are only as secure as the weakest link in the entire chain. So if your device has already been compromised with malware already, using a VPN won't save you from being spied upon, although a good antivirus could.
How do VPNs work?
A VPN is designed to make using the internet safer, more private and more convenient, and it does that by creating a secure connection between you and the site or service you want to access. All traffic between you and the site or service is encrypted, so it’s meaningless to anyone else.
To make this happen, a VPN takes your internet traffic and reroutes it through its own servers – so instead of going like this:
Your device —> The website
And back again like this:
The website —> Your device
It goes like this:
Your device —> Secure VPN servers —> The website
And back again like this:
The website —> Secure VPN servers —> Your device
That doesn’t just improve security - although that’s the main reason for doing it - it also disguises where you are. Your computer, smartphone, tablet or games console might be in London, but as far as the website is concerned you could be connecting from New York, or from Mumbai, or from Naples.
That means VPNs can also protect your privacy and get round “geo-blocking”, which is when a site uses your location information to decide whether or not it’s going to let you see or hear something.
Why do I need a VPN?
There are lots of reasons why you might need a VPN. One of the most important ones is data security, especially when you’re out and about. How often have you connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot somewhere public, such as in a bus terminal, train station, café or airport? Wi-Fi hotspots aren’t particularly secure things, but with a VPN you can be confident that nobody’s eavesdropping when you do your online banking or send the boss your top secret world domination plans.
A VPN protects you from fake hotspots, which are convincing-looking Wi-Fi hotspots designed to steal people’s data and/or personal information. Even if you connect, your data can’t be intercepted.
VPNs can also protect your privacy by disguising your location. For some of us that means it prevents those ubiquitous trackers from following us around the internet, and it enables us to get past geoblocking when we travel – handy if you want to catch up on that box set but aren’t in the same country as your subscription. But for others it’s life-saving, because it evades censorship and government monitoring of communications. A VPN makes it much harder to identify the source of an upload, or what websites a person might have visited.
VPN services: what can I use them for?
If there’s one worry when it comes to using technology and the internet, it’s privacy. By using a VPN, you can, in theory, prevent your internet service provider (ISP) and government from seeing your internet history.
VPNs have also emerged as a popular tool in the freedom of speech movement. You’re able to avoid censorship within organisations (check out our best Kashmir VPN page, for more information on that) and from third-parties. For example, if you have a view that goes against the priorities of your employer, you don’t have to worry about them finding out.
People also use VPN technology to “geo-spoof” their location. This results in users customising their location settings to be able to use overseas services. A great example of this is watching a TV programme or online product that’s only available in a specific country, perhaps due to legal or licensing issues - that's why using a VPN for Netflix has become so popular.
You can resort to a VPN to protect yourself from hackers too. If you’re outside and sign up to use a public internet hotspot - perhaps in a cafe or library - there is the chance someone could try to break into your device. This can lead to you losing valuable data, such as passwords.
This technology is also emerging as a popular force in the world of business. When you’re traveling around for meetings all the time, it’s normal to connect to third-party networks. With a VPN, you can access your firm’s intranet without the worry of being targeted by cyber criminals.
Many VPN services - there are about 400 of them on mobile and desktop - offer different pros and cons, so if you're looking to access Hulu or BBC iPlayer from a different region, dial into your office network or simply stay safe and secure online, you'll find a service tailored precisely to your needs.
Furthermore, a VPN can be used to avoid having your internet connection throttled, and that’s certainly relevant at the moment given what Verizon is up to over in the States. According to reports, the ISP has capped Netflix streaming at 10Mbps, and also throttled video on its unlimited plans meaning that smartphone viewers can’t achieve a better quality than 480p.
It’s also interesting to note that while phishing remains a major danger online, a VPN can help protect you against malware or con tricks when web browsing.
Free vs. paid VPN: Which is truly better?
Some companies now offer a basic service that won't cost you anything at all. Are the free VPN services as good as their paid-for counterparts then? Not so fast.
As you'd expect, there are catches, and they typically start with a data cap. Avira Phantom VPN's free plan limits you to 500MB a month, PrivateTunnel offers 2GB, whereas ZPN has a generous 10GB allowance - not bad at all.
Free products also typically have usage restrictions. Most companies don't want you to soak up all their bandwidth on torrents, so ZPN is typical in blocking P2P.
Hide.me's 2GB free plan also has some common limits. There's "best effort" bandwidth, which means paying customers have speed priority and you get what's left. And the choice of locations is limited to three: Canada, Netherlands and Singapore.
Hola's free-for-personal-use plan doesn't have the same kind of restrictions, but even here there's a catch. The service routes traffic through its free users rather than dedicated servers, so signing up allows others to (securely) share a small part of your bandwidth and resources.
Then there's the adverts and the session limits (CyberGhost) and the general lack of service level agreement: free means that it doesn't come with any implicit warranties.
Free plans are fine for simple needs, then - maybe protecting your laptop's wireless hotspot traffic on the occasional trip - but if you're looking for anything more advanced, a commercial product is best.
The immediate benefit is that you know your personal data remains safe, even if you're on a public Wi-Fi hotspot. Local snoopers might be able to see the connection, but there's no way to find out what it is or where it's going.
VPNs also give you a new digital identity in the shape of an IP address from another country. This makes it harder for websites or anyone else to track you, allows some people to bypass government censorship, and helps the rest of us avoid those "not available in your country" messages on YouTube or other streaming sites.
Best of all, despite the low-level network technology involved, you don't need to be any kind of expert to make VPNs work. For the most part, all you have to do is choose the country where you'd like an IP address, click Connect to start, Disconnect when you're done - and that's it.
How to choose your VPN
There are several factors to consider when you're choosing a paid VPN. Here are six tips.
1. Does the plan have servers in every country and region you need? Having more than one server in a country can help spread the load, but doesn't guarantee improved performance, so don't assume a plan with 500 servers will automatically beat another with 100.
2. Check the number of simultaneous connections supported. Typically, this is 3-5, which allows you to have a PC, mobile and tablet connected at the same time. But beware, many companies say this is for a single user only, and they all have fair usage policies to prevent people hogging resources. If you let the entire family download and stream videos separately then you'll run into trouble.
3. Some providers list the connection protocols they use. OpenVPN and IKeV2 are good choices, fast and secure. You might see SSTP and the older PPTP, as well as protocol options (TCP or UDP for OpenVPN). You don't need to understand the low-level details, but having the extra choice can help the service make faster and/or more reliable connections.
4. All VPN companies say they don't log whatever you're doing online, but inevitably they collect a little data. Some services record the day your account logged on, the amount of data you used, and delete anything else when the session closes. Others add items like your incoming IP address and the server you used, and keep the data for months, even years. If you're concerned, check the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service to find out more.
5. It's important to consider the client, the software which handles your connections. These all have a list of servers and a Connect/ Disconnect button, but could you use more? Some clients display server load and ping time in the interface, helping you choose the right server. Regular users might appreciate a "Favourites" system to save and recall specific servers. If you know what you're doing, having access to low-level network settings will help you tune the whole system.
6. Finally, there's the price. Beware of apparently cheap deals: these may have restricted features, exclude taxes, be discounted for the first billing period only, and renew automatically, so that apparent one-off £3.99 might become almost £10 next month. Look for a 'Pricing' link, read the small print, and if possible use something like PayPal where it's easy to check and cancel a subscription yourself.
Once you've found what looks like a good VPN candidate, be sure to take it for a trial before you spend any big money. But a short trial can only tell you so much, so once that's expired, pay for a month, run as many tests as you can, then upgrade to a better value plan (usually yearly) if you're still happy.
Are VPNs legal?
VPNs are legal in most of the world, but some countries have either banned VPNs altogether or put very severe restrictions on their use. Those bans are more relevant to the people that live there than to people who travel there: we’re not aware of any tourists being thrown in the clink for running a VPN to secure their hotel Wi-Fi, but clearly it’s wise to be careful in more repressive regimes.
In countries that do restrict VPN use there’s often a distinction between approved and unapproved ones. For example, in China VPNs must be approved by the Chinese government, which suggests that they’re the last things you should rely on to hide your activities from the Chinese government. If you use an unapproved one, you can be fined heavily.
In the United Arab Emirates, you can be fined over half a million dollars and/or thrown in jail for using any VPN. It’s a similar story in Russia, while in Iran use of an unapproved VPN can put you in prison. In Uganda, ISPs block all VPN services, Oman bans unapproved ones and Iraq, Belarus, North Korea and Turkmenistan ban all VPNs. So does India in Kashmir.