Introduction:
A VPN or Virtual Private Network is a technology that uses a variety of protocols in order to connect its users remotely to a private network over a public connection such as the Internet. In simple words, a VPN encrypts the internet traffic and gives a different identity to its users to conceal their original identity.
When we talk about the history of this technology, then it was first originated way back in the year 1996. In that year Gurdeep Singh-Pall a Microsoft employee invented a peer-to-peer tunnelling protocol also abbreviated as PPTP. And PPTP is a forerunner to modern VPNs. In addition to that, the PPTP protocol was developed for dial-up internet access at that time.
Earlier businesses were using VPNs. Later on, the number of online security breaches started increasing day by day. So the People got aware of the risks of working online and they started to secure their online activities while using the internet. So, internet users started securing their connection with the help of a VPN. Thereafter VPN got its importance among internet users.
Nowadays, there can be several reasons to use such kind of service while working online. In which one of the reasons is to secure the internet connection, while another reason will be to prevent hacking to name a few. When talking about VPNs, both types of VPN plans exist such as free and paid plans.
A Free VPN provides you with anonymous internet browsing but often comes with a common downside. And that downside will be the limited data usage. Usually, some VPN providers provide a few hundreds of Megabytes quota on a per-day basis or on a monthly basis. But If you use the internet a lot, then it is better to go with the paid plan.
How does VPN Works?
Your real IP address (or Internet Protocol address) is concealed whenever you are connected to a VPN. It becomes possible as the VPN you are connected to redirects the network through a specially configured remote server. The VPN host is responsible for running the remote server. This means that the VPN server becomes your source of data, whenever you connect to VPN while surfing online.
Furthermore, your ISP ( Internet Service Provider) or any other third party cannot keep track of your online activities. Such as websites you visit or the files you transfer over the internet. So, in short, we can say that your each and every online activity is hidden.
You can think of this technology as some sort of filter. And that filter turns data into gibberish or I can say meaningless. So even if somebody gets some piece of the transmitted data it will be useless. So now the time is to look for the benefits that well all get from a VPN.
Benefits of VPN:
- Access to Geo-restricted content: Some companies restrict their online services to a particular country. In that case if you want to get access to such services, then the best option you will have is VPN. Let’s say some shows streaming services is only available in the United States. But you don’t live in that particular country. What should you do? So now you will connect to the VPN server that is present in the US, if available. And after that you can get access to those services. So by this way you can get access to geo-restricted content.
- Secure Encryption: To read the encrypted data made possible through this technology, one will need an encryption key. Without it it will be impossible for anyone to decipher the code. So the secure encryption is one of the benefit of this technology that will hide all of your online activities even on public networks.
- Saves you money: Along with accessing geo-restricted content, a vpn can also save you a lots of money. I am saying this because certain eCommerce companies charges their customers differently for different countries. For example certain products in an eCommerce that are costly in the United Kingdom, may be less costly if you visit the same site by Indian VPN server. So in a nutshell, this thing will benefit you in your next hotel room or flight booking.
- Affordable: Premium VPN can costs around few bucks per month. By paying that much amount you can enjoy premium services on a monthly basis. Furthermore, many companies provides 30-day free trial and also comes with the moneyback guarantee. So overall it is affordable for every types of consumers.
Downsides of VPN:
- It can slow down your internet speed.
- Its connection can drop suddenly.
- Anti-VPN Software are getting stronger which may turn your VPN service useless.
Types of Virtual Private Networks:
Virtual Private Networks is basically of two types and they are:
- Remote Access VPN: This kind of Virtual Private Network enables a user to connect to the private network and utilize its resources and services remotely. The connection between the user and the private network happens because of the internet. Furthermore the connection is secure and private. This kind of Virtual Private Network is suitable for both home and business users.
- Site to Site VPN: Another term for site to site Virtual Private Network is Router-to-Router Virtual Private Network. It is often used by the large companies. Those companies or organisations that have their branches in different locations use this kind of Virtual Private Network to connect one office location to another office location.
Final Thoughts:
So we can conclude that the concept of Virtual Private Network is not new but in fact, it is decades old. Also, we have seen that how it can help us to access blocked contents, and even can save you some money. Also sometimes it is possible that a particular VPN will fail to do its intended tasks because of VPN Blocker. Moreover, there are many VPN service providers, if a free trial is provided you can test their services and if it suits you well, then you can purchase their plans.
Last but not least I will say about the FREE VPNs most of them collect the information from the users and sell it to third parties. So before using any free VPN, research well about the provider and then after that, you can move to use it. So what views do you have for this type of technology write those in the comments section. And as always thanks for reading the post and I’ll see you in the next one.
