Secure your Family with a Virtual Private Network (VPN)

Post date: Jun 18, 2018 11:20:57 PM

With so many headlines about hackers stealing your information, such as credit card numbers, passwords, or contacts’ information, many people are reluctant to browse the web on public WIFI, so they’re buying their own VPN. What is it, who needs one, and how can it protect you and your family online? What do you need to know about VPNs before you buy one?

A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, sounds like something you would find at your workplace; however, smart people who value their privacy and want to safeguard their online activity are buying VPNs for use at home—and on the go. More of us are relying on our mobile devices to purchase products, make reservations, pay bills, and check bank accounts and credit card accounts. Doing these activities using public Wi-Fi is extremely dangerous and invites others to hack into your accounts. You need to protect yourself with a VPN.

What is it? A VPN is software; it does not create an actual hard-wired network. If you do a search, you will find hardware for routers or firewalls that builds in a VPN, but this will only safeguard your data in your home. You can install it on your Home PC, your phone (both Android and Apple) and mobile devices, such as a Kindle Fire tablet, iPhone, and iPad. Download the app, and once installed, you will see a little VPN icon on your device’s home page; you can also see that it is on by checking settings. An article on PCmag’s website compared a VPN to a tunnel connecting your computer (or mobile device) to the VPN server: all of your internet traffic goes through the tunnel.

Who needs to use one, and why? Anyone connecting to public Wi-Fi that is not encrypted is vulnerable to hackers who are trying to get your information. However, it is even more alarming that Congress passed a law in the spring of 2017 to make it legal for your Internet Service Provider to sell your browsing history to advertisers, without your consent. A VPN protects your data and prevents others from intercepting traffic, where they could get credit card information, passwords, or even see your laptop’s desktop.

A VPN helps you to safely browse and use the internet to make purchases, especially when on pages with https (the s stands for secure shell) When shopping online, you should always be careful, but when you see the https, you can expect greater security. Adding a VPN to your browsing experience gives you greater confidence that your data is secure. A VPN is useful EVERYWHERE! However, it is especially needed in public when so many of us rely on public WIFI. At home, it depends on how secure your internet access point is, and that is another topic for discussion.

How do you get one, and what will they cost? Go to PC Magazine.org or CNET for product reviews. You can order them online: Amazon lists a number of VPNs, including a few that offer a free product such as Express VPN or Windscribe. Some offer a trial period when you can try them out. My husband tried one VPN but found it would not work on our Kindle Fires, so he returned it and got a second product, Windscribe, that worked on all of our devices. We are spending $100 a year for the family and it covers all of our devices.

According to PC Magazine, some of the top-rated VPNs include NordVPN, Private Internet Access VPN, and Tunnelbear. CNET also lists NordVPN and adds VyprVPN, StrongVPN, and IPVanish, among others, to its list. While there are a number of products that offer a free version, or a trial version, be sure to read the details. Whatever you choose, it’s clear that if you want to use your devices to browse and purchase online, you need to protect your family with a VPN.

Updated June 18, 2018