If you’ve landed on this page, there’s a good chance that you’re looking for a VPN, or virtual private network. Perhaps someone recommended a ce

Think you need a VPN? Start here.

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2024-10-01 16:00:07

If you’ve landed on this page, there’s a good chance that you’re looking for a VPN, or virtual private network. Perhaps someone recommended a certain product or service, or an advert caught your curiosity? Before you take the plunge into unfamiliar waters, we’re here to tell you that you might not actually need a VPN after all.

VPNs today make a lot of promises, from protecting your privacy from surveillance to improving your internet speeds and protecting against malicious online threats. In simple terms, VPN providers funnel all of your device’s internet traffic through their own systems, under the premise that the provider shields your information from outside prying eyes, like governments, online advertisers, and even your home internet provider.

The problem is, how do you trust that a VPN provider will protect all of your private internet browsing information? The simple answer is that you can’t and shouldn’t trust either free or paid VPN providers. As TechCrunch’s Romain Dillet says in our explainer of what VPNs are and what they do, VPNs are only helpful in a handful of situations, and for some, using a VPN can be as dangerous as not using one.