The Best VPN in 2024 — The New Oil
Disclosure: we have an affiliate link with Proton VPN that gives us a small financial payout if you sign up for a paid plan using it. You can see our policy regarding affiliate links here.
If you found this page via a web search, there’s a possibility you’re not entirely sure what a VPN is or does. You may know that they help you bypass georestricted content – like sports or Netflix – or that they can protect you from cybercriminals (more on that in a moment), but you may not know how. The short, non-technical answer is that a VPN creates a secure, encrypted connection between your device (computer, phone, TV, router, etc) and the VPN Provider’s server. This has the effect of making it look like your device is wherever the server is located (usually another state/country, hence bypassing georestrictions) and as well as protecting your traffic from any local snoops (such as malicious public routers or nosy Internet Service Providers – or ISPs).
If you’re here because you think a VPN will make you hacker-proof or anonymous, the answer is no. A VPN – contrary to much of the false marketing out there – will not do either of those things. VPNs can help mitigate these risks slightly. For example, the VPN providers I recommend do block some trackers, and changing your IP address will remove one way you can be identified and tracked online. However, modern internet tracking is far more complex than just blocking cookies and changing your IP address, so while a VPN can help, it’s not 100% effective. There’s a lot more that goes into online anonymity.
