Do you have any Virtual Private Network (VPN) app on your smartphone? Some people do have and regularly use that app under certain conditions. Basically, VPN is a connection method that provides a private network for the users to connect safely to the internet. It was originally created to connect business networks over the internet yet enable those networks to be accessed from home. Today, VPN is commonly used to access restricted websites, armor browsing activity, and keep the private information secured. It has been one of the most popular apps lately. However, many people do not realize that VPN might purposefully take advantage of its users. Therefore, it is enticing to dig deeper about how it works, how it benefits the users, and how it actually puts the users at risk.
VPN plays the role as an intermediary between users’ network and the internet. It works by forwarding network traffic and routing the connection through a private server instead of the internet service provider. It creates a reserved “tunnel” that connects users’ device to the internet, which aims to secure the vital data through encryption. Encryption hides the data by transforming them to complicated code, which cannot be read without a particular key. The key is merely instituted at the users’ device and VPN server. The data transmitted are also intentionally perceived as the one from the VPN, thus it hides the users’ IP address. This IP spoofing enables users to access region-restricted websites and bypassing internet censorship since VPN makes the internet server identifies that the users are located in a different region or country rather than the area they are located in (Gewirtz, 2019). As a result, the users can freely browse the internet without any restriction barrier.
However, a popular site called The Best VPN released an investigation report in 2018, which concluded that some VPN service providers disregard users’ security and privacy. An investigation into 115 of the most well-known VPN service providers uncovered the antithetical practices the providers engage in. The report revealed that 26 of them collect three or more log files that contain users’ private data such as names, emails, IP addresses, connection timestamps, bandwidth data, and locations. These practices fundamentally stand against the Privacy Policy Page set by the company itself. Most of them clearly stated in their Terms of Service that they keep no logs of users. PureVPN is one of the providers that explicitly claims that the server does not record any users’ activities. It reads: “We do not monitor user activity nor do we keep any logs. We, therefore, have no record of your activities such as which software you used, which websites you visited, what content you downloaded, which apps you used, etc. after you connected to any of our servers” (Resnick, 2018). However, a person was arrested by FBI back in 2017 with the help from PureVPN that shared logs of him to the agency. It can be said that PureVPN is not consistent with its own privacy policy.
Moreover, VPN users are vulnerable to data selling and data sharing programs, especially the ones who utilize free VPN service. As the users traffic is routed and forwarded to the VPN servers, providers need money to cover up the server costs. Server costs can easily run into millions of dollars. Thus, there is a big possibility that the users’ data are being sold to third parties such as advertisers. Those data are then used to identify the users’ preferences and plot the relevant advertisement towards them. Not only that, the provider can share the data or collaborate with the ones with criminal tendencies. They can exploit the users’ private information, inject cookies or bugs, hijack traffic, and commit other illegal activities. In 2015, an investigation discovered that Hola VPN allows the third parties to track users’ activities across the internet and remotely run applications on users’ mobile devices. It was also revealed that Hola sold the users’ bandwidth to other people who are willing to buy through a business arm (Resnick, 2018). Users are essentially the victim of those unlawful practices.
Concerning the fact that users’ privacy and security are somewhat in danger when it comes to utilizing VPN, it is recommended for people to choose a provider that has a good track record and generates positive feedback from other users. Andy Yen, CEO and founder of Protonmail, advises users to read the details of the service and guarantee offered by the provider through its official website and credible tech websites (Brown, 2017). Moreover, it is advisable for people to select a VPN service provider that features Automatic Kill Switch setting. The feature automatically switches off users’ regular network connection unless the users might inadvertently unmask their IP address to the websites they are visiting, as the private connection drops. Users can also pick out providers that use at least 256-bit encryption. U.S. government and security experts adopt that encryption standard to shield their confidential information. In contrast, low-level encryption puts the users at risk, as it is easier for hackers to attack and steal users’ data. On the whole, users should be aware of the potential security and privacy flaws that exist while using VPN.
References
Brown, L. (2017, September 14). How to select a trustworthy VPN. Retrieved from Tech Republic: https://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-to-select-a-trustworthy-vpn/
Gewirtz, D. (2019, December 30). How to find the best VPN service: Your guide to staying safe on the internet. Retrieved from ZDNet: https://www.zdnet.com/article/vpn-services-the-ultimate-guide-to-protecting-your-data-on-the-internet/
Resnick, N. (2018, May 28). Be cautious, free VPNs are selling your data to 3rd parties. Retrieved from TNW: https://thenextweb.com/contributors/2018/05/28/be-cautious-free-vpns-are-selling-your-data-to-3rd-parties/
The Hated One. (2017, October 4). What is a Virtual Private Network | How VPN works and why VPN is not all you need for privacy [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZNbYhhUqic
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