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Before jumping to the conclusion of whether VPNs are safe or not, we must know what VPN exactly is. VPN or Virtual Private Network is an encrypted connection that ensures a more reliable internet experience. It keeps your online identity private by masking your IP (internet protocol) address, which makes your online activities virtually untraceable. While browsing online or making online payments on unsecured Wi-Fi, your private data gets exposed to a lot of apprehensions. In this scenario, the VPN acts as your savior. It creates a private network from a public internet connection that provides you online privacy and anonymity.
With a VPN, you can hide your search history, which otherwise was accessible by your internet service provider. In recent times, there has been a significant rise in the popularity of VPNs. There has been an immense increase in the number of internet users because of the primary reasons behind VPNs popularity. People can easily access the internet using their smartphones, smart TVs, smartwatches, etc. With a rise in the number of internet users, digital threats have also increased. Besides, there is also a danger of your data from being stolen by hackers. Hence, the protection provided by VPNs becomes a necessity. According to the 2019 report by Knowledge Sourcing Intelligence LLP, the global VPN market will reach over $50 billion by 2024.
What Free VPN has to offer?
Now, we know the work of VPNs, so to achieve your online privacy, one can even go for a free VPN. But are free VPNs beneficial? If this is what you are wondering, then below discussed points can be of great use.
● It being free is undoubtedly the first and foremost reason for you to go for free VPN to safeguard your personal information.
● It safeguards your device and your data when you get on public Wi-Fi hotspots. Free VPNs encrypt your data and protect your identity and personal information. After all, that’s the basic task of any VPN.
● Free VPNs also enable you to bypass geo-blocking. With this, you can hide your real IP address and replace it by the IP address of the VPN server you wish to connect.
Drawbacks of Free VPN?
Free VPNs offer certain benefits that might look appealing. However, you cannot deny the demerits. They don’t charge anything from you, but to earn the income, they use certain tricks and tools that keep your security at risk. Below discussed points will make it more to you.
● A VPN is to protect you from hackers, but these free VPNs might contain malware. A study by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation of 283 VPNs revealed that around 38% of VPNs showed signs of being infected.
● One of the worst offenses that a free VPN makes is to track your online activity. Ironically, a VPN that is supposed to protect your online privacy itself hinders your privacy. As per another study, 72% of VPNs indulged in keeping track of your online activity.
● If you wish to bypass the geo-blocking of Netflix, then your free VPN will surely disappoint you as Netflix uses one of the toughest ‘geo-blocks’ in the world. Even premium VPNs struggle to bypass the geo-blocking of Netflix, and only a few succeed in doing that.
● Many free VPNs in the market restricts the amount of data that you can use. It is done by them to entice you and then push you to go for the premium or the paid plan.
● Free VPNs might result in slowing down your internet speed. It is another trick where your VPN deliberately slows down your internet speed to snails’ pace to encourage you to upgrade to their paid plan.
● Your free VPN bombards you with ads to make money. These advertisements are not only annoying and slow down your internet speed, but they even contain malware. And it is also a sign that your online activities are being shared with third parties by them.
Why go for Premium VPN?
Premium VPN services are recommended for various reasons, some premium VPN providers even provide 30 days vpn free trial periods before you can purchase. Above mentioned points clarify why you should not rely on Free VPNs for your privacy protection. But is that the only reason why you should instead choose a premium VPN? Well, probably not. There are myriad benefits that are offered by premium VPNs discussed below:
● When it comes to bypass geo-blocking, there are some of the best-paid VPNs that are even capable of bypassing some of the toughest geo-blocking of major streaming sites like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu.
● Unlike free VPN services, the premium VPN does not limit the amount of data that you can use. It allows its users to browse all kinds of websites without any fear of data consumption.
● It provides advanced security features that prevent hackers from gaining access. Security is so strong that even the government wouldn’t be able to track your data.
● The most annoying part of Free VPNs is the ads, and with the premium version of VPN, you can completely get rid of those frustrating advertisements.
There are many VPN services these days that provide quality services at a budget-friendly price. If you have many devices, you will benefit from an unlimited device plan. A VPN service like Surfshark VPN can give you additional protection apart from high-speed VPN downloads and Ultra HD video streaming. Features like Webpage protection secures your devices by blocking threats at the source.
In case you wish to switch to premium VPN plans, you can search for Surfshark coupon codes and get the best deal. You can also save more by sharing the account with your friends since it supports unlimited parallel device connections.
Conclusion:
After going through the above points, it is clear that VPNs are essential if you wish to protect your online identity and personal data. Well, choosing the right VPN is totally up to you, and you can always go for a free VPN if you are willing to accept its limitations. But the drawbacks of free VPNs should not be ignored if you value your privacy and wish to enjoy a safer browsing experience. The idea of VPN being free might be appealing, but it can later cost you a lot. Hence, to be on the safer side and ensure complete and robust protection, premium VPN is always a great choice.
