VPNs for travel: Do all travellers need a VPN?

We explore Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) in-depth to explain what they are, how they function, and why you should use them while travelling.

These days we all linked when we travel. Whether it’s with a phone, tablet, or laptop. While this technology makes travelling easier, it also exposes us to new dangers.

Cybersecurity is usually something we neglect while planning our travels, whether it’s due to stolen credit card numbers, government snooping or hacked emails. Everyone knows to get travel insurance to protect our health and physical belongings. However, we frequently overlook the importance of keeping our data and information safe as well.

While free Wi-Fi is available almost everywhere to tourists, from cafés to hostels to airport lounges, it’s also a major vulnerability. We open ourselves up to some significant dangers while casually surfing the web and interacting with friends and family at home.

Anyone on the same network (which could be hundreds of people) can easily capture your unencrypted information as it flies through the air. From your browser and mobile apps, user names, passwords, credit card numbers, browser cookies, and other identifying information may be vulnerable.

With so much risk out there, how can you keep yourself safe?

To keep yourself safe, you can use a VPN. By creating a private network from a public internet connection, a virtual private network (VPN) provides privacy and anonymity. They hide your internet activities in plain sight. This makes them nearly untraceable and prevents people from getting access to your personal information. You can learn more from the experts here.

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How do VPNs work?

VPNs were designed for business use first, but consumer versions didn’t take long to spring up from a number of different firms. After all, everyone is concerned about their security, whether they have an expense account or not.

To comprehend how they function, consider the internet to be a river. Drop a load of dye into the river — that’s your (unencrypted) data. Anyone standing along the riverbank may observe the colour and consistency of the dye, as well as where it spreads out.

Dump your dye into a tiny pipe that runs from wherever you are to somewhere along the river’s length, rather than putting it in the river directly. Nobody can see the dye or learn anything about it until it emerges from the end of the pipe. That’s why your VPN is known as “the pipe.”

It’s easy to use: you simply download and install VPN software on your phone, tablet, or laptop, then start it up after connecting to the Internet. Select the server (or “endpoint”) you’d want to use, and your information is encrypted and sent across the virtual network in a few seconds.

Virtual private networks (VPNs) are meant to secure all of your online activity, regardless of its nature. Email, music and video streaming, phone calls, and anything else you can think of are all included.

VPNs are a great way to protect your online privacy and security while you’re travelling. If you don’t have one, or if it’s not set up correctly, you could be putting yourself at risk.

This article was sponsored by Niche Inbound and is a Holidays with Kids digital exclusive. Be the first to see more exclusive online content by subscribing to the enewsletter here.

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