Whether you travel the world for business trips, are a digital nomad looking for their next excursions, or simply work from home, you need to get online. Accessing the internet through hotel computers or cyber cafes wifi an option, but sending personal details and data over public Wi-Fi poses some serious risks.
A safer option is to use a personal device, like your laptop, tablet, or smartphone. This way, all you need to do is connect to a Wi-Fi network using tethering, a portable mobile hotspot device, a Wi-Fi dongle, or a local SIM card.
While these options are all safer than using a public network, they can be made even more secure with the use of a VPN.
What Is a VPN?
The term VPN stands for virtual private network. Basically, a VPN is a separate service that connects your device to the internet by encrypting it and routing it through a private server. This way, potential hackers won’t have access to the details you enter, the pages you visit, or the passwords you use.
Do you need a VPN on mobile data? If you’re traveling or entering sensitive data, yes. When you use a VPN app on your smartphone or tablet, you’re adding a reliable layer of protection and gaining access to other useful features.
What Are the Benefits of a Mobile VPN?
A mobile VPN offers a variety of benefits, including increased data protection, access to region-blocked content, and fewer ads.
Get Better Cyber Security
The main benefit of a VPN is that it improves cyber security. It is especially useful if you’re on public Wi-Fi, which is open and easily hijacked by hackers or spammers. By routing your connection through a VPN, you can keep your data to yourself. Some VPN services even offer military-grade encryption with advanced encryption standard (AES) 256-bit technology.
In general, a VPN will better protect your data and personal information, and it will help to keep your device safe from malware and ransomware attacks.
Surf the Web Privately
If you see a lot of targeted ads appearing in searches and sidebars, that’s because the websites you visit are tracking your activity. Not only can ad trackers cause frustration, but they can cause unease as well. The solution? Use a VPN.
When you route internet activity through a VPN, your location and IP address remain anonymous. Your searches are also masked from websites and internet providers. If your browsing history isn’t accessible, all those companies can’t collect data on you or sell it to third parties. You’ll be safe from ads, spam, and third-party contact.
Bypass Censored/Blocked Sites
Sometimes, while you’re traveling, you might run into a different type of internet issue. You expect to see results when you type in the address of a website or social media platform. Instead, you find it blocked. What’s going on?
In this case, the country or region you’re visiting has likely censored that website to prevent its citizens from accessing it. By using a VPN, you can choose a server in another country and redirect your internet access. Doing so will give you access to the previously blocked or censored site. Keep in mind that a few countries have laws about VPN usage, making it difficult or even illegal to use one while there.
Access Geographically Restricted Content
Another type of restriction comes in the form of geo-blocking. Here, you’ll once again try to access a website or a streaming service like Netflix or Amazon Prime, only to find it geographically restricted. A geo-blocked site or service is one that only people within a country or region can access.
To deal with this issue while traveling, you can use a VPN to bypass the restriction. By having your IP address come through a server in your home country, you’ll have a better chance of accessing the content.
Connect to a Company Server
There are plenty of ways to access the internet for entertainment purposes, but what do you do if you need to get on your company’s intranet or work drive? If you need access — perhaps to transfer or download a confidential document — you’ll have to obtain a secure connection.
VPNs are standard for many companies, both within the office environment and for employees accessing work servers from home. If your company doesn’t have a built-in VPN, it will require one if you need to use a remote device.
Are There Drawbacks to Using a VPN?
While you gain many benefits with a VPN, you should be aware of a few potential downsides.
Since a VPN encrypts your data and sends it through a tunnel and private server located elsewhere in the world, it may end up slowing connection speeds. A slowdown isn’t a guarantee, though. In some cases, you might see increased speeds. This might happen if you’d previously been subjected to ISP bandwidth throttling or inefficient ISP routing. By accessing the internet over a VPN, you may see connectivity gains.
Another con of VPN usage is that some apps do log your activity. To verify whether a specific VPN keeps a log of the sites you visit, check their Terms and Conditions or Privacy Policy page.
While most VPN apps are successful when it comes to connecting your device to geo-blocked content, they occasionally gain a place on the streaming service’s radar. If the streaming service has identified a specific VPN server, it may record the address and block further traffic access.
Finally, some VPNs have limited servers in certain countries. If you’re planning to use a VPN for travel, do research beforehand to make sure you’ll have multiple server options while on the go.
Consider Solis VPN
Want a high-quality VPN that lets you share your connection with up to ten devices and doesn’t log your activity? Check out Solis VPN. It provides access to servers in sixteen countries and offers two plan options.
As you need to be connected, you’ll have unlimited freedom to connect with family, friends, and colleagues back home. Set up a VPN for mobile and reconnect with the world.