Why All Internet Users Should Use a VPN

Two technical results are achieved by using a virtual private network connection, or VPN. First, you can make it look like you’re accessing the internet from a different location, country, or machine than you actually are, thanks to the VPN hiding your real IP address. Secondly, a VPN encrypts your connection, so your online activity cannot be seen by eavesdroppers and nosy criminals. Do you really need a VPN though? Yes, I believe you do, in fact, I believe everyone should have one, and here’s why.

Privacy Is a Basic Right

If you believe that you should have the right to receive and send information over the internet without the authorities, hackers, or anyone besides the intended recipient viewing your communications, cataloging and following what you do, then you need a VPN. Philosophically, that’s probably a good enough reason to get one, but let us look at specific examples of how a VPN can help protect your online privacy:

• Avoid tracking and reprisals for web research – There are a number of reasons you would want to keep your internet research private. Reporters, celebrities, law enforcement officers, and market researchers are some of the most common researchers who would want to remain anonymous. By masking your IP address, a VPN can do this.

• Make VOIP calls private – If you are not familiar with the term, VOIP stands for voice over internet protocol. Basically, it is internet telephoning. Skype and Lync are examples of this, unfortunately is incredibly easy to listen in on. A VPN is able to cloak your calls.

• Avoid internet marketing based on your search history – Every web search you perform is logged by Bing, Google, and other search engines. These searches are associated with your IP address, which the engines then use to direct advertisements at you. It can be annoying, and is the digital equivalent of advertisers yelling your name as you walk down the street, trying to hawk their wares.

Added Benefits of a VPN

For anonymous browsing and confidential emails, the Wi-Fi in a hotel or the hotspot at Starbucks is not a safe option. Anyone savvy enough to eavesdrop can do so fairly easily, since public Wi-Fi typically offers zero encryption to users and monitoring software is freely and cheaply available. If you think you need to be especially talented to steal data over Wi-Fi, think again, there are plugins for browsers that beginner hackers are able to utilize at the click of a button to see everything you are doing online, these plugins can even collect passwords and typed information, and steal enough data to compromise your identity. A VPN is able to keep all of your data encrypted no matter where you are.

Many organizations, such as schools, offices and even a number of countries have draconian rules about what you can access on their computers. They end up censoring popular sites and services like Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Netflix, and YouTube. With a VPN, you can unblock these sites and access any site you want.

Choosing the Right VPN

VPN’s are a dime a dozen these days, finding the right one might seem tough at a glance, but do a little research and it becomes clear which ones are dedicated to protecting your privacy, and which ones are are simply paying lip service. It’s a competitive field, so subscription prices keep falling. Whatever you do, do NOT sign up for a free VPN service. Right now, I use Ironsocket VPN and DNS Proxy and have been really impressed with their service. It’s cheap, feature-packed and their customer service is just brilliant. If you’re in the market, I heartily recommend them. There are some other relatively decent options, but I’ve yet to find one that’s as open and transparent, and which provides the value they do.

Much Ado About the Heartbleed Bug

What to Do to Stay Safe in the Wake of the Heartbleed Bug

Heartbleed has come and gone, no need to worry, right? Wrong. Since March of 2012, the Internet’s most popular cryptographic library, OpenSSL, has been potentially bleeding information due to a massive security vulnerability. Yes, it’s been patched, but unless you’ve been proactive about your online security, you may still be at risk.

For many it is hard to tell if you are affected since most users do not even know whether a site they visit is using OpenSSL. Many sites that do use OpenSSL have been fairly good about communicating the fact that users need to update passwords, and providing information on what needs to be done. That said, quite a few have been startlingly lax, and either haven’t sent emails out in a timely manner or haven’t sent them at all. I say if in doubt, change everything.

OpenSSL Is Apparently No Longer Vulnerable

The people who maintain OpenSSL fixed the vulnerability just before the bug was revealed to the public. Swapping out the cyberlocks that protected their data, it is up to Internet companies to also create fixes for their own software. Going forward, you are probably protected as long as you’ve updated your password information. The scary part is thatsince OpenSSL ha been vulnerable for the past two years, any information you sent over the Internet could have been compromised.

Though there is little you can do about the Heartbleed bug now, there are steps you can take to ensure you are unaffected if similar issues arise in the future:

·         Remain calm – The vulnerabilities exposed this week have already been secured by all of the major Internet companies, including Google and Amazon.

·         Public Wi-Fi networks are not your friend – Limit your Internet usage to transactions that are not especially sensitive and things you would not mind people being able to see if you are hopping on the Wi-Fi in public places like Starbucks. When in doubt, use a VPN.

·         To see which sites are vulnerable, do a test–There are apps available on the web that will tell you when the encryption on a site was last updated, what type of encryption they use, and if the site is still vulnerable to the Heartbleed bug.

·         Use a VPN – Connect using a VPN if it is offered by your school or company. Or, you can purchase VPN services for fairly cheap. These provide unparalleled encryption above and beyond that offered on most websites. It’s their business to keep you safe online, many of them are good at it.

·         Every few months, change your password – This is a good practice to have no matter what, since so many of our transactions happen online. There are a number of excellent password managers out there that help you generate cryptographically strong passwords, and store them for you so you don’t need to remember them. Change them regularly, and for goodness sake, don’t use the same password for multiple sites!

Is Google Chrome's "Incognito Mode" Really Secure?

The most used browser in the world is Google Chrome, with StatCounter indicating that nearly half of all desktop internet users are Chromeites. Chrome’s “Incognito” feature has proven extremely popular, and remains a large reason why the browser has secured such a large following in Russia, Europe, the Americas, Australia, and many other regions around the globe.

But What Is “Incognito”, How Anonymous is it?

Without your browsing history being recorded within Chrome, users can visit sites across the internet when in the “Incognito” browsing mode. All of your browsing history is instantly deleted when you launch an Incognito browsing session. Also, any cookies created during the session are deleted when the Incognito window is closed.

Many people believe this is a safer way to use the worldwide web, because it doesn't allow them to be tracked online. This is only partially true, because Incognito does not actually make your internet experience more secure or safe, from prying external eyes (such as your employer or marketers). Incognito is a good way to make sure others who use your device or computer are not able to see what websites you have been visiting, and that's about it.

Routers, websites you visit, and your ISP can, and do log where you have been spending your internet time.

What Can You Do To Make Your Browsing Secure?

Using a VPN, or virtual private network, is by far the best and easiest way to ensure your browsing is secure and your data kept private. Good VPNs use high powered encryption to send your information and communications over the Internet at the source, making sure absolutely everything you do online is safe and anonymous. Outside sources simply will not be able to log your web browsing, IP address, your download history, or any other information about you.

In addition, good VPNs give you an array of different region IP's to choose from, making it appear as though you are using the internet in a different country, even on the other side of the globe. One of the benefits of  appearing to access the internet from a different country is that you will also be able to visit country specific content. For example, Netflix and Hulu only offer services in certain countries, and even then, they alter what is available for specific countries. With a VPN you can get all the content you want, and browse the web freely without worrying.