Security and Privacy of VPN Services: How secure are you?

Virtual private networks are unanimously recognized as the best way to protect privacy on the world wide web. However, there are those services from which you need to stay away. Before making a paid subscription to the service, it will never be superfluous to carefully study user feedback and the thoughts of experts in the field. All VPN services proclaim that their only task is to redirect the connection, bypassing the ISP privately. However, some networks fulfill this mission with significant inaccuracies.

When looking for an efficient and fast VPN service, you should always check the available options for their compliance with the checklist, or visit VPN Review to see the best options. When looking for a solution for secure and private browsing, follow the tips below.

Understand the terms of service

We recommend you to pay close attention to all that is written in terms of service. Otherwise, you may encounter a program that instead of protecting the data becomes the cause of their leakage. The network around various VPN-programs and services reigns complete confusion because of the neglect of the small print.

From a legal point of view, all features of a particular VPN service should be written. You should pay attention to the provisions related to logging and data exchange. Do not be fooled by completely free or insanely profitable offers.

Country of registration

Special attention should be paid to the country in which the selected VPN is registered. When it comes to mass surveillance, it must be borne in mind that in some countries, the obligation to collect user data is established by law. Thus, if your VPN provider is registered in the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand, then the best way is to find an alternative.

For the sake of data security, you need to focus on finding a VPN service, the country of registration of which is free from the obligation to store data. It includes the following countries:

• Spain;
• France;
• Germany;
• Italy;
• Sweden;
• Norway;
• Denmark;
• Netherlands;
• Belgium;
•  

You may not worry when you connect to servers based in these territories, because it is absolutely safe. However, be sure to check where the headquarters of the VPN provider is actually located.

What the absence of logs means

According to Cooltechzone.com, One of the most confusing moments in the privacy policy of VPN programs is the actual presence of records. At first glance, the no logs mark suggests that the VPN service does not track the data used and transmitted by you. However, quite often there were cases when some VPN providers did register user data, although they stated the opposite.

We recommend paying special attention to how the privacy policy of the service as a whole, and its specific provisions are formulated. Some services may use the phrase "storing" data, which allows them to successfully record all the information that you are viewing or downloading. Also, make sure that there are no links to share user data. The sad truth is that you should not wholly rely on the integrity of VPN services in the matter of logging.

Free VPN services can be dangerous

It can be assumed with a high degree of certainty that free VPN services are fraught that lead to unpleasant problems. Why do we need services with a paid subscription, if you supposedly can get the perfect VPN-program without paying a penny? It is completely meaningless. So, in the network, you can find a number of suspicious VPN-networks that hide the actual conditions of their work.

A couple of such services can be worthy of your attention, but the overwhelming majority of them are almost useless when it comes to privacy. Be sure to check if the potential VPN service provider is located in the right country. It is also worth remembering that many free VPN services are only disguised as such, but later you will need to pay for it.

Does the VPN service have access to your data?

You might think that granting a VPN application permission to access and collect data is usually reasonable. However, for example, Opera's free VPN plug-in requires information to be collected through cookies. Such programs can also have the possible control of traffic. You may even encounter a clause that regulates the transfer of specific anonymous data to third parties.

Whether the data is legitimate or not, simply do not give the VPN program permission to collect data and distribute it freely. The basic idea behind a VPN subscription is to restore anonymity and privacy online. Data collection and hidden information sharing cannot be the conditions of a high-quality VPN-network. Stay away from such programs as far as possible!

Therefore, when purchasing your first VPN service, we recommend you to be cautious. You should always read reviews and expert opinions.