Club Benefits
Many people with a passing interest in freely surfing the web or maintaining their online anonymity will have used a VPN. Even if it’s only to utilize their IP obscuring function and access content across digital divides, or keep your browsing history hidden from cyber snoops.
The best VPN products offer protection at the click of a button and for a relatively minor monthly fee. But simply having one installed isn't a guarantee of invulnerability — at least, not if you’re serious about keeping third parties, government agencies, and VPN providers themselves from getting hold of your private data.
To help keep you safe, we’ve detailed five of these common errors below, providing you with the intel to proactively avoid them.
1. Picking a free VPN
The cons of using a free VPN far outweigh the benefits. Their main allure is obvious. But these no-fee offerings are often half-baked, monitor and monetize your web activity, and arrive loaded with privacy-compromising malware.
There are some rare exceptions. The very best free VPNs will mask your IP address and encrypt your internet traffic using government-grade (e.g. AES-256) encryption, delivering a respectable level of functionality and even unblocking a few major streaming services along the way.
However, they struggle to compete with the features, support, and customization options available with a paid subscription. Their monthly data limits are quickly burnt through by any data-intensive tasks like 4K streaming, and a lack of global servers can lead to internet speeds being woefully slow.
The worst of the bunch? Those that actively jeopardize your privacy: installing malware on your device and selling your browsing history to third parties, resulting in a tsunami of targeted ads. The safety of free VPNs is frequently called into question.
In that respect, the free route is only really advisable for the causal VPN user who only needs scant and occasional coverage.
2. Not considering the no-logs policy
VPNs are synonymous with privacy. After all, they cloak your home IP address, change your virtual location, and encrypt the content of your web traffic into unreadable ciphertext.
But if your VPN client can’t provide an audited no-logs policy, you have zero assurances in that regard.
You'd be remiss not to engage a company with a no-logs policy. Having one demonstrates its commitment to user privacy, as well as reassuring customers that it won’t retain any information that could link you with your web activity, including DNS queries, websites you’ve visited, or originating IP addresses.
We therefore always recommend scanning the fine print to find out exactly how they manage your data.
You should also be aware of the jurisdiction your VPN client operates under. Because some, such as those headquartered in China, are legally obliged to keep logs of your online activity. And if that's the case, your personal details could end up in the hands of government agencies.
Norton VPN’s no-logs policy is a great example of how to build trust. It provides reassurance to its users about their digital privacy by undertaking regular audits courtesy of independent cybersecurity company, VerSprite.
It's not only clear about what information they keep, and why, but issues a transparency report every quarter. These reiterate that, in spite of government requests for data, they’re unable to comply given that they don’t (as promised) log your web activity.
3. Thinking a VPN makes you completely anonymous
Using a VPN is a sturdy guardrail helping you steer clear of online hazards. But it’s not a total failsafe. There are myriad additional ways your web habits can be tracked and which can lead to invasive ads and phishing scams that try to trick you out of highly confidential info.
Cookies installed on your web browser are a common means of gathering data: capturing your IP address, clicks, and websites visited to create a profile of your browsing behavior so that they can target you with personalized ads.
Another, more insidious method is browser fingerprinting. This collates the particular configuration and settings of your device (e.g. operating software, plugins, screen resolution) to create a unique profile that can be used to track you across the web —irrespective of whether your VPN is actively hiding your IP address.
These are significant challenges to staying anonymous online. But it’s possible to top VPNs.
For example, Norton VPN includes Ad Blocker in every tier of its VPN offering. Furthermore, its free secure browser (Norton Private Browser) can be used to mask your digital fingerprint and obliterate malware.
4. Failing to make the most of the available settings and features
The most sought after VPNs include a raft of extra features designed to supercharge your online experience and safeguard you against very preventable digital dangers.
Peruse your VPN settings and you'll likely find options that mitigate against data leaks and network outages that could inadvertently expose highly-sensitive information.
A kill switch, for example, will instantly terminate your internet connection if your VPN drops, while a private DNS server, once enabled, will bear the burden of your device's DNS queries. That way, there's far less chance your internet service provider (ISP) can spy on the web pages you're visiting.
Meanwhile, there are dozens of settings that deliver enhanced performance for particular tasks. Among them are optimized servers that support bandwidth-intensive activities like torrenting, gaming, and 4K streaming,
There are different encryption protocols, too, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. WireGuard is ideal if you require lightning-fast speeds.
Though if you want to remain anonymous and access censored content, obfuscation protocols (like Norton’s Mimic) will disguise your VPN connection as ordinary HTTPS traffic to bypass network filters.
5. Not using it when connected to public networks
You’re much more susceptible to hackers and cyber snoops on public Wi-Fi than on your home network. Free Wi-Fi in particular is often unencrypted, which means you’re practically advertising your access codes and passwords to any bad actors connected to the same network.
Doing so without a data obscuring VPN tunnel leaves you at risk of the following: 'evil twin' networks imitating legitimate Wi-Fi addresses; Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks; malware, ransomware, and keystroke-logging spyware, and session hijacking, among other things.
This is why deploying your VPN when out can be so important.
It creates a secure pathway that scrambles all information exchanged between your device and the internet, meaning it’s impossible to decipher without a decryption key. Not only can it guard you against identity theft and fraud, but, with a masked IP address, you can avoid nosy Wi-Fi networks from tracking your online behaviour, too.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
