The number of people searching for "VPN" on Google has spiked in Missouri, following an uptick in interest around online privacy. This interest coincides with the passing of Missouri's age verification law, which came into action on Sunday, November 30, 2025.
We've seem similar spikes in VPN interest in Arizona, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, and the age verification measures implemented by adult-only websites are widely seen as invasive.
By encrypting your internet traffic, VPNs effectively hide your activity from anyone trying to pry – internet providers like Xfinity are a key culprit. By sending you through one of their own servers, they also hide your real IP address, and can make you appear to be anywhere in the world. This combination of features also enables the best VPNs to unblock streaming services from overseas.
However, beware the fake VPN. Simply searching for VPNs in your app store of choice and downloading the first one you find may do you more hard than good. Some of these VPNs actively steal your data, and prey on those who have little experience with the software.
This is why we rigorously test and review VPNs, and make sure that the ones we recommend are trusted and safe to use. We can confidently say that every VPN we feature will improve your online privacy – not harm it.
What's more, now is the best time to pick up a VPN, thanks to the wealth of Black Friday VPN deals available. We've outlined the very best options below, all of which are fast, private, and easy to use.
The best Black Friday VPN deals for Missouri
Why do I need a VPN?
VPNs are not a silver bullet, and using one does not mean every trace of your online activity will be hidden or be untraceable back to you. However, they're the perfect first step towards improving your online privacy. Combined with due caution and common sense, they can help to eliminate a lot of the privacy risks we face online today.
For example, your internet provider almost certainly records your activity online. This is built up into a comprehensive profile of your habits and interests which is linked to your IP address and device identifiers, and this is then sold on to advertisers. This is one of the main reasons why advertising can be so accurate, and feel like someone is watching your every move – they are.
Using a VPN makes your activity invisible to your internet provider, meaning it can't build up that profile. This makes it harder (although not impossible) to target you with ads.
VPNs also change your IP address and substitute it with one of its own, which is also used by other subscribers to the service. This means a lot of activity is all jumbled up under one IP address, meaning individual actions and correlation are very hard to find. VPNs also have servers all around the world, which you can connect to and appear to be in that country.
This is great for streaming. If you're in Missouri but want to watch something on the BBC iPlayer – only available in the UK – you can connect to a UK VPN server and stream away like a true Brit.
In short, VPNs are very versatile, and have a ton of uses. If you're concerned about your online privacy, using a VPN is a good place to start.
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.
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