Nowadays, using a VPN for browsing the internet is considered a necessity, especially when traveling to other countries. In fact, if you don't use a VPN, then it is considered that you are not doing enough to secure your data.
As TechRadar earlier this week, Mozilla is on the verge of changing the VPN market, with its Firefox next year. Surfshark is also planning to launch two new VPN services. The first is HackLock, an identity protection mechanism that tracks traces of personal information that has been hacked. The second is a private search tool called BlindSearch.
In general, it is becoming increasingly clear that VPNs are becoming a necessity for users. More and more countries are passing laws restricting freedom of speech while creating an internet that is less free and more fragmented. For example, Russia is set to block nine different VPNs for not complying with the government’s censorship requirements, and Saudi Arabia has already censored content on Netflix. If you travel or live in these countries, or if you use any form of public WiFi, a VPN is as essential to you as your phone or laptop. Companies like Pro Privacy warn that vacationers are putting their data at risk, with 75% of Americans not taking the necessary precautions. Today, a VPN is no longer seen as an unnecessary add-on.
But beyond the ever-increasing number of products on the market, what is more interesting is how VPNs are marketed as a method of online protection. And while even Edward Snowden showed that even the NSA has a functioning VPN decryption infrastructure, VPNs are still considered the best tool for online security today. According to Laura K. Inamedinova, a security consultant at the online security site VPNpro, using a VPN makes it much more difficult to attack on a public WiFi. She also states that in recent years people have changed their mindset and are using VPNs more often.
Of course, questions remain, given that VPNs can help Internet users maintain their privacy but can also serve as a means of spying. Facebook announced earlier this year that it was shutting down the Onavo VPN app in light of privacy violations. Onavo was deemed spyware, which allowed Facebook to track the time teenagers spent online without their parents' consent.
The reality is that the culture of the Internet has changed so rapidly over the past twenty-five years that security today is the primary concern for developers as opposed to the mid-90s, where the main issues they had to deal with were slow connection speeds.
While there are no perfect solutions on the horizon, given that the creators of the internet did not foresee the abuses that some would commit against it, attention is once again turning to security. Ultimately, the individual user will decide what security measures are necessary for him or her and how much consideration should be given to the real and potential risks.
