Top 5 Interesting Facts about VPNs

We all know that VPN is good for maintaining your online privacy. It is great for keeping hackers off your back, protecting against malware, and protecting against ID theft scams. A good VPN company can improve your Internet speeds and file sharing speeds. It can help you unblock websites in your country and can even help you save money when dynamic websites use location-based pricing. These are all the interesting facts you already know about VPN, here are a few you probably didn’t know.

1 – You Can Use Google to Check Your VPN is Working

 

As noted several times in Reality Paper, websites like Google and Facebook are tracking you, and Google makes no secret of it. At the very bottom of your Google search engine results, you will see your location. Check it without your VPN on, and then turn on your VPN and refresh the page. It will show the new location where websites like Google now think you are residing. This is actually the location of the server that your VPN is using. Also, due to what Google thinks is a location change, you will probably see your search engine results change too. This is especially true if the server you have chosen is in another country.

2 – VPN is Better Used With The “Clear All on Closing” Function On Your Web Browser

 

Each web browser has its own clearing functions. Most of them allow you to clear your web browser history and cookies every time you close your web browser. This means that information from your last surfing session will not be passed on the next time you use the browser. As frequently noted by VPNCoffee, the whole point of VPN is to make hacking you more difficult, to make it more difficult for malware to infect your computer, and to hide your location from websites and online snoopers.

If your web browser is loaded down with cookies and temp files from your last few surfing sessions, then there is still a mild possibility that online sources will be able to read your cookies and temp files when you are using VPN. It is true that they may not be able to tie the files back to your computer, but they may be able to recognize patterns that identify you.

3 – Kindle is Tracking Your Every Page Flip

 

We all know that VPN is good for improving Internet speeds and file sharing speeds, and for keeping your information out of the hands of snooping websites. However, it can also be used to knock Amazon off its track and stop them monitoring you.

Whenever you buy a Kindle book, the app you use, or your e-reader, is programmed to track your use of the book. They track which books you buy, rent, and which you actually read. They even track how many pages you have read. Amazon claim they do this because it helps identify spam reviews, and it helps pay authors who are paid per page read. Even reading offline will not help because your information is loaded the next time you connect to the Internet. The only way to avoid being tracked by Amazon is to use VPN. There is no other commercially available way to avoid Amazon’s Kindle e-book tracking.

4 – Countries Are Actually Blocking VPN

 

There are 196 countries in the world, and 30 of them block VPN services, with the most successful being China (using what is termed as its Great Firewall). It is possible to get around VPN blocks in a country, but it is difficult because you need to go online to find a VPN service, and in a country like China, your Internet service provider is going to block you from visiting said VPN sites. Rigid Internet censorship makes it very difficult for people in countries like China to see the world as it is, but there are always ways around the problem.

5 – VPN Can Stop Your ISP From Throttling Your Internet Use

 

Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) has clause in your unlimited Internet package. It will be called something like “Fair and reasonable use.” In short, it allows your Internet service provider to temporarily lower your Internet speeds for up to a month if they think you are using too much Internet. For example, if you are sharing your new cartoons with friends on Torrent sites, or you are downloading all your PlayStation sandbox games again, your ISP may decide you are using too much Internet and slow down your Internet speeds. In this case, even if your Internet has been throttled, your VPN will still work at full speed.

It is also possible for VPN to speed up your Internet in general, especially if you are file sharing. This is due to several reasons, which sometimes includes you avoiding various checks and balances put in by the government, ISPs, and even the websites and services you are using. Plus, do not forget that VPN is not limited to your desktop computer, you can often use it on several devices. In fact, buying a single VPN account often allows you to add the same VPN tool onto all your Internet-ready devices (within reason). However, remember that some things will not work when you have VPN running, such as how some adverts will not spawn, and some always-online apps will not connect.