FAQ

VPN in the acronym for a Virtual Private Network. With the use of a VPN, you can ensure the privacy of your internet communications when connecting physically to the global network. Thanks to encryption tools, virtual private networks make it possible to obtain security and scope of functions which are conventional for individual systems at a moderate price. Read More

Conventionally, virtual private networks are utilized by the staff of different companies who need a secure connection to corporate intranet networks from various locations outside the offices.

It is also possible to use VPNs to establish relationships between numerous sites or offices of a company.

This can be a retail chain or remote facilities. VPNs are becoming increasingly popular for private use as well, to protect home networks, establish secure Wi-Fi connections or ensure the privacy of Internet activities so that nobody could track visited sites or the history of inquiries.

Also, VPNs can help to avoid region-specific censorship practices, bans or restrictions (so-called geo-blocking).

VPNs are utilized as a protection tool by many companies and can be employed just as well by private users. As a first step, it is worthwhile to consider different VPN providers and read customer feedback and expert comments. There can be different positive, negative or neutral opinions published in consumer reviews or by the audience of online forums. Surely, no provider can cater to the needs of everybody, but careful consideration shall demonstrate the level of confidence and reliability.

Yes, they are fully compatible, and the new-generation Macs offer built-in support for the administration of VPN functionality. If you use X operating system, it is possible to maintain several VPN accounts on a single computer. Open System Preferences -> Network to set up your account.

Naturally, any paid service is better than any free service. This goes without saying, because any provider or SW developer needs money to maintain and expand its activities.

The same holds true for any VPN provider: if it does not get money from the users, there shall be another funding source. What are the possible options here?

Who is ready to come down with the money?

Most likely, there shall be someone who wants to know about your internet activities or, even worse, learn your details. Admittedly, this does not mean that any provider offering free VPN services is not reliable or trustworthy. Anyway, it is worthwhile to determine who pays for the supposedly free services and whether the sponsors contribute to your privacy rather than try to circumvent the protection you want to obtain. Consider any free VPN providers based on the standard principles, read customer feedback and expert comments.

This question cannot be answered straightforwardly. Yes, the internet connection shall become slower if you use a VPN. This is the reason why most users only utilize it for data privacy purposes. VPN can be extended to all internet activities, but this would considerably reduce your speed. This is the matter of optimized balance between performance and security. And there are some other factors influencing connection speeds: the number of simultaneous VPN users and the location where VPN services are utilized.

VPNs are primarily intended for private data transmission via public networks. By way of example, corporate VPNs can be utilized while you are outside your office to access office computers, or to ensure the security of any personal information if you ever have to use an open Wi-Fi internet connection.

VPNs help to maintain the privacy of internet activities so that no authorities or agencies can track the history of inquiries or website visits. Another convenient feature of a VPN is that you can disguise your location. VPNs make it look like the user, and the VPN server are in the same place. If you go abroad, to a region with geo-blocking, you can use VPNs to circumvent local restrictions, for instance, to use Hulu services.

Conventionally, the providers render services by subscription fees paid monthly, quarterly or annually, but the choice between the available payment options is not entirely straightforward, and there many other factors. Here are some critical questions: Whether the services are rendered on a contract basis, and personal details must be disclosed to execute such a contract?

Are there any hidden fees (for instance, for set up or cancellation)? What are the bandwidth limits? What happens if the applicable limit (if any) is exceeded? What is the level of data security? Whether the provider manages to offer low fees by selling user details? Naturally, it is required to make a choice basing on your best judgment and common sense, using such tools as comparative analysis.

Monthly fees are practiced by almost all VPN providers, and lower rates can be applied (and, thus, some money can be saved) if the user makes a one-off annual payment. Some providers require service contracts, but this is not a general practice. Again, common sense and best judgment shall be used to make the right choice.

The best answer to this question can be found in consumer reviews which are based on the in-depth analysis. You can study expert opinions and draw your conclusions. Make a short list of decent options and then look somewhat deeper. It is also worthwhile to read customer feedback.

This question cannot be answered with supreme confidence. On the contrary, it can be safely asserted that absolute anonymity of internet activities is a non-existing thing. VPNs provide a useful tool to disguise online activities of the users, including their locations.

The user can be in one country and appear to be in another state or even continent. To a large extent, the anonymity of users depends on the performance of security protocol operated by the VPN provider. Also, the providers follow different monitoring and data recording policies. As it was mentioned above, the best way to learn and compare is to study the viewpoints of experts and consumers.

Most likely, it is a must and a mandatory practice required by your employer to utilize VPN-protected connections whenever you use remote access to the corporate network. If a VPN is used only for the privacy of personal internet activities, the use can be limited to sensitive details, and all other traffic can be routed through regular browsers.

VPN protocols define how the providers handle the internet access of their users. Each of the VPN protocols utilized for this purpose has advantages and disadvantages, and the security levels they can maintain are different too. Please use the conventional information resources to select the most suitable option.

Yes, both standard and mobile versions of VPNs exist. The primary difference between the two is that a standard version offers remote network access while the physical location of the user remains unchanged. Mobile VPN versions are intended for those who keep moving but require uninterrupted access. If a mobile VPN connection is used, there is no need to close any applications in any location.

This depends on a specific VPN provider. Some providers offer differentiated services: the higher is the level of services (this usually means a higher fee too), the lower are the limits. This shall be considered as well to select a suitable provider.

If a static IP-address is assigned to a device, this address remains unchanged. Dynamic IP-addresses are used in most cases. They are changed on a regular basis. Dynamic IP-addresses are primarily utilized to ensure privacy and security: different addresses are specified for any logon. Thus, it becomes much harder for any investigators to track a specific device or user.

Static IP-addressing is much more reliable in any combination with VRN-protected access. Relying on constant data, the provider remembers IP-addresses of the users and, thus, can optimize its services. However, VPNs can be used with dynamic IP-addressing as well. To use this option, it is required to subscribe to a free DNS service and enter updated hostname and account details for the router. The hostname can be used for communication with remote clients. It shall be permanently linked with your computer’s current IP-address.

By default, the inbuilt VPN client routes all web traffic through a single network, without any splitting. The users can set up a VPN with split tunneling (see below). However, not many VPN providers offer this option because of possible exposure to security risks.

As a general rule, a VPN utilizes a single secure and encrypted tunnel to route all network traffic of a user. For a specific “VPN+user” pair it is possible to configure split tunneling and divide internet traffic. A part of it will go through a VPN server; the remaining portion will reach internet via a gateway selected by default.

The primary advantage achieved with the use of split tunneling is simple and obvious: with a narrower bandwidth the user can access the network at a higher speed. Usually, active operation of a VPN results in reduced speed performance. This is the reason why in many cases the use of VPNs is limited to handling sensitive private information. Also, it is somewhat dull to keep connecting and disconnecting to/from a VPN trying to improve performance, and here split tunneling comes to help. On the other hand, it shall be remembered that considerable security risks accompany split tunneling. When there is no split, all inbound and outbound traffic in the network goes via a tunnel protected by encryption tools. In the case of split traffic, the user is exposed to the unfiltered and potentially malicious content.

In the case of internet connection without a VPN, there is a kind of hardware firewall. This is your router. As long as a VPN is used, any traffic goes through a tunnel protected by encryption tools which, in its turn, is routed via a firewall, and at this point, the protection is lost. To offset this, a significant number of VPN providers promote NAT firewall services for ongoing filtering of all traffic passing between the internet and the VPN server. Protection tools offered by the provider shall be one of the essential selection criteria.

A VPN is clientless if it has no specific host connection. Some VPNs can be explicitly designed for operation by a web-browser. In other words, all that is required from the user is to launch the browser and access the VPN connection from any location where internet access is available.

In any case, it is useful to read the provisions of privacy policy and terms of service offered by the VPN provider. You can believe that the provider is trustworthy if it follows zero (or close to zero) logging policy, in other words, keeps no records of internet activities of its users. Any interest in the user data shall raise suspicions, and any activity logs shall be deleted at regular intervals to avoid security threats. Again, it is worthwhile to learn feedback from other customers and read expert reviews.

The primary advantage achieved with the use of a VPN is that the IP-address is kept secret and cannot be obtained for any malicious purposes or identified by any websites you visit. A VPN maintains encryption of all inbound and outbound traffic, even if you use a network with no inbuilt encryption tools. Thus, also shared or open systems become secure, and enciphered information cannot be read by anybody. High-profile VPN services come with SW tools to combat spyware, spoofing, unsolicited ads and malicious software.

It can be tough to select the best VPN provider with well-balanced price and value offering, and the do-it-yourself job might become the best option. In this case, there are no pitfalls like data or activity logs kept by the VPN providers and, naturally, no fees. As soon as a dedicated VPN server is set up, secure connections to your home network are available from whatever location.

It is a rather simple process, provided that you have Windows. To establish a connection with your home network from an external device, it is required to locate Windows-based VPN Wizard, indicate IP-address and enter login and password. All remaining operations shall be carried out by the Wizard. Inbound VPN connection can be set up to make it accessible to external devices. There is a guided online procedure for the network router configuration. Provided that proper settings are defined, all VPN traffic shall arrive at the host computer.

Tor is not the same kind of product as VPNs. They have different features and base on different systems. A VPN is about internet connection handling, data encryption and forwarding through a server to circumvent a direct internet connection. The workflow of Tor is as follows: connection is encrypted and passed around some servers. After that, the information is decrypted and delivered to the destination. Tor can achieve a higher level of anonymity compared to VPNs, though the cost of this shall be much slower speed performance. VPNs shall be used whenever the information is not too sensitive, and there are any bandwidth limits.

With the use of Domain Name System or DNS, alpha-numeric (descriptive) website names are turned into numerical IP-addresses. Whenever the devices establish a contact with a web-server, they get in touch with a DNS server and request the IP-address. Usually, the ISPs assign for the customers a DNS server which is controlled by the ISP and utilized, among others, to track the users’ web activity. DNS leaks originate if an OS fails to use the assigned anonymous DNS server and selects the default DNS server. DNS leak results in dangerous exposure of personal information and possible private data leaks.

First of all, it is desirable to opt for the VPN services with inbuilt anti-DNS leak protection. However, these tools are only offered by few VPN providers. The most efficient anti-leak device is to have an excellent DNS service (for instance, OpenDNS), or use paid utilities (for example, VPNCheck) for DNS leak monitoring and elimination.

There are no absolute guarantees that any VPN services are ultimately confident. That’s why it is as important to install and regularly update software to combat spyware and malware. It might be desirable to supplement a VPN with an anonymous web-browser for the encryption of browser data. In this case, the web activities cannot be tracked by anyone, including the VPN provider. Alternatively, the browser can be supplemented by a free extension called HTTPS Everywhere to make the browser establish encrypted HTTPS connections whenever possible.

VPDN is a Virtual Private Dial-Up Network, a type of VPN which can be utilized by private networks to operate remote access dial-in service. For remote users, this means better and simpler connectivity with closed systems.

VPNs operating on the “site-to-site” basis are especially useful for corporate networks connecting some geographically distributed offices. Thanks to a “site-to-site” VPN it is possible to establish secure connections between offices or other locations over public networks for effective data sharing among employees.

The most significant location criteria for the VPN provider selection is the physical closeness of the user to the network server. This dramatically affects speed performance of the service. To ensure a decent speed of connection, the server shall be as close as possible. The primary competitive advantage for any VPN provider with a geographically distributed network of servers is that users can access web services with region-specific access restrictions. For non-active travelers, the full geographic coverage of the server network is not so essential.

To be sure that your router is compatible, all you need to do is to buy a pre-configured VPN router with pre-installed VPN firmware. Taking into account that a router is not enough and a VPN service shall be purchased anyway, the router is pre-configured for the operation with different protocols and VPN providers. If it is unpractical to buy a new router, you can try to find a suitable firmware for your current router. Reference materials and guidelines can be found online.

Web-browsing with the use of whatever IP-address is legal. The users can only conflict with the law if they utilize VPN services for some illegal activities like distributing viruses, spreading or viewing child pornography, hacking or scamming. A much more common issue can arise if the VPN users obtain content from foreign websites without proprietor’s permission. This can be a matter of copyright infringement. Anyway, VPN services are both legal and advantageous, provided that they are used for valid and lawful tasks.

This possibility depends on the VPN protocol utilized by the user. PPTP can be blocked by the internet service provider because it operates via one port and handles packets in a specific manner, while OpenVPN cannot be prevented because it uses many different ports and protocols, and the internet service provider cannot make a distinction between a VPN and any regular HTTPS websites.

In fact, the VPN providers can monitor online activities of the users. In this context, it is worthwhile to study the privacy policy followed by the specific provider. This way you can learn how the information is handled. No provider acting in good faith shall be interested in any data of the users, and any activity logs kept by the providers for whatever reasons shall be regularly deleted. Otherwise, security threats can originate. Any recorded or retained details can be disclosed to third parties on paid or free basis, stolen or used for illegal purposes. Thus, it is better to select a provider who follows zero-logging policy or at least deletes any user activity logs within one month.

As long as a VPN connection is maintained, the user stays protected, and a full scope of additional security tools unavailable in a regular network is applied, including anti-infection measures to combat worms, Trojans, viruses, and bots. Automatic downloads and unsolicited and displays are conveniently disabled. Even if the user downloads infected content by accident and the viruses try to steal any data, the VPN shall disable any downloads and prevent transferring of infected files.

There are no significant disadvantages related to the use of VPNs. Any possible issues depend exclusively on the reliability of service. That’s why it is worthwhile to carry out an in-depth investigation of the providers and do not try to save on prices. This way you’d avoid any lengthy downtimes or unstable performance.

For Windows users, this procedure is quite easy. Windows has a ready-to-use VPN client with the support of several common VPN protocols. Alternatively, the users can purchase dedicated routers with inbuilt VPN servers. The settings can be defined by the users on their own, with the aid of online guidelines.

Generally speaking, VPN connections are globally available. That’s why they are popular in the world of business, because the businessmen continuously need secure access to shared files and documents, and they often travel both within the country and abroad. For frequent abroad travelers, it is worthwhile to consider a VPN provider with a geographically distributed network of servers. This is a guarantee that speed performance shall be reliable without regard to region or location.

Yes. 2 VPNs can be used, and it is possible as well to establish two-layer encrypted tunnels for data transmission. These options are only available, provided that there is no overlapping of the IP-addresses used in the two networks. Intrinsically, the VPN software controls all inbound and outbound system-wide traffic. In the case of any overlap, one of the addresses is retained, and the other is regarded redundant. The best and most successful way to use 2 VPNs is to run them on separate virtual machines and define an in-between route on the host server.

Two concurrent VPNs can be run for extra security, to ensure comprehensive privacy for sensitive personal data. The sequence of VPN connections shall always remain unchanged. Thus, the 1st provider shall see the data but cannot know the destination (because the 2nd VPN handles routing). The 2nd provider shall see the history of visited sites but cannot disclose your identity or realize the source of your data. This means a much higher anonymity level.

Indeed, proxy servers and VPNs serve to perform similar functions. However, they utilize entirely different processes. Proxy servers are a kind of intermediaries which are downstream of your computer and upstream of the Internet. Any outbound traffic is disguised to look like sourced from different IP-addresses. Even if the data is de-personalized this way, no encryption is applied, and the data remains exposed to web threats. Anonymity ensured by a proxy server can hide the IP-address to an absolute limit, but it is still possible for the internet service provider to trace the web activity of the users. In the case of a VPN, there is an encrypted tunnel linking the computer and the host server. This means that even the internet service provider is not in a position to track web activities beyond the borders of a VPN connection.

If the VPN connection fails to meet your performance expectations, try a different protocol. The scope of supported protocols can depend on a specific internet service provider. These can be L2TP, PPTP, STP, and OpenVPN. Trying different contracts, in turn, the users shall be able to resolve connection issues. In the case of PPTP, a higher speed is obtained at the cost of a lower level of encryption. With L2TP the situation is opposite: a higher level of encryption and a slower pace. It is also worthwhile to confirm that the connected VPN server is close to your location. As it was discussed above, the smaller is the distance, the better is the speed performance of your connection.

The majority of high-profile VPN providers maintain two concurrent connections by default. Some providers, including LiquidVPN, can offer even more concurrent connections (up to 8!). If it is proposed to establish simultaneous VPN connections for desktop, tablet, and smartphone, it is worthwhile to investigate the providers thoroughly.

Whenever you have to use a public computer, the most optimal course of action is to postpone any transmission of sensitive or private data. There are no guarantees that the connection is secure or the environment is spyware-free. VPNs are sufficient to secure web connections, but it might be impossible on a public computer to install a VPN client.

The switchover to a server at a different location can help to increase speed performance. The specific procedure to be followed to change VPN server location depends on the particular provider. In any case, this is a rather simple task, with no need to re-configure user account each time. If the user moves to another physical location, VPN server location shall be changed as well.

VPN blocking is practiced by some governments for censorship or security proposes. For instance, VPN access is blocked in the PRC. Some VPN services are operable in this country, but cannot be called stable or reliable. In Iran, any VPNs are banned unless they satisfy strict requirements, and even the users of such “approved” VPNs remain under government surveillance.

Shared IP-addresses are available for use at multiple sites, while any dedicated IP-address is assigned and linked to a single location. With the use of a shared IP-address, one can obtain higher anonymity of web activities, while a dedicated IP-address forms a personalized security layer which is extremely useful to log into private servers.