Understanding VPN - What is VPN and why do I need it?
VPN is also known as virtual private network, which is getting very popular in recent times. VPN is a networking technology which uses a less secure network such as the Internet to create a very secure network of computers residing on geographically separated places. Computers connected with the VPN are secure and appear in one network. The Virtual Private Network or VPN for short is the networking technology for making a private network of computers residing in different geographical locations, and these are possible through the use of safe and encrypted connections over the less secure network using the various VPN softwares.
There are many ways VPN is used these days, businesses use VPN to connect their global network and allows employees to work securely. While most of the home users prefer it for accessing the Internet securely. VPN makes internet access secure and also provides protection against viruses. If you are concerned about privacy then you can use VPN to access the Internet. Sometimes it also makes Internet access faster due to compression technologies used in Internet data transfer.
Technically VPN is used to extend a private network using a public network such as the Internet. For example if your company office is in USA and you want use company network in UK then using VPN you can extend the USA network in UK. and the extended will look like as it is in the same network in USA. So, it gives security and reliable connectivity between the computers in the network.
VPN is used to create a ?Virtual Private Network?, where it includes the one or more networks residing on the different geographical locations. VPN using the tunnelling protocols for establishing the secure connection between the networks. This helps in being a part of a remote network as a local network. This gives tremendous opportunity to the users of the VPN. There are many free and commercial VPNs that can be used by the users around the world.
VPN Server and client software is used to create secure vpn network using the secure communication technologies. Modern VPN software knows the technicalities of VPN network establishment and uses all the modern network security techniques. With the help of modern VPN software you can establish a secure VPN network using the public Internet.
Understanding VPN with example
Suppose there is a bank in one of the cities in the USA and the main data centre resides there. In the data centre there are many servers used by the Bank for saving data. Also many employers are working there on the desktop computers. All these computing devices are in the same network. Now the Bank decided to open another branch in the UK and there is a need to extend the same network in the UK. In such a situation VPN will be used for extending the same network to the UK. Here it's very expensive to use the traditional lease line and connect two networks. So, VPN can be used to cheaply connect the networks.
If Bank opens new branches in other parts of the USA and other counties, then it's very cost effective to use VPN to connect the computers in the network. So, VPN is very useful for businesses and corporations.
Situations where VPN can be used
Corporate environment
VPN can be used to connect computers residing in different geo-graphical locations. It even can be used to connect corporate networks. Employees working from home can use VPN to securely connect corporate networks and work without any security breach.
Connecting to remote server
If you are working for a company and there is a need to connect to the servers securely then VPN can be used. Here first of all you have to make use of VPN to connect to the server network and then access the server securely.
Use of VPN across the globe
VPN is one of the most and well exploited across the globe to securely connect to the corporate network and do the work. VPN can also be used to access the Internet using the VPN server configured in some other country. For example if you want to access the Internet using a US address then you can use any commercial VPN allowing this.
Web Scraping
Companies running web scraping jobs can use the VPN to access various counties' networks to run their job. From your location you can use VPN and configure it to pass Internet traffic from the country of their choice. This allows the companies to use multiple IPs and locations to access the Internet for web scraping. Web Scraping companies are using VPN in their web scraping jobs.
As secure tunnel to the servers
VPN softwares can be used to establish a secure connection to the servers. Such a network will help in securely and privately accessing the servers. This increases the security while accessing the servers.
Most of the cloud and hosting companies provide support for the VPN. If you are hosting your servers on the cloud or in the datacenter then you can use VPN for making a secure tunnel to your server. Such a tunnel is helping organisations in securely accessing the services on a day to day basis.
Use of VPN in SEO services
VPN provides capability to access the Internet from different parts of the world. So, if you want to access the search engine ranking in different countries then you can access the website using VPN and find out the ranking in different countries. VPN is being used by many internet marketing companies for different SEO strategies.
Why do you need VPN?
Home users mostly use a VPN to hide their online activity. So, if you are looking for a solution to hide your own Internet activities then use any good commercial VPN. VPN is also used to guard yourself against hackers and prevent snoops on the public network. VPN can also be used to hide your public IP address along with browning activities, your personal data and the Wi-Fi network details. So, VPN is very useful in protecting you against various Internet scams.
People are now using the Internet very frequently and usually many hours in a day. So, companies and even ISPs are collecting more data to monetize or sell to the hackers, this poses a threat to you. Your personal data might be collected for malicious purposes, someone might be watching your or tracking your activities online. So, to protect against such threats you may switch to the VPN for browsing the Internet. VPN will help you in maintaining web privacy for you.
You can use VPN at your home to protect against snooping, personal data collection, your Internet activities monitoring, hiding your IP address, protecting against viruses and ransomware. So, it is very important for the home users to use VPN for protecting against Internet threats.
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