Part 3: VPN
The Importance of Digital Security
Have you ever connected to those “free” Wifi networks at the airport or a coffee shop? If you’ve been reading the last couple blog posts, you’ll know that nothing on the Internet is truly free. It costs you something, whether it be an email address, a “Like” on Facebook, or something much worse like malware. Let’s discuss how we can keep our Internet traffic safe and secure.
What is a VPN? A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a virtual tunnel that hides or masks your Internet traffic, whether that be email, banking, or cat videos. Think about it like this: when activated, a VPN creates a virtual and private connection between your computer or device, and the website you’re accessing. It adds an extra layer of privacy (and encryption) to whatever it is you’re trying to do online. Using a VPN can greatly reduce the chances of someone stealing your information while connected to a public Wifi network. One thing to note is you don’t have to use a VPN when at home or other trusted Wifi networks. Here is an in-depth at VPNs by NordVPN, which I use personally.
“The only thing I do is Instagram.”
The thing is, cyberattackers don’t care what you “only” do.
Let’s say you don’t use a computer, just a tablet or smartphone (they make VPNs for those too!). Chances are you have all the apps for your bank, email, health companies, maybe your insurance company. Even if you don’t use the apps, these examples are still valid.
You’re at the airport waiting for your flight to meet an important client. Since you have some time to kill, you hop on the airport Wifi to get some work done, or prep for your meeting. 45 minutes later you’ve boarded the plane and are taxiing for take-off. The flight lands 3 hours later. After the in-flight movie and short nap, you’re ready for your meeting. You turn your phone back on and you have a missed call from your insurance agent, two emails from your bank, and five text messages from your closest friends saying your social media accounts have been compromised.
This is obviously the worst-case scenario, but let’s go with it.
So, what happened? It just so happened that you were traveling around the same time as the DEFCON hacking conference, and there was a kid in the same airport terminal practicing the mad hacker skillz he learned at the conference. Those 45 minutes you spent prepping for your meeting was plenty of time for him to capture your Internet traffic and wreak havoc on your digital identity. Using a VPN could have prevented this from happening. The VPN would have masked your web traffic in a virtual tunnel, preventing anyone from capturing your online activity.
Since we’re all quarantined right now due to COVID-19, a VPN might not be on the top of your list. But it is something to think about once we start traveling again and you “just want to check Facebook.”
Below are two links to VPN services I have used and currently use personally. As always, please contact us here if you have questions about any of this, or if you have a topic you’d like me to write about. Until next time, wash your hands, social distance, and take care of each other.
-Luke
