VPNs, or virtual private networks, continue to be used by millions of people as a way of masking their internet activity by encrypting their location and web traffic.
But on the modern internet, most people can safely ditch them, thanks to the widespread use of encryption that has made public internet connections far less of a security threat, cybersecurity experts say.
The author seems to be generalizing from the specific (you don't need a VPN to not have your data stolen by some asshole on the coffee shop WiFi) to a much wider issue (you don't need a VPN for privacy).
What should make us even more skeptical of this article is that NBC's parent company Comcast stands to lose from widespread adoption of VPNs, because even with HTTPS connections they can still harvest data about what sites people visit and sell that data unless people opt out.
“Most commercial VPNs are snake oil from a security standpoint,” said Nicholas Weaver, a cybersecurity lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley. “They don’t improve your security at all.”
Yeah, there are a lot of shitty VPNs. The takeaway shouldn't be don't use VPNs but instead do your research as it should be with any major purchase.
As to the last point, there are websites you can use to check if your IP or other browser data is "leaking". If they can't get your information then your VPN is working as promised. Use double-VPN if you're really paranoid.
The author seems to be generalizing from the specific (you don't need a VPN to not have your data stolen by some asshole on the coffee shop WiFi) to a much wider issue (you don't need a VPN for privacy).
What should make us even more skeptical of this article is that NBC's parent company Comcast stands to lose from widespread adoption of VPNs, because even with HTTPS connections they can still harvest data about what sites people visit and sell that data unless people opt out.
Yeah, there are a lot of shitty VPNs. The takeaway shouldn't be don't use VPNs but instead do your research as it should be with any major purchase.
As to the last point, there are websites you can use to check if your IP or other browser data is "leaking". If they can't get your information then your VPN is working as promised. Use double-VPN if you're really paranoid.
i only use china vpn, you can say anything you want about politicians as long as you only criticise trumpf
Do you have a specific VPN you recommend?
Mullvad