When you are going to use a VPN, it is essential to check that it is really secure. Otherwise you could have problems that affect your privacy. Not all of the ones on the Internet are reliable and you can find very dangerous options, both for computers and for mobile devices. We are going to explain to you how to know if a vpn is safe or not and what you should take into account.
How to know if a VPN is dangerous
What happens if you use one dangerous vpn? That means they could be selling your personal data, everything you do could be leaked, or they could spy on you. Keep in mind that our data is highly valuable online and there are programs designed solely to scam and collect information.
Know where you installed it from
The first thing you should look at is where did you install that vpn from. Have you downloaded it from official and reliable pages or from sites that may be a fraud? Avoid downloading them from third-party pages, where you do not have guarantees that it is really a safe page and that they have not been modified.
Although it is not always true, you can take into account if it is a free or paid program. Generally, VPNs that are free are usually also dangerous. After all, they use them to obtain information and profit. As far as possible, use only the paid ones, the most reliable ones, such as ExpressVPN or NordVPN.
Look up information of that VPN
You can too let you know about that VPN. You can look for information on the Internet to see what encryption protocols it uses, read comments and ratings from other users who have it, or even studies carried out by independent companies to verify if it really acts securely or not.
Simply by searching Google you will find all kinds of information about an online service, in this case about the VPN. You will be able to see data that makes you trust more or not in that application and decide if it is really convenient for you to install it or better use another.
See if the IP is leaked
One of the goals of VPNs is to hide your IP address. Therefore, if filter the real IP we would be facing an insecure program that does not fulfill its mission. This you can find out easily. You can just connect to the VPN and see what IP you are browsing with.
In case you see that your real IP is being leaked, as well as the location where you are physically located, it means that the VPN is not working well. Install a different one to be able to encrypt the connection when browsing.
Analyze the jurisdiction of the VPN
By this we mean looking where are the servers hosted of that VPN that you are going to use. Is the app from a country where they meet security and privacy requirements? Is it a program that could be in a nation where the personal data of Internet users is not protected?
This should also be analyzed. Ideally, you should be in a country that protects personal information. This will reduce the risk that they can use your personal data against you or that they may be spying on you without your knowledge.
In short, as you can see, you can take into account some factors to know if a VPN is safe or not. It is essential to use a program that is really reliable, otherwise you could have problems. Also keep in mind the monthly limit of the VPN to avoid problems.
