The previous year was quite eventful, with a full-blown pandemic ranging across the planet. People have to adjust to a new reality, where social distancing and home isolation were new normals. The world stood still; however, one thing kept going on – the constant tug of war between cybersecurity companies and hackers.
Numbers and data present a more grim picture – global economic damage due to cyberattacks reached a staggering 5 trillion dollars, which by the end of 2021 will cross the 6 trillion dollars mark.
Incidentally, data breaches targeted to big corporations attribute the major portions of the losses incurred. However, this only highlights the importance of efficient data security measures to keep yourself safe from online threats. Going by the effectiveness of a VPN to protect your data and online privacy, one can’t deny that VPN is surely necessary in 2021 and beyond.
Why Use VPN?
There can be numerous reasons to get a VPN for yourself; however, all these could be placed in three broad categories, namely;
- For Online Safety – Most important reason, primarily for protection against hackers.
- For Online Privacy – Another big reason for going with a VPN, mainly for a security shield against hackers, stalkers and even against snooping governments.
- For Internet Censorship – A VPN is extremely beneficial in not-so internet-friendly countries for accessing the web. Also, a VPN helps to surpass location restrictions to watch content from other countries.
All of the above mentioned points could be a good reason to opt for a VPN in 2021. Let’s take a look at each of these points in more detail;
VPN for Online Safety
Of course, online safety is a major concern. The danger of an online attack looms over every internet user. Although security programs nullify these attacks to a larger extent, VPN adds an extra layer of security. With online transactions on the rise and more and more businesses going online, effective security measures are absolutely essential, and a VPN only strengthens these measures.
VPN for Privacy
The Internet is an open world, and with the right tools, anyone can see or follow your activity on the web. Sounds creepy; what about your online transactions? Suppose someone gets their hands on your financial details? A VPN is a highly effective tool against privacy threats online. Those familiar with the working of a VPN will know that it masks the user’s IP address.
Additionally, a VPN secures your connection to a server through an encryption tunnel. No one can snoop on you and see what you are doing. In other words, you become invisible.
VPN For Surpassing Internet Censorship
Some countries heavily censor the internet. A VPN is the only tool to bypass these restrictions and access or distribute content over the internet in those countries. Companies also restrict their content or products to certain locations. VPN allows users to bypass the restrictions and access the content, such as watching movies available only in specific countries.
VPN in the Wake of Remote Working Trend
Covid 19 pandemic has forced the world to adopt new working norms, namely remote working or work from home. While this arrangement has allowed the economy to keep pushing forward, it also has opened new avenues to direct cyber-attacks. Most remote workers use public and open networks, which are easy access points for hackers to initiate an attack. This essentially raises the necessity of deploying a VPN for safely navigating online.
