Given the current circumstances, where many individuals are required to work from home, VPN usage is on the rise. With more individuals using the internet, protecting your privacy is more important than ever. The bulk of customers value price over capability, which is why they go for low-cost VPNs. When a user, on the other hand, uses a free VPN, the problem swiftly escalates.
When it comes to VPN providers who offer their services for free, they appear to be the ideal solution to all of your troubles. Anyone would want to acquire something for nothing, especially if it’s a useful service like a VPN.
Free VPNs appeal to users because they give “great” security at no cost. The quality of their services is far too amazing to be true. As a result, you should exercise caution and avoid them. Using a free VPN has downsides as well, much like pirating the latest blockbusters. Your security, privacy, and personal information will be jeopardized.
You should take a moment to consider whether or not you want to use a free VPN before continuing to read this article. The top 5 reasons to avoid utilizing free VPNs for internet streaming are as follows.
1) DNS and IP Address Leaks
The most basic feature of a VPN that everyone recognizes is the ability to hide or disguise one’s IP address. All of your data is sent through a conduit and out of sight of prying eyes.
According to the data provided by Howtowatchchannel, when you use a free VPN, though, the pipe’s durability is compromised, and it’s more open to hacking. This is where anyone may claim your personal information and IP address as their own. Cybercriminals can monitor your activity, and you might be subjected to a host of privacy risks as a result.
Following that, you will almost certainly be subjected to some terrifying occurrences, none of which you want to be a part of. As a result, customers should pay for a VPN service. It nearly always yields a well-constructed pipe with a solid connection.
2) All of Your Activity Gets Stored And Sold
One of the most admirable aspects of VPNs is that they never keep any of their users’ information or data. Their ‘No Log Policy’ is commendable since it allows customers to have faith in them while utilizing their services. However, keep in mind that this feature is only available on paid VPN services, not free ones.
Free VPNs are now selling full rights to anybody willing and able to pay for an ‘anonymous’ IP service that reroutes traffic via your connections. Users’ internet usage, activity histories, and event logs are simply the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what is retained by a free VPN.
A CSIRO study examined 283 VPNs to back up all of this with data. It was discovered that 75% of free VPN apps track users in some way.
The unfortunate fact is that most free VPNs save and sell sensitive user information to advertising businesses. As a result, the individual’s very sensitive personal information winds up on the dark web. As a result, people are more vulnerable to hacks like money extortion and cyberbullying.
So, if you’re using a free VPN and think no one is watching you, you’re completely wrong.
3) Obnoxious Advertisements and Poor Service
We’ve all had those annoying advertisements pop up on our screens at some point, disrupting our internet experience. Several free VPNs come with a slew of ad scripts that the developers keep reinstalling for various reasons.
Advertisements are used by free VPNs, which may drive you to an insecure website. It might put you in danger of hackers gaining instant access to your papers and information. Aside from the privacy concerns, high-volume adverts may cause your device to slow down and damage your browsing experience.
Your free provider must make a profit even if it is not monetizing your data or turning your connection into an endpoint. In many cases, advertising revenue was utilized to do this. Many people use it for Adsense, and some for flash marketing. Constant pop-up adverts are extremely unpleasant and severely reduce the effectiveness of our internet advertising.
4) Exposure To Malware And Viruses
Giving up your privacy and security to receive free items is against everyone’s moral code. When you look up “the top 30-40 free VPNs,” you’ll find that at least 38% of them come with malware pre-installed.
Malvertising is a term used to describe the presence of advertising banners on some free VPNs. Businesses rely on the assumption that the average user will be unable to notice it. They provide free VPN trials to customers who already have a virus kit installed, and when they use the application, the company receives all of their data.
Security measures are necessary to ensure that your connection is as secure as possible, and you may choose which ones to use from the available options. On the other hand, the top VPN service providers for streaming provide you the option of employing the most popular and well-known protocols, such as PPTP, OpenVPN, and L2TP.
With a free VPN, such flexibility is not feasible.
5) Buffering
The terrible internet connection, which is equivalent to a snail slogging through cement, is one of the most severe downsides of using a free VPN. When utilizing a free VPN to stream online movies or games, you will almost always face considerable delays. While browsing some resource-intensive yet low-value websites, you may suffer a lot of buffering and delays.
A premium VPN, on the other hand, won’t slow you down when you’re watching your favorite shows.
Final Thoughts
Choose a premium service if you want to be protected. Instead of paying a high fee for a VPN with a single country that you must set up meticulously, you will pay a low amount for dozens of countries and hundreds, if not thousands, of outgoing IPs.
With all of this information at your disposal, we can only hope that you make the prudent option to pay for a VPN rather than using a free one. It’s a matter of your safety and privacy. Why would you want to put any of it at risk for the sake of internet streaming?
Lucas Noah, a distinguished writer with a Bachelor of Information Technology (BIT) degree, is currently enriching the digital spaces of Creative Outrank LLC and Oceana Express LLC with his expertise. His professional background in technology lays a solid foundat... Read more