How to Set Up a VPN with Surfboard
If you use a VPN to encrypt your online traffic and prevent eavesdroppers from viewing your activity, then you must ensure that you are connected to a trustworthy and reputable service. You may be thinking that the VPN provider you use is secure enough, but this is not necessarily the case. Although you should take the time to verify that they are trustworthy, there are many scams out there that try to trick innocent users into sharing their personal information. Before you know it, you’re in an endless loop of scams, where the thieves keep on taking and taking until finally they hit the jackpot and steal all your personal data. That’s when you find out the hard way that you should never, ever share your personal information with a stranger. Always use a VPN on public Wi-Fi or a free hotspot whenever possible because, as we’ve all been told often enough, you never know who might be listening. This is especially important if you are connecting to a public Wi-Fi hotspot at a coffee shop or restaurant because, let’s face it, anyone could be sitting at any computer connected to the same hotspot as you.
Fortunately, there are many reputable and trustworthy VPN providers out there, and it is quite easy to find out which ones are good and which ones are bad. If you use a bad provider, all your online traffic will be unencrypted and vulnerable to eavesdropping. This is why, before you dive in and start connecting to any of the free OpenVPN servers, it is important to do a little bit of research into which ones are good and which ones are bad. In this article, we will discuss how to set up a VPN with Surfboard – a simple, intuitive and open source tool for managing VPN connections.
What Is VPN?
VPN or virtual private network is a technology that enables two or more parties to establish a private network that provides secure connections through an intermediary, usually a server. The server is often located somewhere remote (such as in the cloud) and allows all the members to remain anonymous and protected.
A VPN allows you to establish a private network within a public network (such as the internet) that gives you full access to all the websites, services and functionality that the public network has to offer. If you’ve ever tried to access a website that doesn’t allow access from your location or tries to sell you something with an embedded video that you’re not allowed to watch because it’s blocked by your firewall, then you’ve experienced VPN.
Why Should You Setup a VPN?
VPNs are extremely useful in protecting your privacy and preventing identity theft. When you use public Wi-Fi at a coffee shop or restaurant, for example, all your online activity is visible to anyone who cares to look. With a VPN, this information is encrypted and secured, even if you’re using a free hotspot. Even if someone wants to steal your identity, it would take them a lot longer to do so with a VPN than without one. You can use the same logic to protect your personal information when you’re using public computers at libraries and schools. It is recommended that you install a VPN app on your mobile device and use this whenever you’re connected to unsecure networks.
How Do I Set Up A VPN With My Mobile Device?
If you’re reading this on a mobile device, then it’s quite likely that you are connected to an unsecure network. Depending on your device and the network you are connected to, you may be faced with several options when it comes to setting up a VPN. Since we already mentioned that a VPN protects your personal information, it’s important to mention here that the best approach would be to use a VPN app that is tailor-made for mobile use. The simplest and most straightforward option is to use a VPN app designed for Android or iOs devices. There are also many great solutions specifically made for the Nano, Blackberry and Windows Phone users.
If you use a VPN to encrypt your online traffic and prevent eavesdroppers from viewing your activity, then you must ensure that you are connected to a trustworthy and reputable service. You may be thinking that the VPN provider you use is secure enough, but this is not necessarily the case. Although you should take the time to verify that they are trustworthy, there are many scams out there that try to trick innocent users into sharing their personal information. Before you know it, you’re in an endless loop of scams, where the thieves keep on taking and taking until finally they hit the jackpot and steal all your personal data. That’s when you find out the hard way that you should never, ever share your personal information with a stranger. Always use a VPN on public Wi-Fi or a free hotspot whenever possible because, as we’ve all been told often enough, you never know who might be listening.