7 Advantages and Disadvantages of VPN | Risks & Benefits of VPN

 

Even though virtual private networks (VPNs) are widely used privacy services, many people are still unsure about their need for one. 

 

Knowing the key benefits and drawbacks of anything is necessary before deciding whether or not to get it.  

Although a virtual private network (VPN) offers numerous advantages to its users, it also has certain disadvantages. 

 

Before you use the VPN, you should be aware of its advantages and disadvantages. particularly if you're a novice user.  

Additionally, you should never forget that not all VPN is made equally. 

 

Every VPN has a unique set of benefits and drawbacks. They do, however, have a shared set of advantages and disadvantages.

 

You will learn everything there is to know about the 7 Advantages and Disadvantages of VPN | Risks & Benefits of VPN in this article. 

 

You will be aware of the pros and cons of utilizing a VPN after reading this text.

 

Let's get started,

 

 

Advantages of VPN

 

1. Provides Anonymity

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Nearly all websites may see your actual IP address that you are using. 

 

You may essentially encrypt the data and hide your true IP address by using a VPN. Since the true IP address is hidden, neither ISPs nor the government can track what you do online, nor can hackers steal your personal information.

 

Additionally, it is quite lawful for ISPs to sell your personal information to advertisers in several nations. 

 

However, by utilizing a VPN service, these hazards can be totally avoided. 

 

 

2. Avoid Geo-restrictions

 

Content providers can use geo-restrictions to prevent users in specific geographic areas from accessing certain websites. This is being done in order to adhere to specific legal protocols. 

 

Typically, you use your actual IP address to send a request while attempting to visit a webpage. Websites can readily determine your location based on this IP address. 

 

You will not be allowed access if your location is on the blacklisted list.

 

Because a VPN substitutes your actual IP address with a different one, these websites may believe that you are located in the correct region. 

 

Thus, access to VPN services can be obtained from any location in the world.

 

 

3. Protection from Cyber attacks

 

The strength of cybercriminals is increasing daily. They are able to listen in on any network connection you have, even WiFi. 

 

They have the ability to fabricate fake WiFi connections in order to fool consumers into connecting. 

 

Public WiFi is the most widely used method by cybercriminals to establish a phony Wifi connection. 

 

Users risk losing all of their private information, including bank account and credit card information, if they fall for such scams.

 

User protection against such attacks can be achieved by using a VPN service. Your connection is encrypted by a VPN so that the attackers can only see pure nonsense. 

 

This implies that every time you use a VPN, your personal information is protected.

 

 

4. Prevents Bandwidth Throttling

 

One technique to restrict bandwidth is by bandwidth throttling. The ISPs typically carry out this once a week or once a month in order to improve their services. 

 

Even ISPs have the ability to throttle your bandwidth in order to force you to upgrade your data and subscription plans. 

 

Users that often use the internet can encounter it in particular. As a result, a frequent decrease in internet speed is observed.

 

Your ISPs won't be able to keep an eye on your online activities or the quantity of bandwidth you use if you use a VPN service. 

 

As a result, they won't do anything even if you use more bandwidth.

 

5. Improved Gaming Experience

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The idea that a VPN may really improve your online gaming experience is something that many people might not be aware of. 

 

Certain games are only available in specific geographic regions. With a VPN, you can eventually play them because the IP address is masked. 

 

Additionally, by employing a VPN for gaming, DDoS assaults and unfair IP bans can be avoided.

 

 

6. Bypass Firewall

 

Similar to geo-restrictions, network administrators can use firewalls to block access to specific websites. 

 

Certain machines that use the IP address that you are logging onto are blocked by the firewall. 

 

You will no longer be able to access the webpages if the IP address matches the one you are using. 

 

You are able to visit those pages without any problems because the VPN conceals your true IP address. You can use this as well to visit websites that are blocked.

 

 

7. Helps you to save money

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Depending on where you live, internet sellers may show you various pricing for the same product. 

 

Generally speaking, richer countries seem to have higher pricing than less developed ones. 

 

The goal of the actions taken by online shops is to increase revenue and promote their merchandise.

 

Therefore, utilizing a VPN can help stop this from happening. By connecting to a server in that specific location, a VPN might give the impression that you are from a less developed region. 

 

Consequently, there is a noticeable drop in price. However there is no 100% assurance with this procedure. 

 

Certain websites substitute pricing discrimination strategies with tracking cookies. As a result, there won't be any price reductions visible to you. 

 

In this instance, you ought to always clear the cache before connecting to the VPN.

 

 

Disadvantages of VPN

 

1. 1. Slowsdown the Internet Speed

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There are instances when using a VPN causes your speed to decrease. The encryption of the data is to blame for this. 

 

The data has to travel farther than usual because the VPN encrypts it. Connection speed may suffer as a result of this. 

 

However, this speed hit is so slight as to be almost imperceptible. Despite this, the speed hit is determined by three primary elements.

 

These are the,

 

1.     The interspace between the VPN servers
2.     Type of protocol
3.     Encryption strength

 

However, if you have a powerful CPU and enough bandwidth, you can avoid the VPN's speed hit.

 

 

2. 2. Costs more money

Despite the fact that there are many free VPN providers accessible. Many of them don't provide the user with the total protection they require. 

 

Furthermore, it is not a dependable solution to use them. You might jeopardize your privacy if you utilize them. 

 

Thus, in order to experience total protection, you must use a paid VPN service. However, because commercial VPN services require a monthly subscription price, they won't be affordable for everyone.

 

 

3. 3. Device Compatibility

 

However, the majority of devices and operating systems are often supported by VPNs. Certain platforms are not compatible with it. 

 

This is a result of the limited usage of these platforms. In this instance, setting up a VPN connection manually is required if you wish to utilize a VPN on such a site. 

 

In addition, you can use an Ethernet cable to directly connect a computer with a VPN connection to unsupported platforms. But, it will significantly slow down your internet speed.

 

 

4. 4. Privacy Issues 

 

VPNs are designed to give you total security. However, there are certain VPN services that might be worthwhile. in particular, the free VPN services that lack correctly set encryption. 

 

Additionally, there's a danger that these VPNs will sell your information to unaffiliated businesses. Additionally, VPNs that frequently log user data may jeopardize your privacy. 

 

The original intent of VPNs is defeated by these types of VPNs. On the other hand, a premium VPN service provides total security and a no-logs policy.

 

 

5. 5. Connection Droppings

 

Dropping connections is one of the most common issues that VPN users have. You will have to deal with the inconvenience of reconnecting it when this occurs. 

 

In addition, since your encrypted connection is no longer functional, your actual IP address may become public knowledge. Your anonymity may be compromised as a result. However, this can be avoided by using VPNs that have a kill switch option. 

 

When the connection from the server is lost, a VPN with a kill switch feature immediately disconnects from the internet.

 

 

6. 6. Configuration Difficulty

 

Not every VPN service has been set up correctly. An incorrectly designed virtual private network (VPN) can expose your private data to hackers. 

 

One of the most frequent problems resulting from a badly configured VPN service is IP and DNS leakage. Furthermore, using VPN services is not generally simpler. 

 

You are not able to manually configure them unless you are really technical. Offering a VPN service with a good user interface is therefore always a better choice.

 

 

7. 7. Legality Issues

 

Despite the fact that most nations permit the usage of VPNs. Certain countries view private networks, such as VPNs, as prohibited. 

 

You should not use a VPN if your country is on the list of prohibited countries. Despite this, there could be repercussions if you use the VPN illegally.