Free VPNs are tempting. Who doesn’t love free stuff after all? But on the other hand, are they really worth it? Let’s look at some reasons why you should avoid using a free VPN.
They can see and sell your browsing history
The VPNs operating in the free market are businesses, just like any other. They can see your browsing history and sell it to advertisers. They also have access to your personal information such as your location, what sites you visit, and what you download.
If you’re worried about a hacker stealing your credit card number or social security number from a free VPN, don’t be—your identity can be stolen much more easily than that!
They can track you on other sites
As a non-paying user, your data is valuable to VPN providers. They can use it for any number of purposes, including targeted advertising and selling to third parties.
One of the most important things to keep in mind when using a VPN is that you never know who’s watching or recording what you do online. Your activity through a free VPN can be logged by the service itself, and that log may include everything from your browsing history to personal details like name and address. That information could then be shared with law enforcement or other government agencies—and it might even be used against you if there’s enough evidence against you (like being able to access your location).
You get what you pay for: underpowered servers, slow speeds and limited data allowances
Free VPNs may sound like a tempting proposition. After all, who doesn’t love free stuff? But don’t be fooled: they are generally not worth the risk or hassle. Here’s why:
- Limited bandwidth and server locations
- Slow speeds and unreliable connections
- Limited data allowances
- Insecure servers
They put your device at risk
If a free VPN is not secure, what’s the point?
There are many compelling reasons to use a virtual private network (VPN). They allow you to connect to the web via an encrypted tunnel, which protects your online activity from snooping and tracking. If a free VPN does not offer this basic level of privacy protection, then there are no advantages over their less expensive counterparts.
Free VPNs are a bad idea.
Let’s start with the basics: free VPNs are more likely to sell your data, because they make money by selling ads. Also, they are more likely to be insecure, because they make money by offering as many users as possible, which makes it more important for them to collect and sell data from those users than it does for them to care about keeping them safe from cybercriminals. Finally, they are almost always limited on data allowances; this means that if you stream lots of video or download large files often (which is common), then you may run out of data before your month-long trial period ends—or worse yet—before your actual paid subscription has even started!
Conclusion
If you’re still convinced a free VPN is for you, go ahead and give it a try. If you don’t like it, there are plenty of excellent paid-for alternatives out there, such as P33k@boo VPN.
