AD| 5 Good Reasons to Use a VPN in the UK Starting Today

You’ve probably heard about VPNs by now, and might be wondering if you should start using one. Well, one in six Brits are already using VPNs, so why not join in? 

Do that, and you’ll get to enjoy tons of perks. We’ll discuss the most important ones in this article. If you’re in a hurry, though, and want to try out a VPN right now, check out this very helpful guide from ProPrivacy (https://proprivacy.com/vpn/comparison/best-uk-vpn).

With that out of the way, let’s see why so many Brits are starting to really enjoy using VPNs:

1. Unblock Foreign Sites (Netflix, Hulu, Pandora Radio, etc.)

Like YouGov’s report showed, around 48% of people in the UK who use VPNs do so to unblock geo-restricted sites.

You probably know this by now, but you can’t use any streaming site you want. And you can’t always watch the same shows as people from other countries.

For example, you get access to everything you want on BBC iPlayer, but what about Netflix? Shows like Parks and Recreation aren’t available to you. And platforms like Peacock or Pandora Radio don’t even let you connect to them. You’ll just get a message like this instead:

Why?

Because those sites use geo-blocking to blacklist your access to their platforms or specific content. They do that to comply with copyright and licensing agreements. Otherwise, they’d be streaming the content illegally.

Okay, so how does a VPN help?

It’s simple – it “hides” your IP address (which reveals your geo-location). It does that by routing your connection requests through a VPN server. Any site you visit while using a VPN will think the requests are coming from the server, meaning they’ll only see the VPN server’s IP address.

So, to unblock the Netflix US library, you’d need to connect to a VPN server in the US, for instance. And to unblock British sites when you’re abroad, you’d use a server in the UK.

2. Protect Your Traffic

According to the report, the second reason people in the UK use VPNs is to enjoy extra security.

That’s not really surprising considering that most public WiFi doesn’t use any encryption. And even when it does, it’s not reliable. Plus, millions of Brits use fake WiFi networks without even realizing it. If you’re one of them, the hackers running the hotspots can steal your data.

Sounds scary, right?

Well, if you use a VPN, you’ve got nothing to worry about. The service encrypts your traffic end-to-end, meaning only the VPN app and server can decrypt your data. And if you use a VPN that doesn’t keep logs (like you should), the provider won’t have any idea what you’re doing online.

If cybercriminals try to spy on your VPN traffic, they’ll just see gibberish. For example, instead of seeing you’re sending requests to “facebook.com,” they’d just see “Fyr34SDbffj5%.”

3. Save Money

When you buy things online, prices can vary depending on your geo-location. It’s unfair, but retailers have to resort to that if they want to survive on a competitive market.

In our experience, having a UK IP address often resulted in us seeing higher prices. For example, when we checked out The Last of Us Part II on the PSN Store, we saw this price: £54.99.

But when we connected to a Malaysian VPN server, we got a completely different deal: RM 239.00. Converted, that’s around $45. 

Overall, that’s a pretty nice discount. And this is just one example out of many. We were often able to get better deals on video games, airplane tickets, hotel bookings, and car rentals by using a VPN to hide our British geo-location.

4. Unblock Firewall-Restricted Sites

Tired of not being able to browse certain sites because your boss, teacher, or parents used a firewall to block them?

No problem – a VPN can easily bypass any firewall. Here’s why:

• When you use a network, it assigns your device an IP address. If the network uses a firewall, it links specific inbound and outbound traffic rules to that address. So basically it says “no, your IP address can’t communicate with facebook.com.”
• When you use a VPN, you connect to sites through a VPN server. It acts like a middleman, so you communicate with web servers through the server’s IP address. Since there are no firewall restrictions linked to it, you can browse any sites you want.

And here’s the best part – VPNs encrypt your traffic end-to-end. So network admins won’t even know you’re bypassing the firewall. They’ll just see that you’re connected to a VPN server’s IP address – nothing more.

5. Avoid Targeted Ads

You’re probably familiar with personalized ads, right? You know, the ones that show up everywhere you go on the Internet right after you googled a specific thing. Sometimes, they’re useful. But, usually, they’re just annoying and downright creepy.

Can VPNs help you avoid them?

Not completely, but they can reduce how many you get spammed with. 

How?

By hiding your IP address. Most ad networks and services rely on IP targeting to spy on online users’ behaviors and preferences, and to follow them around the web. With a VPN, they’ll only see the VPN server’s IP address, so they won’t be able to associate your likes and dislikes to your original IP.

Plus, some VPNs have built-in ad blockers that can even protect your from malicious ads.

We generally got a more ad-free online experience when using a VPN.  

How Do You Feel about VPNs?

Feel like trying one out, or are you still not 100% sure they’re right for you? Why not? Please let us know in the comments.

Also, if you know other reasons why people should use VPNs, please tell us about them.