10 Cool Things That a VPN Can Do for You

Although VPN has been around for long, its use has become more and more relevant this past decade.

Going online is a part of our daily lives today, and that makes VPN undeniably needed.

The way VPN works are by tunneling the data you send to the server through an encrypted connection, making you not invisible, but untraceable.

Even if the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo managed to get hold of your data, she would take long hours to decipher it.

Beyond its prime necessity to keep you safe, there are fun things that a VPN can do to you that you might not realize.

Here's our top 10 list.

10 Cool Things That a VPN Can Do for You

1. Watch Streaming Sites Without Your ISP Slowing You Down

Did you know that YouTube has become the second-largest research engine?

Yep. People love watching video content, be it when they're trying to find a solution to their problems, or simply for entertainment.

Netflix, Hulu, and soon, Disney +. All these fun sites require a whole lot of bandwidth. So much so, that your ISP can decide to throttle your connection one-sidedly.

This means that your ISP sees that you're using so much bandwidth and slow your connection down on purpose, to force you to stop binging on your favorite TV series.

It's so unfair, right?

VPN can help you by providing you a "façade ISP." In doing this, your connection does not seem to come from you, so your ISP has no way of knowing it is you.

Hence, no throttling.

2. Play Online Games Without Your ISP Slowing You Down

It's already frustrating if your ISP throttles you mid-binging.

But imagine experiencing this during an epic game-playing!

Especially if you're on an unlimited data plan, your ISP can slow down your connection when it detects a bid data usage. 

This can get more frustrating when the game makers provide updates via BitTorrent.

The BitTorrent or other torrenting sites users are often targets of bandwidth throttling by ISPs because of its notoriety of heavy data usage. Not to mention, BitTorrent is commonly used to share copyrighted materials. So, often, ISPs block users from accessing it correctly.

Using a VPN, this will not happen.

3. Pay Online with Your Bank Card Abroad

Using your bank (debit or credit) cards abroad can be a pain in the booty.

Some banks put limitations on how much you can spend when you use them abroad. And most banks impose a shocking fee and/or exchange rates.

Also, if you go abroad without informing your bank, using your cards in another country can raise red flags. This may lead to your cards being blocked altogether for security reasons.

However, shopping is one of the joys of visiting another country. There are items you cannot find at home, such as weird wasabi-flavored Tim Tams.

A VPN installed in your device can help you with this.

If your connection appears that it comes from your home country, your bank won't be able to limit your transaction or even charge a special abroad rate on it.

You just need to choose a VPN that provides your country with its list of locations. And voilà.

Looking for the best VPN that suits all your needs? Check out our picks of the best VPNs of 2019 here.

4. Access Social Media Freely

Social media websites are one of the most blocked sites ever.

At work, in schools, not to mention, in several countries, access to social media is often restricted, be it by the internet connection provider, or even the government.

If you're at school and browse the web using your school's WiFi, it's almost sure you cannot scroll your Facebook feed. This also happens when you're visiting China, Iran, Algeria, and many more.

But this can be solved easily with a VPN.

5. Save Money when Booking Your Travels

The cheapest way to book your travels nowadays is to do your diligent researches on the net. This requires comparing prices from multiple carriers and hotels.

The things are, the provider websites record your searches, your dates of travels, and your preferences. This gives them the power to set their preferred prices, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Well, there IS something to do.

Browse with a VPN every time you look for the cheapest tickets or hotel bookings.

By becoming anonymous, these websites can stop targeting you specifically. Also, you can set your location in the destination country to get a cheaper hotel or lower car rental rates.

6. Save Money when Using Skype or Other VoIP Services

Skype or other VoIP services are not so expensive nowadays.

But when you're calling abroad or when your volume of calls is high, this "not so expensive" can add up into quite a bill.

One way to reduce this bill is by using a VPN.

When activating your VPN, choose your destination country. There you go, now your calls are local.

7. Connect to a Free WiFi Without Worries

"Where's a café that has free WiFi?"

It's a question that almost everybody in the 21st century has ever asked at least once.

Free WiFi is cool, even highly useful, but they come with their own set of risks.

Due to its public use, your data is not protected when using it. Anyone can steal your passwords or bank codes that you enter when connected using a free WiFi.

VPN is a smart, cheap way of protecting yourself. (Yes, VPNs nowadays are very affordable. Plus the advantage is worth the price).

Also, did you know that you can get free internet by using a VPN?

8. Access International Libraries or Geo-restricted Content

There are a ton of resources on the internet, but many of them are restricted.

For example, a French student researching Indonesian democracy may not be able to access websites that contain precious resources.

Other reasons for blocking access to particular content is copyright laws, price discrimination, or censorship.

For whatever reason, you can unblock the access to these content by using VPN; either by making you appear to be in that country or another country. No more geo-limitations.

9. Spy on Your Competition Undetected

One of the fastest ways to get an edge over your competitors is by checking out what they are doing.

In this case, anonymity is the key to success. You'll want to avoid your competitions from knowing you've been snooping around.

This is the reason you'll need a VPN. Your traffic will be logged in as a random user, or with an IP that's not your real one.

Their website administrators can still trace down your traffic, but it will bring them no further than to the VPN.

Oh, and before you question if it's ethical or not to do so, please know that your competitors practice the same thing to spy on your business.

10. Avoid Getting on "The List"

Many agencies constantly monitor the traffics on the internet to detect illegal activities (*cough* NSA *cough*).

But it's just not NSA or other government agencies, though. Other organizations do this too, for example, the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America).

Although you're not doing something illegal on the net, they still can put you on their watch list based on the criteria of their discretion.

For example, people who torrent extensively can often be put on their watch list. Yes, some trusted torrenting sites provide specific data protection, but a leak is not altogether impossible.

The best way for you to ensure that you're not on a list somewhere is by using a VPN.

Conclusion

You may have associated VPNs with "something I don't need because I'm only doing legit things on the internet."

Or, "that thing that is only useful to watch Netflix in China."

Well, now you know that VPNs have many cool uses. 

Using a VPN is 100% legal (thank God). And if you're looking for the best VPN, we have a list for you here, which includes a special promo rate for each of them;

Serina Rajagukguk

Serina is a writer whose passion includes learning all about new technology and trying to explain it in a layman term. 

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