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What Is VPN?
2022-02-22 15:16:48

What Is VPN?

Surfing the net over the public and unsecured Wi-Fi for a transaction or any other purpose like online data interchange can lead to disclosing your personal information. So, this article will be an informative one to deal with such a scenario to establish an effective and secure connection over the insecure network.

Before moving to the topic, let's discuss the Private Network.

Private Network

A private network is to be configured in such a way so that devices outside the private network cannot access it. This type of network is primarily preferred by business and private organizations. It is because they share confidential information in between, and they will not wish to share it outside the organization.

For example: Suppose you have a house with fully automated devices and each is connected, then the network of your house is your private network and thus cannot be accessed from outside, and only you can access it. But accessing this private network by you from other places, .i.e., from outside the reach of your private network, may lead to severe problems. Let's look at these problems,

Problems

1. Suppose we have a private network, but we are at a remote location, so to access a private network, we have to use the open internet. But the point is to be noted that using the open internet for accessing the private network can lead to hacking data by the hackers.

2. Another problem is that the ISP (Internet Service Provider) can access your browsing history and other sensitive information.

We can deal with the mentioned problem while accessing the private network using open internet with the help of a VPN, i.e. (Virtual Private Network). A VPN can establish a secure connection between the private and remote, clients even using the open internet. So let's discuss the VPN in detail.

What is VPN?

Virtual Private Network creates a virtual "private network" at a remote location to access the local/private network over a safe and secure encrypted connection.

In other words, we can say that Virtual Private Network is a technology that establishes a secure and encrypted connection for you over an insecure network like the open internet. As this encryption occurs on a real-time basis, it is more difficult for an unauthorized person to steal and track your online activity. Apart from keeping your data safe and secure, VPN can also mask up to your IP address so that your online activity is virtually untraceable.

A virtual private network (VPN) allows a private network to be extended over a public network such as the internet. It simply means a private network can be accessed from a remote location using the VPN that uses a tunneling protocol to create a secure connection.

Let's understand the below figure,

From the figure, it is visible that the VPN is creating a safe and secure connection between you and the internet so that no hacker and snooper will get access to your data.

After knowing what a VPN is, let's discuss two different types of VPN,

Types of VPN

  • Remote Access
  • Site-To-Site

Based on its scope of usage, the Virtual Private Network is categorized into two types,

Remote Access VPN

A remote-access VPN allows a user to connect to a private network and have remote access to all of its services and resources. The user's connection to the private network is established through the internet, and the connection is much safe and secure. Therefore, remote Access VPN is beneficial to both residential and business users.

Example: While out of the office, a firm employee connects to his or her firm's private network using a VPN to access files and resources on the private network.

Site-To-Site VPN

A Site-to-Site VPN, also known as a Router-to-Router VPN, is widely adopted by big corporations. Site-to-site VPN connects the network of one office location to another office location and is widely used by companies or organizations having branch offices in different places.

Different VPN Protocols

Data is routed across a connection according to VPN standards. For example, some VPN protocols prioritize data speed, while others concentrate on disguising or encrypting data packets for privacy and security. So, let's see some of the VPN protocols in brief,

  1. OpenVPN

OpenVPN is the protocol of choice because of its quick speed and high-level encryption. In addition, this open-source solution is adaptable and may be used on any port. As a consequence, you'll be able to bypass most firewalls and ISP/network limitations. 

  • IPSec – Internet Protocol Security

IPSec (Internet Protocol Security) is a protocol for securing Internet communication across an IP network. IPSec protects Internet Protocol communication by validating the session and encrypting each data packet sent and received.

  • IKEV2-Internet Key Exchange

IKEv2 is the latest and most potent VPN protocol, based on the IPSec architecture. Cisco and Microsoft collaborated on this solution, which is quick, stable, secure, and simple to set up. However, because it is new, it does not support previous systems.

  • WireGuard

WireGuard is the most recent VPN protocol to hit the market. It is intended to replace IPSec and is said to be lighter and quicker. Furthermore, because it is open-source, there is a lower risk of security flaws. However, the protocol is still in its early stages of development and thus lacks cross-platform compatibility.

  • SSTP

Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol, or SSHT, creates the VPN tunnel over which data is sent and secured. Microsoft owns it, and it is only available for Windows, FreeBSD, and Linux and is not auditable. In any case, it is one of the most secure VPN protocols and can penetrate most firewalls.

  • L2TP – Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol

Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol, or L2TP, is a tunneling protocol frequently used with another VPN security protocol, such as IPSec, to create a highly secure VPN connection. L2TP creates a tunnel between two L2TP connection points, and the IPSec protocol encrypts the data and ensures that the tunnel remains safe.

  • PPTP

PPTP provides a considerably quicker connection due to its minimal encryption and low security. It works on a wide range of platforms and is simple to set up. However, unless security is unnecessary, it is not suggested.

Different protocols' performance based on few criteria are summarized in the diagram below:

How does VPN work?

A VPN masks your IP address by allowing the network to route it through your chosen VPN host's server rather than your ISP. When you use a VPN to access the internet, the VPN server will become your data source. This means that your ISP (Internet Service Provider) and other third parties will not be able to see the websites you visit or the data you transmit and receive over the internet.

Let's understand the working of VPN through few steps considering the diagram:

It would be best if you chose a VPN Service Provider. You can generally download and install a simple VPN application on your smartphone, tablet, and computer after subscribing to a VPN provider. After setting up VPN, your data will go through the following steps:

  1. Your data traffic is encrypted by the VPN software on your computer and sent to the VPN server through ISP over a secure connection (i.e., Through an Encrypted Tunnel).
  2. Once encrypted data reaches to VPN server, it decrypts the encrypted data from your PC.
  3. Your data will then send by a VPN server to the internet and will receive a response that is intended for the user.
  4. After getting the response, The VPN server encrypts the traffic again before sending it back to you(on your device) to make it secure.
  5. The data will be decrypted by the VPN software on your device, allowing you to understand and utilize it.

Here the user's internet data is being diverted through an external VPN server. Thus, a secure connection will also provide a high level of anonymity to the user. In addition, because you're accessing the web using the VPN server's IP address, your actual IP address will not get disclosed.

Why Should We Need VPN?

Nowadays, the internet is becoming an increasingly important part of our lives. We use the internet for various purposes like transactions, communicating with friends, requesting and responding to data, and working online. So if we are not going to secure our online activity, we can face the risk of hackers, government agencies, and our ISP who can find more about us than we want them to know. Thus, the use of VPN can shield our data.

Following are a few reasons why we should use VPN:

  1. Provides Enhanced Security

VPN encrypts data and transmits it through tunneling protocols over the internet that makes it more secure. The data remains encrypted during transmission between the VPN software installed on the client machine and the VPN host's server. 

  • Provides Online Privacy

VPN provides privacy to the user, as it masks up the user's IP address with its IP address (VPN Server's IP) to make the user anonymous. It also protects the user against having his search history gathered, accessing, or sold. However, keeping it in our mind, if we are not working on our privacy while working on a public computer or provided by a school or company, our search history is still visible to all.

  • Allow accessing the internet with freedom

VPN allows you to access the internet with freedom as it can take you even to geographically restricted online content by making you anonymous. The VPN's host server will use the random IP address to mask your IP to make it all possible.

  • Makes the public WIFI safer

Using public Wi-Fi without safeguards can lead to a bad result like a confidentiality breach, and also, Wi-Fi owners or hackers can steal essential credentials to use for illegal activity. So, using a VPN to access public Wi-Fi will be a better, safe, and secure practice.

Is Using a VPN Legal?

Many individuals will be unsure of using a VPN is legal or illegal. This service gives you a chance to be a lot more anonymous while surfing the internet, which may be pretty valuable in a negative way for hackers and other cybercriminals. After all, if those people can't be found guilty because of anonymity, it's far more challenging to hold them accountable for their actions. So even though it is not like using VPN is illegal.

Many European countries support internet freedom that can be achieved using VPN. Also, in many countries, businesses and private organizations recommend using a VPN for the working environment.

Although many countries have announced that VPN use is illegal for their citizens, a few countries are China, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Oman, Russia, Seria, Turkey, Uganda, UAE, and a few more.

Advantages of VPN

The following are the main advantages of the VPN:

  1. It provides secure remote control to the local network
  2. Provides enhanced security from threats
  3. Provides the user an online privacy
  4. It can bypass the filter and can allow accessing the restricted content
  5. Provides better performance
  6. Allows safer torrenting and network scalability.

Limitations of VPN

The use of VPN may impact internet usage in many ways:

  1. May slower down the actual internet connection
  2. We can also use the VPN for the illegal purpose
  3. The connection may get drop gradually 
  4. VPN Configuration may be difficult
  5. The use of VPN may be costly for a Small organization
  6. Some VPN provider can monitor your activity

How to Set Up Your VPN?

It's more straightforward than it appears to set up your VPN connection. Most of the work will be done for you by your VPN provider. However, you must first choose a VPN service that best suits you (do proper research and review the different providers).

When you select a VPN provider, you will be provided with VPN software to install on your operating system. Most VPN providers provide VPN software applications for various devices and operating systems. For example, a VPN client may download VPN software applications for Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android, and Linux.

Let's look at the three simple steps to get started with VPN 

  1. Subscribe to a trustworthy VPN provider

Many free VPNs are risky and also having data or speed limitations. So, try to choose and subscribe to an affordable but paid one to get the maximum out of it. We have already discussed that a VPN provider can also monitor the client activity, so while subscribing to a VPN, one must note this point. After you've decided on a VPN service, you'll need to sign up for it. But, first, create an account and keep your login credentials with you. It will be required in the coming steps.

  • Download the VPN app

After you've signed up with your selected VPN provider, all you have to do now is download their VPN software on your Android phone, iPhone, tablet, or PC. To download the original software, go to your VPN provider's website. Don't download from a separate site since it might contain viruses or it may be pirated one. Once you are done with the downloading part, install it and log in using credentials.

  • Activate the VPN

After completing the installation and login procedure, choose the desired VPN server before pressing the connect button. After onwards, press the connect button, and the connection will get established. In some cases, you won't get notified that it is activated, but the VPN software will be running for you in the background. Now, you’ll be able to access the internet in a more safe, private, and unrestricted manner.

The procedures to set up a VPN on your computer are summarized in the diagram below

That is all about the VPN for now. We discussed all the central parts of the VPN, like what a VPN is, its types, different VPN protocols, it’s working, whether the use of VPN is legal or illegal, pros and cons of VPN, and at last, we also discussed how to set up a VPN.