How do VPNs work?

Many people manage their personal and financial lives online — so ensuring the information they send is secure and private is essential. In part, security depends on knowing how to spot scams and fraudsters. But there are also tools that may help, including VPNs.

What is a VPN?

A virtual private network, or VPN, creates an encrypted connection between a device and a VPN provider. When someone uses a VPN to access the internet, the information they send gets routed through the VPN first. Similarly, any information they receive goes to the VPN before getting passed back to their device.

The encrypted connection is often described as a tunnel — information that flows through the tunnel is hidden from outside eyes. By acting as an intermediary, the VPN can help keep users' internet activity secure and anonymous.

Why use a VPN?

People commonly use VPNs to:

• Avoid tracking. VPNs can anonymize users, allowing them to avoid being tracked by their internet service provider (ISP), advertisers, and hackers.

• Access content. Users may be able to use a VPN to avoid censorship in their home country and access region-restricted content online.

• Work remotely. Some companies require employees to use a VPN to connect to the organization when working remotely.

• Encrypt traffic. VPNs encrypt traffic, which may be especially important when visiting websites that don't already have encryption enabled.

How do VPNs help secure data?

VPNs create secure connections between a user, the VPN's server, and other parts of the internet.

There was a time when much of the internet didn't use encrypted connections, making it relatively easy for someone to see what was being sent back and forth. As a result, VPNs became helpful security tools, especially when someone was using public WiFi.

However, many websites today create secure connections by default — sometimes indicated by a padlock in the address bar. Internet browsers often even warn users when they're visiting websites that don't have encryption enabled.

As a result, someone eavesdropping on internet traffic may be able to see which websites a person visits, but they can't see what's being sent.

The VPN is still helpful in that it hides the user's whereabouts. But now that encryption and other types of security are the default, VPNs are primarily for avoiding tracking and evading censorship. They can also be used to help bolster online shopping safety, adding an extra layer of defense in protecting sensitive information like credit card details or Social Security numbers.

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