A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can provide you with high levels of security and privacy while you're online, but the most reputable and well-known providers out there cost a buck. This is why so many people opt for free VPNs, but these can also be risky. So, if you're not willing to pay for a VPN, should you try a free provider, or just avoid VPNs altogether?

What Does a VPN Do?

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The reason why most people use VPNs is to encrypt their internet traffic and IP address, meaning their ISP, the government, and other parties cannot see where they are or what they're doing online. This is done using remote servers in multiple locations around the world.

Additionally, VPNs are useful because they can bypass geo-blocking, a technology that restricts content in certain locations for legal reasons. By using a remote server, you can trick your ISP into thinking you're in a different country, allowing you to access content that isn't available in your home nation.

But VPNs aren't exactly cheap. Most reputable VPN services cost upwards of $10 a month, and, even though this price can be reduced when you commit to a longer subscription period, a lot of people simply don't want to lock themselves into anything for a long time. This is why free VPNs have become so popular. But are they any good at protecting you online?

Are Free VPNs Safe?

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Before we get into the safety element surrounding free VPNs, it's important to note that every VPN is different, so there isn't a yes or no answer that spans the entirety of free VPN providers here. However, free VPNs certainly do have a reputation for being risky. So, why is this the case?

Firstly, VPN companies are just that: companies. This means that they need to make a profit one way or another. But how can they do this if they don't charge subscription fees? This is where logs and ads come into play.

VPN logs are databases containing information about VPN users. Different VPN logs keep track of different information, but online activity, connected devices, and IP addresses are among the most commonly tracked type of data in this case. Certain VPN providers do this in order to sell the information to third parties, which is how they can turn a profit without charging their users any fees.

This, of course, defeats the point of VPNs entirely, as it doesn't allow for the total concealment of a user's data and IP address.

While there is no way to determine whether a VPN provider is keeping logs without inside access to their system, well-known paid providers like ExpressVPN and SurfShark assure customers that they don't keep logs at all (though some paid VPNs might). Such providers have a no-log policy, though this doesn't absolutely confirm that logs aren't being kept. However, when it comes to free VPNs, the waters get a lot murkier.

If you use a free VPN provider and are worried about how your data is being handled, you may be able to learn more by checking out the privacy policy of your chosen provider. Some openly admit that they track or sell data, so doing a little research can confirm whether your provider is offloading your data elsewhere.

Free VPN providers also show advertisements to make money, but this doesn't really pose a security or privacy risk to users.

But if free VPNs pose such risks, and you don't want to pay for a more well-known service, you should just not bother using a VPN, right? Let's take a look at whether this is true.

Should You Use a Free VPN or No VPN at All?

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This all really depends on which free VPN provider you're using. There are some free VPNs that can increase your online security without any nasty catches, but the free VPN market is rife with illicit providers that can both mishandle your private information and fail at keeping you safe.

When you don't use a VPN, your ISP and other third parties can see what you're doing online. Now, if you don't care about other people seeing your online activity, you needn't worry about this. But not using a VPN can also increase your chance of a hack or personal data breach, especially when using public Wi-Fi.

On the other hand, if you aren't massively concerned about extra online security, and you just want to bypass geo-blocking, a free VPN could be a good idea, but we suggest that you do some research around any prospective provider to ensure that they're not carrying out any kind of illegal or unethical activities. There are also other ways through which you can dodge geoblocking (e.g. by using the Tor browser), so you don't have to use a VPN for this purpose alone.

Additionally, free VPNs can really take a toll on your connection speed. Unfortunately, almost every VPN provider out there can negatively affect your internet speed, but the lackluster features of many free providers can worsen this effect even further. Because of this, you may notice a lot of buffering and long loading times if you decide to use a free VPN.

So, all in all, using a free VPN can be beneficial if you make sure the provider is legitimate. ProtonVPN Free, Hide.me, and Windscribe are all examples of more trustworthy free VPN providers, but it's still worth noting that these services might not be able to offer the same levels of security or connection speeds as the bigger providers.

When it comes to VPNs, it would seem that forking over a little cash is worth it in exchange for better features and higher security levels.

Free VPNs Can Be Useful, but Aren't Without Their Risks

While some free VPN providers are entirely legitimate and trustworthy, this simply isn't the case across the board. Many free VPN companies can mishandle or expose your data behind closed doors, so it's always important that you do a little digging to determine how a given provider really works before signing up for their services.