With advanced technology, benefits come with consequences and Hotspot VPN helps users to protect themselves from such threats by maximizing their protection. In 2011, there was a 155% increase in mobile malware in which 10% of them were victims of cybercrime. In order to protect yourself from identity theft online when using Wi-Fi in public (hotels, airports, corporate offices, etc), Hotspot VPN will secure users from such danger. Hotspot VPN allows users to unblock websites such as Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, or any sites at school; in fact, VPNs protect their information when using these public websites that require their passwords in public. In fact, with private and secure browsing, your passwords, financial transactions and instant messages are secured and encrypted as well as hidden from web spies.
Hotspot VPNs are affordable and are significantly cheaper than other types of security plans; with premium VPN service, users can unblock any website that they want and keep their connection anonymous. In fact, since there’s no hardware to install and no technicians to deal with, VPN is easily accessible and easy for wide range of people to use within minutes.
While VPNs clearly benefit users, there are downsides that must be considered while selecting a suitable VPN for your device. Here are the three most prominent drawbacks of using VPNs:
Although the primary purpose of a VPN is to protect users from hackers, it actually turns out that due to this threat, VPNs can be easily targeted and compromise security. A recent study of 283 VPNs from free providers demonstrated that 38% of free VPNs showed signs of being infected. This is most likely because free VPNs have less obvious source of revenue than paid VPNs, and as a result will grant users less privileges. It makes sense that free VPNs limit your data usage, since it would cost more to store larger amounts of data securely. But even with less data, free VPNs have security loopholes that hackers can take advantage of.
You may be using your VPN to privately browse the Internet, but VPNs very easily track online activity. In fact, another study finds that 72% of free VPNs are embedded with third party trackers! This means that up to 72% of VPNs could be collecting data on your online activity right now. Why does this matter? These third party sites sell your activity to advertisers for relevant product promotion or even to political campaigners to strengthen political support. It’s ironic that VPNs don’t protect privacy despite most active Internet users believe they do.
On a less serious note, VPNs can slow down your Internet speed drastically. Primary culprits include ProtonVPN and Betternet, who prioritize paid users by limiting VPN connection speed to free users. They can slow Internet speeds by bombarding screens with advertisements or limiting your data transfer rate. In fact, Internet speeds can slow down to 10-25% depending on the provider, making it a major inconvenience while leisurely browsing the web.
The overall consensus is that free VPNs are more prone to security threat than paid VPNs. It is worth noting that most, if not all, VPN services prioritize paid users and provide them with greater benefits due to their monetary contributions to their own network. So next time you need a “protected” network, take these pros and cons into consideration. Do you need a paid VPN? If not, should you risk the consequences?