Getting a Trusted VPN Provider Can Help You Secure Your Web Traffic

Let’s all be realistic about Internet privacy through ISP providers. Recently, the Republican ruled congress has made a big decision about the future of your online data, and many people aren't happy about it.

On March 28, Congress voted along party lines to kill a set of rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission in October of last year that would have kept all Internet Service Providers or ISP’s, at bay because they needed to ask your permission before it collected certain personal information. President Donald Trump signed the resolution on April 10, turning it into law.

So does this mean your ISP now has free rein over everything you do online? Not really, but it means that it no longer needs your permission to gather data from you that passes through its servers and sell it to other companies for marketing purposes. Also, should any law enforcement or government agency demand for your data, ISP’s may cough it up without your permission?

To counter this, you can get the services of a VPN.

A Virtual Private Network or VPN allows you to connect to the Internet through a server run by a VPN provider and separate from an ISP provider. All data traveling between your computer, phone or tablet, and this “VPN server” is securely encrypted. As a result of this setup, VPN’s:

§  Provide privacy by hiding your Internet activity from your ISP. Your ISP will still receive data from you since they provide your Internet service. However, all data they receive will become encrypted, and thus, rendered unreadable.

§  Allow you to evade censorship by the government or through an ISP.

§  Allow you to “geo-spoof” your location in order to access services unfairly denied to you based on your geographical location, or hides your location when you are on holiday.

§  Protect you against hackers when using public Wi-Fi.

§  Allow you to P2P download in safety.

In order to use VPN, you must sign up for a contract for a VPN service, which typically costs between $5 – $10 a month. Note that using a VPN service does not replace the need for an Internet Service Provider, as it is your ISP that provides your Internet connection in the first place.

How do you know that a VPN is trustworthy?

§  VPN’s are expensive to run so a free VPN makes you the product and can’t be trusted.

§  Inquire from others who use VPN’s and identify which providers they trust the most.

§  A trusted VPN will have a “no tracking” and “no logs” policy, meaning that they don’t gather any data from their users.

§  Trusted VPN’s use “shared” ISP’s so they are not easily tracked.

Immediate Solutions to Some Common Computer Issues

No matter how new your rig is or how powerful its specs are, the time comes when something inside malfunctions or a software doesn’t work properly. But before you contact a technical support representative, take your best shot in solving your computer issue because there’s a chance that the problem is only minor and that it doesn’t require a professional help.

Here are some tips on how you can solve some common PC-related problems.

Try this first…

Before you do anything else, try restarting your computer. Most computer problems are solved with this simple step. This long-standing workaround can do wonders.

And while you’re at it…

Make sure that your operating system is fully updated by running Windows Update. Neglecting system updates could deprive you of important bug and performance fixes. Make sure all drivers are updated as well. You can opt to have Windows automatically update itself and install all updates so you don’t need to check on them from time to time.

Slow computer

Check if you still have plenty of free space on the hard drive that’s holding your operating system. Windows needs room to create files while your system is running. If your hard drive is maxed you’re your computer’s performance suffers. Now is the perfect time to clear some space. Delete all files that you don’t need anymore such as videos, music, and pictures. For more important files, you can transfer them to external drives as backup or burn them into DVD’s or CD’s. Microsoft’s System Configuration tool is your next-best bet for handling slow performance. Many applications launch automatically when your machine boots up and this stretches out boot time. Make a habit of filtering your startup programs to increase the speed of your PC’s boot up time. Checking the Startup Item and Manufacturer columns is the best way to figure out which potential performance-killers you can safely disable. Avoid messing with any of the services and programs that have Microsoft Corporation listed as the manufacturer. Items such as AdobeAAMUpdater, Google Update, Pando Media Booster, Spotify, Steam Client Bootstrapper, and the like can be disabled. However, do err on the side of caution, and so if you’re not sure what the program or service does, don’t disable it.

Slow Internet

Run a speed test to see what your download and upload speeds are. Ideally, they should be at least 50 percent of your ISP’s advertised speeds, with a ping under 100 milliseconds. If the speed seems solid, make sure that you aren’t inadvertently downloading or uploading anything. Many torrent downloading programs run in the background and minimize into the system tray instead of the taskbar. Also, check that your network card’s drivers are up to date, and if you haven’t updated your operating system, this might be the time. Next, try turning your modem off and on again. If it has no On/Off button, just unplug and plug it back in. If none of this helped, call your ISP and have them assist you further with your Internet connection problem.