Why should I use a VPN on my phone?

You might already use one of the best VPNs at work or on your home computer, but what about your smartphone? It’s probably the device you use most often, certainly on your own time – so should you be using a VPN with that, too?

Let’s look at the reasons why you might want to install a VPN on your mobile.

Privacy and security

A key reason for using a VPN is to maintain the privacy of the data you send online – and you send data from your smartphone just as you do from your PC or any other device. Indeed, as we increasingly use our phones to carry out all manner of tasks online – even sensitive tasks like, say, online banking – the benefit of an Android or iPhone VPN protecting your mobile becomes an even stronger argument.

With a VPN connection, your phone’s data is sent via an encrypted tunnel to a VPN server, before heading to its destination online. And that means the likes of your ISP and other third-parties can no longer see that data, thus avoiding the possibility of them monitoring things like your browsing habits which, potentially, can be leveraged for financial gain.

A VPN also provides security with this encrypted tunnel, and this is particularly useful in scenarios where you’re away from home and using your phone on the go with potentially insecure public Wi-Fi networks – maybe at a café, or airport. In these higher risk scenarios – where the Wi-Fi network in question could potentially be compromised – even if the data sent from your smartphone is somehow intercepted by an attacker, they won’t be able to do anything with that data because it’s encrypted.

Using a VPN on a phone at a hotel

(Image credit: Farknot Architect / Shutterstock.com)

Traveler’s friend

Following on from that last point, when you’re traveling abroad and only have your smartphone (and perhaps your laptop) with you, a VPN may come in handy on all your portable devices for getting around censorship and restrictions. Some regimes ban certain services or social media networks, for example, and with a VPN – which can make it appear as if you’re based in a different location (namely where the VPN server is) – you can get round these blocks and still access the online content you need.

Of course, you can similarly…

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