People are rightly concerned about their privacy after the Senate voted to allow internet service providers to sell your personal information to ads. While protecting your privacy is crucial, it doesn’t require signing up for a VPN service and tunneling all your internet traffic through VPN servers.
Unfortunately, using certain VPN companies can be just as dangerous as not using a VPN at all. User login information is saved by several popular providers, which can then be sold to other parties. Some insecure providers may leak login credentials, leaving you as vulnerable as if you weren’t using a VPN.
A VPN can put your mind at rest if you’re concerned about the risks of using public Wi-Fi to check important work email accounts, bank account balances, or airline ticket and passport information.
How to Set Up a VPN in 10 Minutes
Your first step is the same whether you’re using an iPhone or Android phone: choose a VPN that’s compatible with your mobile device and that you like to use. Here’s how:
- On your smartphone, open the Google Play Store app and tap the search bar at the top of the screen.
2. Type the name of the VPN you want to use in the search bar and select it from the list of apps that appears. Make sure you are installing the official app rather than a copycat by looking at the author of the app. The name of the app creator and the name of the company must be identical. Wait for the app to download after clicking Install.
3. After installing the VPN app, exit the Google Play store and return.
4. You will be asked to provide your login details or register for the service the first time you use a premium VPN app.
Check your email for a confirmation link from your new VPN provider if you are prompted to sign up with an email address (which is usually always the case).
