VPN-TunnelBearAlthough I knew what a virtual private network (VPN) was, I wasn’t aware how simple it has become to set one up. And as with many tools you only realize what you can do with them when you use them the first time. Such was the case just recently with VPN.

I was sad that I couldn’t watch short web clips about European Soccer Games here in the U.S. although they are free to watch in EU countries. IPs outside of Europe are simply restricted from accessing these videos. So I tested the Tunnel Bear app just to watch some soccer and loved it because it was so simple to use.

A traveling friend suggested Tunnel Bear because she used it while traveling abroad. With Tunnel Bear she can access sites in the US that are restricted in some of the Asian countries she visited. YouTube is one example. Her employer’s server can also only be accessed with an US IP address.

I am not an expert on VPN software. When I recommend Tunnel Bear then not because I compared it to all other VPN services, but because it couldn’t be easier to use. I love how it looks and I like the attitude. I’ve used it over a week now and the app works great. Here is a good review about Tunnel Bear along with many other tested VPN services. My main point of this post is that using a VPN makes a lot of sense even when you are not traveling.

The main benefits of a VPN are:

1. Browse in total anonymity
2. You wish to encrypt your Voice over IP traffic.
3. Download and upload peer to peer files in privacy
4. Break out of a restrictive network at Work or School
5. Access Streaming Content from Outside the USA (Netflix, Pandora, etc.)
6. Bypass Internet censorship restrictions
7. Access servers that restrict by location
8. Use unprotected public WiFi securely

Especially the last one is also a big point for me, because I never dared to log into any of my accounts while I was using public WIFI. Think about it.

 

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This was Quick Tip No 61.