BEHIND THE VPN VEIL

If you take your privacy seriously you need to take VPNs seriously. David Rutland goes off the record, on the QT and very hush-hush.

- David Rutland

Linux users are a paranoid bunch and they don’t welcome surveillance in any form – whether it’s Google’s trackers that are strewn across the web, or individual webmasters checking their access logs for IP addresses and then nuking your router with a Low Orbit Ion Cannon when you leave a nasty comment on their wine-tasting blog.

A virtual private network disguises your IP address by routing your traffic through a remote network. You can spoof your location and pretend to be in Russia, the US, Jamaica, or wherever your VPN provider keeps its servers – meaning that your dismissal of the Taittinger ‘43 as a drink for geriatric poseurs will go unpunished.

If you’re serious about privacy, and you don’t want other people knowing what you’re watching and downloading, a consumer VPN might be exactly what you’re looking for to help you cover your tracks. They’re not perfect by any means, but can prove valuable as part of a package of measures to keep your online activities under the radar.

You’re probably reading this while seated near to your PC at home. Don’t worry if you’re not – just pretend. Your PC is connected to your router, and through your router, it is connected to the internet.