VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) have become a modern necessity for anyone using the internet that cares about their privacy. Those with knowledge and resources can easily hack a poorly configured VPN.
There are a few things you can do to make your VPN connection more secure while enjoying unlimited web services. Keeping your data secure and your identity anonymous takes just a bit of knowledge of your own. Of course, using a trustworthy VPN provider is also essential while gaining unlimited access online.
You may already be in the crosshairs of more snoops and spooks than you can shake a stick or iPhone at.
At the very least, your online activities are most certainly monitored and likely recorded by your own ISP (Internet Service Provider) to support marketing efforts for themselves and ‘partner companies’ (corporate-speak for anyone willing to pay for your data). In many nations, your ISP is required by law to keep unlimited records of your activities for potential use in litigation.
VPN Connection Security Check for Beginners
Always Use the Correct Protocol
If taking advantage of the protection provided by VPNs for any length of time, then you probably already know about different support protocols giving different levels of security.
Example: PPTP VPN Protocol
A commonly used example, PPTP provides very little protection, as its encryption is very easy to break. If attempting to hide your online activities from the government while using PPTP, you may as well not even use a VPN (or even a free proxy). The initial connection and authentication process can also easily get intercepted. Any data being ‘protected’ by PPTP can then easily be decrypted due to the protocol’s very weak 128-bit encryption.
One benefit of using PPTP is the ease with which it is set up. The less secure PPTP proxy also has breakneck speeds because of its low encryption overhead. Because of these upsides, there are times when PPTP is the perfect VPN support protocol to use. This includes when streaming Netflix USA programming from another country outside their firewall blockade.
Balance Security With Speed
With the Surfshark VPN app, you can choose for yourself between the most secure protocols and those providing better streaming speeds. This service gives you the flexibility to balance your security and throughput levels based upon your needs for various private tasks online.
If you’d like to learn about the most secure protocols available, and more about the trade-offs between VPN invulnerability and throughput speed, then feel free to read our article on how to speed up a slow encrypted VPN connection for video streaming. There are many protocols available, and being familiar with their support capabilities can give you the edge when securing your data and protecting yourself online. Review and check ratings when researching VPNs to choose.
Right now, you can try the Surfshark VPN app free for 30 days. Get the fastest, most secure VPN available risk-free with their 30-day money back guarantee.
Why is VPN Important?
If unsure what a VPN is, how it works, or why you really should use one, save yourself a lot of trouble and learn more about them.
Read Why Encrypted VPN is so Important: What is VPN?
Keep Secure: Kill Switch Engaged
If your VPN app connection fails, a kill switch feature turns internet access off until the VPN service is available once more. This automatic web access log out protects you from having your location, identity, and activities exposed to the internet at large in the event of a VPN server power outage or emergency reboot. This is particularly important when using free unlimited public WiFi. Do not trust your iPhone, Android, or any other web device to be secure without this protection.
Surfshark VPN has many security features in place to prevent their servers from breaking your connection, but there is plenty of wild country between your location and the VPN servers. The Surfshark VPN app will immediately recognize if the link to their server is broken and protect you from exposure with its built-in kill switch function.
Do not use VPNs without this support feature if you value your privacy and security. Protect and secure your WiFi-connected iPhone and all other internet-supported devices with a secure VPN.
How to Stop DNS Leaks
When connected to the internet through one of the Surfshark VPN servers, a DNS server is provided. It can sometimes happen that your default DNS server information can leak through, especially if not using Surfshark VPN. This data alone can give the internet at large an idea of who you are making you less secure.
Test whether your DNS is leaking through by going to DNSLeak.com and pressing the Start button. If you see your VPN provider’s DNS showing, then your DNS is not leaking. If you see your DNS, sometimes provided by your ISP, then you should contact the VPN service provider you’re using to see if they offer private DNS leak protection.
If your current VPN app service fails this simple free test, then you may want to abandon them for a safe alternative such as Surfshark VPN. Surfshark VPN users do not need to fear DNS leaks, as the apps and top-tier servers provided are the most secure in the secureVPN industry.
How to Stop IPv6 Leaks
IPv6 is an update to the internet address system put in place because the old system, IPv4, was running out of available addresses. IPv6 allows 340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456 (that’s over three hundred forty trillion trillion trillion!) unique internet addresses compared to the just slightly over 4 billion addresses available using IPv4.
Reliable VPNs don’t operate within the IPv6 protocol, and that can be a huge problem. Surfshark VPN is working hard at being the first to make full IPv6 compatibility a part of their worldwide web securely encrypted VPN network services.
You can check for IPv6 leaks at the IPv6Leak.com site. If an access leak is detected, then IPv6 can be manually disabled. Review for a safe and secure network and follow support below.
Disable IPv6 on Windows
To stop IPv6 leaks on a Windows PC, we’ll need to disable use of the protocol. The easiest way is to open a command prompt with elevated permissions and disable IPv6 using the netsh command.
Accomplish this by right-clicking the Command Prompt application and selecting Run as administrator from the contextual menu. While in this elevated command prompt, type netsh interface teredo set state disabled and hit Enter.
This action takes care of any IPv6 leak on a PPTP VPN connection on Windows.
Disable IPV6 on Android
On your Android device, you need to adjust some system settings to disable IPV6.
- Go into the Android System Settings.
- Tap on Network & Internet.
- Then click Mobile Network.
- Enter the Advanced area.
- Look for Access Point Names and click it.
- Tap your APN.
- Choose APN Protocol.
- Choose IPv4 and Save the changes on the Android device.
Your Android device should now be limited to using private IPv4 addresses.
Enjoy Better Security With Surfshark VPN
The team behind Surfshark VPN are continually updating their servers, support services, software, and adding new security features. Their goal is to protect your privacy by keeping you anonymous, your location unknown, and your activities unlimited yet invisible. Using the right secure VPN protocol can make all the difference whether you’re using WiFi on your iPhone or going through your router. VPNs only protect if there is no leak of your information and no collecting of your data. Surfshark VPN protects against both. Enjoy unlimited safe access to the web with this secure VPN app today.
May your streams never run dry!
