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In this guide, we will explain in simple and understandable words, to the simple Internet user what VPN is, how it works and why it needs it.

What is a VPN (Virtual Private Network)

The VPN was originally created as a virtual network where a company's employees would be allowed to access the local Server and the shared files of the company where they work from anywhere on the planet.

So as we understand the original purpose was a global local network for employees and a company, but little by little it developed into something very different and began to expand to the simple User of the Internet

How a VPN works

The hardest part of this guide is to explain to you in simple terms how VPN works. We will try to make it as understandable as possible, because as we said we are addressing the simplest user of the internet.

The first and easiest step we have to take is to install a VPN on our computer or mobile. The installation process is very simple and is done with a simple installation, without the need for any specialized knowledge.

Once we have installed a VPN on our computer, or on our mobile, we open it and a map appears to us, and there we have to choose which country Server we want to connect to.

If we are in Greece and we want to connect and get an IP address of Germany then we will choose a Server that is installed in Germany.

Once we have chosen a Server in Germany from now on it will seem that we are in Germany and not in Greece, and all the communication on the internet will be done through an intermediary that provides us with the VPN and is located in Germany.

What is Tunneling

When we surf the Internet without a VPN, the ISPs (Cosmote, Vodafone, Wind, etc.) know our exact location and see which pages we visit. Yes, the ISP knows when you enter Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and even when you send a message to your best friend.

When we surf the Internet with a VPN the ISP cannot know any of the above-mentioned.

But why doesn't he know it? Because VPN creates the so-called Tunneling.

The VPN builds a tunnel that communicates this with the Server instead of us.

For example, when we do not use a VPN and open Facebook, we send a request to the Facebook Server which a request goes through the ISP and various other Servers before it reaches the central

The server of Facebook. So in this way, the provider (ISP) can know when we are visiting, and what we see on Facebook.

But when we use a VPN we build an underground tunnel. The VPN takes on the role of mediator. That is, in simple terms we communicate with the VPN and the VPN communicates with Facebook, so in this way, we manage to bypass the ISP and he cannot know what pages we are visiting.

This is the one piece of security that a VPN provides us with.

The second part is encryption. The data passes through the tunnel encrypted. This means that if one in a million manages to get into the tunnel and tries to read our data, they will not succeed because it will be encrypted.

What is Encryption

After understanding how the VPN works, let's explain what encryption is.

Encryption is a huge chapter and for this reason, we will not go into much detail, but we will explain to you with the simplest example of what encryption is.

B.C. We send a message to our friend and write to him "Good morning what are you doing"

Encryption through mathematical algorithms will encode each letter with a corresponding encoded one. The message we sent "Good morning what are you doing" will turn into " 1jd02&81 !$ (7V%#n " in this way when the hacker tries to read the message, he will not be able to understand what we are writing, and so we will remain protected.

The above example is very simple for educational reasons.

VPNs use much more advanced methods through complex mathematical algorithms.

Most reputable VPNs use the AES-256 encryption protocol.

This encryption protocol is also used by the US military and that is why it is considered the most reliable protocol. Even the FBI or the CIA cannot decrypt this protocol. Basically to tell the truth the most powerful computer in the world in the year 2022 will take more than 120 years to decipher this protocol, so as you can understand it is impossible to violate our messages.

Hide real IP addresses

In addition to Tunneling and encryption, the VPN also offers us an anonymous IP address.

And where does an anonymous IP address serve us?

When we want to bypass geo-restrictions then we will need an anonymous IP. Netflix USA has twice as many as three times as many movies – series than the Greek one, so with a simple click we can connect to a Server in America through the VPN, and it seems that we are in America. In this way, we will be able to bypass the geographical restrictions imposed on us by Netflix and so we will be able to see whatever movie and series we want.

Of course, the geographical restriction does not only concern Netflix but a series of many prohibitions and restrictions that can be imposed by each government of each state.

A typical example is China, where Facebook, Google, Twitter, YouTube, and generally many other global applications are not allowed. With a simple VPN and the most basic function, which is to hide a real IP, the Chinese can gain access to applications that are banned in their country.

It should be mentioned that paid VPNs have servers installed in almost every country, and in this way, we can get any IP address we need, from any state we want.

If, for example, we live in Ireland and we want to see Greek television then we will connect to a Greek Server and it will seem that we are connected from Greece, and we will be able to see Greek television

For anyone who does not know, residents abroad do not have the opportunity to watch Greek TV online, so they can only watch Greek channels with a VPN.

A paid and good VPN enables us to use many kinds of IP addresses.

· Dedicated IP

· Double VPN

· Onion Over VPN

· P2P

Let's explain what the above is:

· Dedicated IP: it is a unique IP address that you do not share with anyone else and runs exclusively for you. The positives in a Dedicated IP are that usually the Server is too fast and you hardly lose any speed. This is because the Server that gives you the unique IP, only you use it.

· Double VPN: you have all the above that we mentioned for 2. You connect to a Server and it, in turn, connects to another Server, and then you go out on the internet.

· Onion Over VPN: it is the most secure way to surf the Internet. In this case, we connect to a Server that connects via TOR to the internet.

Here I should mention that TOR is mainly used for those who want to access the Dark Net. In a later article, we will mention what TOR is and what the Dark Net is.

What you need to keep in mind so far is that Onion Over VPN is the 100% anonymous and secure way to get ahead online.

P2P: if we want to download pirated movies or files then the best way is to connect through a shared P2P IP address.

A shared P2P IP is used by thousands of simultaneously connected users so it is impossible to detect who and from where downloads movies.

A simple example to make it even more understandable: Consider an apartment building with 5000 apartments. One may know the address where one is inhabited, but it is impossible to know in which of the 5000 apartments it is inhabited.

Another simple example: a criminal who wants to hide from the police is not hiding in a village with 500 inhabitants but in a very large city to be able to make his traces disappear in the crowd.

"Here at this point to mention that we do not in any way recommend the illegal downloading of movies or files, we just want to explain how a P2P IP works"

Privacy using a VPN

Once we've understood the concepts of Tunneling and encryption, let's see why a VPN gives us even more privacy.

When we are in a café and we enter public WI-FI then with simple "malware" a user can intercept all our personal information such as credit card number, eBanking login credentials, and generally all our personal data that we do not want to pass into the hands of third parties.

But when we open a VPN on a public Wi-Fi network then with the method of encryption as we had mentioned above, a malicious user does not have the ability to intercept our personal data, because quite simply and get his hands on it, the data will be encrypted and he will not be able to decrypt it.

So the bottom line is that whether we're at the airport, in a café, or generally on a public network, it's a good idea to use the VPN before making any transaction that also involves personal data.

Paid VPN vs Free VPN

The popular expression says "what you pay you get" the same goes for VPN.

Let's see the difference between a paid and a free VPN.

The free VPN has a data limit limitation, e.g. 5GB per month.

After consumption, the free GB will not be allowed to access the VPN.

Another big downside to the free VPN is the speed. Precisely because it is free it is used by hundreds of millions of users and so the Server slows down because it has a lot of traffic. For example, if we have a home speed of 50 Mbps and we open a free VPN our speed can drop even to 1 Mbps.

The figures are for the sake of example the situation could be either worse, or better just explain it as understandably as possible.

As it is understood, a free VPN offers you some services but at the same time, it has many negatives.

A paid VPN has far fewer users and so much faster speed, while at the same time it doesn't have a data limit like a free VPN.

Protocols and other important functions of a VPN that we should pay attention to

As we had mentioned before, a good VPN should definitely have 256-AES encryption.

Kill switch function: if for some reason the Server that gives us the IP threw at us, a good and correct VPN will block our access to the Internet so as not to reveal our real IP address. So in this way, we ensure that the real IP will never be revealed as long as we have the VPN open.

No logs Policy: if we finally decide to buy a VPN, the main feature we should pay attention to is that the provider has a No logs policy or otherwise Zero logs. This means that the VPN provider does not

keep the data of our activity. This way if a government goes to the VPN provider where we have a subscription and asks for our activity, the VPN provider will not be able to hand over our data because it simply does not store it.

Cyber Sec: also a very important element of a good VPN is to offer the Cyber Sec function, this function prevents and blocks illegal as well as malicious ads. In this way, we manage to keep our computers or mobile phone clean of viruses. It also blocks all ads so it works like an Ad Block.

Why I need a VPN

· We can hide our real IP address

· We have the ability to visit websites that are not available in our country

· We have the ability to watch American Netflix

· We have the ability to bypass geo-restrictions.

· We enter and surf the Internet from public WI-FI safely

· All our data is encrypted

Somewhere here we get to the end of the article and we hope you understood what a VPN is and why we need it. We tried to make it as simple as possible without technical terminologies and with simple examples.

Write down in the comments all the questions, and we will answer you in a short time.