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I recently purchased VPN Unlimited which had very high ratings and very good feedback.
I really don't or didn't know if I needed a 'secure' network but I wanted to see what all of the fuss was about!
Here is my question:
If these Private, Secure Networks are such a big deal then ... Why is it that every forum or website that I have automatic sign-in setup.. the VPN doesn't hide me?
For instance, I have had automatic sign in for This site (C-D) ever since I signed up.
When I come here, my user name and password are already in the log-in boxes and I just click 'sign-in' to enter.
So-o-o, if I'm on the newly acquired VPN, shouldn't I be hidden from the auto sign-in feature?
It's the same everywhere.
My user name and log-in creds are already filled in!?
I don't really care that much about the sign-in thing ...I'm just curious on how I'm supposed to be 'hidden' when ... EVERYBODY can see me!?
OVERLY simplified and not exactly accurate, but close enough to get the concepts across:
A VPN is similar to a tunnel. Once data leaves your computer it is gobbledegook until it reaches the VPN output port. At that point, it becomes normal internet traffic. If the VPN give you a London address, as far as any website knows, you are in London - unless they have other ways of tracking, such as GPS on a phone, etc.
A proxy is similar, but it doesn't hide who you are from your IP, just tells the websites you are visiting that you are at the location of the proxy server, and accepts the traffic and then relays it to you.
With your browser, there are things that are stored and available. Cookies and automatic password sign in are the obvious things, but the type of browser, screen res, and other tech data are also available to websites you visit.
With TOR, the browser doesn't store anything, and the link into the TOR group is encrypted until it exits TOR at one of the nodes.
A VPN helps secure you in public areas such as airport WIFI connections, and hides what you are doing from your IP.
TOR secures you as well, but destroys anything that might be used to later track you, and makes figuring out who you are and where you are more difficult.
These days, the issues for many are not privacy from hackers, but from advertisers, facebook and google. A VPN AND a browser such as Brave or Firefox with Ad-block and No-script add-ons (and an understanding of what to block and why) are reasonable ways to limit (but not entirely eliminate) the invasive tracking. TOR can be overkill, but sometimes prudent.
Short answer: all that login information is kept on your computer. A VPN keeps your connection private to the outside world so the other users using the same WiFi network at the coffee shop can't see what you are doing.
I recently purchased VPN Unlimited which had very high ratings and very good feedback.
I really don't or didn't know if I needed a 'secure' network but I wanted to see what all of the fuss was about!
Here is my question:
If these Private, Secure Networks are such a big deal then ... Why is it that every forum or website that I have automatic sign-in setup.. the VPN doesn't hide me?
For instance, I have had automatic sign in for This site (C-D) ever since I signed up.
When I come here, my user name and password are already in the log-in boxes and I just click 'sign-in' to enter.
So-o-o, if I'm on the newly acquired VPN, shouldn't I be hidden from the auto sign-in feature?
It's the same everywhere.
My user name and log-in creds are already filled in!?
I don't really care that much about the sign-in thing ...I'm just curious on how I'm supposed to be 'hidden' when ... EVERYBODY can see me!?
I will try to answer from my point of view. I am running through a VPN (mine is Nord). I sign onto various forums and blogs. Every one of them knows TRex2 and my password for that site, but if the site owner decided they didn't like me and tried to hunt me down, their logs show that I am logging in from various large cities all over the midwest.
I wish them luck.
I just checked and currently it looks like I am in Wichita Kansas.
I am actually in N. AR but almost no one on the Net knows where in N AR.
It does other things too. There are certain scripts that sites or advertisements run on your machine to harvest information about you. Nord VPN blocks them (yours probably does too.) This is one way the VPN secures your privacy. Some sites don't like that and will refuse to connect. Mine seems to also give a random answer when a site (my bank) asks for my MAC address. The MAC address acts like a Universal Identifier on the Net, which allows some sites to track you, even if you erase all their cookies. I am still studying this aspect, but my bank insists that every time I log on, I am on a device (computer or phone) they have never seen before.
Same reason you can log in to most of your favorite sites from any computer, your login information is separate from the connection to those sites. They don't care where you are and theoretically, you are somewhere else when you use a VPN.
I know for a fact that Amazon blocks me when I am on my VPN, I use NordVPN. They apparently blacklist certain IP addresses. I've seen that happen on their affiliate sites like IMDB. This is a separate issue though.
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I know for a fact that Amazon blocks me when I am on my VPN, I use NordVPN. They apparently blacklist certain IP addresses. I've seen that happen on their affiliate sites like IMDB. This is a separate issue though.
You might try them, though Nord, again.
They used to block me on Nord, but now they don't block me.
It does take a lot longer than it should to connect, at least
for the first few connections. Probably them trying to load
advertisements that contain code that Nord will not let though.
When you login and check "remember me" the session is stored in both a cookie and the database on the site. When you go back to the site they first check for the cookie and if there is match you are logged in. You can for example be logged in with one browser and not in another on same machine.
Without that cookie the session will be present in the URL and you'll see a long string appended to it, something like: ?sid=XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX where X is random numbers and letters. That will allow you to stay logged in but it expires quickly after inactivity.
- it encrypts the transmission between you and the VPN provider to provide confidentiality.
- it proxies your connection so the destination doesn't know where you are really communicating from.
What does this get you?
Let's say you're sitting at at Panera and you use their wifi to go to CD (no VPN).
Anyone sitting at/near Panera who knows how to grab that traffic will see that traffic.So they can see that you are going to CD.
Since CD doesn't use SSL/TLS, any requests or information you transmit can potentially be seen. So as an example, your login credentials, posts that you make, forums you browse during that session, etc.
CD can see that your requests are coming from an IP address - which can likely be traced back to Panera (or their ISP).
If you use a VPN, the person who is intercepting that traffic at Panera will only be able to tell you are connected to your VPN provider. The content of that traffic is encrypted and he/she won't have a clue who you are actually communicating with.
CD will simply see that your requests are originating from the VPN provider. They will not be able to see where you are really coming from (in this case, Panera). This feature is often used for services that may be regional or blocked from certain regions. e.g. use a VPN so you can watch something that may be subject to blackout in your area. And of course, if you're doing something illegal, this can help obfuscate your actual location.
That said - because you are still telling CD who you are. They will still know it's you. As mentioned, the automated part is done from your computer via cookies or saved credentials, so that isn't impacted by the VPN.
I had been considering getting it for years, but the final reason I got it because I was doing banking transactions while on road trips. Logging onto you bank, via WiFi at a motel or coffee shop is risky, even if the bank uses SSL or TLS, since all too often their IT departments are ad-hoc. (I even had one bank that some of the service agents were on SSL and some were not.) The VPN gives me an extra layer of security.
harry chickpea
Peregrine
TRex2
gguerra
thecoalman
macroy
I can't thank you folks enough for taking the time to answer what may have seemed like a simple question, easily searched on Google!
Truth be told, I trust that the folks on here are able able to 'interpret' my ... sometimes confusing questions and then respond with easily understood answers ... which you all did!
Folks on C-D never fail to amaze me!
Thank You!!
CM
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