Have you noticed that your husband or wife is or might be using a VPN? Are you worried behind their motives? You won’t be alone as the technology and its uses can seem pretty intimidating.

Are you confused about what a VPN is all about, and what they are used for in the first place?

If so, exploring what a VPN is, is definitely the right move to make, and by the time you are done reading this – you will, hopefully, gain a better understanding of this technology, put your mind at rest and maybe even start using it yourself.

Let’s talk about a few reasons why a person might start using it.

Reasons your partner may use a VPN

The internet is full of all kinds of stories and misinformation about all sorts of things, VPNs included.

It would not be surprising if you heard stories about VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) only being used by hackers or someone who is up to no good. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth, especially these days.

It is important to remember that a VPN is a privacy tool before everything else. The use is for protecting yourself online.

Here are a few reasons why your partner might be using one.

1) Privacy

The internet is not a safe place these days, despite what anyone might want you to believe. In fact, it was never entirely safe, but these days, it is especially dangerous.

When you are online without protection, anyone with a bit of know-how can track your online movements.

Hackers could do it, and so could government agencies, and even your internet provider. Websites collect your data and track your activities while you browse different pages, and so do advertisers.

The fact is that using the internet is anything but anonymous. Most people aware of this do not like it.

As a result, they aim to protect their privacy, which is where VPN comes in handy, as it can hide your traffic, location, and more.

2) Unlock content

One of the most popular uses of VPN is for unblocking foreign content and watching things that are not available in your region. While this came as nothing more than a side effect of a VPN, it became one of its primary uses.

People like using the internet to its full extent, and more often than not – things like censorship and geo-restrictions prevent them from doing this.

Think of Netflix – depending on the region you live in, your access to offered shows is quite limited, at least when compared with what Netflix truly has to offer.

With a VPN, you can obscure your location by hiding your real IP and getting a new one in a single click. Connecting to a server in a foreign country lets you access all the online content available in that country, which expands what you can enjoy it, significantly.

Your partners VPN use could be nothing more than watching more TV.

3) Bypass censorship

Ever tried to use a website, only to receive a message about the site being unreachable?

Depending on where you live, this might be something you encounter on a regular basis. Online censorship does that, and depending on your country, the list of restricted websites might be quite long.

Some countries cannot even access social media, such as China. In others, people are unable to access specific websites or services.

It could be that your partner is only using a VPN to access such services, which could be totally legitimate. This might go from streaming services to social networks, from news sites to payment services, and anything else in between.

This is a fair use of a VPN, and you should not be concerned if that is the case.

4) Stop tracking

As mentioned, websites, advertisers, and numerous other online entities are more than happy to track your online activities secretly. They collect such data and use it, sell it, or store it, which is also dangerous, as it can be stolen if these websites get hacked.

Worse still, your partner might be concerned about being tracked and potentially experiencing damage in a hack themselves.

If they enjoy online gaming, they would not be the first one to experience a DDoS attack directed at a specific server they are connected to. VPN can be used for protecting yourself in all of these situations, and it is always smart to take precautions.

Being cautious and prepared for anything is better than having to pay for replacing computer data due to damage.

5) Get lower prices

While we all like to think that we are all equal on the internet, this is, unfortunately, not the case.

If you are looking to book a flight, rent a car, or do something similar in a foreign country – you might be charged more than a local. The same can happen in your own country.

Thanks to the ability to see where you are from, services always try to get some extra money from you.

By changing your online location with a VPN, you can sometimes avoid this, and you can often pay less for goods or services.

6) Nefarious purposes

Of course, it could be that your partner IS using a VPN for nefarious purposes.

We cannot guarantee that they are not, and with a VPN, it would be possible to misuse this technology for bypassing adult content filters, for example.

However, it is far more likely that they are merely trying to protect themselves or reach foreign content.

It is a popular way to watch sports, foreign shows, and keeping private and secure while online, as we have described above.

Summary

VPN technology can be used for several different purposes, most of which are entirely legitimate.

If you have noticed that your partner might be using one, and you are concerned – the chances are that you should not be. VPN is, before all, an online privacy tool, created to help you remain safe while browsing the web.

It can also let you access overseas content, such as news sites, streaming services, online games, and alike.

There is a very, very small chance that someone might be using it for nefarious purposes, so there is no reason to panic.

Instead, you might want to consider discussing it with your partner and ultimately, using one yourself.

Illustrations © Flat Art, Roman Amanov, Anton Shaparenko, Svetlana Yashina & Konstantin Egudin | Dreamstime.com