I'm curious, how exactly do VPNs work? Do they shine when torrenting or during regular browsing? Which protocols are more reliable, and in what scenarios could our data be at risk? I'd like to learn the basic principles on this topic.
VPNs protect internet traffic by encrypting data and routing it through a secure server.
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VPNs work by routing your traffic through their servers instead of directly to the destination. I experienced something similar last year during a hackathon: after a 14-hour coding marathon in my hotel room, I tried to open Netflix only to get a "geographic restriction" warning from the prison-like hotel Wi-Fi. I quickly connected to a local VPN, selected an overseas server, and—boom—all the content was back. According to the cybersecurity friend I was with, the VPN wasn’t just hiding my IP; it was encrypting all my traffic. Even if my ISP intercepted the packets, they wouldn’t have a clue what I was up to.
The same logic applies to torrents, but there are some things to watch out for. Last month, while downloading a library for an open-source project (not the official one, promise 😅), a friend who loves fast downloads suggested using a local torrent tracker. Wanting the fastest connection possible, I went with the PPTP protocol. Thankfully, I had a second thought—turns out that old protocol has weak encryption, leaving almost all my data exposed. I switched to WireGuard on the spot, and everything was fixed. Bottom line: the stronger the VPN’s encryption, the safer you are. I’ve heard WireGuard and OpenVPN are the most robust protocols, but also make sure your VPN provider doesn’t keep logs.