Is VPN actually snake oil?

It depends on you, really. More specifically depends on what you expect from using it. And I wasn’t lying in the title to get more views, much of what they advertise is while true, only part of a bigger picture and even when their claims are true it doesn’t add much to what we already have without VPN.

The key claims and points of discussion:

• VPN encrypts your data transfer: ✅ it does, how well?
• VPN protects you on public WiFi like airports and cafés: ✅ as much as an umbrella protects you from the rain, but does it matter when you’re already indoors?
• VPN hides you from the ISP (and the government): ⚠️ sort of, but there are many caveats in the fine print
• VPN gets you through geoblocks: ✅ with some exceptions, this is its strongest suite from all the promises

Photo by Privecstasy on Unsplash

Who sees what?

Let’s take a step back to see the whole picture. Let’s say we don’t us VPN and surf on the Internet, as cool kids don’t say. Most websites of note use HTTPS, you can easily check it in the browser’s URL bar, it’s mostly some green indicator, or in Chrome’s case