VPNs and Why They Matter

A VPN (Virtual Private Network) creates an encrypted tunnel between your device and a VPN server, routing your traffic through it. Two main reasons this matters:

• Privacy on untrusted networks — on public WiFi, anyone else on that network could potentially intercept unencrypted traffic. A VPN encrypts everything leaving your device, so even on a hostile network, what's visible is scrambled.
• Secure access to private networks — companies use VPNs so remote employees can reach internal systems (databases, internal tools) that are never exposed to the public internet directly, as if they were plugged in at the office.

A VPN doesn't make you anonymous, and it doesn't protect you from, say, a phishing link you click, it specifically protects the traffic between your device and the VPN server. Knowing exactly what a security tool does and doesn't cover is as important as knowing how to use it.