In our modern world, simply going online comes with lots of risks. It would be great to live in a world where every time you visited a site you wouldn’t be at risk of giving away precious data, or even worse, having your personal account hacked or your password intercepted. Those are just a few reasons why internet security is so important; by using the right strategies and guarding yourself against the potential threats to your security, you can go online without having to worry about the dangers that go along with it.
The jargon that some might use to describe this phenomenon is OpSec (operation security). According to the Digital Guardian, implementing operation security requires you to identify your sensitive data, identify possible threats, analyze security holes and other vulnerabilities (as well as appraise their risks), and put countermeasures in place. This may sound complicated, but it’s simpler than it seems. One of the simplest, most accessible tools consumers use to get off ground-zero when it comes to security is a VPN.
Online risks–and how to protect yourself from them with a VPN
The fact of the matter is, anytime you open up an app or your phone or visit a new website, you might not be as safe as you think you are. Therefore, it’s smart to put measures like a VPN in place; otherwise, your security and privacy are at risk anytime you’re carefree regarding Internet security and privacy.
Common threats include botnets, which attack your computer and send spam emails and viruses, DDoS attacks (when a website or server gets attacked), hacking, malware, pharming (online fraud), phishing, and more. These threats are so common that 31% of organizations have experienced cyber attacks on operational technology infrastructure.
It’s scary to look at this list of things that can go wrong anytime you’re online; and if you’re a business or an entrepreneur like Justin Tabb, you have to take security seriously. But for most Internet users, you don’t need too much Internet security, since many scammers and hackers are looking for big fish to fry. However, it’s better to be safe than sorry, and that’s where installing a VPN comes in.
What is a VPN?
VPN is short for Virtual Private Network. Basically, whenever you use a VPN, you’re replacing your original IP Address with one that’s available on another network. According to How To Geek,
“a VPN connects your PC, smartphone, or tablet to another computer (called a server) somewhere on the internet, and allows you to browse the internet using that computer’s internet connection. So if that server is in a different country, it will appear as if you are coming from that country, and you can potentially access things that you couldn’t normally.”
Considering hackers attack systems at an average of once every 39 seconds, it’s no surprise how popular VPNs have become, even for ordinary Internet users.
But how does a VPN protect you? Well, by using another IP address, outsiders won’t have access to your actual information. Instead, they’ll be rerouted to another IP address and won’t be able to get to yours.
Drawbacks of using a VPN
However, a VPN is not a perfect solution. Some of its drawbacks include that using a VPN might be illegal in your country, you might have performance issues while using the network, the VPN service could monitor your activity and use your data, and it might be a bit pricier than what you want to pay. The monitoring and use of data is one of the scariest drawback–and annoying considering that the whole point of a VPN is to obtain more security, not less.
This is one reason why Justin Tabb founded Substratum, a company that is looking to provide a more modern solution that enables Internet security and privacy, without the drawbacks that come with using a VPN.
The Substratum Alternative
The SubstratumNode is a great alternative to VPNs because it’s a platform that decentralizes the Internet. Justin Tabb has truly changed the face of Internet security. According to Steemit, it’s so effective because:
“Traffic on the Substratum network is disguised as generic HTTPS traffic, and doesn’t contain any easily identifiable packet signatures. Secondly, each request on the Substratum network is sent through a different route stack. This makes it very difficult for ISPs and other services to implement any kind of effective IP blocking.”
Like with any blockchain-based technology, there’s complete anonymity and transparency within the Substratum alternative, which makes it safer than using a VPN. According to an interview with Justin Tabb in TechBullion, the Substratum company will have created “a decentralized web” when it is all said and done.
As you can see, there are some great, easy-to-implement Internet security solutions. VPNs are an option, but an even better one is on the way in the form of Justin Tabb’s Substratum.
