You may have heard of VPN services before, but did you know that you can also use VPN for online shopping? Before we discuss which VPN is the best for online shopping, let’s first understand why you need to use VPN for online shopping.
2017 has witnessed an unprecedented boom in online shopping. E-commerce (online shopping) has been growing massively & rapidly like a wild Chinese bamboo forest. The reason behind this jaw-dropping growth is that consumers around the world find it a lot easier to make purchases online through a click of a mouse and get the best prices than having to physically visit stores, especially if a store is located far from where they live. Just think about it, wouldn’t it be heaven to buy whatever you need from any part of the world at cheaper prices and get it shipped sometimes the next day while staying warm in bed and quietly enjoying your coffee?
Is Online Shopping Safe?
As surreal as that picture in your head looks, online shopping is like a wolf in disguise. For example, in order to complete a purchase for those beautiful Christmas gifts you bought online for your family, you are required to insert critically sensitive personal data, such as: full name, location & most importantly your credit card/bank details which in this case will be on parade to internet parasites, such as: hackers, phishers & internet fraudsters to feast on. Do you still think that online shopping is safe & heavenly after all? We don’t think so either. Even if the website you are shopping on asserts that it would 100% secure your personal information, no website online is 100% hacker-proof. To shed some light on this fact, here is a quick digest on the latest credit card leaks of big online retailers:
- 6 days ago, Saks Fifth Avenue website reported data breach of its customers’ email addresses and personal details despite their super secure encryption protocols.
- On February 17, 2017, Arby’s Fast Food Chain reported a serious breach of its customer’s payment cards by a malicious attack that was installed on their software.
- On March 09, 2017, Weekends Only has also reported data breach of its payments platform, compromising its customer’s payment cards details.
We are not trying to scare you off, on the contrary, we are trying our best to guide our readers towards the safest methods through which they can enjoy using the internet in a completely private and secure manner. That is why one of the best options to secure your personal and payment details while shopping online is by using reliable and credible VPN services.
Why Use VPN for Online Shopping?
VPN stands for Virtual Private Network, an sophisticated internet technology that works by cloaking your original IP address and routing your traffic data through an invisible tunnel within the internet by providing you with a fake IP address before it reaches the selected destination. This means that you get to browse the internet securely, privately and anonymously without having your personal details, including: name, location, payment details, email, passwords, etc. , exposed to attackers, hackers, and other third parties. By using VPN for online shopping, you will make sure that your credit card details don’t fall into the wrong hands, and will never be compromised. However, the catch is choosing the best VPN for online shopping that would truly guarantee optimal security and privacy of your personal information while browsing the web. We have taken the liberty unbiasedly select the best VPN for online shopping. Below are excellent features of the top 3 VPN service providers to help you shop online safely.
IPVanish
* Relatively cheap. Prices range between $6.49 and $10
* Extensive network of servers (over 700 servers spread across more than 60 countries)
* Fast due to its massive network of servers.
* High-level security protocol (256-bit AES encryption)
* User-friendly and can be used on different devices
* Unlimited bandwidth
* Supports more than 1 encryption protocol (OpenVPN, PPTP, L2TP/IPsec)
* Free trial
* 7-day money-back guarantee
* Kill Switch
CyberGhost
*Anti-fingerprinting system
* High-level security protocol (256-bit AES encryption)
*Unlimited Bandwidth
* Compatible with multiple platforms
* Over 800 servers in 29 countries
* Doesn’t keep traffic logs
* Fast and easy to install
* Built-in Ad-blocker which makes it an excellent VPN for online shopping
* proxy servers
* Proxy & VPN plug-ins for browsers
* Cheap
* Offers free version
* 30-days money-back guarantee
PureVPN
* Solid overall performance which makes it an excellent VPN for online shopping
* Virtual Router
* Compatible with over 20+ devices
* Giant network of servers (more than 750 servers in over 141 countries)
* Can be used on 5 deifferent devices at the same time
* Unrestricted switching between servers
* Unlimited bandwidth
* Split tunneling
* 24/7 web chat support
* High-level security protocol (256-bit encryption)
* Multiple encryption protocols (OpenVPN, L2TP/IPSec, PPTP, SSTP, and IKEv2)
* Wi-fi/Hotspot protection
* NAT firewall
* Kill switch
*DDOS protection
