Is a VPN necessary

Hotel WiFi can still be compromised, even if the hotel provides a password for their supposedly protected WiFi. If you need to make any purchases or enter protected info in an electronic device, use a VPN. I used one on the most recent trip to Italy and am glad to have done so.

Thanks Joanna!
I am looking at NordVPN. I’m not sure if we will be making purchases or visiting our bank, but I suppose it’s better to be safe than sorry.

For general web browsing hotel WiFi would be fine. For matters such as financial transactions, wel I wouldn’t. I usually get a local SIM card for my phone and the carrier and plan I choose allows my phone to be used as a hot spot. So I can connect my tablet via WiFi to the phone and use cellular data for a more secure internet connection.

Thank you. That is a good option as well. I still need to talk with my carrier to get something worked out for international use. Maybe they can help with the “hot spot” as well.

A VPN securely encrypts all communications between your device and the VPN provider - preventing anyone on the hotel's WiFi from eavesdropping on what you are doing.

However, nowadays, almost all websites are securely encrypted anyway with something called SSL (https). So if you visit say your bank's website, all communication between your device and their website is encrypted, even without a VPN. Ten years ago, many sites still weren't encrypted - like your web mail, so they could easily be viewed on an open WiFi network. Not true anymore.

One thing a VPN can hide is what websites you visit, even if all communication with them is secure. in other words, if you visit the Bank of America website on the hotel's WiFi network, it can be observed on the local network (maybe, if it were hacked into) that you visited their website - but not your username/password or anything you do on that website. If you use a VPN, they can't even tell you are visiting the Bank of America site. Up to you whether you think that sort of thing is really worth the extra steps needed for a VPN.

If you have a tech-savvy friend or young relative, ask them to set up a VPN server on your home network for you. Then while traveling you can connect to your home home internet network - no monthly charge or account to set up, just any one-time costs associated with setting up a VPN (like an old router with a VPN installed on it - maybe a few bucks at Goodwill.). I recommend OpenVPN (this is what I use), even if it is more tricky to set up. A VPN with certificates is a lot more secure than one with just a password.

If I were traveling for business and had send and share sensitive business documents regarding business deals, personnel data, and proprietary information I would use a VPN to encrypt.
On vacation it is overkill. Most websites that require a password (including this message board) are encrypted these days, and that's good enough me.

A VPN isn't a necessity.
Be cautious that you are only accessing valid wi-fi networks provided by your hotel, cafe, etc.
If you don't know what the network SSID ( network name) is, ask.

Watch out for "rogue" wi-fi networks that are set up to try to trick you into connecting in an attempt to "sniff" or collect the data transmitted.

When banking online, any reputable entity uses great encryption to help protect your data during the online session.
You're in far more danger of a data breach involving their corporate servers than your are in danger of having your connection hacked real-time.

Even Yahoo mail and Facebook are using encryption now. Look for the "https" in the web address.
In most browser programs, you'll see the word "Secure" and the symbol of a padlock.

No VPN needed.

When in Europe, your WiFi connections are just as secure as from your own house. Anything of importance you might view is through a secure connection (https) anyway (YouTube cat videos included). Your bank uses a secure connection for everything including your initial log on. No one can see your user ID or password. This is different from 20 years ago where most log in pages were not secured. Those suggesting VPN are still referring to the time way back when the internet was new and web site connections were never secured.

If you are traveling for business, your company will probably provide you a VPN to use which connects you directly to their network so that there is no possibility of anything getting intercepted. Your emails will track back to your office instead of where you are, and so on.

If you feel safer using a VPN, there is no harm. It just costs you more to get it and slows your connection down considerably. If you are going to some countries not considered to be friends of the US, then a VPN can be critical to your internet use as many can bypass most of the blocks for specific sites put in place by those governments.

You’re probably thinking, “But why would I use a VPN? I have nothing to hide…” and whilst you are a law-abiding netizen, much the same as real-life, not everyone connected to the Internet is as nice, as friendly, or as trustworthy as you. A secure VPN connection like Ivacy essentially hides your web activity in an encrypted layer, making your communications extremely difficult, if not impossible to read if intercepted.

A VPN is like your own secure, private tunnel to the internet. That means that all of the information you send and receive over the internet is scrambled and encrypted before it heads along the information superhighway, keeping it safe from prying eyes especially when you are traveling. I normally use Nord and Ivacy VPN when I am at the airports and especially when using public wifi.

You’re probably thinking, “But why would I use a VPN? I have nothing to hide…” and whilst you are a law-abiding netizen, much the same as real-life, not everyone connected to the Internet is as nice, as friendly, or as trustworthy as you. A secure VPN connection like Ivacy essentially hides your web activity in an encrypted layer, making your communications extremely difficult, if not impossible to read if intercepted.
A VPN is like your own secure, private tunnel to the internet. That means that all of the information you send and receive over the internet is scrambled and encrypted before it heads along the information superhighway, keeping it safe from prying eyes especially when you are traveling.

It is already "scrambled and encrypted" between your device and the website you are accessing, even if you don't use a VPN - as long as the website uses SSL, like most websites do these days (like the Rick Steves site). The only thing that eavesdroppers would see is the websites you are visiting, not the content of anything you view or send. If you use a VPN, it gets "scrambled" twice. And if you use secured WiFi (with a password), it is being encrypted three times. Someone who has access to the router still can't decipher encrypted traffic between your device an an SSL website - it's just gibberish.

This wasn't so true ten years ago, when many websites were still not using SSL, and it was relatively easy for someone with the right equipment to eavesdrop on WiFi traffic.. Now almost all sites use SSL (https). If your browser says "Secure" (in green on Chrome, on my laptop), then the site is using SSL. If it says "Not Secure" then you are accessing a website that does not use SSL or encryption.

In Italy Vpn is very important. There are a lot of places offering "free wifi" like airports, cafes, piazzas, public places etc. Everything that is transmitted within those networks can be easily viewed from 3rd parties as scammers. We should use Vpn for almost everything! When my smartphone connects on a free hot spot, by default it starts sending and receiving emails, private messages and every kind of private information without even ask me. Last time I used EuVpnProtect. Was very fast in deed (I believe they had servers in Italy too).

In Italy Vpn is very important. There are a lot of places offering "free wifi" like airports, cafes, piazzas, public places etc. Everything that is transmitted within those networks can be easily viewed from 3rd parties as scammers.

Yes, easily viewed...but because most websites use SSL these days to encrypt data between you and the website in question, all the 3rd parties would see if they monitor this WiFi traffic would be useless gibberish.

Necessary and advisable are two very different words. I would call VPNs advisable. A friend of my husband's, who is a cybersecurity expert with the FBI, highly recommends VPNs for the obvious reasons.......more secure, safer.

Many people travel without VPNs, but many people take lots of chances in life with any number of issues. Why not eliminate some risk?

I only use a VPN if I need to get into a firewall protected network...for any other transaction just make sure use are using https site (the lock symbol)

Necessary and advisable are two very different words. I would call VPNs advisable. A friend of my husband's, who is a cybersecurity expert with the FBI, highly recommends VPNs for the obvious reasons.......more secure, safer.

Many people travel without VPNs, but many people take lots of chances in life with any number of issues. Why not eliminate some risk?

The question is, what is the real risk? Are you afraid someone will hack into the SSL encryption over public WiFi? If they can do that, they can hack into your SSL traffic on your home network, too. So is the risk on a public network 0.001% but at home it's only 0.0005% chance of a hack? To me, the additional risk these days is very small and not really worth the trouble for most people. Surely they are taking much higher risks with their choice of passwords, etc.

I'd add this: when you sign up for some paid VPN service, you are transferring the security risk from the dodgy hotel WiFi in Italy to a VPN company's network. It seems likely to me that the VPN company's network is more secure and trusted...but isn't there still a risk that that company's network could be vulnerable to hacking? How do you know someone who works at the VPN company isn't secretly selling access to hackers? Not saying it's likely - but how do you know?

Anyone worried about "unnecessary risk" should also be worried about the risk of using one of these third-party VPN services, too, right?

Your best bet is what I do: set up your own VPN service at home. Then there is no third party involved. When I'm in Italy, I connect to my VPN at home, which connects me to my home network - and then I'm as secure as I would be a home. I don't have to put my trust in some VPN company and hope they never get hacked. Setting up your own VPN service is a little tricky for non-techy people, but you can always have a tech-savvy friend show you how to do it. Once set up, a VPN service at home incurs no monthly fee, either.

"Anyone worried about "unnecessary risk" should also be worried about the risk of using one of these third-party VPN services, too, right?"

Exactly!

If I need to perform tasks related to my job while traveling, I'll connect to my employer's VPN to gain access to the internal network at my office.
Otherwise, be sure you only connect to legitimate wi-fi networks offered by your hotel, the cafe you're in, the library, etc., and be sure any sensitive info is entered only on a secure website.

For peace of mind I got a VPN service. I forget the service name but they offered a 1 month free trial that I cancelled when I got home.

I just bought PureVPN lifetime deal in $79. A good bargain I can see after a long time.

This thread is a bit old and I suspect any new messages may come from those with a vested interest in promoting a VPN. If you go the VPN route, go to a legit tech site and search for a review of reputable VPN companies. Personally, I avoid free VPN services because I fear some may have ulterior motives (or even be run by government entities). Also, you get what you pay for.

I have a paid VPN. I usually use it when I travel. Because I truly believe that public wifies aren't safe.

FastestVPN has a Best VPN for Android as well. If you’re an android user, FastestVPN is the Secure Android VPN with seamless streaming and 256-bit AES encryption.

The Opera web browser comes with its own, built in, VPN. I'm not suggesting it would work for streaming video services, but it certainly worked for me when I wanted to access facebook and reddit in a country where they are banned.