00:01 I'm Jake O'Neal, creator of Animagraffs.

And this is How a VPN or Virtual Private Network

Works. This video is made possible by NordVPN, who graciously agreed to my request for full control
over the research and visuals -- and I stand by my work. To start, let's look at what normally happens
the moment you request content from your device.

00:30 Your device, and every connected device in your home, has its own unique address on your
local network. It's a special number called an IP (Internet protocol) address. When you ask for content
on your device, that request is sent to your wifi router as a little packet of data with identifying info
about which device made the request, what content they're asking for, and more.

01:00 Your wifi router hides local device IP's under its own address, but remembers which device
sent the request. It sends this freshly wrapped packet along to your modem, which is your connection
to the outside world. The packet goes from the modem to your ISP or Internet Service Provider's
closest connection point. Your ISP updates the packet again, giving it an IP address on their network.

01:31 This address is visible to the whole internet, and it locates you to a general area of internet
service where you live. Sometimes within a block or two. The content you're looking for is a file or files
on a specific server somewhere in the world. This server has an IP address too, and it's your ISP's job to
find it, connect to it, and route your requested content back to you. But companies don't just have one
server.

01:57 They can have thousands of servers all over the world, duplicating and balancing content to
all of them at once. Dynamic Name Servers take the easy website or app names we use and link them
to tons of possible server IP addresses, to find the closest one to you. This is called DNS lookup. Your
ISP sees and records this whole process, keeping detailed logs of requests you make, IPs they assigned
to you, and what sites you connected to.

02:32 So what can't your ISP normally see? Once your request arrives at the right server, and if that
server is using https (as indicated by the little padlock in your address bar), packets exchanged
between you and that server are encrypted. Encrypted, meaning scrambled so no one in between can
read it.

02:56 You and the site have exchanged secret keys and can decrypt or unscramble this data as you
send packets back and forth. Enter the VPN, or Virtual Private Network You've signed up for a VPN and
set up their software on your device. Let's see how that changes things for you. There are infinite
ways to configure and use a VPN, but let's go with a setup in which you've asked your VPN to handle
all your data.

03:26 The VPN software encrypts your data before it leaves your device. It's already scrambled
when it hits your Wifi router. Your ISP still carries this scrambled data from your home to its servers,
but the next connection point is your VPN's server network. From here on out, the VPN handles the
rest of the DNS lookup process, much like before.

03:44 But with some crucial differences. Your VPN does not keep logs on which local IP address they
assigned to you. It's hidden from the server you eventually connect to. Instead, that website or app
just sees some random IP address from one of your VPN's servers. Your VPN doesn't keep logs on what
sites you connect to or what you do there.

04:07 The entire path from your device to your destination is encrypted and your activity isn't
recorded. Useful scenarios Let's look at how using a VPN might be really useful for you. Secure
connection All your data is encrypted before it leaves your device. Wifi connection points can be
unsafe, for example, when traveling or at a coffee shop.

04:33 A honey pot attack is when someone sets up a convenient wifi connection with the intent to
secretly intercept all data going through it. Sure, the https encryption on specific sites might keep
some of your data safe even so, but there's no way to know for sure how much info someone could
get about you this way.

04:54 Privacy Your internet service provider can see scrambled data going to some IP address, and
might know it's a VPN server. Your ISP can see the times you connect to your VPN, and how much
overall data flows through that connection. They don't know anything else about your activity. ISPs
have a terrible track record for privacy.

05:20 Even with https connections, the general routing info on packets, called metadata, can be
collected and used against you. For example, to send DMCA notices about transferring data from
servers with suspected copyrighted content. ISPs have been known to throttle connection speeds
based on your activity. Or they may sell your metadata and any other data they can collect about you
to marketers.
05:42 A VPN can help prevent these unwanted intrusions. Bypassing blocks Some countries have
aggressive firewalls to block or censor content, not just accessing websites, but also sending sensitive
files from your device to somewhere else. VPN encrypted data may help bypass these blocks. Some
content is location restricted, meaning the server doesn't allow connections outside a specific
geographic location.

06:13 Large VPN providers have servers all over the world and let you choose where you'd like to
appear to be from to bypass these location restrictions. Limitations Now let's look at what a VPN
might not be able to do for you. Logs First and foremost, if a VPN is keeping logs of your data and
activity, that information can be forcefully obtained. A shoddy VPN service isn't much better than your
ISP.

06:42 It's a question of who you trust more to handle your info. VPN legality and blocking In some
countries, even using a VPN at all is illegal, and they may go to great lengths to block entire ranges of
VPN IP addresses. Going with a VPN that has lots of available servers that are updated regularly might
help stay ahead of things here.

07:06 Some VPNs offer obfuscated servers that further remove identifying info from packets so the
data is less likely to be identified as VPN traffic, but at a possible cost in performance. Privacy vs.
anonymity A useful generalization is that VPNs are good at privacy but may not give you anonymity.

07:31 If you log into your accounts while using a VPN, they might not know where you are but they
do know who you are. Even if you're not logged in, a site might do what's called browser fingerprinting,
which is accessing unique details about your device like fonts installed, browser or os version, device
type, etc., and use those unique traits to link a device to your identity.

07:54 Deep packet inspection Some networks might be subject to deep packet inspection, where
automated software searches packets for specific info. Even with encryption, there's speculation that
deep packet inspection can still see what data seems to look like -- this is comparable to a wrapped gift
with a tell-tale shape.
08:16 OpSec To combat these limitations, you might adopt new behaviors to keep public and private
activity separate. Some VPNs allow "split tunneling", which means you can choose what traffic goes
over the VPN and what does not. Conclusion On the whole, if a few bucks a month lets you access
your favorite British TV shows, more confidently use the free wifi at that seedy hostel, download The
Office, or stop giving your valuable data away to unscrupulous ISPs and marketers for free, a VPN is a
great choice.

08:50 On the other hand, if you're going the international spy route and need hardcore identiy
sterilization to combat a hostile nation-state, a VPN is probably not your only solution.

00:01 What is a VPN? So that is the topic of this video. Now VPN stands for virtual private network A
VPN is what establishes a secure and reliable network connection over an unsecured network such as
the internet. It protects your internet activity and disguises your identity as you surf the internet.
00:26 So for example, when you order internet service from your ISP or internet service provider,
they will set up your internet connection and when your setup is complete your internet activity is
routed through your ISP servers. Which means that your ISP can see and log all of your internet
activity. So they can see every website that you visited.

00:51 Now typically this wouldn't be a problem if they kept your internet activity private. However
there is a possibility that your ISP could share your information with other third parties such as
advertisers or maybe even the government and if this were to happen your internet activity is no
longer private. But by using a VPN your online activity will bypass your ISP's server and will be
redirected to another server, which is a VPN server.

01:21 Which means that your internet provider or any other party can no longer see what websites
you are visiting. The VPN server is now your source where all of your internet activity goes through.
And this has several benefits. And the first benefit is that a VPN will disguise your identity by hiding
your IP address. Whenever you order internet service from a provider, they will assign you an IP
address.

01:47 That unique IP address is attached to your home or business. So whenever you visit a website,
that website can see your IP address. But when using a VPN, websites can no longer see your IP
address, they now only see the IP address of the VPN server which effectively hides your identity, so
you can surf the internet anonymously.

02:17 Another benefit is that a VPN will encrypt and protect your internet data. Whenever you go
on the internet, the data that you send and receive is broken down into a bunch of smaller data
packets. These data packets travel across the public internet and ultimately find their way to their
destination. But as they are traveling across the internet, your data can be viewed by ISPs,
governments, and it can also be intercepted by hackers, especially if you use public Wi-Fi networks.
But a VPN will prevent this.

02:50 A VPN will encapsulate each data packet by adding an extra layer of protection to each one
which is known as tunneling. This extra layer adds a layer of protection to ensure your data is secure
and kept private as it travels across the internet in a virtual tunnel. So any activity that you do on the
internet such as visiting web pages or transferring files, the data is encrypted and kept private when
using a VPN.

03:20 And third, you'll be able to access internet content that would normally be restricted in certain
geographical locations. So for example, some internet content such as videos from YouTube and
Netflix may only be accessible in certain countries and restricted in others. And these websites can tell
which country you're in by your IP address.

03:44 So if you're in a restricted country you will not be able to access certain content. But by using
a VPN you can pick from different VPN servers that are available in different countries, which changes
your IP address, which effectively changes your location, which will give you access to restricted
internet content.

04:03 So if you're in South America and you wanted to access certain content that's only available in
the U.S., you can use a VPN and choose a VPN server that's located in the U.S. so you can access that
content. And a fourth benefit of a VPN is that it provides a secure connection for remote workers.

04:26 So as an example, some businesses may have employees that work remotely from their
computers at home and they need those employees to have the ability to access files at the main
office. Now this could be done by using a leased line. A leased line provides a dedicated channel that
can connect two sites together through a reserved private circuit.

04:51 These lines are rented for a monthly fee and they can be expensive especially if the distance
between the two sites are far from each other. But instead of using a leased line, businesses can use a
VPN. A VPN uses the existing public network such as the internet to establish a remote connection.

05:12 And when a VPN is connected it acts like a secure private network. It provides a dedicated
link between two points over the internet. So even though so this office and this home are in two
separate locations, it doesn't matter, a VPN makes them one private network virtually. So who would
need a VPN? Well a VPN is for anyone who wants to be extra safe on the internet.

05:38 It reassures that you're surfing the internet safely, securely, and anonymously. And if you're
the type of person that uses a lot of public Wi-Fi networks such as in hotels, airports, and coffee
shops, well in that case it should be mandatory that you use a VPN. Because a lot of cyber criminals
will create a free Wi-Fi network in a public place and they'll make it look legit.

06:03 And when people connect to it thinking that it belongs to that place that they're in, they are
really connecting to the cyber criminal's network, where the criminal can steal their data. VPNs can be
used on all of your devices such as desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Now some VPN
providers are free and some you have to pay for.

06:22 The major difference is how they treat your internet activity. Free VPNs will collect info
information about you. They will log your internet activity and could sell it to advertisers. But paid
VPNs are more secure. These generally will not log your internet activity and they will keep it private.

06:46 So if you're interested in getting a VPN I'll put a discount link in the description below of the
one that I personally use. And they have a strict no logging policy. So guys I want to thank you for
watching this video, please subscribe and I will see you in the next video.