Does a VPN Protect You From Hackers – Honest Answers about VPN

Internet access in the modern world is not only a door to the world of unlimited opportunities and information but also a considerable risk that leads to many troubles. Many IT professionals actively respond to users' fear, offering many solutions, among which VPN is perhaps the most popular and familiar. But is it really that effective? Does a VPN protect you from hackers?

The main thing about cyber security that you should always keep in mind is that there is no magic tool that will protect you from everything. However, the power and capabilities of a VPN are enough to protect you from many online troubles and threats.

What Threats A VPN CAN Prevent

While a VPN cannot protect against all potential cyber threats, it works great with an impressively wide range of malicious attacks. It is especially true for interventions through the Internet, particularly Wi-Fi, to obtain your personal information.

So, does a VPN protect you from hackers and other cyber threats? Which ones specifically and how?

Some Remote Interventions

Please focus on the word "some" and keep it in mind. VPN is a powerful tool but not a magic wand. It does an excellent job of primary protection against intrusions using IP addresses but not from malicious injections initiated by someone. 

The good news is that most unintentional attacks are simple, and a VPN does a great job masking your IP address. Thus, feel free to use a VPN, as almost every website you visit on your desktop, tablet, or phone uses IP data that hackers can exploit. 

Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks

MITM attacks are dangerous because they make it easy to steal personal information (including passwords, payment information, and sensitive files) by intercepting data while connecting to a web server or website. They are prevalent for users of public networks and Wi-Fi, providing the most vulnerable WPA2 encryption standard. Hackers benefit from this because of the ease of hacking and the large number of connections that make it difficult to detect suspicious activity.

Do VPNs protect you from hackers carrying out MITM attacks? Yes, they do it by creating an encrypted tunnel for your traffic to pass through, which makes it much more difficult to intercept the data.

DDoS/DoS Threats

DDoS/DoS attacks are simple and uncomplicated but incredibly annoying due to their effectiveness and accessibility, even for novice hackers. They are attempts to bring the system down by overloading it with requests and unwanted traffic. However, if the attackers try to make a targeted DDoS attack on your device, they need to know your IP address. Does a VPN protect you from hackers in this case? Yes, but on the condition that you use it constantly every time you connect to the Internet.

Fake Hotspots

Why look for ways to intercept data or attack the system when someone can create a fake network hotspot that completely imitates open Wi-Fi access, including name and identification details like SSID? Yes, it's more complicated, but the ends justify the means when your sensitive information is at stake.

The key to protecting against this threat is that a VPN FULLY encrypts your traffic and communication between your devices and the web. Thus, hackers will be almost impossible to intercept data or gain access to your Internet activity.

When a VPN CANNOT Help

All of the above sounds great, but did you see the catch? From the point of view of professional cyber experts, all these attacks are relatively simple, involving access to your IP addresses. Bypassing this limitation is relatively easy – attackers must catch you on the hook, initiating internal injection with malicious data. For example, by motivating you to download a virus file or unfamiliar software, create some activity on a fake resource, or respond to a suspicious email. It is noteworthy that the attackers generate more than 1.4 million phishing sites every month for this!

Does a VPN protect you from hackers when malicious code has already entered your system? Unfortunately no.

In Conclusion – the Best Protection is Always Comprehensive

In addition to the previous paragraph, we would like to add the following fact. According to data from the IBM Cyber Security Index, about 95% of cyber security breaches are due to human error. It may be an accidental, unknowing mistake or intentional activity as part of insider threats that even the most reliable VPN cannot protect you from.

Specialists from MBS Tech Services know this for sure because we are always aware of all the cyber protection events and trends. Helping our clients establish the highest cyber security, we offer the best physical and software cyber security solutions, as well as training. It is vital to remain vigilant and skeptical in any situation and risk of a cyber threat. And the MBS team will be happy to help you develop these essential skills, bringing healthy suspicion to intuitiveness.