Ensuring Your Online Privacy

The internet has brought us countless helpful things that have now become almost essential for living. Not only does it allow us to stay connected with each other and the world, but it is also the perfect tool for learning new information and skills, purchasing goods and services and finding our way through an unknown place. In fact, if we were to make a list of things the internet can’t do, we’d find it surprisingly small. It’s safe to say the internet has enabled us to adapt and evolve in ways people living a century ago simply couldn't have imagined. 

All this being said, the internet isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, and in 2025, it has become a den of cybercrime. With hacks, scams and data leaks on the rise, it is now more important than ever before that we take all the necessary steps to protect our internet security. In this article, we’ll explore some of the most effective ways you can do just that.

Make Use of a VPN

Virtual Private Networks, more commonly known as VPNs, are well on their way to becoming an essential bit of kit when it comes to ensuring our digital privacy. This software works by encrypting your IP address and making it appear as if you are accessing the internet from somewhere else in the world. This greatly increases the online security of the user as it encrypts their information and location, making it infinitely more difficult for cyber criminals to trace their internet activity back to a source.

Alongside increased privacy, VPNs come with a plethora of other advantages for the user. For one, many internet users have reported improved internet speeds due to a VPN, as well as reduced ping times. If this wasn’t enough, using a VPN also enables the internet user to bypass geographical restrictions, giving them access to content such as media and games that are only usually available in other countries. Plus, because VPNs are becoming so mainstream, many platforms are now being built to support them. This can be seen in the world of online casinos. The VPN compatibility of these sites, for example, allow Qatari players to join the fun of online gambling, also giving them access to a wealth of bonuses and incentives so they can game like they never have before.

Although the majority of VPNs have paid subscription plans to give users the most out of the tech, the simple yet highly effective encryption technology can often be accessed for free on platforms such as Proton VPN.

Look Into Cryptocurrency

Although many people still remain somewhat sceptical about cryptocurrency, its multitude of benefits, including its increased security, are clear to see. It makes sense then that the popularity of this alternative payment method is increasing across the globe, with many countries following the lead of El Salvador and accepting it as legal tender.

Cryptocurrencies' security benefits stem from their very nature as a decentralised digital asset and the cryptography it uses to encrypt information. In simple terms, unlike a more traditional mode of payment, when a transaction is made using cryptocurrency, it does not pass through a third-party organisation, such as a bank, for verification, but instead goes directly to the very person it was sent to. All transactions made using cryptocurrency are stored on a giant public ledger known as the blockchain ensuring transparency, but each is encrypted using cryptography to make it nearly impossible to trace to a source. All of this makes crypto a highly secure asset and an excellent way to make payments in the digital age.

Protect You Passwords

Gone are the days when we could just reuse the same password over and over again for all our online accounts. Every day, passwords get leaked to untrustworthy companies that, at best, want to sell your data, and at worst, want to hack your accounts and steal your assets. However, coming up with a different complex password for every single online account we own, and remembering each one, isn’t exactly an easy task. Luckily, password managers take all the stress out of this while ensuring their users' digital security is kept safe. Password managers work by suggesting to the internet user a unique, strong and complex password for every site they visit, it will then store these passwords in a location only accessible to the individual, for example locked by a bio-metric face scanner so that when you return to the site, it can remember and apply the password for you, but only after authenticating that it is actually you attempting to gain access to the account.

Another highly effective password tool that helps ensure our digital privacy comes from multi-factor authentication. As the name would suggest, this is technology which has the user verify their identity in multiple ways before it grants them access to a site. For example, after putting in a password, you may then also need to input a code that was sent directly to your mobile. This means that even if your password was discovered, nobody could access your account unless they also had your mobile and its password on hand. 

Be Vigilant 

For all the tools and software out there, the best way to ensure digital security while using the web comes from us. As long as we are vigilant and not too quick to give our information away to untrustworthy sites, we can keep ourselves protected. 

When exploring a new website, make sure to look for the ‘https://’ at the beginning of the URL, or a symbol of a padlock. Both of these mean that the site you are on is encrypted, making it substantially more likely to be safe to use. Another sign that a webpage might not be trustworthy comes from the content of the site itself. Keep an eye out for spelling and grammar errors, informal and unprofessional language, or contact details that lead nowhere. If you are still not sure, why not make use of Google's free website checker, which scans the URL of a site and sees if there have been any concerns highlighted by it in the past? Also, it is a good idea to only use new websites when you are in the right frame of mind to be vigilant; if you are tired or have had a bit too much to drink, for example, it will be more difficult to notice the red flags.

Final Thoughts

There is no denying that the internet isn’t exactly the safest place to be, and every day we hear more and more news about mass hacks, scams and data leaks. Still, these threats shouldn’t deter us from arguably what is the most helpful tool humanity has created. It’s all about knowing how to spot threats and keeping ourselves safe from them. As we have explored in this article, there are numerous bits of kit and software that can make this infinitely easier. Still, it is important to remember that internet safety starts with us, and that the best weapon in our arsenal for avoiding digital threats is our own common sense.