Of all the situations you can find yourself in while using a VPN, your VPN is perhaps the most business-critical when you are traveling. When you are away from home, you are dependent on the communications infrastructure that is in place on site. That could be solid, secure, or insecure infrastructure, or even one developed by the government of the host country you are in to suck out all the information about you that is possible.
Likewise: Air-gapping the planet: How to travel safely in digitally scary places
VPNs create secure tunnels that should allow you to return to the resources of your home network, be it a public cloud in your home country or your corporate server. They protect your ability to conduct all of the financial transactions that you will need to make during your trip. They can even protect your identity from stalkers or local organized crime who may be looking for an executive to kidnap and extort ransom.
Remember that VPNs are illegal in some countries, precisely because the host government wants to sniff all traffic. Make sure you check local laws before doing anything that could be frowned upon and potentially have serious consequences.
Likewise: Take Home: How a VPN Can Help Traveler Connect Anywhere
Sure, VPNs let you stream your movies from your home services on the go, but they serve a much more serious purpose when you are on the go. Choose wisely.
Servers in 94 countries
- Locations: 160
- Simultaneous connections: 5 or unlimited with the router app
- Emergency switch: Yes sir
- Platforms: A whole lot (the full list can be found here)
- Logging: No browser logs, some connection logs
- Trial version / MBG: 30 days
With 160 server locations in 94 countries, ExpressVPN has a sizeable VPN network over the internet. In CNETs Review of the service, reported the employee Rae Hodge that ExpressVPN with activated VPN and using the OpenVPN protocol lost less than 2% in performance compared to a direct connection.
When it comes to travel, a major advantage of ExpressVPN is the private DNS that runs on every VPN server. That is, if you try to access Gmail, for example, the ExpressVPN’s DNS will give you an actual IP address for Gmail. If you rely on your local host network’s DNS, you have no way of knowing what actual IP address you are being sent to. It looks like Gmail, but is it really that? Or have you just given your Gmail credentials to a hostile government or organized crime? Use ExpressVPN’s private DNS.
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ExpressVPN is one of the most popular VPN providers, offering a wide range of platforms and protocols. Platforms include Windows, Mac, Linux, Routers, iOS, Android, Chromebook, Kindle Fire, and even the Nook device. There are also browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox. ExpressVPN also works with PlayStation, Apple TV, Xbox, Amazon Fire TV, and the Nintendo Switch. There’s even a manual setup option for Chromecast, Roku, and Nvidia Switch. While you probably won’t be using all of these platforms while traveling, it’s good to know that ExpressVPN will come in handy at home as well.
While the company does not log the browsing history or traffic destinations, it does log the data associated with the VPN service, the amount transferred and the location of the VPN server. We’d like to commend ExpressVPN for providing this information very clear and easily accessible.
Exclusive offer: Get 3 additional months for free.
Servers in 65 countries
- Server: 3,200+
- Simultaneous connections: Unlimited
- Emergency switch: Yes sir
- Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, Fire TV, Firefox, Chrome
- Logging: None, except for billing information
- Trial version / MBG: 30 day
At $ 2 a month for a two-year plan (billed in one piece), Surfshark is a good price for a solid offering. No leaks were found in CNET’s testing (and given that much bigger names have leaked connection information, that’s a huge win). Leak protection can be a big deal when traveling, especially if you want to hide the fact that you are using a VPN from either the local ISP or the host country government.
The company appears to have a very strong security focus and offers AES-256-GCM, RSA-2048 and Perfect Forward Secrecy encryption. To prevent WebRTC leaks, Surfshark offers a special browser plug-in that was specially developed to combat these leaks.
Surfshark also offers private DNS functions as well as the so-called NoBorders mode. This function was developed to enable you to access websites regardless of restrictive border connections. Be careful though. Countries that restrict access tend to disapprove of circumventing these restrictions.
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Surfshark’s performance was higher than NordVPN and Norton Secure VPN, but lower than ExpressVPN and IPVanish. However, Surfshark also offers a multihop option that allows you to route connections through two VPN servers over the private Surfshark network. We also like that the company offers some inexpensive add-on features, including ad blockers, anti-tracking, access to a non-logging search engine, and a tool that tracks your email address against data breach lists.
Servers in 59 countries
- Server: 5,517
- Simultaneous connections: 6th
- Emergency switch: Yes sir
- Platforms: Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, Android TV, Chrome, Firefox
- Logging: None, except for billing information
- Trial version / MBG: 30 day
Likewise: How does NordVPN work? Plus how to set it up and use it
NordVPN is one of the most popular VPNs for consumers. We found that NordVPN performance was generally consistent across a variety of test situations. This means that when you travel, you can probably count on NordVPN’s performance no matter where or from where you connect.
Likewise: My in-depth review of NordVPN
In our review, we liked that it offers features beyond the basic VPN, including support for P2P sharing, a service called Double VPN that performs a second layer of encryption, Onion over VPN, which TOR functions over its VPN enabled, and even a dedicated IP if you’re trying to run a VPN that doubles as a server. It supports all common platforms and a number of home network platforms. The company also offers NordVPN teams that provide centralized management and billing for a mobile workforce.
Likewise: My interview with NordVPN management about how they run their service
The performance tests were adequate, although the ping speeds were slow enough that I didn’t want to play a twitching video game over the VPN. To be fair, most VPNs have pretty terrible ping speeds, so this isn’t Nord’s only weakness. Overall, a solid choice and with a 30-day money-back guarantee that is well worth a try.
Servers in 52 countries
- Server: 1,900
- Simultaneous connections: Unlimited
- Emergency switch: Yes sir
- Platforms: Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, Chrome as well as routers, Fire Stick and Kodi
- Logging: None, except for billing information
- Trial version / MBG: 30 day
IPVanish is a profound and highly configurable product that presents itself as a click-and-go solution. I think the company is selling itself empty. A quick visit to his website shows a relatively generic VPN service, but that’s not the whole truth.
Likewise: My in-depth review of IPVanish
The user interface offers a wide range of server choices, including some great performance graphics. It also has a wide variety of protocols so no matter what you’re connecting to, you know what to expect. The company also has an excellent server list with good up-to-date status information. This list can be extremely helpful when you are on the go, as it gives you the opportunity to fine-tune the service and server you choose based on your current location.
There are also a number of configuration options for the app itself. In terms of performance, the connection speed was insanely fast. The transfer performance was good overall. However, for security reasons, it couldn’t hide the fact that I was connecting via a VPN – even though the data being transferred was secure. The inability to hide in a VPN could be problematic when traveling, which is why this is the last choice on our recommendation list.
Overall, a solid product with a good user experience that is fine for home connections as long as you aren’t trying to hide the fact that you are on a VPN. The company also has a partnership with SugarSync, offering 250GB of encrypted cloud storage with each plan.
How can I find out which VPN rules apply to the countries I am visiting?
There are a number of sources. First of all, it’s always a good idea to check with your VPN provider. They often have a keen sense of the countries in which their services operate. If you are a US citizen, contact the US State Department. Foggy Bottom often lists travel advice for U.S. residents, and they have field service officers who can provide general advice. Check the Website with travel advice. If you are outside of the United States, your country’s State Department may offer a similar service.
Is a VPN all I need to be protected while traveling?
No, definitely not. VPNs can generally protect your data while it’s on the move. But if your computer or phone is seized (encrypted or not), governments can access your data. Some governments might keep your devices simple for whatever reason they deem useful. Online services that you access in your country may offer less protection than the same services in your host country. And of course there are all the common travel security issues such as: B. being careful about what you spend, how you handle cash, who you trust, and so on, which can be risky when traveling.
If my hotel has a wired connection, do I still need to use a VPN?
Yes sir. Don’t assume that a network endpoint is secure when you travel. Always make sure your connections are encrypted when communicating over a network connection.
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