WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.323 --> 00:00:01.633 Thanks to an assist from Congress, 2 00:00:01.633 --> 00:00:03.302 your cable company has the legal right 3 00:00:03.302 --> 00:00:04.588 to sell your web browsing data 4 00:00:04.588 --> 00:00:06.558 without your explicit consent. 5 00:00:06.558 --> 00:00:08.336 If that seems a little gross to you, 6 00:00:08.336 --> 00:00:10.115 and it should, don't worry. 7 00:00:10.115 --> 00:00:11.794 There's a way to keep all of your browsing data 8 00:00:11.794 --> 00:00:14.556 more private that a thousands incognito windows ever could. 9 00:00:14.556 --> 00:00:17.755 It's called a virtual private network or VPN. 10 00:00:17.755 --> 00:00:19.688 line:15% I'm Brian Barrett, Wired's news editor, 11 00:00:19.688 --> 00:00:22.311 and this is your guide to staying safe on the internet. 12 00:00:22.311 --> 00:00:24.254 So, a VPN works by routing your traffic 13 00:00:24.254 --> 00:00:26.658 through an encrypted connection to a private network. 14 00:00:26.658 --> 00:00:29.499 What that means in practice is that when your cable company 15 00:00:29.499 --> 00:00:32.023 or anyone else checks in on where you've been browsing, 16 00:00:32.023 --> 00:00:35.934 all they can see is that you're connecting to the VPN. 17 00:00:35.934 --> 00:00:37.046 There's some other benefits too. 18 00:00:37.046 --> 00:00:38.935 So, VPN's can mask your location, 19 00:00:38.935 --> 00:00:41.037 which helps get around regional content restrictions 20 00:00:41.037 --> 00:00:42.572 or oppressive governments, 21 00:00:42.572 --> 00:00:43.993 if that's something that you deal with. 22 00:00:43.993 --> 00:00:46.511 And reputable VPN's keep no logs of your activity, 23 00:00:46.511 --> 00:00:48.620 meaning they can't cough up your search history, 24 00:00:48.620 --> 00:00:49.992 even under subpoena. 25 00:00:49.992 --> 00:00:52.746 And that's the catch, the reputable part. 26 00:00:52.746 --> 00:00:54.034 Because everything you do on the internet 27 00:00:54.034 --> 00:00:55.837 flows through a VPN server, 28 00:00:55.837 --> 00:00:59.679 they can access, well, all of it if they wanted to. 29 00:00:59.679 --> 00:01:00.512 Most of the time, 30 00:01:00.512 --> 00:01:01.952 all you have is their word that they won't, 31 00:01:01.952 --> 00:01:04.027 and that may not be good enough. 32 00:01:04.027 --> 00:01:06.135 There are some filters you can use when you pick a VPN 33 00:01:06.135 --> 00:01:09.130 to make sure it's a safe one though, or at least safer. 34 00:01:09.130 --> 00:01:10.607 Paid services are a good bet 35 00:01:10.607 --> 00:01:14.240 because then at least you know how they make their money. 36 00:01:14.240 --> 00:01:15.563 And never sign up with a VPN 37 00:01:15.563 --> 00:01:17.421 that stores logs of your activity. 38 00:01:17.421 --> 00:01:20.637 That's bad; it kind of defeats the whole purpose. 39 00:01:20.637 --> 00:01:22.097 Once you've found a service you're happy with, 40 00:01:22.097 --> 00:01:23.401 getting started though is easy. 41 00:01:23.401 --> 00:01:25.789 Just create an account, download some software, 42 00:01:25.789 --> 00:01:27.735 and congratulations: 43 00:01:27.735 --> 00:01:31.068 you're free from your ISP's prying eyes.