Are You Sure Your VPN is Working?

People who use VPNs want to ensure their VPN is working when they connect online. Because if for some reason, that hoped-for secure connection isn’t there, the user risks revealing their online location and their browsing habits to whoever might be watching at any moment. The top reason people use a VPN is to protect their online privacy and security by encrypting (coding or scrambling) their internet traffic and masking their IP address.  By doing that, they prevent hackers and other third parties from tracking their online activity. So, if their VPN were to fail, then the extra secure, encrypted network they counted on wouldn’t be there when they need it most. Start with your VPN website page open in your browser, but have your VPN turned off, meaning you’re online but not connected to your VPN. Have WhatIsMyIPAddress.com open in another Window or tab. (It might also be helpful to have something handy to write down numbers.) If you’re VPN isn’t working, there could be a variety of reasons. Conduct an internet search on the topic, and you’ll find a variety of suggestions for troubleshooting the problem. Your VPN is working (increasing your privacy and security) when your public IP address changes from its previous value after you connect to the VPN. And you want to make sure that it is. Some IP address basics. Very few people ever have to look up or know their IP address, either at home or at work. However, when remote working from home became common after the COVID-19 pandemic, many homebound workers needed to know their IP address so they could connect to their offices. Here is just a quick review of IP addresses: Why you want a VPN and why you want it to work. An IP address doesn’t reveal your name or home or office address. It is simply a digital address that allows you to send and receive data from your device to other people or websites on the internet. However, it does allow anyone on the internet to match your IP address to your location. And investigators or hackers could see the websites visited by your IP address. Learn more about VPNs and IP addresses. Many websites make it difficult to understand technical topics, such as VPNs and IP addresses. At WhatIsMyIPAddress.com, we strive to make our content both understandable and helpful. If we don’t get “into the weeds” on a technical issue, it’s typically beyond what the average consumer and citizen needs to know. There are always more places to find technical (and not helpful) content. For more valuable resources on IP addresses and VPNs, see the articles and podcast episodes listed at WhatIsMyiPAddress.com Learning Center . Simply type in the keywords related to what you want to know about in the search box, then select the content from the results that appear. It’s that simple.