Why Should I Use a VPN?

31 Jul, 2014 · Alan Summers Updated 16 Aug, 2026

“Why should I use a VPN?” It’s one of the most common questions in online privacy — and the answer has only become more compelling over the years. Almost everything we do now travels over the internet: banking, work, messaging, shopping, entertainment. And most of it travels over Wi-Fi, often on networks we don’t control. A VPN is the simplest single tool for taking back control of that connection.

Here’s what a VPN actually does, and the practical reasons millions of people use one every day.

What a VPN Actually Does

A VPN (Virtual Private Network) creates an encrypted tunnel between your device — computer, smartphone or tablet — and a VPN server. All of your internet traffic travels through that tunnel. Two things follow:

Nobody on the local network can read your traffic. Not the operator of the coffee-shop hotspot, not someone lurking on the same airport Wi-Fi, not your internet provider. They see only an encrypted stream to the VPN server.
Websites see the VPN server's IP address, not yours. Your real location and identity stay private, and your apparent location becomes whichever country you connected through.

Le VPN runs servers in 100+ locations across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific and Africa, using modern protocols — OpenVPN, WireGuard, Stealth WireGuard and IPSec/IKEv2 — so the encryption is strong and the connection stays fast.

Reason 1: Security on Networks You Don't Trust

Public Wi-Fi is convenient and fundamentally insecure. On an open hotspot, an attacker on the same network can intercept unencrypted traffic, set up a fake “Free Airport WiFi” access point, or harvest logins and personal data. With those details, criminals can commit identity fraud or take over your email and social media accounts.

With a VPN active, everything leaving your device is encrypted before it touches the hotspot. The rogue network operator gets nothing usable. This alone justifies a VPN for anyone who ever works from cafés, hotels, airports or trains.

Reason 2: Privacy From Tracking and Profiling

Your IP address is a persistent identifier that links your browsing across sites and reveals your approximate location. ISPs in many countries log browsing activity; advertisers build profiles from it. Routing your connection through a VPN server replaces your IP with a shared one and hides your browsing from your ISP, cutting off both at the source. You can see exactly what websites learn about you — before and after connecting — on the IP address test page.

Reason 3: Your Content, Wherever You Are

Streaming and catch-up services are typically licensed per country: the subscription and catch-up services you use at home often stop working the moment you travel. Because a VPN lets you choose your virtual location, you can connect to a server in your home country and access your usual services as if you’d never left.

For example, UK catch-up services like BBC iPlayer and ITVX work from any of Le VPN’s UK servers. The same principle applies to French, German, American or Japanese services — connect to the right country on the server list and open the site as usual. One honest note: some streaming platforms actively detect VPN connections, so if a service objects, trying a different server in the same country usually resolves it.

Reason 4: Getting Past Censorship and Network Blocks

Whether it’s a hotel network that blocks streaming, an office firewall, or a country that censors social media and news sites, the block works by inspecting your traffic and destination. A VPN hides both. For heavily censored networks that block VPNs themselves, Le VPN’s Stealth WireGuard protocol disguises VPN traffic to get through deep packet inspection.

One Subscription, Every Device

Le VPN offers apps for Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, and one account allows up to 5 simultaneous connections — enough for your laptop, phone, tablet and more at the same time.

So, why should you use a VPN? Because for a few euros a month you get encrypted connections everywhere, real privacy from tracking, and an internet that works the same wherever you travel. Try Le VPN — your first purchase is covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can put all of this to the test risk-free.