Why you should use a VPN in Thailand
Have you booked your trip to Thailand? Then of course you make sure that your suitcase is packed, your visa is arranged and you already have your tickets ready. But you can also prepare your trip to Thailand in terms of cyber security. It is a good idea to install a VPN in advance.
What exactly are the benefits of that?
What is a VPN?
VPN stands for 'Virtual Private Network'. You can think of it as a secure, encrypted tunnel between your device and the rest of the internet. Connect to a VPN and your online activities are instantly encrypted and kept secret from third parties. Because you are temporarily assigned an IP address (often from abroad), you are more difficult to follow. Your IP address normally reveals from which location you are connecting.
Using a VPN is very simple: you purchase a VPN subscription from a provider, install the software, select the location you want to connect to and click 'Connect'. That's all you need to do.
Safely use public networks
When you travel, you often depend on public networks. We sometimes call it 'free WiFi'. Think of the hotspots at the airport, in a coffee shop or at the train station. Public networks are very useful for quickly looking up something, but it is unsafe to actively use the internet. Updating your social media or checking your bank balance is unsafe on free WiFi.
Public networks are usually not secured. Anyone can get on it. With no encryption, anyone on the network can see what you're doing and your data is practically out in the open.
Hardened cybercriminals also know that Thailand is popular among holidaymakers. They therefore set up a fake network at tourist attractions. You think you're connecting to the airport's free Wi-Fi point, but you're actually connecting directly to a trap set up by scammers to steal your details. This can lead to identity fraud. You won't be the first, and certainly not the last, to experience this.
No government interference
There is no heavy censorship in Thailand, as you know it from China, but Thailand does not allow the visit of all internet services. Certain websites are blocked there. The government does keep track of what you do on the internet. You may not feel completely comfortable with that. In the Netherlands you would not like it if the government keeps track of what you do, so on holiday, where you do not know what the government does with your data, certainly not.
By using a VPN, your data is encrypted and your location is anonymous. It is much more difficult to create a profile of you as a user and it is complicated to keep track of what you do. All the government sees is that you have connected to a VPN. That's legal in Thailand.
Save on flights and hotel rooms
If you are looking at your holiday destination for onward flights to continue your journey and are looking for a hotel room, you will see different prices on your first visit to the travel website than on your second visit. The prices have risen considerably on your second visit. This is because the website has tracked your visit and now wants you to pay more.
With a VPN, the travel website will not know that you are visiting the site for the second time. That's why you just get to be the prices of your first visit. That can save you a lot of money. Then you have long since paid off the investment for a VPN.
In short: with a VPN you can use the internet a lot more freely, anonymously and, moreover, with more attention to your privacy. An absolute must for your trip to Thailand.