Imagine that you have a laptop with Windows 10 installed as the operating system, and you suddenly connect to a public Wi-Fi network with the intention of checking email and reading the latest news. Also, suddenly, you remember that you had to process an urgent bank transfer, and you access your bank account in a matter of minutes to do it.
Have you ever wondered if someone, somewhere, could review and view our online activity? It is clear that this is something completely reasonable, especially if we consider that even when we access a public Wi-Fi network with a password, it is still public and we do not have enough control to know that no one could access our data.
In these cases, having a virtual private network (VPN) can be an extremely interesting option, since it could be very useful when it comes to protecting our information from prying eyes and, above all, recovering certain privacy online , in especially in those moments when we are away from home and / or access the Internet through a public connection.
Even when we are at home, although it is true that we would not have to worry so much that someone can expire our Wi-Fi network precisely because we are the owner of the network (yes, as long as it is protected), a VPN also it could be useful. For example, when we also want to protect our identity and public IP from both the telephone company and the different search engines.
Going back to the beginning, if you have Windows 10 as your operating system, the truth is that setting up a VPN is straightforward and simple. We explain how you can do it easily.
Setting up a VPN in Windows 10
To be able to connect to a specific VPN we need, first of all, to have a VPN profile on our computer. It is possible to create a VPN profile on our own, individually, or to set up a professional account with the intention of obtaining a company profile.
Of course, the steps to follow in the beginning may be different depending on whether it is the first or second option. If we are going to use the VPN for work, it is necessary to look for the configuration of the service , or to ask the Systems Department if they have a VPN application (for example, on the company’s intranet site when we are at work) . However, if it is a VPN service for personal use, a useful option is to go to the Microsoft Store and find out if there is an app for that service.
Then, we must click on the Start button, Settings , Network and internet , go to VPN and, finally, click on Add a VPN connection . Once this is done, a new window will open where we can continue configuring the connection itself.
To do this, in VPN Provider it is recommended to choose the Windows option (integrated) . In the Connection name box we must write a specific name with which we want to recognize said connection. In Server name or address we must write the address of the server, and in Type of VPN select what type of connection we want to create.
Finally, in Type of login information we will choose the type of login information or the credentials that will be used (username and password), and, to finish, click on Save .
Connecting to the newly created VPN
Once we have a VPN profile, and if we have done it properly, we can connect to the network. To achieve this we simply have to go to the extreme right of the taskbar, and click on the Network icon.
Now we simply choose the VPN connection that we want to use, and click on the Connect button. Of course, in case the VPN section opens automatically in Settings, we simply have to select the VPN connection and then click on Connect .
The access data is probably already saved. Otherwise, if the system asks us to enter the username and password, we will have to re-enter them again.
Although the steps indicated above are useful to configure a VPN from scratch, remember that there are also many VPN services that you can hire on the Internet, and that they also have applications specially designed to facilitate the process. In this way, once the service is contracted, we just have to download the application, install it and connect through it.
