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Originally Posted On: https://www.alwaysvpn.com/insights/how-to-hide-your-location-with-a-secure-vpn
Whether you like it or not, the internet is tracking your every move—in other words, your location. Every connected device has a public IP address. This IP address not only identifies your device but also your physical location. And each time you connect to the internet you’re sharing your location with every website and app you use.
Here at AlwaysVPN, we believe everyone has the right to privacy. So, for those of you that don’t want your IP address to be accessible—we’re here to walk you through hiding your location with a secure VPN service.
How the Location of Your Device is Tracked
Think of your IP address as the mailing address for your internet-connected device. As you surf the web, your IP address is used by outside parties to deliver files of content to you. And not only is your IP address connected to your city, zip code, and the area code associated with your location, it can also show what internet provider hosts your connection.
Now, it’s most likely that no one is going to use an IP lookup service to find your location—but you should never rule out being a case of 1 in 1,000,000. Third parties like a government agency, a hacker, and a tech-savvy teen can all trace your IP address to your home.
In more common cases, online advertisers and retailers capture your IP address as you click on their ads and shop through their websites. They then use your information to directly send you more advertisements relevant to what you’ve clicked—think of it as direct mail but delivered digitally.
The good news is that you can stop all these nosey parties from tracking your location by using a secure VPN service to hide your IP address.
How a VPN Masks Your Location
VPNs bring incredible value to the table when it comes to privacy and security. Ultimately, VPNs can encrypt your IP address, and the way it works is quite fascinating. By turning on a VPN, your online activity is directed through an encrypted tunnel before you enter the public web—masking your IP address from nosey parties. All of your online data is then materialized from a VPN server and not your actual location.
Now you must be wondering, “What’s the best VPN to hide my location?” There are numerous VPN options available but we reviewed and ranked the 3 best VPNs to protect your privacy below.
Best VPNs to Hide Your Location
1. IPVanish
IPVanish offers high-grade encryption and dynamic IP addresses for its users. Their encryption method practices the use of the industry-leading AES-256 standard. AES means “Advanced Encryption Standard” which is the highest cloud encryption grade. Alongside that, IPVanish provides dynamic IP addresses—which are IP addresses that an ISP allows users to temporarily utilize for encryption purposes. Interested in testing IPVanish on your device? Sign up with them risk-free for 30 days.
Visit IPVanishRead our IPVanish Review
2. NordVPN
Similar to IPVanish, NordVPN also uses AES-256 encryption and protects your online data by hiding your IP address. They accomplish this by encrypting all of the data you send and receive which provides users with a new IP address unknown to your internet provider.
The best part is your overall online experience is enhanced because your ISP doesn’t know where you are with a masked IP address—removing their ability to throttle your bandwidth.
Visit NordVPNRead our NordVPN Review
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3. Norton Secure VPN
Norton Secure VPN is another solid choice for masking your IP address. By utilizing AES-256, Norton Secure VPN helps protect your online data and location from advertisers and websites. Their high-grade encryption process works with an algorithm that encrypts and re-encrypts your data 10-14 times for extra protection.
Protect Your Location with a VPN
It should come as no surprise that your location is valuable information to snooping advertisers, websites, and hackers. Each can use your IP address to their advantage and violate your right to location privacy. That’s why we recommend signing up with a trustworthy VPN to prioritize your online protection from third parties.
