The Philippines is a country that gained its independence from the US fairly long time ago, back in 1946. This is perhaps one of the reasons; why it is considered one of the most Westernized nations in Southeast Asia. Having gained self-rule; there are many areas that the government has done quite well on; and others where the jury is still out. Take for example their Internet restriction policy. The Philippines holds a high ranking among the nations of the world; that is not as restrictive when dealing with online freedom; though the situation on the ground seems to be slightly different than what you’d assume. (also see, 5 Best VPN for Xbox)
Online Censorship In Philippines
The Philippines has still had a few incidences; where the government seemed to have been asserting its authority over how its citizens should be using the Internet. One that comes to mind is when Ashley Madison; the dating site, got banned back in 2014; followed by the decision to restrict access to many porn sites such as Xtube and Pornhub as recently as 2017.
As of now, the blocks are still active; and the government does not show any signs of relenting. Despite these blocks, we still have to give credit to the nation for allowing access to almost all the favorite internet-based chat apps and services; unlike most of its neighboring countries.
One other obstacle that Internet users based in the Philippines ought to jump over is the fact that a wide range of gaming sites and streaming services are known to deny access to them. This is probably because they’d rather not have traffic from such regions.
This can be such a detriment to gamers based there, as they’d be unable to play their favorite games just because of their location. To an extent, this could be seen as unfair treatment, but fortunately, there exists a way that can make it a lot easier to connect to those restricted servers.
The Need For VPN In Philippines
The best way to get around geo-restrictions imposed on whatever online service you’d like to have access to is through a VPN service. A VPN works by concealing your identity and having the servers that you’d want to access think that you happen to be based in an area where their services are legitimately accessible.
The operation behind this form of technology isn’t as difficult as most people would assume. Once a user based in the Philippines subscribes to a credible VPN service and launches a connection to a server that’s found in the UK for example, his IP address gets changed from one that reflects he’s in the Philippines, to one that places him within the UK. Having done this, the user is assured of access to whatever sites he could not previously log in to since it will seem as though he’s based in the UK.(also see, Best VPN for Overwatch)
Apart from hiding out a user’s actual location; a VPN also grants complete online security, but this depends on the quality of the VPN provider you sign up with. The service should be able to encrypt your connection and make it impossible to hack to whatever device you’re using to surf the Internet. This form of protected Internet access ensures that nobody can spy on your online activities; and this includes your ISP provider. With a credible VPN service; you should be able to go about your online work without anything to worry about and access all the geo-blocked services without anything to worry about.
The Best VPN For the Philippines
Now, finding the best VPN for the Philippines to subscribe to can be a bit of a nightmare; especially if you’re doing this for the first time. This is why we’ve gone ahead to curate a list of reliable providers; that we’re sure you’ll have no problems dealing with:
1. NordVPN
- Double encryption for added security
- Automatic kill switch
- A variety of platform support
- Six simultaneous connections
- Zero log keeping policy of internet activities
- 3-Day free trial
2. ExpressVPN
- Unlimited Bandwidth with Ultra Speed
- Provides all VPN protocols OpenVPN (TCP, UDP), L2TP-IPsec, SSTP, and PPTP
- Dedicated VPN Apps for Android & iOS
- High-End Security with OpenVPN 256-bits
- Zero log keeping policy of internet activities
- 3 simultaneous connections
3. Surfshark
- AES 256-Bit Network Encryption
- Chrome Extension Available
- Kill-Switch functionality
- A variety of platform support
- Zero log keeping policy of internet activities
- Unlimited simultaneous connections
4. CyberGhost
- Uses AES 256 Encryption
- Supports OpenVPN, L2TP/IPsec, and PPTP
- DNS & IP Leak Protection
- Uses 2048 Key & MD5 Authentication
- Zero log keeping policy of internet activities
- Up to 7 Simultaneous Connections
5. Private Internet Access
- Offers all Protocols PPTP, OpenVPN and L2TP/IPSec including SOCKS5 Proxy
- IPv6 Leak Protection & DNS Leak Protection
- Kill-Switch functionality
- Encrypted Wi-Fi Protection
- Zero log keeping policy of internet activities
- 10 simultaneous connections
Conclusion
It is crucial that you get to experience the kind of service you expect to receive before committing to a paid subscription. This helps avoid subscribing for a service that you’ll find out doesn’t reach your expectations much later on. Try out the money-back guarantees and free trial periods offered by the provider you’re sampling before signing up.
