The online atmosphere is evolving fast. People are quickly losing their strength to protect themselves from opportunistic hackers. It is smart to test out a VPN before you begin relying on it. This will go a long way in ensuring your online security. However, not all VPN service are same. An inadequate setup VPN connection can leave your online privacy exposed. Consequently, it is essential to test your VPN connection, mainly if you are using a particular VPN service for the first time. How can one test a VPN connection?(also read, Most Secure VPN Services in 2018)
How to Test a VPN Connection
Verifying Data Encryption By VPN
It might sound shocking, but many VPN services do not encrypt your internet data before conveying it. A new multi-institutional report unveiled that over 18 percent of Android VPNs do not perform data encryption. Several noteworthy institutions compiled the report. Among them was the University of California, Berkley, and CSIRO from Australia. This report has apparently inflated concerns, and people are now being notified to verify data encryption. While there are various ways to do this, one of the easiest is Glasswire.
What’s Glasswire And How to Use It?
Glasswire app is available on almost all the platforms. It is free and exhibits the encryption status of all the apps being run on your OS. If your apps are sending HTTPS/SSL data, then you can rest easy. However, if they are only transmitting HTTP data, then the VPN is not doing its job.
While it is plausible that HTTPS data may not be encrypted, it mostly is. You can check individual data packets if you want, but that is not required.
How to Use Glasswire to Check VPN Encryption
- Download, Install and Run Glasswire.
- Launch your VPN.
- Do some online activity including data download.
- Check the usage tab on Glasswire.
- Check the Apps section.
- Find your VPN posted there.
- Check its encryption status.
All the data traffic coming to your device should be routed through the VPN using SSL/HTTPS. Nonetheless, a tiny part of internet data might not be. This is called a VPN handshake, and the size will remain the same throughout.
Similar to Glasswire, Wireshark is another tool to test a VPN connection. In actuality, it is more realistic than Glasswire as it checks individual data packets coming or going from your device. Therefore, you will be able to see whether the internet data is encrypted or not.
To do this, you must follow the same procedure as for Glasswire. Make sure to download the right variant according to your Windows 32-bit or 64-bit.
How to Spot IP Leak in VPN?
VPNs also provide an essential purpose of masking your IP address in addition to encrypting your internet data. This allows using public addresses as appended by VPN servers. However, you might be constrained to many VPN privacy leaks. These will result in your actual IP address being exposed along with your browsing history. The most common types of leaks are:
IPV6 Leaks
This happens when your VPN does not support IPv6 addresses and must route the data without encryption. Thus, your actual location will be exposed via the IP address in use. There are two ways of fixing this issue:
- Choose an IPv6 Supported VPN.
- Alternatively, you can deselect IPv6 routing through your current VPN service.
DNS Leaks
Domain Name Systems are employed by the devices to transmit requests for translations into numerical IP. You can suppose it acts like a telephonic directory. However, your ISP might try to intercept your DNS request and reroute them to their channels before transferring it to you.
Typically, this will show your browsing activities to them. However, a VPN can prevent this. Nonetheless, if not configured accurately, your VPN can enable this to happen. The best way to evade it is to take up a VPN which offers DNS leak protection.
WEBRTC/STUN Leaks
Web Real-Time Communication or WebRTC can be a suitable protocol. It allows browsers to give services such as P2P file sharing, video chat, and voice calls. However, the issue is that by doing any of these; you also unveil your actual IP address. This is inconsiderate of your VPN or proxy server use.
The soundest way to test your VPN would be to go to ipleak.net. However, if you want to get rid of the difficulty altogether, merely turn WebRTC off.
Keep in mind that it might lead to failure in the loading of some web pages. Specific services may also get hit. If you are going to order takeout, for instance, you will need to reactivate WebRTC first.
How Do I Solve All these Difficulties?
The best method to use your VPN is to configure it on your home router. There are some significant advantages to this. For beginners, every device you connect to your router gets the equal protection. This covers all IoT devices as well as any other device you mind to connect to the router.(also check, Can You Trust Your VPN Provider?)
Is It Important to Test a VPN Connection?
Seldom, VPN connections can show being active when they are not. This can be caused by a code fallacy, incorrect software, or just plain fraud. To check your VPN connectivity, just check the status of your IPv4 address. If it matches the location of your VPN server, it is working. You can check the IP address of the VPN server you are currently connected to by visiting WhatIsMyIP.network.
Should I Test a VPN Connection?
It is always discreet to check your VPN connection status. This is particularly true when using a new VPN or a recent update.
How to Do It?
- Turn your VPN off.
- Visit WhatIsMyIP.network.
- Find out your present IP address.
- Turn Your VPN On.
- Reload the site.
- Confirm your IP address and its associated location is different.
Ideally, your IP address and location should immediately change once you activate your VPN. If this does not occur, you are not being protected and should contact customer care directly.
Conclusion -How to Test a VPN Connection
When firing up a VP; check that everything we have stated here is correctly executed. In case your leak tests frequently come back positive, ask for compensation and change your VPN. Such leaks are bad for your privacy and defeat the purpose of using a VPN. While using a VPN is smart, knowing how useful it is in protecting you is also very important.
