VPN usage is becoming more and more commonplace in the lives of consumers across the planet for many different reasons. You may have heard the term VPN (Virtual Private Network) used in discussions relating to internet security and data protection, or perhaps in relation to gaining access to different countries digital media services.
Depending on where You are in the world, these examples of VPN usage may be discussed in varied frequency, as it turns out, this is due to an equally varied list of reasons which have driven different countries to adopt the use of VPNs to suit their needs.
Let’s take a look at a small selection of the countries ranking highest in VPN usage, and their reasons for the populations increased use of Virtual Private Networks in day-to-day life.
Indonesia
A recently published infographic from Best VPN stated that approximately 38% of all internet users in Indonesia, equating to nearly 103 million people, use a VPN as part of their normal internet activity. The use of VPNs in this instance were attempts to overcome increasing governmental restrictions to the public use of the internet as a whole, as well as their access to information from outside of Indonesia.
India
Indian internet censorship and the degree of control exercised by the government is not as overbearing as a number of other countries in the region. Local internet censorship laws still take control over a range of content provided by websites and services such as Netflix, and the BBC. This has marked India’s primary use of VPNs to be one to access streaming media which the population normally has no opportunity to receive.
United Kingdom and the USA
In contrast to many of the eastern countries, The United Kingdom and USA are becoming much more concerned with the issue of government snooping and the protection of their personal data. In the wake of Facebook’s data mismanagement scandal, British and American internet users are adopting the use of VPNs to better control their data, and prevent unwanted information gathering from sources both domestic and international.
That is not to say there aren’t a fair percentage of these countries citizens using a Virtual Private Network for gaining access to media. In the early days of conversation relating to VPNs, one primary topic which appeared over and over, was the UK’s negative reaction to learning there was such a huge difference between content hosted on Netflix between the two countries. A problem which could be easily side-stepped by using a VPN.
While every country in the world will have different reasons for it’s citizens utilising a Virtual Private Network, it must be stated that the sheer number of people actively seeking out services provided by companies like NordVPN, Hola, and Tor, is indicative of a large-scale change in the way we may need to look at the internet in its entirety. Whether that is by way of the increasingly negative opinion of media distribution and broadcasting laws, or the safeguarding of data.
