Maintaining privacy and preventing information from being leaked when surfing the net is essential. For this we can take into account different aspects, such as entering encrypted websites or using VPN when we browse public and unprotected Wi-Fi networks. But is it always necessary both cases? In this article we are going to talk about the combination of VPN and HTTPS and if it really is essential.
Should I use VPN if I browse HTTPS sites?
First of all, we must mention the differences between HTTP and HTTPS . Surely when browsing the Internet you have seen that there are pages that have a URL starting with HTTP and others that have an “S” appended. The latter case means that it is an encrypted site and our data will not be easily exposed if, for example, we surf a public Wi-Fi.
One of the missions of VPNs is precisely to encrypt the connection and prevent that data from being leaked. So is it really necessary to use a VPN if we browse secure and encrypted pages? The truth is that they are not two incompatible things.
For one thing, HTTPS means that that particular site is encrypted. That is, the URL that we are putting in the browser, as it could be RedesZone.net. But of course, what if that website is linking to any other HTTP page and we enter it? There we would lose that protection.
A VPN is always going to provide greater protection. It will encrypt all the HTTP websites that we enter, as well as any other service or program and not just the browser. Ultimately the entire connection will go through this software.
Advantages of combining VPN and HTTPS
Therefore, we can say that the use of VPN and HTTPS is perfectly compatible and that it is even something that we should do. We are going to see what are the main advantages of also using VPN, beyond trusting only the encrypted sites that we visit.
- Protect all connections : the first thing to keep in mind is that a VPN will not only protect that web page that we are visiting, but all connections. For example, if we open a program to make a voice call or any application that connects to the Internet.
- Prevent us from going to unprotected sites : it will also prevent us from going to unprotected HTTP sites. It is what we mentioned before, basically: a secure website, HTTPS, can contain links to third-party pages that are not really encrypted.
- Hide certain data : Another very important point is that a VPN hides data that an HTTPS site does not. For example we are going to hide the real IP address, something that is very important in certain circumstances.
- We can avoid blocks : in addition, by using a VPN we will be able to precisely access HTTPS sites that may be geographically blocked. We can connect through servers that are in another country and thus avoid those blocks.
Therefore, the combination of VPN and HTTPS is not only possible, but it makes sense and is advisable on many occasions. In both cases we are going to improve privacy when browsing encrypted, but in the case of the VPN it will be broader and cover the entire connection and not just a specific site.
