Can You Watch Porn Without a VPN? Our Thoughts on Safety and Privacy

Sex is still a taboo topic in many societies. Hence, sex-related acts, such as viewing porn/adult content, are often always frowned upon. Regardless of this, thousands of people all over the world watch porn. So, if you watch porn, you are not in the minority. However, for whatever reason, you may still want to keep safe. Furthermore, there may be peculiar security challenges that come with visiting porn sites. 

One of the best ways people employ to stay safe online is by using a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This article brings you our thoughts on whether you can watch porn without a VPN and the merits of doing so. 

Should You Watch Porn Without a VPN?

Generally, it is unwise to use the internet without some sort of protection. More specifically, when engaging in borderline taboo acts, such as watching porn, there is even a greater imperative to keep your affairs private. Here are the top reasons why visiting porn sites without a VPN is ill-advised. 

Third-party Access

When you visit a porn site, there are categories of persons who can get to know this. Due to the nature of the internet, they have access to your data as you carry out activities online. This might be problematic if you are really conservative and do not want your private activities being spied on. Some people who can access your online activities include your Internet Service Provider (ISP), network administrators on shared networks, amongst others. 

ISPs are aware of users’ activities because your traffic has to pass through their servers so if you visit any porn site or access adult content at all, best believe that your ISP is aware of it. 

Also, network administrators on shared networks can view your data. Generally, on shared networks such as public WiFis, everyone can access each other’s data. Particularly, network administrators can tell what sites users visit, etc. Situations like these include work environments, school WiFis, etc. 

Other interested parties could be interested in and be able to access your data also. For instance, advertising companies go through different lengths to access users’ data. Thus, they could place tracking cookies as you visit some sites. Additionally, hackers and other malicious entities may want to keep track of you. Thus, they track all your activities online, including the porn sites you visit.

Data Breaches

Porn sites are not failsafe. That is to say that they aren’t immune to breaches. In fact, there have been a couple of situations in the past where the data of users got leaked. This can be particularly embarrassing and upsetting. Porn sites keep a database of users who visit their sites. In any situation where a hacker accesses this and releases it, you could be in trouble. 

Malware Infestation

The last thing you want is to have your device infected with malware while visiting porn sites. However, that could happen. This may not be the fault of the site owners.  They wouldn’t deliberately infect the devices of users with malware as that would be counterproductive. Thus, malware you find on such platforms usually comes from third parties. These include advertising firms that put up adverts on porn sites. 

As you must have noticed, some companies advertise their products on porn sites. Ostensibly, this is to take advantage of the huge traffic on such platforms. However, these adverts and pop ups could house malware. Hence, when you click on an innocuous-looking link, you could be introducing malware to your device. The effects could range from hijacking your device and demanding a ransom, releasing your details to the public, or even stealing your data. These sorts of malware are prolific, easily duplicable, and thoroughly capable of unleashing mayhem on your device. 

Legal Challenges

You could also encounter legal challenges when visiting porn sites. For instance, pornography is banned in some jurisdictions, especially ones with conservative systems. Thus, if you visit these sites in such locations, you might get into trouble. Depending on how strict the authorities are, you could either get fined or even imprisoned. 

Furthermore, there may still be legal challenges in locations where it is legal to watch porn. For instance, you will fall into trouble if you store illegal files on your computer while visiting porn sites. Not too long ago, some criminals sent child porn to unsuspecting individuals’ mobile devices when they clicked on a link. When the authorities got alerted, they arrested such porn site users, even though they had not intentionally downloaded child pornography. Even though the chances of that happening is very slim, it is still good advice to stay safe. 

Why You Need a VPN to Access Porn Sites

Given all that we’ve discussed above, you must now see why you need to be protected while accessing porn sites. There are several ways to do that, but the most assured of them all is using a VPN. Find below the benefits of using a VPN.

Security

Enhancing users’ security is the primary job of a VPN. Hence, you can rest assured that (premium) VPN providers do this job well. A VPN serves as an intermediary between you and the site you want to access. It intercepts your traffic and routes it through its servers before it gets to the target porn site. Doing so encrypts your network. The result then is that no third party —including malicious hackers, your ISP, public network administrators, etc., —will be able to access your traffic. In effect, no one will know you are watching porn. 

Furthermore, VPNs come equipped with unique features. These include obfuscated servers which are useful for reasons with high surveillance, a kill switch that takes you off the internet once your connection is shaky, and a host of VPN protocols that cinch up your security. So if security and privacy are your concern while accessing these sites, a VPN offers the best solution. 

Bypassing Restrictions

If you are in a region where porn sites are banned, you could use a VPN to get around this challenge. While doing so, you will still be safe. VPN providers typically have servers in different global locations. Connecting to any of these servers allows you to access content meant for that location. 

For instance, if porn sites are blocked in your location, you can connect to a VPN server in a compatible region. This opens up the porn sites available in that region, and you can access them uninhibited. The great thing here is that your network will be encrypted. Thus, even if the authorities were to intercept your data, they’ll be unable to decrypt it and expose you. 

Beat Bandwidth Throttling

ISPs sometimes throttle users’ traffic, especially when they engage in high-data activities like streaming. So, if you are in the habit of streaming porn videos online, you could find yourself an unwitting victim. How does a VPN help? A VPN encrypts your traffic. This means that no one will be able to see what you are doing while online. Thus, your ISP will not know that you are streaming content online and will thus have no reason to throttle your traffic. 

Drawbacks to Using a VPN To Access Porn Sites

Are there disadvantages to using a VPN to access porn sites? In all fairness, the answer is yes. However, these downsides are mostly negligible. The disadvantages are even made more minute when you consider them against the benefits of a VPN and the security risks you take without one. In any case, here are the cons:

Reduced Speed

One major drawback to using a VPN for browsing/accessing online sites is reduced speed. This is mostly due to the time it takes to route your traffic through the VPN servers. However, premium VPN providers make sure the speed difference is not much. Thus, you’ll hardly notice the difference between your regular traffic and the VPN’s. 

Cost

Most VPN providers offer subscription-based services. Basically, you have to pay to use the VPN. Free VPN services exist, but they are hardly dependable. Still, you can often find a good VPN here and there, and we’ve made a list of the top free VPNs. For excellent service, you’ll need a paid VPN. Some people do not like this. In any case, it’ll interest you to know that most VPNs offer varying subscription options, catering to people from different demographics. 

Best VPNs To Consider

At this point, you should be reasonably convinced that using a VPN is the best thing you could do for your security while you watch porn online. However, there are a lot of VPN providers out there, and they all have different capabilities. Here are two of our most trusted ones:

Conclusion

You can choose to watch porn online without the protection of a VPN. However, that is not advisable. You open yourself to privacy and security risks that may cost you quite a bit. This article has shown you the benefits you get with using a VPN while accessing porn online and the best vpn providers for the job.

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