A kill switch is a security feature that protects your privacy. It ensures that you don’t connect to the internet thinking you’re protected by a VPN when you aren’t.  When you use a virtual private network (VPN), your device connects to VPN server run by a VPN service such as Proton VPN. The connection between […]

A guest network is a separate WiFi network within your home or office network designed specifically for your guests or customers to use.  Although run from the same router (which may also be your modem), a guest network operates as an entirely separate WiFi network, providing guests with internet access without giving them access to […]

Before WiFi, you had to connect your internet-capable device to a router via an Ethernet cable. The router then connected to a modem, which connected your device to the internet. Routers and modems are so often housed in the same device, that the term “router” usually refers to a combined router and modem.  These cables […]

Tor Browser is a privacy-focused browser that lets you navigate the internet without anyone monitoring your activity or identifying you. It relies on the Tor anonymity network to route your internet traffic through multiple random servers before connecting to your desired website or service. You can download Tor Browser here. This article explains more about […]

Every device that connects to a network does so through a network interface controller (NIC). Devices that can connect to multiple networks will have a separate NIC for each connection they support. For example, a laptop that supports WiFi, Ethernet (wired), and Bluetooth connections would have three NICs (each with its own MAC address).    Every […]

Hackers are always looking for ways to break through the security systems that defend your devices and data from criminals. From web browsers to operating systems to chat apps, any piece of software is a potential target. It’s a constant game of cat and mouse, with developers releasing patches whenever security researchers discover a new […]

The Invisible Internet Project (I2P) is an open-source, decentralized anonymizing network built on similar principles to Tor. Unlike Tor, which was primarily designed to allow anonymous browsing of the regular internet (but can also be used as a dark web), I2P is primarily designed to browse the dark web (but can also be used to […]

An almost daily drumbeat of data breaches and online privacy violations has fueled public interest in VPN services such as Proton VPN. This article explains what VPNs are, what they do, and whether you need one. Its sister article, How does a VPN work?, provides a more detailed and technical overview of how a VPN […]

Internet cookies, often called website cookies, computer cookies, or just cookies, are small text files that websites store on your computer or device when you visit them. These files contain data that websites use to remember and track information about your browsing activity. In this article, we look at what cookies are and how they […]