Google is rolling out its Virtual Private Network (VPN) service for subscribers to its Fi network, which should help people when using online services on public Wi-Fi.
VPNs are useful as long as you trust the service provider to route your traffic securely through their servers. The key question is whether you, as the owner of a device, trust the service provider.
A VPN gives you a private tunnel over the open internet and ensures that packets are encrypted so that they cannot be decrypted if intercepted by a government agency or hacker.
VPNs aren’t foolproof, but they work well enough in many situations, such as at the airport when you need to access your online bank account or Gmail. Normally a decent VPN costs money, but Google is throwing it in with its Fi broadband service to provide a shield against attackers and marketers who use a device’s IP address to track a location.
Google has made performance improvements to its Fi VPN and pulled it out of beta for Android phone users.
“This means you can take advantage of the VPN while getting a faster, stronger connection between your apps and services,” notes Google.
It is also coming to the iPhone and provides coverage for all Google’s Fi users. “We plan to roll out the VPN to the iPhone starting this spring,” Google notes. Google is also bringing its privacy and security hub to Android devices, providing users with a shortcut to features available to Android users, such as the VPN.
Finally, Fi users can expect free spam call alerts and blocking to stop identified robocalls and scams and the company is stepping up its game to protect users from sim swapping scams.
“Your Fi number is linked to your Google account and comes with security features that protect your phone number from threats such as SIM cards. That’s when bad actors try to get someone’s phone number and assign it to another SIM without their permission”, according to Google. .
“On Fi, you receive additional layers of protection as standard, including a robust account recovery process and suspicious activity alerts. You can also enable 2-Step Verification for more protection.”