5 Best VPNs for Routers in 2024

Abeerah Hashim  - Security Expert
Last updated: January 8, 2024
Read time: 21 minutes
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Having your home router configured to connect directly to your VPN service is one of the best and most powerful ways to harness the power of your VPN service and make it extensive to every internet device at home. This article tells you all about that.

THE TAKEAWAYS

Amidst the technological advancements, almost every gadget is now a “Smart” system technology, requiring an uninterrupted internet connection. Consequently, VPN security is inevitable for every device that somehow depends on the internet. However, not every smart gadget you own is compatible with the VPN apps. Also, most VPNs only allow limited simultaneous connections, making it difficult to secure all of the online traffic simultaneously. Nonetheless, you can follow a simple workaround – install the VPN on your router. Luckily, the best VPN vendors offer dedicated apps that are easy to install and configure on the router.

Hearing of VPN services makes most users think about protecting individual devices (phones, tablets, computers). However, some VPNs support configuring a router so that all its traffic goes through the VPN’s tunnel, protecting the whole local network.

But do I need it? We hear you ask.

Well, gone are the days when no more than a couple of objects in a household would be online – one or two computers, typically. Now, times have changed. This is the era of smart devices and the Internet of Things (IoT). Hence, we need internet connections for TVs, gaming consoles, streaming devices, alarm systems, doorbells, phones, and tablets, not to mention Siri and Alexa. So, more and more gadgets are online, sending and receiving packets over the internet.

The increased interaction with the internet raises privacy and security concerns. Could somebody be intercepting the data streams from your devices? Are they collecting intelligence on you? Who are they, hackers, your employer, your ISP, or a government agency? Or all of them, maybe?

We now broadcast more data to the internet that we can track or know. Unfortunately, that means we constantly allow somebody else to abuse it. However, there’s no need to think about a 1984 scenario. If Big Brother is out there, you needn’t worry too much as long as your traffic goes through a Virtual Private Network (VPN). A VPN secures all your traffic and solves almost every digital security issue.