Very Perturbing News

    
     Here's something you might have missed in the avalanche of terrible news that has been assaulting us lately: the United States Senate just decided to keep allowing the government to spy on your internet use without a warrant. Did you not know the government could/would do that? Surprise!
     So the FBI/CIA/NSA might be spying on you...but your internet service provider is almost certainly spying on you. A few years back, ISPs were told they no longer had to ask permission before selling what they know about your internet history to third parties. Just stop for a moment and think of how much data your cable/internet company might have on you. Then take another moment to consider how much you trust your cable/internet company not to sell out your privacy for big bucks.
    Then go get a VPN.

image from Pixabay

     That's VPN as in Virtual Private Network. A VPN takes your internet traffic, routes it through a distant computer, and encrypts it. This means that 1) nobody knows where you are, and 2) anyone who intercepts your data will be unable to read it -- including your ISP.
     Now, using a VPN doesn't absolutely guarantee your privacy. For one thing, the VPN company will be able to see all your data, so you need to find one worthy of trust. But VPNs are effective enough that oppressive regimes like China have banned them, and online privacy advocates tend to consider them essential.
     VPNs vary in price, quality, and kinds of service offered, so by all means shop around. (Many of them will protect several of your devices for a single fee.) The pandemic has forced even more of our lives into the online realm, so it's wise to make sure we can navigate it without letting strangers harvest our data for their own purposes.