Protecting your ID online

The Online Safety Act has thrust VPNs into the spotlight, but what are the best ways to protect your identity online without relying on one?

- by CHRIS STOKEL-WALKER

Business is good for VPN providers - the companies that provide virtual private networks, encrypted tunnels through which internet data travels, that are used to spoof users’ locations.

Previously, VPNs were a niche interest. They're now used by those for whom the age verification checks on many websites imposed by the terms of the Online Safety Act are too much hassle. In the weeks after the act came into force on 25 July, VPNs shot to the top of UK app stores as people sought to protect their ID.

It’s understandable that users who feel they're being asked to hand over ever more personal information would look to VPNs. But they're far from the only way to stay safe when you're using the web.

Go incognito?

Users’ first port of call may be the ‘Incognito’ or ‘Private browsing’ mode they see as an option in their web browser. But beware the misleading terminology. “When it comes to private browsing, it’s not actually that private,” says Jake Moore, a cybersecurity expert at internet security firm ESET. “All it does is prevent your browser from saving your search history, cookies and autofill data on your device.”