In August, a parliamentary committee in the country recommended that the home ministry should ban all use of virtual private networks (VPNs) in the country. However, doing so can be a very bad idea. Mint takes a look at the possible results:
What is Virtual Private Network?
A Virtual Private Network, or VPN, is a way to hide your identity on the Internet. All devices connecting to the Internet are assigned an Internet Protocol (IP) address. It allows law enforcement agencies, service providers, etc. to identify the device and its location, thereby identifying the user. VPN services establish a secure connection between a user and a server or service by routing data through a remote server, or server, and therefore concealing the user’s identity. If these servers are placed in other countries, it could allow users to bypass government-enforced blocking rules.
What is the rationale behind the ban?
A parliamentary committee had recommended the ban, citing a “technical challenge” posed by VPNs. It said the dark web and VPNs can bypass “cyber security walls” and “allow criminals to remain anonymous online. It also noted that VPNs can be easily downloaded. And such features Therefore, the Committee recommended that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) with the help of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) of the Ministry of Home Affairs to block such VPNs “identically and permanently”. ) coordinate with .
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Are VPNs the Same as the Dark Web?
No, VPNs are commonly used to access blocked websites on the open internet. On the other hand, the dark web is not a part of the internet that we access regularly. Accessing the dark web requires something like TOR, which is short for The Onion Router, which is an anonymous network with websites running on its own network. TOR sites use the .onion extension.
Do VPNs Really Make Tracking Impossible?
No, essentially, the VPN service provider is a centralized entity that can still track what its users are doing. Many service providers encrypt traffic to provide more privacy to users, but there are ample examples of law enforcement officers around the world tracking criminals despite using VPNs for their dirty work. In fact, TOR is broken too. In 2013, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) shut down the Silk Road, a dark web marketplace that sold everything from drugs to humans, and made arrests.
Why is banning VPNs a bad idea?
Aside from the consumer use cases of VPNs, these tools have huge implications for businesses. Almost any business that requires employees to access sensitive information, or even software that requires it to be within a company’s network, uses a VPN. Corporates use VPNs to create an internal network that can be accessed by their employees even when they are not within the office premises, which is a very important use under current work-from-home conditions. is the case.
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