This blog is not about Alex Jones. Even though he is a prime example of what I’m talking about. There is a certain pocket of youtube who that love to push products–Virtual Shield, BetterHelp, Candid, Trade Genius Academy–more than content. They are salesmen masquerading as “culture warriors” or people who are “standing up to the SJWs.”

Have you ever been sitting there, watching youtube, and out of nowhere you hear this?

“But first let me tell you about your online privacy and security.”

Then it goes into a two minute tangent about how “you are unsafe without Virtual Shield, and how elite super hackers are coming for you. But you can save yourself for a dollar a week.”

Let me tell you—as someone who has worked in tech for over 10 years—this is a lie. This is the biggest lie you will ever hear.

The idea that out of six billion people the “elite hackers” would come for your PC is laughable. Whenever you hear about hacking or anything of that sort it’s always big companies. Never a single user. The only time things like this happen is when you click on one of those popups that say “Your PC is infected call this #.” A VPN won’t help you there.

In those type of scams, they get access to your PC to “fix the problem.” Which generally boils down to getting rid of the software they put on your PC. Then charging you $40 and more likely than not running off with your bank account. That’s not a hacker, that’s a scam artist.

Another common scam is you’ll get a call from “the IRS” and they will say “this is the IRS please give us 10 thousand dollars or the cops will arrest you.” This is also the biggest scam, and I think we have all gotten that call. Once again, don’t take the bait.

If the IRS wants you then they will send a letter. They never call, they always send a letter. If you don’t reply they will send another letter. Then another. Then another. Then they’ll put a lean on your property, which means pay us or you lose it. That’s how the IRS works. If you still don’t comply or don’t have enough assets then the police may get involved but it’s rare.

You also have the scam portals that will steal your credit card. You’ll accidentally type in a URL wrong. Then the scammer has a website that looks like what you typed in that you sign into and put your credit card # into. Then they steal the credit card # and drain your account. That’s another tactic they use to steal your info.

Another I’ve seen that is more deceptive than illegal is “FREE TRIAL” products. You will get this bottle of magical pills—like Garcinia Cambogia—and you’ll get a free month supply if you give us your credit card. You get the pills, then every month they send you more pills with no return address or info on who sent them.

Meanwhile, they are draining $80 a month from your account without your knowledge. You have no recourse except to dispute the charges and hope the bank/credit card company forgives the debt.

I could go on and on with a list of different scams, but I don’t have time to itemize every method scammers use. Do you see the common denominator? None of the scams can be stopped by using a VPN. They all require your input to willingly fall for their ruse.

So, will a VPN protect your online privacy? Yes and no. The internet was not created with the possibility of being fully anonymous. It was created by the military to transmit information between different locations. It was never intended to be used anonymously and it never will be.

Even sites like 4chan and 8chan are not safe. Those sites log your IP address and maybe even sell it to advertisers. I can’t confirm this but that’s how most “Free” sites make money. If the FBI were to ever raid “anonymous forums” then they’d get all the logs and see what you posted. Don’t believe me? Go open a board on 8ch.net and as the board owner, you’ll see the IP Addresses of those who post. Unless they changed it in the last 4 years.

The internet has become so advanced that places like Google have algorithms that can detect who you are by your typing patterns alone. A VPN won’t stop that. Not to mention for those who say using TOR is foolproof. Which it isn’t. That has been cracked by the FBI years ago.

The main way people get your information is through malware. Keyloggers, spyware, and other malicious software that spies on what you do. VPN’s don’t stop those.

But Jack… you said it could protect my privacy. What gives? It might protect you from the low-level script kiddies who just want to mess with you. If someone has enough time, resources, and money to find you they will. You can use TOR, multiple VPNs, Firewalls, Tails OS on a USB stick, etc it won’t matter. If someone wants to find you bad enough they will.

Will a VPN save you from your credit card info being stolen? No.

Will it save you from database leaks (ex. Yahoo hack, Ashley Madison hack, PSN hack)? No.

Will it block malware? No.

Will it protect me from being arrested for torrenting or using ThePirateBay? No.

A VPN will help you do the following things, however.

That’s it… that’s all it really does. It hides your IP Address from low level “hackers” and unblocks content that’s blocked in your country. If you live in the USA a VPN can be useful, but not required. It’s not a life saver. It’s not something that will protect you from everything. VPN’s are not a scam in and of themselves. The scam is when the people who are sponsored by them claim they do things that they flat out don’t do.

Back to the whole “If you don’t use this VPN you are ruined.” It’s a complete scam in and of itself to frame it that way. If someone is telling you that “Product X will stop Consequence Y” then they are a snake oil salesman.

Here’s a great video for reference…

The reason being is if the FBI, NSA, CIA, whoever alphabet soup government organization wants to find you they can just raid the VPN provider with ease. Those VPN services (like virtual shield) are required to follow federal laws in the USA. That means it’s completely useless to you.

Also the whole “It’ll block your webcam access so no one will be able to hack it. There are two options that are foolproof for that. Electrical tape, or unplugging it. But that won’t get you far.

Here’s a thing to consider. Everything you own has a microphone on it at this point. Your Amazon echo, cell phone, TV remotes, webcam, radios, anything with a mic has what’s called a “hot mic.” It can be listened to by the government or “hackers”. Your TV remote can’t use a VPN. Just saying.

In summation. Don’t believe the scare tactics from people trying to make a buck off of you. Especially not with Virtual Shield who is a domestic VPN with a shady history. If you MUST use a VPN then use something foreign. I won’t name any but do the legwork. Find someone that is not based in your home country.

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