Virtual private networks, or VPNs, were created to provide a secure tunnel in which user activity can be carried out in privacy. In this way, VPNs have been utilized by individual users, as well as to support business processes for several years, and their use is only growing. According to current statistics, nearly 25 percent of all users have leveraged a VPN for some type of online activity within the last month. This includes 17 percent who access a VPN through their desktop, 15 percent who use a mobile smartphone and 7 percent who connect with the private network through a tablet. Those that do utilize VPNs are also leveraging these networks more frequently than ever before – 35 percent of those that access a VPN through their desktop do so on a daily basis. While users hope and expect that VPNs will live up to their name and truly support a virtual and private connection, research shows that this is not always the case. How does a VPN work? As ZDNet contributor Stev...
