Today, our daily routines have moved into the digital landscape, from reading the news to chatting with friends. As two of the most popular and globally influential social platforms, Facebook and Instagram are no longer just communication mediums to stay in touch with our family and friends. Instead, they have become key gateways to all kinds of our everyday needs, such as online shopping, business communication, vlogging, as well as online activism, and mass social movements.

But unfortunately, every time you log into your social media profiles, you have to remember that someone is collecting and reading your data. In 2022, it is more important than ever to secure your location and identity against cyber threats to make sure that you can use Facebook and Instagram efficiently without worrying about any consequences.

This article will explore a few reasons why you need a VPN while logging in to Facebook and Instagram.

Common Privacy Concerns

Who doesn’t know the power and influence of the booming social media industry? However, with the proliferation of Facebook and Instagram, there are growing concerns about the lack of privacy of online users. The biggest privacy issues associated with social media include:

Third-party Data Access

Have you ever felt like someone was looking at you in the crowd? Every time you look around, you immediately catch someone looking around. Of course, this could be a coincidence. And they may think you are looking at them based on how often you are looking to see if they are looking at you. But when coincidences happen too often, you have the right to doubt. This happens regularly on apps like Instagram and its parent company Facebook, so you may not notice it anymore.

The majority of social media users are clueless about the amount of information these sites actually collect. Facebook is also the most invasive site in the industry as the most famous social media site in the world. This was one of the first companies to use facial recognition.

Not only that, Facebook is known for collecting a long list of data about users, such as location history, device information, personally identifiable information, and user interests. Instagram has almost 1 billion monthly active users and is one of the most popular and fastest-growing social networks globally. And as part of the parent company Facebook, Instagram collects a lot of data about users, such as selling user data to third-party websites and advertising companies. This includes advertisers, researchers, vendors, law enforcement agencies, and more. By default, this information does not personally identify you. However, users can give Instagram permission to share personal information with third parties.

Social Profiling

Perhaps the most concerning privacy issue when sharing information with social media sites, social profiling assesses the value of users by measuring their impact and interaction on the site.

The fact that you share too much on Facebook and Instagram can be used by potential employers, business partners, or anyone who builds relationships with you to create social profiles. Sometimes you can take advantage of social media, but it can be annoying for your employer to put your resume at the bottom of the mountain just because you didn’t like what you saw on social media. Some may argue that they are probably participating in the “social” part by participating in these sites. However, it is desirable to maintain control and know who can access it. For example, when I meet someone, I don’t know personally.

This person reports your social media activities to your boss, looks for ways to blackmail, or collects information that adds to the missing parts of the personal information fraud plan that targets you. There may be. This is a dangerous method as it creates a one-dimensional profile for the user. It also means that those who do not have a well-developed social presence are of low value in terms of social standards as contributing members.

Hacking, Cyberstalking, Impersonation

Social networks like Facebook and Instagram are easy targets for online criminals. Hackers and cybercriminals can put your social media account at risk, and anyone with access to your email account can break into the social media accounts registered with it. If it is someone you know who answers the security questions you have selected correctly, this may also provide access to your account. Some people may steal your information and do this to harm you, and other spammers usually hack your account and spread malware and viruses through your personal account.

Cyberstalking primarily means online stalking, but this form of harassment often has a spillover effect on real life. Because online users have easy access to information, cyberstalks can often pinpoint the exact location of social media activities and information shared online.

Cyberstalking and impersonation, also known as identity theft, are two of the most severe consequences of over-sharing details on these social media sites. Impersonation, also known as identity theft in social networks, refers to accounts that use the name, image, or other identifying information of a person, company, or organization for fraudulent purposes. Generally, it is the action when one person impersonates another on social networking platforms. Impersonation on social networks is different from other legitimate uses of brands or people, such as fan accounts, parodies or reviews, and news sites.

So, how does a Premium VPN Service Helps?

While it’s true that Google and Amazon record what you say and track website visits, and Facebook is notorious for serving ads relevant to what we search and do online, that does not necessarily have to be so. VPNs provide the security, privacy, and anonymity we all need online.

Anonymity and Protecting Identity Online

In the online context, privacy does not exist. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram continuously collect, analyze, and even monetize your personally identifiable data. They like to learn everything about you – who you are, where you live, what you like, what you do – to provide you with more targeted content. The introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has made people aware of the disclosure of their sensitive data.

GDPR goes beyond data security and privacy. It also provides many opportunities for online users to control, monitor, and even delete their personal data using anonymity, pseudonyms, and encryption.

And that’s precisely where VPNs come in. With it, you hide your location from advertisers and prevent them from delivering content based on your location. Then, all you need to do is connect to a server in any country or region provided by your VPN provider.

An IP address is like an online zip code that tells people who you are and where you are. It allows people to associate your online behavior with you. VPN hides your IP address and location, which means you are completely anonymous.

When using a VPN, internet traffic is redirected through an external server, and online activity can only be traced back to the VPN server’s IP address but not to the IP address and user. With VPN, websites, marketers, streaming services, governments, and cybercriminals only know the IP address of the VPN server they are connected to, so they cannot identify you by IP address. You also can’t find the actual location because it looks like someone else has a VPN server in place.

Protection against Geo-Restrictions and Unexpected Surveillance

Our world is rapidly changing. Inconveniences and social flaws that we ignored for years are now becoming cancerous and threatening our very existence on the planet.

If you use Facebook or Instagram, you know how important it is to stay connected with family, friends, news, and information. However, when countries or organizations block these channels, it can disrupt your life. Facebook is also alleged to have responded to requests from some governments to block specific content, such as political opinions and financial information.

Especially if you are a public activist, such as through social media activities, conference talks, or visible involvement with civil society organizations, you can openly demand reforms, promote human rights, or have potential. Damage or found violation.

Expressing concern about your government’s policies and actions will never make you admire the authorities. This is most problematic in countries where cyber-surveillance records are questionable. If you live in a place where your rights are routinely ignored, you have to be extra careful. However, this is not limited to countries with authoritarian regimes.

Being denied access to all this information is a severe violation of your rights, but using a VPN to trick Facebook into thinking you’re accessing it from another country gives you a better chance of seeing the information. Aside from being blocked, there are other reasons to use a VPN to log in to Facebook and Instagram. You will feel more secure, understanding that your connection is encrypted, giving you the highest security level. Even in countries where Facebook is allowed, many colleges, schools, and workplaces limit it on their Wi-Fi networks to reduce distractions or bandwidth usage. So how can you access Facebook for free as you want? Luckily, there is a quick and easy way to bypass these Facebook blocks. First, you have to install a VPN; it will hide your physical location, encrypt your data, and transmit it through an external server. Using a VPN keeps your browsing activity hidden from anyone trying to see it, so you can easily access Facebook and anything else that’s been restricted.

Final Words

At first, it may seem absurd to use a VPN to connect to Facebook and Instagram. Because, after all, these are social networking platforms with their own internal privacy settings; unless you live in a country where Facebook is blocked by the government (i.e., North Korea), you don’t really need a VPN to ‘unlock’ these two worldwide popular platforms.

However, as we explained in this article, logging into Facebook and Instagram without a VPN would turn you into an easy target against a number of online threats and security exploits such as social profiling, identity theft, cyberstalking, impersonation, and so on. Furthermore, it is not uncommon for your ISP to sell your personal data to third-party surveillance and advertising agencies, and Facebook itself has been alleged to violate the privacy of its users.

If you log in to Facebook and Instagram with a VPN, your data will be encrypted on its way to and from the social media servers. It will also hide your IP address from your ISP and Facebook/Instagram authorities, making your location very difficult to track. Therefore, it is never a bad idea to log in to Facebook and Instagram with a fast and secure VPN, as it will enhance your browsing experience while safeguarding you from all the online threats that are intensifying every year.