This is just a marketing whitewash. We’ll save you the trouble of trying to figure out why your Google Pixel (or any phone if you subscribe to Google’s cellular provider, Google Fi) now connects to a completely new-looking VPN. There are no meaningful changes. Google just likes renaming things. It’s their version of fidgeting.
why now?
There’s no need (or even ability) to tweak things on your end. The “update,” if you can call it that, takes place automatically with the simple swapping out of one name for another. You don’t lose any protections or features with the switch to VPN by Google, either.
As reported by 9to5Google, “The company tells us that this is simply a name change to make branding more consistent with no technical or functional changes for most Android and iOS users.”
As I define VPNs in my Guide to the Best VPNs, “VPN stands for virtual private network. Acting as a middleman, it routes all the information exchange between you and other websites’ servers on the internet, in both directions, through a server owned by the VPN service.
“Should a website or a bad actor try to follow you across the web, they won’t see your unique, identifiable IP address, only that of the VPN server you’re connected to. Since these are shared servers—any decent VPN will have thousands of servers to choose from—you disappear into the crowd if a data thief or snoop tries to eavesdrop on your digital trail.”
Google’s fine print regarding its VPN service hasn’t changed all that much, either. It reads, “Restrictions apply. Some data is not transmitted through VPN by Google. Use of VPN by Google may increase data costs depending on your plan. Not available in all countries.”
Google doesn’t specify which types of data isn’t transmitted, and it doesn’t elaborate on the vague reference to its VPN not being available in all countries. Some countries outlaw VPNs in the hands of private individuals, so that’s almost certainly what Google is referencing.
That restriction wouldn’t be specific to VPN by Google; it’d apply to all VPNs. Here’s a list of all the countries where using a VPN is illegal, courtesy of NordVPN, one of the finest VPNs on the market.
If you’re interested in protecting devices that aren’t on Google Fi or otherwise covered by VPN by Google (such as the Google Pixel smartphones), check out our Guide to the Best VPNs. It’s got tons of good picks and suggestions, even a killer free one that I’ve liked to use in the past.
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