Your ISP can also see what you’re doing unless you’re using a trustworthy VPN<\/a> to help you hide it.<\/p>\n Here’s everything you need to know about what could potentially be tracked without your knowledge.<\/p>\n Privacy is always an issue on the internet<\/p>\n There are too many half-solutions and compromises<\/p>\n Unfortunately, the biggest downside of free internet (this goes for public and personal networks) is the loss of privacy.<\/p>\n Without considering services that operate on protecting a user’s privacy, you’re trading your privacy<\/a> to access and use these services for free.<\/p>\n We already know that Google is notorious for this<\/a>. Every time we use a Google service, our data is collected. Google uses this data to improve its services, provide new ones, and personalize its content (including ad targeting).<\/p>\n Google is far from the only one to do this. Most websites will do the same thing.<\/p>\n We can opt out of some of this by rejecting website cookies (though sometimes this can prevent a website from working correctly) and using privacy-focused browsers<\/a>, extensions, and settings to reduce tracking.<\/p>\n Private browsing modes, like Incognito mode, can prevent your browsing data from being saved locally. However, they don’t hide your activity from ISPs and websites<\/a>.<\/p>\n Still, these practices have limitations. Heavy-duty, privacy-focused browsers can slow your browsing, making the experience feel somewhat clunky (Tor is a famous example<\/a>).<\/p>\n Many websites require you to sign in to an account, which can also remove the protections created by the web browser.<\/p>\n Even if you opt out of cookies, websites can still build a profile of you through other means<\/a>.<\/p>\n Websites can also identify you using JavaScript scripts to collect information about your browser and device (this is called browser fingerprinting<\/a>). This data includes browser version and operating system, screen resolution, installed fonts, and plugins.<\/p>\n Browser fingerprinting harms online privacy<\/a>. However, there are some legitimate use cases where it can be beneficial, such as identifying and blocking fraudulent activity and preventing identity theft.<\/p>\n Overall, while the internet may be easy to access and peruse, you are still trading valuable and personal data.<\/p>\n Your ISP can see your online activity<\/p>\n Even trusted paid services are still keeping tabs on you<\/p>\n Your ISP keeps tabs on your online activity through your IP address. This includes domains you visit (not the content within, since most websites use HTTPS<\/a>, which protects your data), connection requests, metadata (like how long you’re on a domain and data packet size), and the amount of data you use.<\/p>\n While specific search terms and website page contents are hidden, the ISP can still gather enough data to associate it with your IP address.<\/p>\n This was a bigger deal before when ISPs could legally restrict your speeds or bandwidth (now it is considered more illegal thanks to enforced net neutrality<\/a>).<\/p>\n Now, the only way ISP throttling<\/a> can happen is if your contract includes a data cap, the provider uses it to enforce the limit, or if the ISP needs to throttle speeds or bandwidth because the network is overloaded.<\/p>\n One of the easiest ways ISPs induce throttling is by targeting an activity. For example, if you stream, your ISP could throttle your speed or bandwidth.<\/p>\n Still, those are some primary examples of how someone more trusted, like your ISP, can take advantage of your activity and use that against you.<\/p>\n To deal with this, people would use VPNs to replace their IP address with one assigned by the VPN.<\/p>\n The VPN makes it harder to pinpoint<\/a> precisely what you’re doing based on your internet traffic.<\/p>\n Essentially, what happens is that your VPN encrypts your internet traffic<\/a> before it gets to the final destination. The VPN prevents the ISP from seeing the websites<\/a> you visit and how you use your data.<\/p>\n However, the ISP can see that you’re using a VPN and the amount of data you are using.<\/p>\n ISP throttling isn’t common anymore. But that’s not the only reason why you’d like to keep some of that data private.<\/p>\n ISPs can monetize your data<\/a>.<\/p>\n Your browsing data can be sold as anonymized bundles to third parties. It can also be used internally for your ISP services and improve targeted advertising.<\/p>\n While this might seem like a relatively harmless practice, it still exploits the free data you’re providing.<\/p>\n Your choice of VPN does matter<\/p>\n While a VPN can soften the blow of some data-harvesting practices (while increasing your privacy), not all VPN services can be trusted. VPNs can also collect and use your data without your knowledge<\/a>.<\/p>\n A no-logs policy<\/a> means that your chosen service cannot process your data, such as browsing and connection timestamps. The no-logs policy can help keep your data private and safe (if it isn’t being stored and recorded, it shouldn’t be compromised in a breach).<\/p>\n But remember, not all VPN services will enforce a no-logs policy, so it’s advised to check beforehand.<\/p>\n Also, while a no-logs policy sounds excellent on paper, it might not be fully possible<\/a> because minimal information is needed to keep the service running.<\/p>\n Still, a no-logs policy provides better protection than one without, so I’d rather trust a service committed to one (NordVPN and Surfshark are excellent examples of services with a no-log policy).<\/p>\n![\"College](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/college-student-sitting-on-outdoor-steps-with-a-laptop-surrounded-by-privacy-icons-including-a-shiel.png\"){kind=icon}
\n Credit:\u00a0Lucas Gouveia \/ Android Police | Prostock-studio \/ Shutterstock<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/screenshot_20251020_172327_chrome.jpg\")
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\n Credit:\u00a0Amazon<\/p>\n