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Why Every Expat Needs a VPN

By on Tuesday, January 24, 2017
So you’ve got your new apartment all set up. You were finally able to find fitted sheets (for an exorbitant price, no doubt), you’ve connected adapters and transformers as needed and you even managed to put up a few pictures of family and friends back at home to make your new living space just a tad more comfortable. Yes, it’s time to relax and unwind.

Soon you realize your cable is limited to Korean variety shows with the occasional decade-old made-for-TV American movie you’re fairly certain no one you know has ever heard of. “No problem,” you say, “That’s what the Internet is for.”

Think again.

Hulu and TV networks like ABC and ESPN disappoint with apologetic messages notifying you that their programs cannot be watched outside the States.

“Okay… so I’ll just listen to music,” you decide.

Not so fast. Pandora and Songza shut you down before you can even decide on your preferred playlist.

Your breathing becomes heavier and your heartbeat steadily increases. You find the strength to stand up and barely fall to the floor as your knees give out. You manage to make it to your co-worker’s place across the hall. He sees the fear in your eyes and needs no words to understand your worries. He sympathetically places a hand on your shoulder and assures you that things will be fine. Soon enough, he mentions three letters that will forever change how you know entertainment as an expat living in Korea forever: V-P-N.

Photo: Gizmodo.com

In simple terms, a VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is a discrete network of computers connected over the Internet. Individuals can use a VPN to gain access to network resources when they’re not physically on the same network (i.e. not in the same country) or for securing and encrypting their communications when using a lesser trusted public network.

When properly connected, an American-based VPN makes it appear as though your computer or electronic device (smartphones, tablets, etc.) is connecting to a network such as Spotify from inside the United States.

This ingenious system allows die-hard fans to watch the World Cup live as it happens without having to deal with a crummy, subtitle-less local network. They can also listen to location-restricted internet radio and check out their favorite television programs (Game of Thrones, anyone?) as they air instead of waiting for translations or rebroadcasts.

And for those that are interested in watching Korean movies and dramas, they can gain access to sites like Netflix that provide an extensive selection of translated Korean programs.

There are a number of VPN services to choose from, but I recently began using PrivateInternetAccess.com after becoming an affiliate with them.

I was surprised by the simplicity of the setup process using their easy-to-follow tutorials and wondered why I hadn’t signed up years earlier, before I became clueless as to what’s going on in American pop culture.

In addition to using a VPN to watch shows and listen to music on both my computer and smartphone, I can also rest easy knowing that my internet connection is secure, which is necessary since I pay my bills and do my banking online. So safe, in fact, that a slew of some of the biggest companies in the world (Forbes, Yahoo and AT&T to name a few) use PrivateInternetAccess as their go-to VPN.

And the very best thing about PrivateInternetAccess.com’s VPN service? The price!! To get to access all your favorite movie streaming sites and ensure a secure internet connection only costs $6.95 per month or $39.95 for an entire year.

So what are you waiting for? Sign up for a VPN today and you’ll be thanking me when winter (aka movie-watching season) rolls in.

Happy binge watching!

Words by Mimsie Ladner of Seoul Searching. Content may not be reproduced unless authorized. 

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Comments

  1. William
    Reply

    Entertainment is the food for a happy and satisfied soul. We all crave entertainment on one level or the other to keep ourselves amused and sane. Therefore, access to quality entertainment can be considered a right for everyone with no prejudice due to ethnicity, nationality, and race. The best entertainment content on the internet can be found on websites like Hulu, Netflix, HBOGO, Dish Anywhere, Pandora, and more. However, these websites are only accessible from the US and very few other countries. Therefore, people residing outside the US need ironsocket vpn.

  6. Unknown
    Reply

    Well ! VPN allows administrators to take advantage of the Internet to help provide the functionality and security of private WAN connections at a lower cost. There are two main strategies that help provide secure connectivity between private networks and enabling network access for remote users. Many of them use vpn software to hide their ip address when playing online games, chat etc . If you want to determine your public ip address, visit Ip-details.com

  8. Unknown
    Reply

    Watching all your preferred TV shows while on move gives you the feeling of home away from home and with an expat VPN you are that close towards experiencing that quintessential emotion. The use of Express VPN is not limited to only streaming websites but it is quite capable to help you in performing an assortment of other tasks as well that you cannot do on the public internet connection being an expat

  11. Unknown
    Reply

    So can be used now in Korea? Would Astrill vpn work there? I am planning of visit South Korea soon (if time and budget permits) and I want to have continuous access to the internet while traveling.

  30. Unknown
    Reply

    Nice share! I too prefer using VPN whether I am at home or somewhere outside. The virtual network provides a shield to help protecting the data. For me NordVPN is the best vpn service for me. I like it for all of the features that are being provided at very affordable rates.

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  41. Anonymous
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    Nice post and good knowledge But from my side, a best VPN is that which provides user best services with exceptional services and fastest speed and keeps no logs

  45. Unknown
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    Viêm âm đạo là một dạnh bệnh lý về phụ khoa do các tác nhân gây bệnh như nấm, vi khuẩn, virus, ký sinh trùng,…. gây nên và tạo thành vùng viêm nhiễm. Rất nhiều chị em đã bị ảnh hưởng rất nặng khi bị viêm âm đạo lâu năm, gây ảnh hưởng đến sức khỏe đời sống tinh thần.

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  46. Anonymous
    Reply

    Internet era is unsecured nowadays, surfing on internet is not say anymore. for security and being anonymous we should use VPN. There are many VPN service providers I have been using almost all i.e. ExpressVPN, NordVPN, CyberGhost, and Fastestvpn. FastestVPN is new service all server are fresh and their services are amazing.

  50. Adiba Alam
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    Ordinarily, the convention numbers and the highlights that are offered develop over the long haul. You may choose the sort of VPN you require contingent upon what you require it for.read

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