Many countries have legalized online gambling, but the caveat is often that players must be within the borders of that country to be able to enjoy their betting and gaming sites. Therefore, you must use a gambling VPN to mask your location and make it seem like you’re in the relevant country for that gaming site.
What’s a VPN?
A VPN stands for Virtual Private Network, where a secure connection is made between your computer and the Internet. This connection is an encrypted tunnel which allows your data traffic to flow through, masked to look like it’s coming from someone else and someplace else.
Each device connected to the Internet has an identifying address called an IP address. An IP address reveals the identity of the device, as well as the location of the person accessing the Internet. But by using a VPN, your IP address will be changed to the one assigned to the VPN server, letting you surf the web more anonymously.
Also, the information itself is encrypted. This means that there is a double layer of security. Not only is your IP address changed, but also if someone were to get their hands on that information, it would be gibberish. VPNs scramble the data, and make it unreadable via encryption.
A VPN application runs in the background while you surf the web as you normally would, and you won’t notice anything different. It is very easy to use as it simply requires you selecting which country you want your ISP to think you are in, to be able to access websites that are only available within that specific geographic location. Therefore, using a gambling VPN can let you use online gaming sites freely in any location.
Why should I use a VPN?
There are various reasons why you should use a VPN, apart from using a gambling VPN to be able to access different sites.
For example, you can access a site that is available to you in your country and still use a VPN as added protection. This means that hackers and other such criminals will have a hard time stealing your data while gaming online. It’s also challenging for the casino itself to trace your IP address if you’re using a VPN, therefore making sure that your data is always protected. You can also end up having more access to more gambling options than you might otherwise have received.
However, one of the largest reasons why online gamblers use a VPN is to access casino games in different jurisdictions. Using a gambling VPN in such a way lets you play on websites that are geographically restricted. If you’re looking for places to play, you can look into Bovada (US), FortuneJack (EU) and Bodog (Canada).
In the United States, there are complex and constantly-changing laws regarding online gaming. For example, it is illegal for some casinos to accept payments from players outside the US. This makes it tricky for online casinos to run operations under such laws.
An added layer of protection would be to use cryptocurrencies along with a gambling VPN, namely Bitcoin. Cryptocurrencies offer an alternative to traditional methods of payment exchange, as they offer anonymous electronic transfers. A lot of casinos accept cryptocurrency to maintain privacy.
Is it legal?
Most governments will allow you to use a VPN in regular day-to-day use, but this varies from country to country. It is legal to use a VPN in the US, but people who use VPN to commit acts that wouldn’t otherwise be possible, can be arrested. These include things such as online gambling where doing so is illegal, hacking, cyberstalking etc.
It is never legal to gamble on a website based in the US, and it is also illegal to use a gambling VPN to access websites in other countries that would otherwise be unavailable to you. However, most law enforcement agencies do not have the time to chase down people violating online gaming rules to arrest them. This is of course based on what jurisdiction you’re in: somewhere like North Korea will come down far more harshly on such law-breaking.
What you should be most worried about is the gambling websites themselves discovering that you’re using a gambling VPN to access their site from another country. More often than not, you’ll probably be violating their T&Cs which often includes a clause that the site can revoke your winnings and sometimes your bank roll for specific reasons. Having said this, the risks can outweigh the potential costs, when you have access to the world market to play in.
Which VPNs should I use?
Firstly, you need to consider what elements a good VPN features.
- You should look out for paid services, as free services simply aren’t as safe as paid ones. You have to consider what’s in it for the company that’s offering up such a crucial tool for free, and the ramifications should it all go wrong.
- Look for a VPN that doesn’t keep logs, so it’s as anonymous as possible.
- Something that offers a fast and reliable service.
- Provides WiFi protection.
- Has strong security.
It can get quite overwhelming to understand exactly which VPN service to pay for, but here’s a list of the best ones out there:
NordVPN is perfect as a gambling VPN due to the fact that it keeps no logs at all, and has high-speed, unlimited bandwidth that can keep up with the online games. It has one of the largest VPN server networks in the world, with 5529 servers in 59 countries. It is also encrypted with a 256-bit AES encryption, which is the strongest and most robust encryption standard commercially available today. Live chat support means that you can get quick responses to any queries you may have,
You can get NordVPN for 2 years for around $90.
Another excellent gambling VPN, as it also has a no-logs policy and you don’t need to hand over any personally identifiable information to sign up. It’s called express VPN as it boasts unlimited bandwidth with express speeds, as well as 256-bit AES encryption. Spread across 94 countries, with over 3000 servers, its range is impressive.
You can get ExpressVPN for 15 months for around $100, which makes it a more expensive pick than NordVPN. While it has less servers, it has access to more locations.
Surfshark is a great budget pick as a gambling VPN. It doesn’t keep traffic logs, uses 256-bit encryption, and has a 24/7 live chat. While it only has around 1,700 servers in 60+ countries, speeds are relatively stable.
You can get Surfshark for 2 years for around $60, making this the best budget pick as a gambling VPN.
