Why VPN is a necessity in Africa

Many African governments have taken to censoring a variety of apps and sites, especially around election time, dictatorship is taking root in Africa Kenya not left behind and its even worse in some countries where taxes are introduced for use of social media so as to deny people their freedom to information. Though in Kenya thing are not bad, some sites have already been censored and especially those that are suspected to be hosting adult content, did you know you cant get results for "massage and extras in Kenya", I however appreciate the move as commercial sex is not legal in Kenya and still ok if it will help in reducing HIV spread rate. However, African governments are becoming more and more afraid of netizens with realisation that keyboard warriors can overthrow a government. But people across the continent netizens are increasingly seeking out ways to work around the blocks.

There are a couple ways to block and filter online content, and owing to the fact that most african countries interfere with domains and deletion of content as opposed to blocking the internet itself, its even much more easier for us.

How to circumvent censorship

There are ways to avoid internet censorship, for example via virtual private networks(VPN). VPN create a tunnel to the outside world and allows internet users to surf as if they were in a country without restrictions. In 2016, many people in Uganda used VPN to get secure access to the internet because Museveni had done what he knows best, dictatorship!, and that made VPN apps the most downloaded during Uganda’s elections in February 2016. VPNs can, however, differ from region to region, and it is important to know the safety and security of each specific networks before use.

With that said and done, you must remember to protect your self by visiting secure sites even as use VPN, don't expose your self to hacking and phishing, ensure that all the sites you are using are delivered over HTTPS. This allows you to access the original site and not an altered version of it. You can install the HTTPS Everywhere extension in your browser whether on phone or computer to ensure your safety. To know a secure site, there will be HTTPS or a green padlock before the domain. Another important thing to have is anti-virus software, so as to detect and remove malicious software from your device.

To emphasise the demand for VPN apps, hotspot shield which has been a free app on google play for a very long time is now a premium app, this means you have to part with some cash to install it, there are however very may free VPN apps on google play that you may want to try. Most importantly, be responsible for what you search or post and be patriotic to your country.