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Tech & ITVPN (Virtual Private Network)
By Sitraka Forler · Lecturer, Durham Business SchoolUpdated 13 September 2026 About this site
An encrypted tunnel that connects your device to a private network over the internet.
A corporate VPN lets you reach internal systems such as a database or intranet from home as if you were in the office, so a server that only answers on the VPN looks down once you disconnect. Consumer VPN services instead route your browsing through the provider's servers. Neither makes you anonymous: the VPN operator can see where your traffic goes, and logins and cookies still identify you.