When you are outside the United States, accessing your favorite websites can sometimes be a task from some locations worldwide. This is called geo-blocking and can sometimes be a pain to deal with.
Geo-blocking is an internet security protocol that restricts access based on the user’s location in the globe. It is common for content producers to restrict access to their content in particular locations. This is mainly due to licensing guidelines, price discrimination, copyright, and the ability to block illegal content.
It is possible to bypass geo-blocking using VPN servers. For instance, if you want to access content restricted to users in China, you can learn how a VPN gives you a China IP address to access this content.
Understanding geo-blocking
Geo-blocking restricts access to websites and other content based on the location of the user. There are numerous ways through which technology can be used to determine a user’s location to implement the restriction protocol.
These technologies can check the access through identifying the location of the IP address, measuring pings, and checking the information on the user’s profile. Sometimes, this measure is taken by the government to control the citizen’s online activity. Some businesses use geo-blocking as a way of protecting company information.
Companies can use geo-blocking to block access to company servers for users in specified locations. This allows them to create content suitable for their target audience. With a geo-blocking system in place, a company server measures details about the user locations to determine whether it will permit access to the site.
How exactly does it work?
Every computer is recognized online through its IP address. Whenever a user visits a website, the online footprint is sent to the site’s server to determine where to send the information packets. An internet service provider (ISP) gives an IP address once a user registers on their network.
Broadcasters use geo-blocking to determine whether a user is allowed to view their content or not, based on the location of their IP address. Users are blocked whenever they try to connect their IP to the site server from a location that is not allowed.
Geo-blocking is active even for subscribed users. For instance, if you live in America and wish to view Netflix, going on vacation in a Netflix restricted area will block you from accessing the site.
Why is geo-blocking used?
There are many different uses for geo-blocking. It is ideal for the applications of tax coded in online sales for different locations. It can also be used to block gambling sites or restrict it to a particular location. Geo-location is ideal for businesses when it comes to pricing goods to ensure fair pricing for different locations.
For businesses, apart from ensuring the content only targets the target market, geo-blocking also prevents access to content that can harm the outlook of the brand. This helps companies control their online releases, which would be difficult if the site was accessible to everyone worldwide.
Protection for licensed content
The most important aspect of geo-blocking for businesses is its use in protecting licensed content and copyrighted content. As digital copyright material protection gets harder, it has become increasingly important for companies to adapt ways to ensure the protection of their content.
Geo-blocking is a viable solution for copyright protection issues. The reason it is so important is the ability to intercept users trying to bypass the technology.
How to bypass geo-blocking
Since geo-blocking is location-based, the best way to bypass it is by finding tools that can mask your IP address. The use of proxy servers is one of the most popular ways used to bypass geo-blocking protocols. These servers act as an intermediary for all your online activity by hiding your IP address.
Peer to peer networks can also be used to bypass geo-blocking protocols. These reroute your traffic through nodes present in the network using idle resources.
The most ideal way to bypass geo-blocking protocols is the use of VPN servers. These programs can be used to reroute your online traffic to offshore servers to hide your real IP. This helps to hide your actual location, thus allowing you to access websites from all over the world.
VPN servers use cleaver technology tactics to encrypt your online data sharing and transmit them through a safe tunnel/private network to ensure data safety and IP privacy. With a VPN, you can bypass geo-blocking to access sites like Netflix, BBC iPlayer, and YouTube.
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