Question on VPN

Hi all,

I recently got a vpn. While connected to it, I decided to visit my bank website. Surprisingly it let me log right in. I was expecting to have to go through several verification steps, since my IP was different than my real location. Why did this happen?

 

That could depend on any number of things. As with most online services, the primary method of validating your identity on banking sites is the username and password. IP address geo-location is a secondary method of validation which may or may not be used at all, depending on your bank's policy. Most banks recognize the need to be flexible when it comes to IP addresses in particular, considering that there are any number of legitimate reasons for customers to be connecting from unfamiliar addresses -- such as logging in from home, school, work, or while on a vacation or business trip. Also, if the IP address of the VPN server is reasonably close (same country/region) as your actual location, then it probably wouldn't have raised any flags at all.

 

Ok I just have to be silly here, hehe, but really!

Haven't you heard, --> Have laptop will travel?

It's the main reasons why...


CHEERS

 

Ah yes that may explain it. The ip address I'm using is in the same region as me. I was worried that my vpn wasn't working at all haha. Thank you!

 

If you're curious you can use an IP location service to show how your apparent location changes when you enable the VPN. I'm in the US and use a service that has servers across the US and Europe. I recently used one of the Euro servers by mistake and couldn't log in to my email because I hadn't authorized access from outside the US.

 

I believe that the bank website installed a cookie on your machine identifying it. As long as the cookie is on the machine it doesn't matter where you are or what isp you use when you log in, the bank knows you have previously answered the verifcation questions from this machine.

I use a Sandboxed web browser and my bank lets me sign in without asking the verification questions, but once I delete the Sandbox contents, including the cookie the bank has installed, I will have to answer the verification questions.

 

Cookie.


PD