As an internet user residing in Nigeria, you might have encountered situations whereby you couldn’t access some websites. This might be because those websites were geo-restricted or due to government censorship. With a quality paid VPN, you can unblock geo-restricted websites and generally improve online freedom by utilizing a network of fast and consistent servers around the world. If you’re considering investing in a VPN for your internet usage needs, you’d want to be sure that it’s legal in Nigeria. Read on.
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Is VPN Legal in Nigeria?
In Nigeria, the use of VPN is legal, just as it’s obtainable in most countries of the world. There are no laws in existence that expressly prohibit VPNs in Nigeria. More so, there are no prescribed penalties for VPN usage in any written law in the country. You’d only get into trouble if you utilize VPN to do something illegal on the internet.
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What is the Position of the Law on VPN Use in Nigeria?
As of today (March 2023), there is no written law in Nigeria, whether it be an Act of the National Assembly, the law of a State, or any subsidiary legislation, that expressly prohibits the use of VPN in Nigeria. Moreover, no written law prescribes any penalty for VPN usage in the country. This stance on the legality of VPNs in Nigeria is supported by Section 36(12) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which states:
“Subject as otherwise provided by this constitution, a person shall not be convicted of a criminal offense unless that offense is defined and the penalty thereof is prescribed in a written law refers to an Act of the National Assembly or a Law of a State, any subsidiary legislation or instrument under the provision of a law.”.
From the foregoing, VPN usage is not considered an offense, hence, legal. However, using a VPN to engage in something illegal on the internet can get you into legal trouble.
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What is VPN and How Does it Work?
VPN is an acronym for Virtual Private Network. To understand better what the functions of VPNs are, let’s briefly address what an IP address is. If you have a smartphone, tablet, or laptop capable of browsing the internet, you can be certain it has an IP (Internet Protocol) address. Every IP address serves to identify the host or network the device is using, as well as the approximate location. That means if you are in Nigeria, your device would have a Nigeria IP address.
With the best VPN software installed on your laptop or smartphone, you can protect your IP address and location from being leaked, hence disguising your location. This is achieved by the VPN encrypting your laptop’s (or smartphone’s) web traffic and then routing it through one of its servers. For example, during the period the FG made Twitter inaccessible to devices with a Nigerian IP address, internet users in Nigeria who had quality paid VPN were able to access the social media platform by connecting to s VPN server located outside Nigeria.
Aside from using a quality VPN to bypass government censorship, you’d enjoy improved online freedom as you would utilise a network of fast and consistent servers around the world to access geo-restricted websites.
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What are the Benefits of Using A VPN in Nigeria?
There are various reasons why making use of a VPN in Nigeria is recommended. If you’re considering investing in the best VPN for your internet usage needs, keep on reading to discover the perks you stand to enjoy.
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Vast Network of Fast and Consistent Servers Worldwide
The ability of VPNs to offer their users a wide range of fast and consistent servers worldwide remains one of the major reasons why millions of people around the world use VPNs. With a quality VPN, you can easily find a fast server near your location or bypass region-locked and government-censored restrictions.
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Speed
Another standout advantage of using a VPN when using the internet is the fast connection speeds. However, we should tell you that the VPNs that offer fast speeds are mostly those that are paid for. Using the best VPN for your browsing needs provides you with unlimited bandwidth that allows you to surf and stream visual content without enduring low resolution, buffering and other frustrating performance issues.
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Privacy
The best VPNs will afford you privacy online, thanks to the ability of Virtual Private Networks to encrypt web traffic from your device and route it through one of its servers. Corporate organizations can use the best VPN to allow their staff to access confidential email accounts and file servers. There are several other situations whereby the privacy feature of top VPNs comes in handy, even for bloggers and journalists whose online activities are constantly under surveillance.
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Security
Irrespective of where you may be, security risks are ever-present on the internet. But with a quality VPN, you can substantially reduce the likelihood of becoming a victim of such risks. The ability of a quality VPN to utilize high-end encryption to secure users’ traffic while offering DNS protection minimizes the odds of falling victim to security risks on the internet.
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Ability to Unblock Restricted Web Content
If you used your normal Nigerian IP address to log into your Twitter account after the Federal Government placed a ban on the use of Twitter in 2021, you wouldn’t have gotten access. But Nigerians who had the best VPNs at the time could still access Twitter since they used VPN servers located outside Nigeria.
Aside from online censorship, the use of a quality VPN will allow you to unblock a significant portion of geo-restricted content you wouldn’t have been able to see if you had used a Nigerian IP address.
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Value for Money
We recommend paid VPNs as they generally provide top-notch services than their free counterparts. Although you may have to pay out-of-pocket to enjoy the services the best VPNs provide, investing in a long-term subscription plan is quite affordable. More so, some VPN services offer customers discounts on special occasions. While some others offer money-back guarantees, in that if you paid to try out their services to see if it’s best for you, you could collect your money back if you weren’t satisfied. All these combine to give you value for your money.