My ISP Comcast (rebranded to Xfinity to avoid all the negative associations with it's actual name) does man in the middle attacks on HTTP connections and injects javascript code into webpages. I actually had this happen to the steam browser back in ~2013 and I had to restart it. But they still do it today in 2026. I don't use a commercial VPN because I host from home. But I do tunnel my HTTP browsing to a remote VPS I rent.
Primary use I have for it is hosting internal services that I don't want on the public internet - do the same at work, it reduces the attack surface hugely
That is the exact thing , I asked that because its primary a personal choice, and I support EU regulator decision on it, If you need VPN for usage like keeping your personal information intact its perfect but if someone else is using for other purpose then again it should personal choice rather than government regulation ( this might not sound good to some).
I know what you mean, but I think most people are not thinking of it in this way. They are thinking of VPN as a service provided by companies such as Nord VPN, and mostly used to get around region locked content or keep your ISP from being aware you are downloading things you shouldn't be.
Why do online services need to know where I am? Why does my ISP need to know who I'm communicating with? For me, VPNs are about reducing privacy leakage. Most of the internet collects, aggregates, and sells knowledge about their users, and VPNs are an important tool for withholding that.
They do work on Netflix, just not the large commercial VPNs.
If you setup your own VPN with an exit at a residential address, it will work fine. There are some commercial offerings around this. Just as soon as you start needing exits that aren't in data-centres the cost skyrockets.
It is a sort of LAN network over the Internet. That way, you can connect to devices as if you were in the local network, but having them exposed to the internet.
Traffic is encrypted so there is noone knowing what you are sending, they can still trace that is coming to/from a specific node.
I just loaded up Bluesky this morning to discover it demanding proof of my age bc I live in Texas. First thing I did was turn on my out-of-state vpn and try again. not today, satan!
Instead of an out-of-state vpn, why not an out-of-state home? Why do people put up with the lack of freedom there? People complain about European countries but then praise states like Texas.
(Realistically, moving is easier said than done, of course.)
I'm not sure what to say that doesn't repeat myself. I can add to my prior comment that many Republican-run states, including Texas, restrict freedom of speech and other freedoms in many ways.
What you say isn't entirely true. Lot's of people are moving to Texas (and Florida), thus they are able to move. Lots of wealthy people go out of their way to praise Texas.
The answer is really politics, I think. The most important states economically and culturally, NY and California, are liberal. Conservatives are looking for a flag-bearer.
HHI is "household income" which fits perfectly with your observation that wealthy people go out of their way to praise Texas: because Texas is probably the best state to efficiently make money if you're rich. Property taxes are regressive tax, so they hit the poor more than the rich. Sales tax is the same way. And state income tax is literally forbidden by the Texas Constitution as of a couple years ago.
So you just keep making craploads of money and all you have to do is pay the same federal income tax you'd be paying in any state.
Answers are there ! that was the whole point of my question, using or not using should be Personal choice not government Ban , everything on internet has pros and cons.
You must be blessed to live in a country that has no website blocks.