VPN

noun

ˌvē-ˌpē-ˈen 

plural VPNs

: a private computer network that functions over a public network : virtual private network

As more employees connect to their office networks from home, they expose the company to attack. A VPN lets companies use the Internet as a secure pathway into their existing network.

—Michael Bertin

VPNs help cloak your browsing information from your internet provider. When you use VPN software, your device connects to a VPN provider's servers. That way, all your web traffic passes through the VPN provider's internet connection.

—Brian X. Chen

Examples of VPN in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Other top options include our Editors' Choice winners, NordVPN and Proton VPN. —Jason Cohen, PC Magazine, 8 May 2026

In part that’s because, as Reuters reports, Australian Virtual Private Network (VPN), tools that hide user identity (and age), downloads nearly tripled leading up to the ban. —Jessica Melugin, Twin Cities, 3 May 2026

However, to watch the show in the US, Americans will need a VPN, a service that allows users to set their computer’s location to another country and access websites that would otherwise be restricted by location. —Katie Decker-Jacoby, StyleCaster, 28 Apr. 2026

Zair-Bek, who is currently based outside Russia, expects many inside the country will continue using Telegram, however, by installing a virtual private network (VPN) — technology that has allowed Russians to bypass online restrictions. —Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 22 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1984, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

VPN

noun

ˌvē-ˌpē-ˈen 

: virtual private network