Difference Between VPN and GPS: Can VPN Change GPS Location?
If you want to keep your online activities private and avoid region restrictions, a VPN is your best friend. It shields your personal data and conceals your real IP address from prying eyes. But, it’s important to understand its limitations.
Most importantly, don’t mix up changing your VPN location with altering your GPS location. These are two different things. A VPN changes your online location, while your GPS shows your physical location. Knowing the difference is key to using your VPN effectively.
The bottom line is that a VPN cannot change your GPS location. This is because the GPS location service on your device is controlled by a different app. More importantly, these apps are not related to your IP address. Websites won’t be able to track your location based on your IP address when using a VPN. So, while you won’t reveal your real IP address, your GPS location may give away your location.
Understanding the difference between VPN and GPS is key. It’s the only way to truly hide your location online. So, keep reading to learn more about how GPS and VPN work and their main differences.
VPN and GPS Overview
A VPN and GPS both affect how your location appears to others. But, they do so in different ways. They work independently from each other, and here’s how so:
How Does a VPN Work?
When you connect to a VPN server, it encrypts your network. All data you send goes through a secure VPN tunnel. Your real IP address is replaced by the VPN’s IP, making you appear to be in a different location. This way, you can use a VPN to play video games, torrent, and enjoy the Internet privately.
But, the IP address is not linked to the GPS. So, if you’re asking yourself, “does a VPN affect GPS”, the answer is no. It only changes your IP, not your GPS location.
Features
- Replaces your real IP with the VPN’s IP address
- Keeps all of your activities private
- Encrypts the data you send through its tunnels
- Enables you to avoid geo-targeting and censorship
- Most often used as software, also available as hardware
How Does a GPS Work?
The Global Positioning System is a satellite-based system with at least 24 satellites. The US has 32 satellites in orbit, with the latest one launched in 2018. These satellites circle the planet at an altitude of around 12.500 miles or 20,000 kilometers. It includes three components—the satellites, the ground stations, and the receivers.
GPS can be either software or hardware-based. It’s not linked to your IP address or the Internet.
It’s entirely independent of a cellular or Wi-Fi connection. This is why you can’t hide your GPS with a standard VPN. With all of this in mind, let’s take a look at some of the key features of GPS:
Features
- Uses radio satellites in orbit to transmit signals
- Enables apps and various software to access your location data
- Available as both hardware and software
- Can be employed for a variety of safety and convenience uses
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What are the Differences Between VPN and GPS
GPS can’t be spoofed any other way except by overriding the location your GPS antenna picks up on. To put it into simpler terms, the best way to override your real GPS and replace it with a mock location would be to use an app.
More precisely, you need to install an app on your phone. Then, tell your phone to use the GPS location provided by the app instead of the phone’s built-in GPS feature.
In comparison, a VPN works on a network level. VPN IP addresses are commonly fixed to a certain geographical area. So, when you connect to a network in the area, you’re connecting to an IP it is fixed to. That way, you can switch your real IP address to the VPN’s address and appear to be accessing the Internet from a different region.
Can You Change Your GPS Location By Using a VPN?
Yes, you can change your GPS location with a VPN, but you need a special kind. Regular VPNs can’t do it. You need a VPN that can spoof your location.
Using a regular VPN means you also need a special app. This app must be able to fake your GPS location. But, finding such an app is hard because it needs to override your device’s GPS.
How to Change Your GPS Location With or Without a VPN
To change your GPS with a VPN, choose a service that can do it. Surfshark is the top choice for this. It has a GPS override feature.
This feature works only on Android devices. Changing GPS on iOS is very hard. But, Surfshark makes it easy with a great app and guide.
So, if you want to hide your real location and fake your device’s location, Surfshark is the best.
Conclusion
This page should have made things clearer about GPS and VPNs. To hide your IP, use a VPN. To change your GPS, use a spoofing app.
If you want to hide both, Surfshark is your only trusted option. Or, use a GPS app and a premium VPN you can trust.
Cybersecurity and VPN researcher