Can your ISP see what you watch on YouTube?

Yes, they can infer most of your online activity, including what you watch on YouTube. They can track pages you visit, the time you spend on each website or break down consumed content into categories.

Your internet service provider (ISP) might track your online activities for a number of reasons:

1. To complement their revenue through data sharing programs with advertisers. By collecting information on your browsing habits, these advertisers can create targeted ads that are more likely to interest you.
2. Your ISP may track your activities to improve their services. By understanding how you (their clients) use the internet, they can identify areas where their network is lacking and make necessary improvements.
3. Some ISPs may be required to collect data on their users by government agencies.

In some cases, depending on the country you live in, this information may be used for national security purposes.

Should ISP tracking worry you?

It depends on how much you want to protect your online privacy. Some people find this practice very unsettling. Generally speaking, it could pose three major problems for you:

1. Risk to your personal information and identity. Once your personal data is collected, you have no control over it. In the worst-case scenario, it could end up in the hands of malicious entities.

2. Issues with surveillance and privacy. You must be especially cautious when traveling and living in a country where consuming the wrong media is a punishable offense.

3. The fact that someone might know more about you than you want: habits, interests, location, browsing history, device type.

How can you hide your browsing?

If you are concerned that your ISP can track your online activities, use Bitdefender VPN to encrypt your traffic and prevent them from seeing your online activity. It will hide your real IP address, making it harder for advertisers and government agencies to track you.

Bitdefender VPN offers fast speeds, strong security and a strict no-logs policy. You can enjoy unlimited traffic encryption and exceptional server coverage- 4,000+ high-speed servers in over 49 countries and cities.

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