If you’re the type of person that has so much data that you want to offload it onto an external device, Synology is a perfect solution for your NAS needs. They are a firm based out of Taiwan, and they can secure your data in ways that an average home user wouldn’t be able to accomplish. However, they offer so much more than simple storage. In addition to storage services, they also offer a multitude of backup services, cloud services, and file sharing solutions. Though you may choose to purchase a NAS device from them for local storage as opposed to their cloud services, know that you have the option of configuring your DD-WRT router for NAS storage.
There is just one large 
problem with these types of services, though. Even though you can trust a service that encrypts your data once it is stored, the challenge is making your data safe as it is in transit to their storage network. For example, let’s pretend that you want to backup vast quantities of your data (music, wedding pictures, etc.) and that you have a total of 50 gigabytes to backup. That’s quite a lot of data, and it is all going to need to traverse the public Internet before it can be safely stored with Synology. While your data is in transit, there’s no telling who could see your data and make a copy of it.
Unfortunately this problem goes beyond common Internet crooks; governmental agencies such as the N.S.A. have also been caught wiretapping and storing bulk domestic communications in massive databases – only to be perused and sifted through at the government’s leisure. Would you really want copies of your wedding pictures or family photos to end up on a governmental hard drive? Of course not. The easy, inexpensive, and cost-effective solution is to purchase a VPN service to encrypt and protect your data as it travels through the public Internet. Ideally you would want to use a service that contains a VPN server as close to the destination network as possible to drastically reduce the chance of your data being intercepted and spied upon by foreign governments between your location and the destination storage servers.
Understand that using a VPN tunnel with Synology will impact your performance slightly. It will take a little longer to upload and download files, but this is a fair tradeoff considering all of the security benefits you receive from the VPN tunnel. Also, consider that if you choose one of the leading VPN services, their servers and networks are so fast that you likely won’t notice a big difference in speed at all. While there are plenty of VPN services to choose from, the following are
5 of the best VPNs to use with Synology.
ExpressVPN – Full Review
Express VPN is an extremely reliable service with fast speeds that make it ideal for securing time-sensitive application data such as streaming video. As such, it follows naturally that it would be a great fit for you if you use Synology because it won’t impose any unreasonably burdensome lag or delay as you try to backup your data. Their encryption protocols are extremely secure, and they are well known for providing incredible support should you run into any configuration challenges or technical difficulties.
HideMyAss – Full Review
An industry leader for many years now HMA – Hide My Ass has been increasing their network coverage every year and now boast close to 900 servers located across more than 190 countries. Not only is that huge, it also means you will have great speeds almost anywhere with connection points located across close to 350 cities. Although being a very large provider, pricing remains competitive and provides a good cost and value ration when considering the yearly plan. The overall service quality makes HMA a great choice for Synology users who are looking to keep their data transfers secure.
Private Internet Access – Full Review
Private Internet Access provides a wonderful solution if you want to make sure that no one steals your data when you are uploading and downloading from Synology. With over 3000 servers in over 17 countries, you won’t need to worry about capacity issues, and their encryption is extremely strong. Fortunately, they don’t keep any logs of your data either. But one of the most attractive features of this VPN service is its price. If you buy a 1 year subscription, your monthly rate will only be $3.33.
Surfshark – Full Review
While the encryption of a VPN is likely to affect the speed of your connection, the high security provided make it all worthwhile. Plus, there are providers like Surfshark that can keep your traffic protected and at the same time, they allows you to enjoy fast speeds. You can connect to servers in over 50 countries and defeat restrictions while taking advantage of all the great features that Surfshark offers. Surfshark doesn’t keep logs of your activities and it supports advanced features like kill switch and multiHop.
CyberGhost – Full Review
CyberGhost is also a good choice for Synology because it combines security and hgh speed in an effective way. It gives you the chance to connect to over 3000 servers in 60 countries. CyberGhost offers high quality software and excellent customer support, along with advanced technology that lets you bypass restrictions and enjoy a versatile online experience. CyberGhost doesn’t keep logs of your activities and it offers affordable plans.
VyprVPN – Full Review
Vypr VPN is a great choice if you want a high speed VPN service with great support. Not only is the speed of their VPN service something to write home about, they offer other services such as Chameleon that work to circumvent Internet censorship to open up sites that have been blocked by ISPs. Furthermore, they offer some of the strongest VPN encryption technologies in existence. And the best part? They don’t keep any records or logs of your data, IP address, or connections. To top it all off, they provide VPN servers in over 40 different countries to give you great coverage. Though they don’t provide the cheapest long term pricing ($79.99 for annual plans), Vypr VPN is a solid choice if you want to protect your data as it is in transit to the Synology networks.
