Using public wifi (+email) question

[dvsman]

OK guys this is probably as stupid question but I'm not an IT guy so I figured I'd ask you interwebz experts.

When I'm at the car dealer or coffee shop or hotel or wherever and am using their wifi, I've been told to use a VPN to up my security - which I do (Private Internet Access).

Here's my question: With the VPN on, when I try to get my hotmail or gmail through Outlook, it sees that I'm not in my usual location (since the VPN puts me wherever it puts me) and likely thinks its someone trying to hack.

Is there a way to use a VPN without also triggering these issues? Unfortunately my VPN provider doesn't have a connection in my area (Washington, DC) which would likely prevent this from happening.

Thoughts? Advice?

 

[Cmustang87]

Connecting a VPN really isn't going to help you with your email security when you are on a hotspot. Your web email is all going over HTTPS anyway, so your activity in the browser is already encrypted such as when entering username/pass on the login page, etc. The VPN is good if you don't want the location to be able to detect/snoop WHAT you are doing, or if you want to encrypt your traffic that would otherwise not be encrypted (standard non-HTTPS).