So what does Proxy Server mean? How does it work? Where to get Free Proxy Server? What can you expect from a Proxy Server and what are the risks of it?
What is Proxy Server?
A Proxy Server provides a gateway between users and the internet. It is a server, referred to as an “intermediary” because it goes between end-users and the web pages they visit online.
Normally, when you use your browser to surf the internet, you connect directly to the website you’re visiting. When you use Proxy Server, it communicates with websites on your behalf.
Proxy Servers provide varying levels of functionality, security, and privacy depending on your use case, needs, or company policy.
When you use an online proxy, your browsers first connect to the proxy, and the proxy forwards your traffic to the website you’re visiting. That’s why Proxy Servers are also known as “forward proxies.” An internet proxy will also receive the website’s response and send it back to you.
Modern Proxy Servers do much more than forwarding web requests, all in the name of data security and network performance. Proxy Servers act as a firewall and web filter, provide shared network connections, and cache data to speed up common requests. A good Proxy Server keeps users and the internal network protected from the bad stuff that lives out in the wild internet. Lastly, proxy servers can provide a high level of privacy.
How does a Proxy work?
A Proxy Server is a computer on the internet with its IP address. When you send a web request, your request goes to the Proxy Server first. Then, it makes your web request on your behalf, collects the response from the web server, and forwards you the web page data so you can see the page in your browser.
When the Proxy Server forwards your web requests, it can make changes to the data you send and still get you the information that you expect to see. A Proxy Server can change your IP address, so the web server doesn’t know exactly where you are in the world. It can encrypt your data, so your data is unreadable in transit. And lastly, a proxy server can block access to certain web pages, based on IP address.
Uses of Proxy Server
- Firewalls: A proxy server between a trusted network and the internet is the perfect place to host a firewall designed to intercept and either approve or block incoming traffic before it reaches the network.
- Content filters: Proxy Server can be configured as content filters by blocking undesired outgoing traffic.
- Bypassing content filters: Proxy Servers allow users to circumvent content restrictions imposed by companies or governments. You can access your proxy and use it to reach the websites you want.
- Caching: Caching refers to the temporary storage of frequently accessed data, which makes it easier and faster to access it again in the future. Internet Proxies can cache websites so that they’ll load faster than if you were to send your traffic through the internet to the website’s server.
- Security: In addition to hosting firewalls, Proxy Servers can also enhance security by serving as the singular public face of the network. All the network’s users are anonymous, hidden behind the Proxy’s IP Address.
- Sharing internet connection: Businesses or even homes with a single internet connection can use a Proxy Server to funnel all their devices through that one connection.
Type of Proxy Servers
Public Proxy (Free Proxy)
A Public Proxy is accessible by anyone free of charge. It works by giving users access to its IP address, hiding their identity as they visit sites. When you use a Public Proxy, you also run an increased risk of having your information accessed by others on the internet. So never use Free Proxy while doing MMO, unless you want to lose all your money and accounts.
Forward Proxy
A Forward Proxy sits in front of clients and is used to get data to groups of users within an internal network. When a request is sent, the Proxy Server examines it to decide whether it should proceed with making a connection.
Transparent Proxy
There’s no added privacy or security with a Transparent Proxy. When you use one, web servers receive your actual IP address, and they also can tell that you are connecting via a proxy.
Anonymous Proxy
An Anonymous Proxy will identify itself as a Proxy, but it won’t pass your IP address to the website – this helps prevent identity theft and keep your browsing habits private. Websites will receive a fake IP address instead of your actual one.
High Anonymity Proxy
This is a step up from regular Anonymous Proxy. The fundamentals are the same, except high anonymity proxies also disguise your use of the proxy itself. A website won’t be able to detect that you’re using a proxy if you use one of these.
Residential Proxy
A Residential Proxy gives you an IP address that belongs to a specific, physical device. All requests are then channeled through that device. Residential Proxies are more trustworthy than other proxy options. However, they often cost more money to use, so users should carefully analyze whether the benefits are worth the extra investment.
Datacenter Proxy
Besides Residental proxy, you should consider using Datacenter proxy. We have published a blog to compare Residential Proxies vs Datacenter Proxies. You can choose using which one will fit best with your work.
- Shared Proxy: Shared Proxies are used by more than one user at once. They give you access to an IP address that may be shared by other people, and then you can surf the internet while appearing to browse from a location of your choice. The main advantage of a Shared Proxy is its low cost.
- SL Proxy: A Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Proxy provides decryption between the client and the server. As the data is encrypted in both directions, the Proxy hides its existence from both the client and the server.
- Rotating Proxy: A Rotating Proxy assigns a different IP address to each user that connects to it. As users connect, they are given an address that is unique from the device that connected before it.
- Reverse Proxy: Unlike a Forward Proxy, which sits in front of clients, a Reverse Proxy is positioned in front of web servers and forwards requests from a browser to the web servers. It works by intercepting requests from the user at the network edge of the web server. It then sends the requests to and receives replies from the origin server.
Proxy Server vs VPN
Proxies and VPN both connect you to the internet via an intermediary server, but that’s where the similarities end. While an online proxy simply forwards your traffic to its destination, a VPN encrypts all traffic between your device and the VPN server.
If you need to constantly access the internet to send and receive data that should be encrypted or if your company has to reveal data you must hide from hackers and corporate spies, a VPN would be a better choice. A VPN is better suited for business use because users usually need secure data transmission in both directions. Company information and personnel data can be very valuable in the wrong hands, and a VPN provides the encryption you need to keep it protected.
If an organization merely needs to allow its users to browse the internet anonymously, a Proxy Server may do the trick. For personal use where a breach would only affect you, a single user, a Proxy Server may be an adequate choice.
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