Anonymous Proxy – Web Proxy or Proxy Software
Privacy is a big part of today’s world. As people’s information and data become more and more sensitive, the need to keep it hidden becomes more and more necessary. Ten years ago, someone’s IP address wouldn’t have been treated with any security what so ever, now it must be hidden at all costs. People probably wouldn’t have known what an IP address was at the time!
The demand for Internet privacy got to be so strong, that there began to be a market for it. People would pay for the services they provide, and would do so willingly. At first, these companies charged ridiculous amounts for their services, but today they are often dirt cheap.
Anonymous Proxy usage became more and more important. These are programs or web sites that actually alter your IP address, which is a virtual nametag showing location, browsing history, etc. The programs then allow you to surf on their encrypted networks to be sure all of your information is encoded upon you sending it. Then, they actually go and retrieve the websites you wish to visit for you, allowing you to bypass blocks set on work and school computers (or possibly an oppressive government) and enjoy the sites you want to. They will allow no traces of data such as cookies or cache to stay on your computer, allowing no one to see your browsing session. All your employer or teacher would see is the name of the anonymous proxy over and over and over again. If this isn’t good enough for you, professional fee-based proxies offer a “delete session information” function that completely deletes history of your browsing for that session, leaving no traces anywhere.
There are two major types of proxies; a software based proxy and a web based proxy. We’ll focus on the web based one first.
The web proxy is activated by going to the proxy site. From there you put in the site you wish to visit, and your IP address is changed and you are now anonymous. These are often free and are readily available on the Internet. These will also help you get by those filtering site programs at your work or school. These have some downfalls though; they are often very slow, can be unsecure, and are very finicky. First, you are traveling on one network with many different people, and using a lot of bandwidth. This makes you travel quite slow. Then, who knows if these web proxies are scams or not? Bandwidth costs lots of money, web proxies use a lot, and keep in mind the owner of the proxy can still see all of your data. Maybe they dip into some customer’s unknowing bank accounts to extract some money…
A fee based software proxy is a much better bet. These offer all the advantages of a web-based proxy, but are often lightening fast, much more secure, and offer encryption services, which are essential to true Internet security.
The decision is obvious, and the real-world axiom applies in the world of privacy as well. Web proxies are okay to use on a public computer, but definitely not for home use. Using a fee-based anonymous proxy can keep you completely safe and ensure anonymous browsing while online; and you don’t have to break the bank!
