High Anonymity Proxy: Overkill Or Necessity?

Anonymous proxies, also called anonymizers, let you navigate the internet without revealing your true IP address. They protect your privacy and let you bypass geo-restrictions, among others. Anonymous proxies hide your real IP address and connect to the internet through a proxy server, acting as a privacy firewall and shielding your identity from the sites you visit.

What Are Anonymous Proxies?

Anonymous proxies act as an intermediary between your device and the websites you visit. When you send a request via an anonymous proxy, it will go to the proxy server first. The proxy server will replace the information in your header that identifies your IP address with a different IP address. It’s basically a disguise for your device.

What types of proxies are anonymous?

If you want to know how to be anonymous online using proxies, you need to understand the different levels of anonymity proxies provide. Although most people assume that you’re anonymous whenever you use proxies, it’s not always true.

Transparent proxies 

Transparent proxies are also referred to as:

• Inline proxies
• Intercepting proxies
• Forced proxies

When using a transparent proxy, your request goes to the proxy server first and then is passed on without changing information. You may not even be aware that you’re accessing the internet through a transparent proxy.

However, it can monitor your activity and restrict access to certain sites. Corporations, schools, internet cafes, and other organizations are all known to use transparent proxies to monitor or limit your internet activity on their network. They’re called forced proxies because they can be forced on you without your knowledge. These are set up by the network operator, not the end-user.

Anonymous proxies

Anonymous proxies are set up by the end-user. They reroute your requests through a proxy server that changes your IP address. This protects your privacy. However, the problem with some anonymous proxies is that they leave information in the header which identifies your IP address as a proxy IP address. So the website you’re visiting may not know your true IP address, but it knows the proxy IP address isn’t your real one. Some websites will still block your access if you try to use these proxies.

Elite proxies

Elite proxies are the only fully anonymous proxies. They offer the highest level of anonymity and security. Elite proxies change your IP address and eliminate any header information that would alert a website that you’re using a proxy. To the sites you’re visiting, you look exactly like a normal device using that type of IP address. There are different types of IP addresses, but that will be discussed later.

How to Use Anonymous Proxies

Anonymous proxies are easy to set up with all major browsers and operating systems. The exact method you use will depend on what type of browser you’re using, but a quick search will tell you how to set them up with your system. You can also use proxies with tools such as:

• Web scrapers
• Proxy managers
• Tools that manage SEO and social media

Why Do You Need Anonymous Proxies?

There are many reasons you might want to keep your IP address hidden from the websites you visit. Some of the most common reasons people use anonymous proxies include:

Privacy

In our increasingly data-obsessed society, it can seem like your favorite social media site knows you better than you know yourself. Websites can track your activity across the internet to piece together information about you and detect patterns that can predict your behavior. If you’d rather not have some random computer program compiling a dossier on you, anonymous proxies will protect your privacy.

Bypass censorship or geo-blocking

Some websites restrict content based on your location. Some governments censor certain information. With anonymous proxies, you can get around censorship and other geo-restrictions. You’ll need to make sure your proxy provider offers IP addresses from locations with access to the content you want to see.

Using a proxy IP address based in a different country makes the website you’re visiting think your device is located in that country, allowing you access.

Avoid targeting marketing

Most marketers will tell you that tracking your activity across the web lets them deliver product ads tailored for your interests. If you would rather avoid targeted advertising — whether because you want to make up your mind about what you like or just because you think it’s creepy or invasive for marketers to know so much about you — using anonymous proxies will thwart it.

Web scraping

With the digital-first transformation, there’s more data on the internet than ever before. Every industry uses big data to drive important business decisions, from marketing to product development. Web scraping allows you to access that data to make informed decisions. A web scraper is a software program that extracts publicly-available data from a website and exports it to a usable format.

Because many websites employ anti-scraping technology, you’ll have to use proxies with your web scraper to access the data you need. Anonymous proxies let your web scraper do its work without being detected.

Shopping

Shopping for limited-edition products can be a challenge. Some sites sell out within minutes, while others limit the number of products you can purchase. Anonymous proxies can be used to overcome both of these obstacles.

In the sneaker community, many buyers use anonymous proxies with bots to purchase coveted sneakers before they sell out and to get around buying restrictions. However, you’re not limited to only buying sneakers this way. You can use proxies to help shop for any quick-selling or limited edition product.

Brand monitoring

Tracking mentions of your brand across the internet can help you stay on top of what people are saying about your products or services. You’ll be able to put out little fires before they turn into bad publicity. You’ll also be able to wow your customers with rapid responses to their issues and complaints. In the “always online” culture, customers expect brands to respond to them within minutes.

The only cost-effective way to stay on top of every reference to your brand is with automated software and anonymous proxies. Using this method, you can interact with your customers in real-time and delight them with your customer service.

Types of Anonymous Web Proxies

There are many different types of proxies available. You don’t have to know everything about proxies, but you do need to know a few things to decide which type is best for you. Here are some of the most common types and the most important features to choose the best proxy for your needs.

Data center proxies

Data center proxies originate in data centers. They’re the cheapest type of proxies you can buy, and they’re very fast. They’re ideal for gaming or other instances where speed is your top priority.

Unfortunately, data center proxies are easily identified as coming from a data center. Since that’s not how most users access the internet, it can raise some red flags — thus putting you at a higher risk of being blocked than other options. They’re not the best choice for web scraping or other use cases where you need a lot of authority.

Rayobyte offers over 300,000 data center IP addresses across 20,000 subnets. This diversity helps you recover quickly in the event of bans. Rayobyte also offers unlimited bandwidth and free replacements if you are banned.

Residential proxies

Residential proxies are the most authoritative type of proxies you can buy. They’re issued by internet service providers (ISP). This is the type of IP address most people use to connect to the internet, which is why it has so much authority. Using a residential proxy will make you appear to be an average user. This puts you at much less risk of getting blocked or banned.

Residential proxies aren’t as fast as data center proxies. They’re also more expensive, which is their major drawback. Residential proxies must be sourced from end-users, which takes more time and effort than generating them in a data center . However, the anonymity and dependability are worth the investment. Residential proxies from Rayobyte are the best proxies you can buy.

ISP proxies

ISP proxies combine features of data center and residential proxies. They’re issued by ISPs, so they have more authority than data center proxies. However, because they are generated in data centers, they’re easier to source than residential proxies. ISP proxies are also faster than residential proxies since they’re stored in data centers.

Rayobyte partner with five trusted ISPs to bring you the best combination of speed and authority available. Working with so many trusted partners offers maximum redundancy and diversity, so you’ll have less downtime.

Static vs. rotating proxies

Another thing you’ll need to consider before you buy anonymous proxies is whether you should get a static proxy or a rotating pool of proxies.

Static proxy: A static proxy is a single proxy IP address. This is a great option if you’re trying to bypass censorship or geo-blocking, but you will be using the website normally otherwise. You just need to seem like you’re using the internet in a different geographical area, so one IP address is all you need.

Rotating proxy: Rotating proxies are changed frequently. You’ll use a pool of IP addresses and change them with each request. You’ll need rotating proxies if you’re scraping the web. Websites use anti-bot programs to automatically block the IP address of any device that exhibits bot-like behavior. Rotating proxies let you avoid these bans by using a new IP address with each request. This helps your bot mimic human behavior.

Dedicated vs. shared proxies

Shared proxies: Shared proxies are used by more than one user, while dedicated proxies are reserved for you alone. When you share proxies, you’ll use the same proxies as other people. If they’re banned from a website while using an IP address, you’ll also be banned when you use it. This is called the “bad neighbor effect.”

If too many people use the same proxies as you, it can affect your speed and performance. You may also run into security issues using the same IP address as someone else. They may be able to see your data in transit.

Dedicated proxies: Obviously, dedicated proxies don’t have these speed and security issues. However, they’re considerably more expensive. If you have a trusted proxy provider, semi-dedicated proxies can be a good compromise. These proxies are shared by only two or three users, so there aren’t nearly as many performance and security issues.

Free Anonymous Proxies

What could be better than getting anonymous proxies for free? Although it sounds fantastic, free anonymous proxies aren’t worth the risk and hassle. Here are the biggest problems with free proxies:

Performance and speed

Free proxies are available to anyone who wants to use them, so they’re frequently used for nefarious purposes. This leads to them being blocked. If you try to use a free proxy, you’re likely to find it’s already been blocked from the site you’re trying to access.

Additionally, free proxy sites are usually overloaded and sluggish. So many people are trying to use the proxy server that your speed will barely exceed a crawl, and you’ll spend much of your time waiting.

Security

In addition to exposing your data to other users sharing your proxy IP, free proxies pose additional security risks. There have been cases where bad actors have set up free proxy servers solely to download malware or steal your data. Free proxies are never worth the risk.

Final Thoughts

Anonymous proxies conceal your true IP address from the websites you visit. There are many reasons you might want to hide your IP address, including protecting your privacy, bypassing censorship, and scraping the web for data. There are many different types of proxies, but residential, data center, and ISP proxies are the most common.

Knowing what you want to use anonymous proxies for can help you figure out which type is best for your use case. Rayobyte provides the best proxies on the planet no matter which type you choose. Reach out today to see how Rayobyte can help you achieve your goals.

The information contained within this article, including information posted by official staff, guest-submitted material, message board postings, or other third-party material is presented solely for the purposes of education and furtherance of the knowledge of the reader. All trademarks used in this publication are hereby acknowledged as the property of their respective owners.