What is a Web Proxy / Proxy Site ?
Web Proxies, also called Proxy Sites are a user friendly way to get into proxy browsing and hiding your identity online.
These sites are usually free and supported by ads. Running a proxy site isn’t cheap so the webmasters try to recoup costs this way.
A Web Proxy or Proxy Site is really just a simple web based user interface for browsing behind an IP address that isn’t your own. Your IP address is the main way filters determine whether to allow or deny you and if your IP is blocked then using a different IP address may be all you need to trick that filter.
You could do this other ways but most users that need occasional use, are not that tech savy or just don’t want to put out the time, money and effort to try another option are quite happy with this method.
If you rely heavily on browsing with a proxy you will likely want to try one of the other two main methods such as Proxy Software or a VPN solution.
There can be some downsides to Web Proxies that should be mentioned.
One issue is that you don’t know for sure that the proxy site isn’t logging the information that is being relayed through it. It has happened before and is very concerning depending on what you are using it for.
As a general rule you are advised Not to use a web proxy for Banking or any other use that entails sensitive information going through the proxy.
A smaller issue is that not all sites will work with a web proxy. Without getting into great detail, it’s mainly because of the way the user interface has to relay the data.
Using Proxy Software or a VPN does things differently and will not have the same issues most of the time.
Some good resources for Web Proxies / Proxy Sites:
You can find lots of web proxies at the following Top Sites.
- Best Proxy Sites – http://www.bestproxysites.com
- Free Proxy Servers – http://www.topfreeproxy.com
Or you can try one from the following list. You can also just type the URL you want to go to and hit go.