An anonymous proxy, or anonymizer, serves to conceal a user’s identity, location, and other personal details to protect the user’s personal information. While anonymous proxies enhance anonymity, they might still disclose certain data to the destination web server specific to proxies.
See the top proxy service providers known for their anonymous proxy services:
Top 8 anonymous proxy service providers
| Provider | Monthly price | Traffic (GB) | PAYG | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bright Data | $500 | 138 | $4.2 | 7 days |
| Webshare | $60 | 10 | ❌ | 10 proxies free |
| Smartproxy | $7.2 | 2 | $4 | 3 days |
| Oxylabs | $45.5 | 13 | $4 | 7 days |
| Nimble | $150 | N/A | $8 | 7 days |
| NetNut | $99 | 28 | ❌ | 7 days |
| IPRoyal | $7 | 1 | ❌ | ❌ |
| Infatica | $96 | 14 | ❌ | 3-day trial for $1.99 |
| SOAX | $90 | 25 | $4 | 3-day trial for $1.99 |
Starts from*: Displays the starting monthly subscription price for residential proxies.
Both free and subscription-based anonymous proxies exist. While free proxies might offer fewer functionalities and potentially lack the reliability or security of their paid counterparts, paid anonymous proxy services.
What is an anonymous proxy?
An anonymous proxy server, also known as an anonymizer proxy, acts as an intermediary between a client and the target web source by hiding their IP addresses and other identifying information from the website they visit.
When you use anonymous proxies, your internet traffic is routed through the proxy servers. All proxy servers have the potential to function as an anonymous proxy, yet the level of proxy anonymity provided varies based on the specific proxy type utilized.
How does an anonymous proxy work?
Anonymous proxy servers act as an intermediary between your device and the target website. Here’s the step-by-step breakdown of how anonymous proxies work (see figure 1):
- Forward request: When the client makes a web request, it first goes to the anonymous proxy instead of directly reaching the target site.
- Mask IP address: The original IP address is masked by the proxy server.
- Sends the request: Once the request is intercepted, the proxy server forwards your request to the intended site.
- Receives the required data: The destination server sends the requested resource back to the proxy.
- Forwards to the client: The anonymous proxy sends the provided information back to the client, their real IP address remains hidden.
Figure 1: Explaining how a proxy server acts as an intermediary between a client and the destination
3 levels of proxy anonymity
The level of anonymity provided by proxy servers varies, and it is determined by how the proxy interacts with the client and the destination website. Proxies can be classified by their anonymity level as:
1. Transparent proxies
Transparent proxies offer the lowest level of anonymity, do not hide or alter your IP address. They can be used for administrative control over the internet usage within an organization rather than for online privacy. Unlike anonymous or high-anonymity proxies, transparent proxies do not protect the anonymity of individual users.
2. Anonymous proxies
Anonymous proxies offer a high level of anonymity by concealing the user’s IP address, similar to elite proxies, but they may disclose certain details to the target server.
Specifically, they might insert proxy-specific headers into the data they send, which can alert destination servers to the fact that the incoming requests are being routed through a proxy. This could potentially lead to those requests being singled out or blocked based on the server’s policy towards proxy traffic.
3. Elite proxies (high anonymity proxies)
Elite proxies offer the highest level of privacy and anonymity. They conceal your actual IP address and ensure that the target website you visit cannot detect that a proxy is being used.
Such proxies do not send any headers that could include personally identifiable information. These proxies are suitable for use cases that require maximum security and privacy such as large-scale web scraping activities when simultaneous action is needed from multiple IP addresses .
Anonymizers can also be classified using two criteria: the type of internet traffic they handle and the level of anonymity they give.
- Protocol Specific Anonymizers: These anonymizers use a certain sort of internet protocol, such as:
- HTTP Proxy: intercepts HTTP requests and redirects them to a different IP address. Only applies to online browsing (HTTP traffic).
- HTTPS Proxy (Secure HTTP Proxy): Changes a user’s IP address and encrypts data using Transport Layer Security (TLS).
- SOCKS Proxy (SOCKet Secure Proxy): More versatile than HTTP/HTTPS proxies and supports UDP (see figure 2).
Figure 2: Showing how a SOCKS proxy server process the traffic between a client and the target website
- Protocol-Independent Anonymizers: These anonymizers function across all protocols, anonymizing all internet data, including VPN services
Why should you consider using anonymous proxies?
Hiding your actual IP address using anonymous proxies makes it more difficult for websites to track your online activities. The advantages of using anonymous proxies include:
- Bypass geo-blocking: Hide your real IP address and assign a new one from a different location, making it appear as if you’re accessing online content from within the region where it’s available.
- Avoid targeted advertising & ad frauds: Anonymous proxies add an extra layer of protection against ad frauds by masking the origin of web requests. This makes it more challenging for advertisers to deliver targeted marketing ads based on your browsing activities.
- Avoid identity theft: Make it difficult for third parties to track your online activities and limit how much personal data is exposed to the target website.
Common use cases of anonymous proxies
- Web scraping: It is important to choose a proxy provider that is known for reliable proxies to ensure the proxies have good speed. For instance, private proxy servers enable users to maintain the efficiency of scraping activities by providing exclusive server access to either an individual user or a select group of users.
- Marketing and SEO: SEO professionals leverage anonymous proxies to monitor and analyze search engine rankings across various geographic locations.
- E-commerce and price comparison: You can integrate anonymous proxies with your web scraping tool to access online stores and platforms from different geographic locations. This enables businesses to understand how dynamic pricing strategies are applied by e-commerce websites based on location.
How to solve “anonymous proxy detected” error
The “Anonymous Proxy Detected, Click Here” message means that the website you’re trying to reach out to has identified your use of a proxy connection. Different reasons can cause this such as exposure of your actual IP address, excessive requests from the same proxy, or using a free proxy.
To solve this issue, first close the proxy-dependent applications and clear your browser’s cache and cookies to remove stored data that may cause proxy detection. You can also implement proxy rotation to ensure that each of your connection requests appears to come from a different IP address.
FAQs about anonymous proxies
How can I set up an anonymous proxy?
Windows:
To open Windows Settings, press Win + I.
Navigate to Network & Internet > Proxy.
Toggle the manual proxy configuration option.
Enter the proxy server IP and port.
Click the Save button.
MacOS
Navigate to System Settings.
After selecting Wi-Fi, click Details next to your connected network.
Navigate to the Proxy tab.
Select the correct proxy type (HTTP/HTTPS or SOCKS).
Enter the proxy server IP and port.
Click OK, and then Apply.
For detailed steps of proxy configuration on macOS.
iOS (iPhone / iPad)
Access Settings > Wi-Fi.
Tap the “i” icon next to your current network.
Click Configure Proxy > Manual.
Enter the proxy server IP and port.
For detailed information check out: how to configure iPhone proxy settings a proxy server on your iPhone or iPad.
Android
Settings > Wi-Fi.
Tap on your linked network and then choose Modify network.
Expand Advanced Settings > Proxy > Manual.
Enter the proxy server IP and port.
Is an anonymous proxy enough for online security?
Proxies mask users’ real IP addresses and assign them an IP address from their proxy pool, which can be residential, datacenter, or ISP, but they do not provide encryption, therefore internet traffic remains visible to ISPs.
What’s the difference between an anonymous proxy and a VPN?
Users can secure their internet privacy by using an anonymous proxy or a VPN (Virtual Private Network). An anonymous proxy replaces the user’s true IP with the proxy’s IP. VPNs route traffic through a remote server, concealing the IP address and encrypting all traffic.
Are free anonymous proxies safe?
Free anonymous proxies are generally not safe, and they come with a number of risks, including the ability for free proxy providers to log user data and the lack of transparency around how they source their proxy pool. However, some reliable proxy companies offer limited free plans while maintaining anonymity.
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