Proxy Server FAQs
The following are the most frequently asked questions about proxy servers.
1. What is a proxy server?
A proxy server acts as a intermediary for requests from client systems that are seeking resources from remote servers such as remotely hosted websites. For example: a client could be your system which is trying to open a remote website. Your client will place the request with the proxy server and the proxy server will request the website on your behalf. The remote system doesn't know about your existence and thinks that it's the proxy server which is the client.
2. Do I need to use proxy server?
It depends! Browsing the Internet using an anonymous proxy server helps you hide your IP address and inturn even your identity. Browsing with proxy servers can help you access the sites that are usually blocked in the offices or colleges.
3. What is an anonymous proxy server?
An anonymous proxy server can anonymize web surfing. It can hide your IP address such that the remote system will not know if you are requesting the resources.
4. Can I send anonymous emails using proxy servers with my mail service?
Yes, you can send anoymous emails using a proxy server. Remember that when you login to a mail server such as GMail or Yahoo! Mail, a secured connection (HTTPS) is established between your system and the mail server and when you connect using a free proxy server, you will have to look for a proxy server that supports secured connections. Otherwise, the mail server can detect your IP address easily and the emails that you will send will not be anonymous.
5. Some of the recently accessed proxy servers don't work any longer. Why?
Various organizations keep hunting for proxy servers and block them on their proxy server. Otherwise also when a proxy server becomes famous and is blocked on many networks, the owner of the proxy server turns it off and start with a brand new name and IP address. If the proxy server you had been using earlier doesn't work any longer, you may want to search for new free proxy site.