A Virtual Private Network Explained
A Virtual Private Network is a network connection that enables you to create a secure connection to another location, thereby allowing you to appear as if you were in another place. Your computer creates an encrypted virtual tunnel to the VPN server and all of your browsings appears as if it is coming from the VPN server. All of the Internet traffic goes through this encrypted tunnel, keeping your data from being exposed to eavesdroppers between your computer and the VPN server. VPNs are set up at the operating system level, and the VPN connection captures the entire network connection of the device it is configured on. This means that VPNs will capture the traffic of every single application on your computer, from your web browser to your online games to even Windows Update running in the background. Where a VPN creates an encrypted tunnel to transfer all your internet data which keeps your activities away from snoopers, which means you get Anonymity while using the internet. It also masks your IP address with IP, DNS and WebRTC leak protection which let you access even the most restricted websites like websites in China, Netflix US, Hulu, BBC iPlayer etc Virtual Private Networks create an encrypted ‘tunnel’ between your computer and the host server, with the internet traffic going in and out of the host server. Your ISP or government can only see that you have connected to the VPN server and nothing else – your activities, IP addresses you have visited etc. are all completely hidden from them behind a minimum of 128-bit encryption.
Cons
There are tons of VPN services out there. It is almost impossible to know whether to trust the service with your data or not. Some don’t really have any form of elaborate data protection policy. If an administration organization requests such a VPN supplier to uncover logs, clients would be uncovered. It is important that you pick a quality VPN service, one that doesn’t store your information or one that interchanges logs. Preferably one that has opened its servers to independent audits. Moreover, it is essential that the VPN provider executes appropriate load adjusting and server randomization so clients dependably associate with an alternate VPN server. Look out for these when choosing a VPN solution.
A Proxy/Proxy Server Explained
A proxy server in the most basic of senses is an internet relay. A proxy, like a VPN, directs your traffic via another computer instead of your own. While there are public and private proxy servers, only private proxies, usually paid, provide any type of stability or reliability. A Proxy can only mask your real IP address and that’s all. It swaps your IP for a relevant one, say one from a certain country where the geo-restricted content you want to access is allowed. For this reason, Proxies are popular among people that just want to unblock some site. With Proxies, your internet activities are not hidden because there is no encryption, it basically just bypasses your ISP and connect you directly to the internet. Unlike VPN servers, proxy servers do not have to devote resources to encrypting all traffic that passes through them and therefore can accept simultaneous connections from a great many more users (typically tens of thousands). Proxy servers usually communicate with the internet using one of 2 different protocols; HTTP or SOCKS.
Cons
The essential intermediary conventions being used today are SOCKS and HTTP/HTTPS. SOCKS and HTTP intermediaries give no encryption, through HTTPS intermediaries offer an indistinguishable level of encryption from any SSL site. Be that as it may, intermediaries were not intended to ensure the greater part of your Internet movement, normally just the program. Moreover, numerous intermediaries pass the client’s unique IP deliver to the goal site, making them unacceptable for security or protection cognizant clients. At long last, intermediaries must be arranged independently for every application (email, program, outsider applications) and a few applications may not bolster them. With that, proxy servers are not so great for high-stakes tasks. Proxy servers only hide your IP address and act as a dumb man-in-the-middle for your Internet traffic. They don’t encrypt your traffic between your computer and the proxy server, they don’t typically strip away identifying information from your transmissions beyond the simple IP swap, and there are no additional privacy or security considerations built in.
Summary
In conclusion, proxies are good for quickly connection to another country to stream Spotify or Pandora or tune in to that foreign internet radio. When it comes to serious tasks, especially those that include sensitive information like your credit card or say anywhere you need to log in, you need a VPN.
