Cybersecurity is becoming a major issue these days. Prying eyes and hackers are getting clever and malicious to access our personal information and data. This situation is getting worse day by day and every other day or week we see information about data leaks, encryption, leaks, and other digital privacy problems.
For protection and security of data and internet traffic activities and to use the internet safely without any fear or worry, users, use VPN or proxy services. These two methods are best known for keeping identity anonymous and hiding IP addresses, however, the working capacity of the two technologies differs from each other.
Proxy Vs VPN
A proxy is a gateway to the software used. For example, the Internet Service Provider is the gateway to the Internet. Similarly, the proxy also works the same way. There are four types of proxies and (aside from the SSH proxy) they are unencrypted, but traffic does not reach the network.
Unlike the proxy service, a VPN can protect your entire internet connection as soon as you connect to it. A VPN smartly and effectively hides your use of almost everything from uTorrent to email to web browsing by creating a virtual network on our servers to redirect all traffic data.
Proxy and VPN connect you to a remote computer. So you might think they are more or less the same thing, but the answer is NO. Proxy and VPN allow you to connect to the internet as if you were connecting from another location. But the scope and level of privacy, encryption, and performance of desired activity are different in the two tools.
Differences Between VPN and Proxy
Let’s take a look at the differences between VPN and Proxy and find out which is the best and safest option to use.
What is a ‘’Proxy Service’’?
A proxy server is therefore an intermediary and a gateway in the flow of data on Internet traffic; Internet activities seem to come from another place. For example, you are physically present in Washington DC and want to connect to a website for which there is a geo-restriction for people residing in the UK. To deal with this situation, you can connect to the proxy server located in the UK and then connect to this website. This way, your web browser traffic appears to be coming from distant computers and not yours.
How does a ‘’Proxy’’ works?
A proxy server works as a web filter. Web proxy settings are applied to the browser of your choice; it can be Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or any other alternative. Therefore, a remote server facilitates web browsing. While using a proxy server, it looks like you are browsing from an unknown server, but this only applies when browsing the internet
The IP address will be changed in your browser. your choice. However, this change does not apply to your entire Internet connection. Proxy services are the best option for low-risk activities like watching region-restricted YouTube videos, simply bypassing content filters, and avoiding IP-based restrictions on services.
The proxy service is a very useful technique to unblock any content but still not a great option for boosting a person’s online security.
Drawbacks of Proxy
The proxy server does not work well for high-risk activities. They only hide the IP address and do not encrypt internet traffic data. This is because proxies are not designed to secure and secure all internet traffic. Many proxies pass the target site user’s IP address, which makes them unsafe and inappropriate for security and privacy-conscious users. Moreover, the proxies are organized separately for each application, such as email, browsers and third-party applications. However, there are some applications that proxies do not support.
The biggest disadvantage of proxy service is that if ISP, legal authorities, or hackers access your data, they can easily spy on your traffic data. Moreover, sometimes specific activities like malicious Flash or JavaScript present in the web browser can reveal your true identity. This makes proxy servers unsafe and inappropriate for any acute and important activity.
What is a VPN?
VPN stands for “Virtual Private Network” and describes the opportunity to establish a protected network connection when using public networks. VPNs encrypt your internet traffic and disguise your online identity. This makes it more difficult for third parties to track your activities online and steal data. The encryption takes place in real-time.
How does a VPN work?
A VPN hides your IP address by letting the network redirect it through a specially configured remote server run by a VPN host. This means that if you surf online with a VPN, the VPN server becomes the source of your data. This means your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and other third parties cannot see which websites you visit or what data you send and receive online. Even if someone were to get their hands on your data, it would be useless.
The public/ free Wi-Fi’s are a big threat to internet privacy. Although now there are ways by which you can get free Wi-Fi anywhere you go, it imposes a great threat to your security. However, if you use a good VPN service so, you don’t need to worry about your traffic privacy. A VPN encrypts the traffic data and hides the IP address effectively.
Drawbacks of VPN
Although VPN is a very good choice when it comes to data encryption, there are also some drawbacks to this service. When you run a VPN, you need good hardware, such as a good VPN service, and usually, not all good VPN services are free. Moreover, VPN service chews both the processing power and bandwidth because of the operating cost introduced by the encryption protocols. The better the VPN protocol and remote hardware will be, the less operating cost will be.
Security Differences between VPN and PROXY
The differences mentioned below will give you a clearer concept about the differences between proxy and VPN:
Proxy
- It does not offer encryption security.
- It does not provide any automatic setup.
- It is difficult to use.
- A proxy translates the source IP address into something new.
- A proxy hides the IP address of the user.
- A proxy often keeps detailed user log.
VPN
- It offers encryption security.
- It provides automatic setup for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS.
- By just making a VPN account you can easily use it.
- A VPN translates the source IP address into a new one which is provided by the VPN.
- VPN hides real IP and encrypts the traffic data too.
- VPNs provide the facility of being log-less.
Which is more secure to use?
Both proxy and VPN allow the user to access the web from a different location, but VPN is safer to use than a proxy. VPN is a good option for those who want to encrypt their connection on public WiFi networks. While only the proxy hides the IP address. VPNs give the user more location options. Therefore, a user has to worry about location or location and can browse the internet without any problem.
There are many ways to indicate that a VPN is good and excellent compared to a proxy server. While both services effectively hide the user’s IP address and protect it from prying eyes, the added features of VPN make it a superior, safe, secure, and private option to the proxy server.
