Besides protection from cybercriminals, proxy servers help you to access a library of unrestricted content online without having to worry. You also get to enjoy your privacy – mixed feelings? Most people believe privacy is an issue with proxies, and they are right to think this too. But, (yes, there is a but), this issue is only applicable to when you use free proxies. Free proxies are mostly high risk because not a lot of work is put into making them safe. So don’t be surprised if you are on a proxy server and still get expected privacy. Reason? You may be using the same free proxy has your hacker – quite ironic! So, what is the solution? The short answer is – try premium proxies. Before you get carried away, take a look at this.
What is a Proxy Server?
A proxy server is simply the middleman between a client and other servers. This ‘middleman’ basically lives to get requests from clients seeking resources from other servers. For instance, when a client connects to the proxy server, it requests for some kind of service, such as a file, connection, or other resources available from a different server. In turn, the proxy server analyses this request, and finds a way to simplify and control its complexity. You can also imagine the proxy server as a bridge, taking you from where you are to the place you want to be. Most times, when this gateway is discussed, it is described as just that – a gateway, or a bus. The truth is there is more to a proxy server than just this. While the proxy server is an intermediary, it also serves as a firewall and web filter. If you need shared network connections, and cache data to speed up common requests, don’t look too far. Also, it may make slight changes to the data you send but still get you the information you requested. A proxy server also can change your IP address, so the webserver can keep on pondering on where you are in the world! And… The best thing about the proxy server is that it provides calmness from the whole craziness of the internet. With hackers and attackers on the prowl, this provision is much needed. Although a lot of people get confused about whether to use a proxy server or VPN, this confusion will be debunked as you read on.
Why Choose a Proxy Server?
Using a proxy server has a lot of perks, although people still believe VPN is better. As said earlier, there is more to a proxy than just connecting you to your destination on the internet. Here are some reasons you should choose a proxy server;
Privacy Protection
Using a proxy server will help to keep you protected while surfing the web – even the hidden parts of it. Most people use proxy servers to surf the internet privately. With the ability to change/conceal IP addresses, your identity and personal information are private. This means the destination server is denied from knowing who made the original request. You may wonder how this works? A proxy server typically has its own IP address. So when you use it to connect to a website, it will see only the IP address of the proxy and not your IP address.
Accessing Restricted Content
Another useful thing about the proxy server is its ability to get you around location-based restricted content and give you access to blocked websites. It is quite easy to use, simply turn it on and that’s it. The only thing is you need to be sure of using a proxy server that’s in the right location. For instance, if you’re based in the UK and trying to access video content that’s blocked in your country, but accessible in the US, then you’ll need to use a US-based proxy server.
Improved Performance
One feature you can always trust with any proxy server is better and improved network performance. Proxy servers can cache the site contents. Meaning every time you log on to a website, the proxy server saves the information of that website. Upon subsequent visits to that website, the proxy server will check to see if it is the most recent copy of the site, and then send you the saved copy. For example, when hundreds of users log in to a website at the same time from the same proxy server, the server only sends one request to the site until the content is modified. This process helps the proxy server to serve the content faster.
Why Premium Proxy?
A premium server is a fast, reliable, and fully anonymous proxy server. They are stable, secure, and anonymous. Unlike the free proxy servers, which are laden with risks, premium proxies are much more reliable and efficient in function. The use of a premium proxy server saves you from the troubles of going through an entire list of a public proxy server. With a premium proxy, you will have control over its authentication, plus you can rest easy. Another thing is unlike the free proxy servers; these premium servers do not crash or shut down. You do not need to worry about getting disconnected. Reason? The servers are managed by trustworthy companies and are configured and supported by experts. So no worries here! I hope by now, you have an idea about proxy benefits. Let’s explore the following premium proxy solutions.
Bright Data Residential Proxies
Bright Data Residential Proxies are widely accepted for their ease of use, speed, flexibility, and lower cost. Unlike conventional proxies, which frequently have expensive setup costs and call for extensive programming, deploying Bright Data Residential Proxies merely takes a few simple steps and a short amount of time. They perform better than conventional proxies on a level as well. Brightdata has received numerous awards, including the 2022 G2 Industry Leader, Best Proxy Ecosystem 2021, and 2020. It uses millions of residential IPs that are all compliant and fully committed to complying with all data protection laws, including the CCPA and the new GDPR (The EU General Data Protection Regulation) (California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018). Features
The highest success rate in the industry – 99.9%.More than 2,200 patents were awarded through continuous innovation.Supports third-party software integration.Real-time network performance dashboard.
Fortune 500 corporations, non-governmental organizations, government agencies, and universities use Brightdata proxy to extract sensitive data for research and analysis to improve decision-making. It can be tried free for seven days, after which flexible pricing plans can be purchased.
Smartproxy
Access the whole pool of 40M+ rotating residential IPs in more than 195 locations worldwide and scrape freely with Smartproxy. They also offer all sorts of niceties like rotating sessions, random residential IPs, geo-targeting, sticky sessions, the automatic proxy rotator, and more.
Lime Proxies
With Lime proxies, you get to enjoy high network performance and functionality. The fully automated control panel makes it easy for you to navigate your way through. Besides, you can change your IP address anytime you want. Plus you get to add as many as 25 IPs to be authenticated for proxy usage. Lime proxies allow both IP and Username-based authentication, and you enjoy a dedicated IP. Meaning no one shares your address with you!
My IP Hide
My IP Hide is one of the trusted premium proxy servers. It has a lot of great features and got more than 75 servers in 22+ countries. You can use the built-in encrypted connections to bypass any firewall, accessing any website at any time. My IP Hide is fast and stable. More stable than the free proxy and 13 times faster than a VPN! Another thing is you can use it on any of your devices (Windows, Mac, Android, and Linux). Meaning your devices can use the same license as there is no limit on the data transfer.
Proxy-Seller
Proxy-Seller gives you reliable technical workability of proxy. All the proxies offered are considered to be extremely reliable when it comes to performance and stability. You have an option to buy IPv4 or IPv6 proxy.
Oxylabs
Oxylabs give you instant access to continually maintained residential proxies. You get to enjoy 100% anonymity on the web, with smooth, and effective human-like scraping. Oxylabs got more than 30 million IPs around the world and can be a perfect choice for the home user as well as business-like the following.
Pricing intelligenceSEO monitoringEmail delivery and protectionMarket researchAd verificationData gatheringCrawler
IPs are available in almost all countries, including China. Pay-as-you-go pricing is available for residential proxies, starting from $15 per GB.
Netnut
Premium Proxy Server for Better Performance and Privacy Scrape the web with Netnut and never get blocked. It gives you a system that will ensure that you get an identifier mapped to your IP. You can define your Static IP address using this unique identifier. Also, the server provides a unique IP per each browser session that can be integrated into any browser. Along with the dashboard access, all your usage statistics are made available in near-real time for retrieval via a simple API.
Geosurf
GeoSurf residential IPs are based on a P2P Network. This means you can harvest the web by accessing a pool of over 2 million unblocked IPs. With the inbuilt IP rotation API, you can enjoy high scope & high-performance enterprise-level activities. You can also send unlimited parallel requests through millions of 100% verified working IPs. GeoSurf also gives you detailed usage statistics for your account. Allowing you to monitor and optimize your data collection process.
Conclusion
Premium proxy is slightly expensive than VPN but considering its benefits, totally worth it! I hope the above-listed solution helps you to choose one for your requirements.
