Change Ip Address Proxy
What is a Proxy Server and How Does it Work? – Varonis
The actual nuts and bolts of how the internet works are not something people often stop to consider. The problem with that is the inherent danger of data security breaches and identity theft that come along with the cute dog pictures, 24-hour news updates, and great deals online.
But what actually happens when you browse the web? You might be using a proxy server at your office, on a Virtual Private Network (VPN) or you could be one of the more tech-savvy who always use a proxy server of some kind or another.
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What’s a Proxy Server?
A proxy server is any machine that translates traffic between networks or protocols. It’s an intermediary server separating end-user clients from the destinations that they browse. Proxy servers provide varying levels of functionality, security, and privacy depending on your use case, needs, or company policy.
If you’re using a proxy server, traffic flows through the proxy server on its way to the address you requested. The request then comes back through that same proxy server (there are exceptions to this rule), and then the proxy server forwards the data received from the website to you.
If that’s all it does, why bother with a proxy server? Why not just go straight from to the website and back?
Modern proxy servers do much more than forward web requests, all in the name of data security and network performance. Proxy servers act as a firewall and web filter, provide shared network connections, and cache data to speed up common requests. A good proxy server keeps users and the internal network protected from the bad stuff that lives out in the wild internet. Lastly, proxy servers can provide a high level of privacy.
How Does a Proxy Server Operate?
Every computer on the internet needs to have a unique Internet Protocol (IP) Address. Think of this IP address as your computer’s street address. Just as the post office knows to deliver your mail to your street address, the internet knows how to send the correct data to the correct computer by the IP address.
A proxy server is basically a computer on the internet with its own IP address that your computer knows. When you send a web request, your request goes to the proxy server first. The proxy server then makes your web request on your behalf, collects the response from the web server, and forwards you the web page data so you can see the page in your browser.
When the proxy server forwards your web requests, it can make changes to the data you send and still get you the information that you expect to see. A proxy server can change your IP address, so the web server doesn’t know exactly where you are in the world. It can encrypt your data, so your data is unreadable in transit. And lastly, a proxy server can block access to certain web pages, based on IP address.
What are Forward Proxies
A forward proxy server sits between the client and an external network. It evaluates the outbound requests and takes action on them before relaying that request to the external resource.
Most proxy services that you’re likely to encounter are forward proxies. Virtual Private Networks and Web content filters are both examples of forward proxies.
What are Reverse Proxies
A reverse proxy server sits between a network and multiple other internal resources. A large website might have dozens of servers that collectively serve requests from a single domain. To accomplish that, client requests would resolve to a machine that would act as a load balancer. The load balancer would then proxy that traffic back to the individual servers.
Some popular open source reverse proxies are:
Varnish
Squid
Why Should You Use a Proxy Server?
There are several reasons organizations and individuals use a proxy server.
To control internet usage of employees and children: Organizations and parents set up proxy servers to control and monitor how their employees or kids use the internet. Most organizations don’t want you looking at specific websites on company time, and they can configure the proxy server to deny access to specific sites, instead redirecting you with a nice note asking you to refrain from looking at said sites on the company network. They can also monitor and log all web requests, so even though they might not block the site, they know how much time you spend cyberloafing.
Bandwidth savings and improved speeds: Organizations can also get better overall network performance with a good proxy server. Proxy servers can cache (save a copy of the website locally) popular websites – so when you ask for, the proxy server will check to see if it has the most recent copy of the site, and then send you the saved copy. What this means is that when hundreds of people hit at the same time from the same proxy server, the proxy server only sends one request to This saves bandwidth for the company and improves the network performance.
Privacy benefits: Individuals and organizations alike use proxy servers to browse the internet more privately. Some proxy servers will change the IP address and other identifying information the web request contains. This means the destination server doesn’t know who actually made the original request, which helps keeps your personal information and browsing habits more private.
Improved security: Proxy servers provide security benefits on top of the privacy benefits. You can configure your proxy server to encrypt your web requests to keep prying eyes from reading your transactions. You can also prevent known malware sites from any access through the proxy server. Additionally, organizations can couple their proxy server with a Virtual Private Network (VPN), so remote users always access the internet through the company proxy. A VPN is a direct connection to the company network that companies provide to external or remote users. By using a VPN, the company can control and verify that their users have access to the resources (email, internal data) they need, while also providing a secure connection for the user to protect the company data.
Get access to blocked resources: Proxy servers allow users to circumvent content restrictions imposed by companies or governments. Is the local sportsball team’s game blacked out online? Log into a proxy server on the other side of the country and watch from there. The proxy server makes it look like you are in California, but you actually live in North Carolina. Several governments around the world closely monitor and restrict access to the internet, and proxy servers offer their citizens access to an uncensored internet.
Now that you have an idea about why organizations and individuals use a proxy server, take a look at the risks below.
Proxy Server Risks
You do need to be cautious when you choose a proxy server: a few common risks can negate any of the potential benefits:
Free proxy server risks
You know the old saying “you get what you pay for? ” Well, using one of the many free proxy server services can be quite risky, even the services using ad-based revenue models.
Free usually means they aren’t investing heavily in backend hardware or encryption. You’ll likely see performance issues and potential data security issues. If you ever find a completely “free” proxy server, tread very carefully. Some of those are just looking to steal your credit card numbers.
Browsing history log
The proxy server has your original IP address and web request information possibly unencrypted, saved locally. Make sure to check if your proxy server logs and saves that data – and what kind of retention or law enforcement cooperation policies they follow.
If you expect to use a proxy server for privacy, but the vendor is just logging and selling your data you might not be receiving the expected value for the service.
No encryption
If you use a proxy server without encryption, you might as well not use a proxy server. No encryption means you are sending your requests as plain text. Anyone who is listening will be able to pull usernames and passwords and account information really easily. Make sure whatever proxy server you use provides full encryption capability.
Types of Proxy Servers
Not all proxy servers work the same way. It’s important to understand exactly what functionality you’re getting from the proxy server, and ensure that the proxy server meets your use case.
Transparent Proxy
A transparent proxy tells websites that it is a proxy server and it will still pass along your IP address, identifying you to the web server. Businesses, public libraries, and schools often use transparent proxies for content filtering: they’re easy to set up both client and server side.
Anonymous Proxy
An anonymous proxy will identify itself as a proxy, but it won’t pass your IP address to the website – this helps prevent identity theft and keep your browsing habits private. They can also prevent a website from serving you targeted marketing content based on your location. For example, if knows you live in Raleigh, NC, they will show you news stories they feel are relevant to Raleigh, NC. Browsing anonymously will prevent a website from using some ad targeting techniques, but is not a 100% guarantee.
Distorting proxy
A distorting proxy server passes along a false IP address for you while identifying itself as a proxy. This serves similar purposes as the anonymous proxy, but by passing a false IP address, you can appear to be from a different location to get around content restrictions.
High Anonymity proxy
High Anonymity proxy servers periodically change the IP address they present to the web server, making it very difficult to keep track of what traffic belongs to who. High anonymity proxies, like the TOR Network, is the most private and secure way to read the internet.
Proxy servers are a hot item in the news these days with the controversies around Net Neutrality and censorship. By removing net neutrality protections in the United States, Internet Service Providers (ISP) are now able to control your bandwidth and internet traffic. ISPs can potentially tell you what sites you can and cannot see. While there’s a great amount of uncertainty around what is going to happen with Net Neutrality, it’s possible that proxy servers will provide some ability to work around an ISPs restrictions.
Varonis analyzes data from proxy servers to protect you from data breaches and cyber attacks. The addition of proxy data gives more context to better analyze user behavior trends for abnormalities. You can get an alert on that suspicious activity with actionable intelligence to investigate and deal with the incident.
For example, a user accessing GDPR data might not be significant on its own. But if they access GDPR data and then try to upload it to an external website, it could be an exfiltration attempt and potential data breach. Without the context provided by file system monitoring, proxy monitoring, and Varonis threat models, you might see these events in a vacuum and not realize you need to prevent a data breach.
Get a 1:1 demo to see these threat models in action – and see what your proxy data could be telling you.
How to Change Your IP Address on a Computer or Phone – Business Insider
You can change your IP address to troubleshoot internet access issues.
Alys Tomlinson/Getty Images
You can change your local IP address from the network settings controls menu on a PC, Mac, or phone.
Your public IP address can be changed by resetting your router or connecting to a VPN.
You might need to change your IP address for technical or security reasons.
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Your computer, like every device that connects to the internet, has an IP (Internet Protocol) address. It’s a series of numbers interspersed with decimal points (for example, “198. 169. 0. 101”), and acts like a home address that identifies where other devices can find your computer. It’s rare that you need to know your computer’s
IP address, but should you need it, it’s easy to find (for details, see our articles on how to find the IP address for Windows or the IP address on a Mac)’s everything to know about changing both your local and public IP addresses.
How to change your public IP addressNo matter what kind of computer you have — Windows or Mac — it’s pretty easy to change your public IP public IP address is usually set by your internet service provider (ISP), and you can’t choose it yourself. However, you can “coax” it to change in any of several different ways:Change your network or location: Your public IP address will change based on where and how you connect to the internet. If you have a phone with LTE, for example, turning off Wi-Fi so it uses that LTE signal will compel it to use a different IP address. You can also connect to a different Wi-Fi your internet modem: When you reboot the modem (turn it off, wait two to three minutes, then turn it back on) it’ll refresh all the IP addresses on the network. Connect with a VPN: A VPN (Virtual Private Network) hides your public IP address, and connects you to a server in a different location with a different IP address. When you use a VPN, you don’t get to choose the IP address directly, but you can usually choose what geographic region you want to appear to come from, which will determine what IP addresses the VPN software will use to identify you. If all else fails, contact your ISP and ask them to change your IP address. They might not be able to do it, but there’s no harm in asking.
How to change your local IP address in Windows1. Click the Start button and then click “Settings. “2. Click “Network & Internet. ”
You can change your local IP address in Settings.
Dave Johnson/Insider
3. In the navigation pane on the left, click “Wi-Fi” and then click the name of your Wi-Fi network. If you’re connected with an Ethernet cable, select “Ethernet. ”
Select your network to change the IP address.
4. On the details page for your Wi-Fi network, scroll down to the IP settings section and click “Edit. ” With Ethernet, click “Properties. “5. Finally, in the Edit IP settings dialog box, click “Automatic (DHCP)” and choose “Manual. ” Then turn on IPv4 by swiping the button to the right and enter the details of the new IP address. Click “Save. ”
Change the IP setting from automatic to manual.
How to change your local IP address on a Mac1. In the Apple menu, click “System Preferences. Click “Network. ”
Open the network settings in System Preferences.
3. In the pane on the left, select the network you’re connected to, and then click “Advanced” at the bottom right of the window.
After selecting your network, go to the Advanced settings.
4. Click the “TCP/IP” tab at the top. 5. In the Configure using IPv4 section, click “Using DHCP” and then choose “Manually. ”
You need to switch from DHCP (which is the automatic mode) to select the IP address manually.
6. Finally, enter the details of the new IP address. Click “OK. ”
How to change the local IP address on a mobile deviceLike any internet-connected device, your phone has its own IP address. If you have a compelling reason to, you can change your IP address for your phone as both iPhone and Android, you can customize the IP address from the Wi-Fi settings page. For step-by-step details on how to do this, see our articles “How to change the IP address on your iPhone” and “How to change the IP address on an Android phone. ”
Your phone’s internet works just the same as your laptop’s.
Kittichai Boonpong;EyeEm/Getty Images
Dave Johnson
Freelance Writer
Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he’s also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider.
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Should You be Using VPN in India? Understanding its Laws and Privacy
While there are no laws that ban the use of virtual private networks in India, users should be judicious in how such services are Last Updated:February 20, 2020, 01:51 ISTFOLLOW US ON:FacebookTwitterInstagramTelegramGoogle NewsVPN, which stands for Virtual Private Network, is a rather common tool that is used by millions of users across the world. For many, VPNs are seen as effective tools to safely communicate and transfer files on the internet, and in some cases, as a workaround to location specific restriction to information imposed for specific reasons. While VPNs remain effective enterprise tools to enable remote collaboration on sensitive files, the public use of VPNs have often come across controversial scrutiny.
Benefits of using VPNs in India
Like other parts of the world, Indians often put VPNs to use for a variety of purposes. Put simply, a VPN masks your traffic to make it look like your IP address, or your location, is based elsewhere. Now, given the nature of this tool, it is often misconstrued that using a VPN is directly related to illegal activities. In truth, using a VPN has far greater implications than simply bypassing location restrictions, such as accessing websites that are banned for a specific area.
With today’s tense climate of cyber security, the biggest advantage provided by a VPN is keeping you secure as you browse online. Most VPNs that are worth their salt not only anonymise your actual internet address, but also offer industry standard 256-bit AES encryption to secure you from anyone tracking your online activity. This can be absolutely critical in helping you protect your data, especially during financial transactions. While it is not absolutely unbreakable, it is still exponentially safer to use a secure network to make your transactions, so that your passwords, card details and other such sensitive elements are not stolen.
Furthermore, using a VPN can let you access region-specific websites that may be legal, but not accessible in your country. This can help you read a wider selection of articles from publications across the web, or even view content that has been made elsewhere.
Is it legal?
With such benefits at hand, it is absolutely crucial to note that the simple activity of using a VPN is not illegal in India. In fact, there are absolutely no laws around using a VPN in India, so as long as you are using a VPN for no illegal activities, there should be nothing for you to worry about.
That said, the reason why VPNs get such a bad reputation is for their use in activities that are deemed illegal in India. The biggest and most common use case here lies in accessing content blacklisted by the Indian government (such as pornography), or torrent sites that facilitate the distribution of pirated content. The latter is the most common case of prosecution, and it is copyright infringement and creation of pirated content, and not the use of VPN, that can land you in legal trouble.
What are the charges?
As a result, if you are tracked down while using a website that lets you view, download and distribute content that is illegally uploaded (i. e. hosted online without paying due royalties to the creator), the Indian government may prosecute you under Sections 63, 63A, 65 and 65A of the Copyright Act, 1957 under the Constitution of India. If you are caught downloading an unauthorised copy of a movie, or streaming it from a website that hosts it illegally, then you may be subjected to legal prosecution amounting to up to three years of imprisonment, and a penalty of up to Rs 3, 00, 000.
As a result, you as a user of the internet in India are completely in the clear to use a VPN service, and doing so is in fact recommendable given the risks of malware and ransomware floating around across various parts of the internet. However, it is important for users to exercise their judgement, and avoid accessing any website or content that can amount to copyright infringement by the definition of the internet in India.
Frequently Asked Questions about change ip address proxy
Does a proxy server change your IP address?
A proxy server can change your IP address, so the web server doesn’t know exactly where you are in the world. It can encrypt your data, so your data is unreadable in transit.May 7, 2021
Can you change IP address?
Like any internet-connected device, your phone has its own IP address. If you have a compelling reason to, you can change your IP address for your phone as well. For both iPhone and Android, you can customize the IP address from the Wi-Fi settings page.May 10, 2021
Is changing proxy illegal?
Is it legal? … In fact, there are absolutely no laws around using a VPN in India, so as long as you are using a VPN for no illegal activities, there should be nothing for you to worry about.Feb 20, 2020
