Proxy V/S VPN

Proxy and VPN masks our IP address to keep our identity when we’re in online. Both proxy and VPN are used for same purposes but it differs in their working principle and also they have their own ups and downs. Let’s look into their working principle and characterestics.

What is Proxy?

A proxy acts as a gateway which the function of this gateway is anonymous web browsing. The working principle of proxy is, when connected to a proxy server the user’s public IP will be hidden and the proxy server’s IP address will be the one which interacts with the internet. This means, the proxy server assigns a public IP which is used for accessing the internet.

The benefits of Proxy is it hides the IP address, location will not be disclosed, filtering can be done in incoming and outgoing requests etc. and the disadvantage will be the data sending via the proxy server can’t be encrypted. That means, the private data is vulnerable. Proxy servers are low cost solutions and also it is a low level of security. The proxy can modify the traffic before it gets to the internet.

What is VPN?

VPN stands for Virtual Private Network and it is initially created for online security. What VPN does is, it sends our traffic through a remote server and creates a private connection. This means VPN hides the identity and location of the user. The VPN client on our computer establishes a secure tunnel with the VPN server.

The benefits of using VPN is anonymous browsing, securing network, torrenting and also it encrypts data and packets. Which means the user data is totally encrypted and provides high level of security. VPN is a high cost solution and it is also compatible with all OS.