Firewalls can be used to control your access to the Internet. They can also control the Internet access to you. Firewalls are in the middle, deciding which sites you can see, and which sites can deliver information to you. This can work to your advantage, keeping you safe from harmful malware, perverted sites, and other stuff that’s just unhealthy for your computer or phone. It can be frustrating however, when you don’t have control over the firewall settings, and you’re blocked from your favorite sites. Proxies can get you around firewalls.
Instead of connecting to a websites through a firewall, a proxy is like detour. Its like when you were a kid and you asked your mom if you could have ice cream before dinner. With a disappointed look on your face, you stomped away, and then had the bright idea to ask Dad, who of course said yes, and gave you the ice cream. Your mom is the firewall. Facebook is the ice cream Your Dad is the proxy.
When firewalls block you from sites you want to access, you just redirect your traffic to a proxy. Proxies, accessible from many users on the Internet, store information from thousands of websites. If you request a site that is stored, you get the cached version delivered to your laptop/phone. If there is nothing to give you, the proxy will take your IP data off of the request, and fetch the site for you. I’m sure its a lot more technical than that, but as far as we’re concerned, that’s the basics of how a proxy works.
Depending on the type of network you’re on, you may find that some proxy IPs are blocked. Proxies can be uses as “open proxies”, wherein you find the IP address or a proxy server and make your browser reroute your traffic through this IP manually, or “web based proxies”, which is a website set up so that you just have to type the blocked URL into the site, and it will redirect your to the proxy server.
As far as an anti-firewall proxy goes, I prefer to use a premium service because
1. More bandwidth = faster connection
2. Secure servers = no spam risk
3. Monthly fees means = no annoying adverts
Test out some free options, and if you find that you’re wasting a lot of time looking for IPs and proxy websites because you frequently need to bypass firewalls, then a premium service may be for you.