Despite technological advancements, cyber-attacks have been a menace for so long. Every year, new cyber security laws and measures are suggested and implemented, yet the risk remains. Most internet users are unaware of one simple way of enhancing their online security—proxies. Proxies have revolutionized the digital landscape, and with good reason.
Significance of Proxies in Enhancing Online Safety
Your safety while surfing the internet is paramount, and proxies have become an asset in this regard. Check out a few reasons why they have become beloved by savvy internet users.
Prevents Tracking by Masking IP Address
Despite the many devices accessing the internet, yours can be easily identifiable using your IP address. Due to the numerous devices accessing the internet, an IP address enables differentiation.
Every time you visit the internet, you leave traces of evidence that you visited a certain website. Some employers can be snoopy and want to ensure that you are using the company resources in productive activities. In such a case, they track your online activity using your work computer, and it can land you in trouble if you have been spending company hours inefficiently. On the other hand, malicious parties want a quick payday. They will use your IP address to track your activities online. Worse still, they may steal your data and sell it to the highest bidder.
You can mask your IP address with residential or datacenter proxies. These tools help you remain anonymous whenever you browse the internet. The advantage of mobile proxies is that web servers will not suspect you of hiding your online activity. That’s because you get a mobile IP address, making it appear as if you are connecting to the internet through a mobile data network.
Acts as a Gatekeeper to Control Access
No house is built without a door to prevent unwanted guests from walking in whenever they please. Imagine your device allowing anyone who wants to access the sites you visit. What a nightmare that would be. Of course, such people have ill intent towards you which is why you keep hearing of malware being spread across devices. Cybercriminals spread malicious software through phishing – that’s one of the many ways. In such cases, the attacker sends emails with a malicious link. Victims then click the link, thereby downloading malware into their devices. Alternatively, attackers could use man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks that intercept data transmitted between two parties.
Which links are good to click, and which could potentially be malware? Eliminate the anxiety of wondering by utilizing proxies. By using a proxy firewall, you stay safe because it handles the internet traffic to ensure that no malicious party gains access to your device. A proxy firewall is a proxy server that serves the function of blocking out harmful traffic while also allowing you to bypass blocks that have been set up to prevent your access to certain websites.
Provides Load Balance to Prevent DDOS Attacks
There is only so much your device can handle at a go. After all, it isn’t a supernatural power. So, it’s normal for it to get overwhelmed at times. Hackers know this and use it to their advantage by launching a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. This attack is the work of a botnet (a group of bots). The hackers use each bot to send requests to the targeted IP address. Since there are many bots, they overwhelm the server, resulting in your device being denied service because distinguishing normal traffic from bot traffic is difficult.
A DDoS interrupts regular online traffic by overloading the infrastructure with a flood of requests. Just like traffic on the highway prevents you from getting to your destination in time, a DDoS creates a jam on the internet infrastructure, thereby preventing your regular traffic from getting to the intended destination.
You can prevent this attack by setting up a Reverse Proxy Server, which allows you to set the maximum number of requests your device can handle within a particular time. Of course, this will depend on your regular traffic. Once the reverse proxy is set up, no traffic can get to your site once the time span allowed expires, thereby preventing any attacks.
Parting Shot
Without a doubt, a proxy benefits businesses. Without it, operators are exposing themselves to the risks of cyber-attacks and identity and data theft. Why not begin the journey to enhanced online security at a reasonable price and enjoy unlimited bandwidth with 99.9% uptime? Start by researching the various proxy providers available and boost your security today.
