Here are the Differences between VPN and Proxy
There are many people who believe that VPN and proxy is the same thing, but those who have experience with these services know that they are not. Internet users today are witnessing an increased number of concerns related to the use of the Internet. Some people are worried about their online privacy while others are frustrated because they cannot access certain websites and platforms because of their geographic location. What is even worse, the list is growing. The truth is that both VPN and proxy can be used when we are facing these concerns, but as we said before, people don’t know how and when to use each of these solutions.
That’s why; we have decided to provide a detailed comparison of these two solutions.
An introduction to VPN
A VPN or Virtual private Network is a more complex tool compared to proxy. With the help of a VPN you can avoid any geo-restrictions, but you can also improve your online privacy and anonymity. VPN provides a safe tunnel through special protocols that were once available only to a limited number of organizations (mostly government agencies). This virtual tunnel is masking your IP and provides a completely new one. In addition, a VPN relies on bullet-proof encryption in order to mask the traffic that goes through the servers.
An introduction to proxy
A proxy is establishing a bridge between the users and the Internet with the help of its servers. Once you are connected to a proxy server you will obtain that IP address and the websites will read that address. This is a simple way to get rid of the geo-restrictions, but the traffic that goes through these servers is not encrypted and this practice can easily result in identity theft or scam. Proxy servers use only two simple protocols – SOCKS or HTTP.
Now let’s check the head-to-head comparison – VPN vs Proxy.
Privacy
As previously mentioned, in case you are using a proxy server, any individual that has some knowledge in IT can intercept and interrupt your private information. So, you cannot really expect to get good online privacy when using a proxy. On the other hand, a VPN provides complete encryption of data and it is virtually impossible for someone to intercept your data. Even your internet provider won’t know what you are doing on the Internet.
Security
When it comes to security, proxy provides low-level security. Non-SSL connections are very insecure and only by using SSL connections (which is rare in proxy servers) you can expect a certain level of encryption. A VPN provides excellent encryption that can reach even 256-bit. Once you connect on the VPN, your online activity is secure.
Internet freedom
Proxy can help you only with specific geo-restrictions and you can expect to get access everywhere. A VPN can help you access any website, service or platform from any place in the world. This is a great solution for people who live in countries where the internet is censored.
Internet speed
Proxy is a solution that can be used by many people at once. This means that the servers can become overloaded which will significantly affect the speed of your connection. In most cases, it is impossible to use a proxy if you want to stream a video. VPN doesn’t affect the speed of your internet connection and even if it does, this is something that is barely noticeable. You can enjoy streaming media and do whatever you want on the Internet.
Reliability
Proxy is here to help you bypass only some geo-restricted websites and online locations and doesn’t come with any security. In addition, it is not unusual to experience connection failure which can be very frustrating. According to the vast majority of experts, VPN is the tool when it comes to online security, freedom and privacy. You can completely rely on this service as long as you use a good VPN service provider like zoogvpn.
Compatibility
Most proxy solutions can be used only in certain browsers and you need to check this every time you want to use one. VPN is designed to work on all operating systems including Android, iOS, Windows, Mac and Linux. You can use it on your computer, laptop and even on your mobile devices.
- Yaroslav S.
