What is Proxy?

Proxy is a software placed on a server that acts as an intermediator between user's browser and the server that contains the site that the user wants to visit. In this mode the user's Internet service provider server (those who provide access to Internet) and user's browser don't know that the user visits this particular site. On the other hand, the viewed site doesn't have the information about user's IP address.

Each surfer and site in the net has an unique IP address:

The server that provides you access to Internet gives you an IP address that identify you while you surfing, for example 80.47.128.65;
The site that you want to visit is identified with an IP address, together with the domain name of the site. You can access this site typing in your browser the domain name http://www.mysite.net/, or relative IP address http://205.234.198.120/, so the domain name www.mysite.net corresponds to the numerical address 205.234.198.184. It is not always truth due to the fact that more then one domain can be connected with one IP: the hosting houses offer that possibility to their clients to make the hosting cheaper, while each IP has a price (about 1 USD a month).

When you connect to one site via proxy, the proxy software let see to the servers it connect the own identity, so the provider server and the server contains the site don't "see" each other, and don't exchange information between them, because the presence of intermediate server, so both of them "think" that are connected with the server that contain proxy software.

The software that simulate different data, for example function as proxy, are very numerous and which will you find depends of server operating system. Some of them, those older, have proxies wrote in Perl language (cgi), while other (newer) usually are compiled in PHP. There are even those written in ASP or Visual Basic, written for Windows, and not very appreciated by sophisticated users.

However, it is always good to know that the use of proxies is not entirely without its dangers. Therefore it is a good idea not to do some really important things via proxies; for example making payments online.