What is difference or pros and cons of proxy vs VPN

[centrino207]

Some people say use VPN or other people say use proxy what are pros and cons?

Some say VPN hides all traffic and is like wormhole from your computer to target web site and all traffic is encypted.

Other say proxy like wormhole from proxy server to target web site. So the web site does not know where you live or any thing about you.

Some people say they use VPN more for downloading or torrent and proxy more so to watch movies out your area access or access blocked sites.

 

[Gabriel Pike]

So, it depends on your goal. A VPN does encrypt all traffic between the client and host. A proxy redirects web traffic based on a recursion/caching server. They both change the source IP to that of the host. A proxy does not encrypt anything however so a packet sniffer can still see all data being transferred. So, again any pros or cons are dependent on what your goal is. If you are just trying to source from another country to view something different on Netflix then either will work. If you are on a public network a VPN will go one step further by encrypting traffic. Without knowing what you are trying to accomplish though we are just playing a guessing game.

 

[DelJo63]

The key feature of a Proxy is logging, filtering and rerouting requests. Businesses use these frequently to control employee access to the Internet and to control specifically what data enters and leaves their systems.

A simple example is to block access to social networking such as facebook, twitter and instagram as the employees should be doing their jobs and not interacting with their social networks.

 

[MaikuTech]

A simple example is to block access to social networking such as facebook, twitter and instagram as the employees should be doing their jobs and not interacting with their social networks.

I agree and if the **** hits the floor, human resources finds out by the data they are tracking.
You will get terminated automatically for illegal internet usage.

 

[centrino207]

The key feature of a Proxy is logging, filtering and rerouting requests. Businesses use these frequently to control employee access to the Internet and to control specifically what data enters and leaves their systems.

A simple example is to block access to social networking such as facebook, twitter and instagram as the employees should be doing their jobs and not interacting with their social networks.

So if I understand proxy are used more so to gain access to blocked web sites or videos not unthorized for your country of viewing example like a short video clip on UK BBC web site not utherorized for people out of the UK to view.

But your ISP can still see every thing what web sites you go to and what your are doing. This where you will need VPN to encypted all traffic so the ISP cannot tell.

 

[centrino207]

I agree and if the **** hits the floor, human resources finds out by the data they are tracking.
You will get terminated automatically for illegal internet usage.

If you school or office blocked web site you have use proxy to view it.

But if they do internet logging or check your internet history they can tell after after you gone to that block web site.

You have to use VPN than.

 

[DelJo63]

So if I understand proxy are used more so to gain access to blocked web sites or videos not unthorized for your country of viewing example like a short video clip on UK BBC web site not utherorized for people out of the UK to view.

NO- - just the opposite - - a proxy CREATES restrictions and monitoring of your activities.

This where you will need VPN to encypted all traffic so the ISP cannot tell.

I'm not a fan of circumventing controls setup by administrators using any means whatsoever. To me, that's unethical as not paying for the software you install.

 

[centrino207]

NO- - just the opposite - - a proxy CREATES restrictions and monitoring of your activities.
ll.

I don't think people care if proxy server monitors you or logs you or not but are more concern about google, Microsoft, yahoo and such target web site and government.

If I set up web site and you go to my web site I will know what city you live in, your ISP, OS's and on on.

If I live in UK I could block everyone that does not live in UK.

 

[centrino207]

NO- - just the opposite - - a proxy CREATES restrictions and monitoring of your activities.
.

Also many countries have no freedom of speech laws and what you post on the internet is wide open to what city you live in and your ISP. So people living in China may use proxy to gain access to that blocked web site or to post that message that cops don't know what city you live in and your ISP.

 

[centrino207]

I'm not a fan of circumventing controls setup by administrators using any means whatsoever. To me, that's unethical as not paying for the software you install.

I think in case like circumventing school or office will be bad because most places would do internet logging an they will know you are using proxy.

So say school or office blocks access to facebook and you use a proxy because they do internet logging they will know you are using proxy.