Your first step in making a proxy server more secure is educating yourself on how proxy servers work, and why configuration exists such as stripping meta tags and titles. An anonymous proxy server runs a proxy app which allows anyone to connect to it, and that proxy server retrieves any resources that you request such as webpages and emails. Using a proxy server protects your computer by allowing you to visit websites which may be malicious and attempt to install software on your computer, and keeps your computer information private in most cases.
One way that you can make your browsing more secure is by using what is commonly known as an Elite Proxy, rather than simply using an anonymous proxy. The difference in the two is in how the proxy website is presented to the systems and servers that it is requesting resources from. An anonymous proxy identifies itself as such, whereas with an elite proxy, the server that you are connecting to doesn’t know that it is communicating with a proxy server. A third type exists as well called a transparent proxy server which offers no protection whatsoever.
Two types of proxy scripts are commonly used on proxy servers, called CGI Proxy and PHProxy. CGI Proxy scripts work better with Java and are usually faster than PHProxy scripts. However, there is the disadvantage that CGI proxies require more resources from the server which can cause webmasters to choose to go with PHProxy, as they are paying for the service. However, often webmasters can modify PHProxy scripts more easily so that they are safer and have added functionality, so both have advantages and disadvantages.
Often proxy servers have tools that allow you to configure certain options when using the proxy server to make your anonymous surfing even more secure. For instance, most web proxies will have the option to enable a URL toolbar on the top of your content to type in your next URL so that you don’t have to go back to the homepage, and may display additional options such as accepting or deleting cookies, remove scripts that are running on the page as well as objects, or to disallow images from displaying. Also, you can enable Rotate13 and Base64 encoding as well with most web proxies.
Risks of Not Using a Proxy Server
Obviously, if you are attempting to access blocked content from a workplace or school, then you run the risk of not being able to access that content by not using a blocked computer. However, even if you do not have blocks on certain websites your internet history will show which websites you have visited and unless you delete your history someone may be able to look at sites that you have visited. Also, you may have a history of search terms that are stored by your computer, which try to autofill your search engine forms when you begin to type and this may give away sites you visited, or search terms you used. A proxy server eliminates that problem, because the data is stored on the proxy computer. However, someone may still be able to view websites you visited via the proxy unless the URLs are encoded.
