TexasCHLforum.com

Another thread got me to thinking.

Do you guys that use a proxy server use it all the time or just as needed? Is there a charge? Do the proxy servers track or log your activity? Easy or difficult to setup?

And for some of us, also, where does one even find a proxy and what else does a very first time user need to know?

I've never used one but I googled this:
http://free-proxyserver.com

Interesting. I did a Google search and saw a list but didn't know for sure about what I was seeing.

mojo84 wrote:Interesting. I did a Google search and saw a list but didn't know for sure about what I was seeing.

Looks like you just type in the address you want and you're good to go.

Remember that http is a clear text protocol, as-is the default outbound mail protocol SMTP and the IMAP or POP inbound mail protocols. Some people have unfortunately discovered their account user-ids and passwords were compromised when using the TOR network to check their mail. (http://www.wired.com/2007/11/swedish-researc/)

Given the TOR networks' popularity in the seedier side of the Internet, it is judicious to assume that many TOR nodes are compromised and monitored. The same goes for SOCKS or other proxy services. Also remember that your packets will go through your ISP's gateway even when using a proxy. Instrumenting that last mile combined with end-point analysis would make child's play of monitoring conversations.

I do not consider standard proxy services to be an effective mechanism for maintaining privacy.

But will they work to get to blocked websites like this one often is on many networks?

jmra wrote:

mojo84 wrote:Interesting. I did a Google search and saw a list but didn't know for sure about what I was seeing.

Looks like you just type in the address you want and you're good to go.

Yeah, I see that now. Thanks

jmra wrote:But will they work to get to blocked websites like this one often is on many networks?

Yes, but at the potential cost of compromising one's login credentials. Better to build a VPN tunnel into one's home network or a reverse ssh connection.

I've posted about proxy servers in the past, and you can see some of my comments in the links below:

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=60691&start=15#p745602
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=60691#p745698
viewtopic.php?f=94&t=73604&hilit=+witopia#p926730

Suffice to say, I use them a LOT, mainly because of my international travel schedule. I spend a lot of time in countries which may or may not be impressed with my interest in politics, guns, or other topics, and I'd just as soon they not be able to monitor me too easily.

Yes, it does give me a bit of stealth when I'm visiting sites, but only as much as I want. For instance, the host country where I am may not know that I'm visiting the TexasCHLForum, but Mr. Cotton surely knows - since I've used my username and password to log in. Of course, anyone tracking the postings of individual users on this specific site would still be able to record and catalog my writings (based on my username), but I don't expect that all my host countries are doing such.

Using these services is easy. I use Witopia, and the installation of their software on my machine is as intuitive as doing anything else. If you try to use it and have any challenges, please feel free to send me a PM here, and we'll try to work it out together.

I am a frequent user of Hola, another free service. While it does allow me to bypass any web filtering that may be present (for example, while visiting the Dept of State Passport Office in Dallas, recently, I found that they blocked access to this very own web site, for some reason, and using Hola, I was able to bypass the DOS proxy server to surf the TexasCHL Forum without worry), my main use is to watch BBC Television programs as if I were in The U. K., or to listen to my old Alma Mater, AFRTS as if I were still stationed in Turkey, or Germany, or to listen to FEN (AFRTS's Far East Network) as if I were in Japan.

Hola, especially with an Ipad or IPhone, is quite simple to use, and works like a charm.

As for tracking, who knows? I'm sure there may be a discoverable trace if someone really wants to find out my listening habits badly enough, but I don't own enough tin foil to make a hat that size!