From the outside, both proxy and vpn services appear to perform the same function redirecting your web traffic through a secure server in order to conceal your online identity. There are some major differences between the services that you should take into consideration before deciding which is best for your requirements.
The biggest difference between the proxy and VPN is that a proxy does not encode data. This means that the information you send through the proxy may be intercepted and used by an attacker to monitor your behaviour. A premium VPN service however utilizes secure encryption to ensure that information sent through its servers cannot be read by hackers.
In addition to encryption of data, VPNs also shield users from threats that are malicious, such as malware, phishing and other types of attack. To stop these attacks from happening, a premium VPN service will be monitoring and regularly update their systems. Free proxies, on the other hand, usually utilize outdated systems that are susceptible to these kinds of attacks.
Another major difference is that VPNs are more user-friendly than proxy services. Download the VPN app and connect to your server of preference. This is in contrast to proxy servers that require you to enter a specific IP address and port number into an application. Proxy servers are typically overloaded with traffic, which can cause performance to slow. Most VPNs that are top-quality offer reliable and fast connections to address this issue.
