Proxy v.s. VPN: What’s the Difference and Which One Should You Use?

Stephen Pelzel
Upskilling
Published in
5 min readJul 17, 2021

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The global internet contains nearly the entire sum of all human knowledge at our very fingertips; however not all data is as easily accessable as others, and as users navigate the digital landscape there can be malicious forces stalking your every move. Whether by government restrictions or hackers stealing personal data, there is always someone trying to hinder your access to the unlimited data available online.

Some solutions to these issues of security and information freedom are via the use of “VPN”s and “Proxy Servers”. While both can be used to protect your privacy and view restricted content, they go about it in very different ways and have their own pros and cons. In this article I will explain the differences between these two services and in what situations they are best applied when using the internet.

What Is A VPN?

Many people have heard of “NordVPN” or “ExpressVPN” and their promise of a secure online experience for a small monthly fee. But what exactly are these companies doing with the data from your computer?

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Stephen Pelzel
Upskilling

Computer Engineering student at NVCC. Follow for the latest tech news and skills. Consider supporting the page: https://stephenpelzel.medium.com/membership