Proxy Glossary

An anonymous proxy hides the client's real IP address from the target server but identifies itself as a proxy in request headers, providing moderate anonymity.

An Autonomous System Number (ASN) is a unique identifier assigned to a network operated by a single organization, playing a key role in how websites classify and trust incoming traffic.

A backconnect proxy is a gateway-based architecture where the user connects to a single server that routes each request through a different IP from a large backend pool.

Bandwidth throttling is the intentional limitation of data transfer rates through a proxy connection, applied by providers for resource management or by targets to slow suspected automated traffic.

A browser fingerprint is a unique identifier created from the combination of your browser's technical attributes, used by websites to track users even when they change IP addresses.

Captcha solving refers to the process of bypassing CAPTCHA challenges presented by websites to distinguish human users from automated bots.

CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) notation is a compact method for specifying IP address ranges using a base IP address followed by a slash and prefix length.

Concurrent connections refer to the number of simultaneous active connections a client can maintain through a proxy server, directly impacting throughput and parallelism.

A connection timeout is the maximum duration a client will wait for a proxy connection to be established or a response to be received before abandoning the request.

A datacenter proxy is an IP address that originates from a cloud hosting provider or commercial data center rather than an ISP, offering exceptional speed at lower cost per IP.

A dedicated proxy is an IP address exclusively assigned to a single customer, providing complete control over its reputation and usage patterns with guaranteed clean history.

A DNS leak occurs when your device sends DNS resolution queries outside the proxy tunnel, revealing the websites you visit to your ISP despite using a proxy.

An elite proxy provides the highest level of anonymity by completely concealing both the client's IP and the fact that a proxy is being used, with no proxy-identifying headers.

A forward proxy sits in front of client machines and intercepts outbound requests before forwarding them to the internet, shielding the client's identity from the target server.

Geo-targeting is the ability to route proxy traffic through IP addresses in specific geographic locations, including countries, states, or cities, to access location-restricted content.

An HTTP proxy handles HTTP protocol traffic at the application layer, understanding methods, headers, and URLs to inspect, filter, cache, and modify web requests and responses.

HTTP status code 407 (Proxy Authentication Required) indicates that the client must authenticate with the proxy server before the request can be forwarded to the target.

HTTP status code 429 (Too Many Requests) indicates the client has exceeded the allowed request rate and has been rate-limited by the server.

An HTTPS proxy handles encrypted web traffic by supporting the CONNECT method, establishing a secure tunnel between client and target while maintaining end-to-end encryption.

An IP blacklist is a database of IP addresses identified as sources of spam, malicious activity, or automated abuse, used by websites to block suspicious traffic.

IP reputation is a score or classification assigned to an IP address based on its historical behavior and associations, used by websites to determine trust level.

IP rotation is the practice of systematically cycling through multiple IP addresses when making requests, ensuring that no single IP sends too many requests to any target.

IP whitelisting is a security mechanism where a proxy service only accepts connections from pre-approved IP addresses, granting automatic access without username/password credentials.

An ISP proxy combines datacenter-grade speed with residential trust by hosting IPs on fast servers while registering them under a legitimate Internet Service Provider.

Load balancing distributes incoming proxy requests across multiple backend servers to optimize resource utilization, maximize throughput, and ensure high availability.

A mobile proxy routes traffic through IP addresses assigned by mobile carriers (3G, 4G, 5G), which are shared among thousands of subscribers via CGNAT and carry extremely high trust.

Proxy authentication is the process of verifying a user's identity before granting access to a proxy server, commonly via username/password credentials or IP-based whitelisting.

A proxy chain routes traffic through two or more proxy servers in sequence before reaching the target, creating multiple layers of indirection for enhanced anonymity.

A proxy gateway is a centralized entry point that manages and routes connections to a pool of proxy servers, handling IP assignment, rotation, load balancing, and failover.

A proxy pool is a collection of proxy IP addresses managed as a single resource, allowing users to distribute requests across many different IPs for reduced per-IP load.

A proxy rotation interval is the configurable time period between automatic IP changes in a rotating proxy setup, ranging from per-request to 30+ minutes.

A proxy server is an intermediary server that sits between a client device and the internet, forwarding requests on behalf of the client while optionally providing security, caching, and anonymity.

A proxy tunnel is an encapsulated network connection through a proxy server, carrying the original traffic intact without the proxy inspecting or modifying the payload.

Rate limiting is a technique used by websites and APIs to control the number of requests a client can make within a specified time window, returning HTTP 429 when exceeded.

Request headers are key-value pairs sent by the client as part of an HTTP request, providing metadata about the request, the client, and the desired response format.

A residential proxy routes your internet traffic through an IP address assigned by a real Internet Service Provider (ISP) to a homeowner, making requests appear as regular consumer traffic to target websites.

An HTTP response code is a three-digit number returned by a server indicating the outcome of the client's request, grouped into five classes from informational (1xx) to server error (5xx).

A reverse proxy sits in front of backend servers and intercepts incoming client requests, distributing traffic, enhancing security, and optimizing performance for the backend infrastructure.

A rotating proxy automatically assigns a new IP address from a pool for each request or at set time intervals, distributing traffic across many IPs to reduce detection risk.

Session persistence is the ability to maintain the same proxy IP address and connection state across multiple sequential requests for consistent user session recognition.

A shared proxy is an IP address used simultaneously by multiple customers of the proxy provider, offering the lowest cost but carrying higher risk of cross-contamination.

A SOCKS5 proxy operates at the session layer (Layer 5) of the OSI model, handling any type of traffic regardless of protocol, including TCP and UDP connections.

SSL termination is the process of decrypting incoming encrypted traffic at the proxy or load balancer before forwarding it to backend servers, offloading cryptographic work to edge infrastructure.

A static proxy provides a fixed, unchanging IP address that remains consistent across all your requests and sessions, enabling persistent identity and session continuity.

A sticky session maintains the same IP address for a defined period, allowing multiple sequential requests to originate from the same IP and preserving session state.

A subnet is a logically segmented portion of a larger network, identified by a common network prefix. In proxy contexts, subnet diversity directly impacts detection resistance.

A TLS handshake is the process by which a client and server establish an encrypted connection, negotiating protocol version, cipher suite, and exchanging cryptographic keys.

A transparent proxy intercepts network traffic without requiring any client-side configuration, forwarding requests with the original client IP visible and providing no anonymity.

A user agent is a string sent in HTTP request headers that identifies the client software making the request, including browser name, version, operating system, and rendering engine.

A WebRTC leak occurs when the WebRTC protocol in your browser exposes your real IP address, bypassing the proxy through STUN server requests for peer-to-peer connections.