Everywhere you go on the Internet you leave tracks behind in web server logs. These logs can contain information such as the date and time, your IP address, what browser you are using, and what pages you visited. If you want to see your IP address just visit one of the "my IP" websites. This is perfectly normal and perfect legal for websites to do. Websites cannot tell which other websites you've visited. Based on your IP address websites are able to make a number of assumptions about you. They'll be able to make a good guess as to your location (often within less than 10 miles!), they'll know what kind of Internet connection your using such as cable, DSL, or dial-up. If you are accessing the web from your work they may be able to determine the company that you work for.

These things may make you nervous. If you are doing things you don't want traced back to you then you're probably pretty darn scared right now. There are several ways that you can go about hiding your IP address. A Website based proxy server is a website that provides a form for you to enter the URL of a website that you wish to anonymously visit. The machine usually does not identify itself as a proxy server and does not pass along your IP address in the request for the page. There are also stand-alone proxy servers that allow for you to configure your browser to route your browser traffic through that machine, which then makes a request for a page on your behalf, and then sends you the results. These are usually used at no cost to the user. Since they are accessible to the public these are often quite slow. There are also a variety of companies and software packages available at either a one time cost or at an annual subscription. These are usually faster and more reliable than the above proxy servers.

The bottom line of this is to be wary when using proxy servers, and only use proxy servers of known integrity (e.g., the owner is known and trusted, has a clear privacy policy, etc.), and never use proxy servers of unknown integrity. If there is no choice but to use unknown proxy servers, do not pass any private information (unless it is properly encrypted) through the proxy. You should also use a proxy test to see if the proxy you want to use can easily be detected.