How to Surf the Internet Anonymously

How to Surf the Internet Anonymously Printer Friendly Version

By: Christopher J. Gorton, MBA

Nowadays, many people are rightfully concerned about on-line privacy and the possibility of identity theft or similar danger when making transactions on-line. Sites that you may only casually visit can actually collect a fair amount of information about you or your computer without your knowledge or consent. While much of the information is of little use to most people and is not especially personal in nature, there is always the possibility that your IP address (always with you when you surf) could be used to identify you, although that would usually require the cooperation of your Internet service provider (ISP). Your ISP allows you access to the Internet through the assignment of an IP address that is either ‘static’ or ‘dynamic’. If you have a static, or ‘fixed’ IP address assigned to you by your ISP, you likely pay a premium for such a service and would know if you had one. Most people connect to the Internet via a dynamic (it can change every time you connect to the Internet) IP address and, thus, have a small measure of greater privacy when they surf the Web. But neither method provides any real degree of anonymity. However, there are steps that you can take to conceal your actual IP address when visiting Web pages if you are concerned about privacy.

When you use a proxy server to surf the Internet, you place a second (hence the term ‘proxy’ server) server or ‘anonymizer’ between you and the Internet, as illustrated here:

If you wish to surf the Internet anonymously, you have two options. Generally, that choice depends on whether or not you are willing to pay for a service (or software) and have a few more options and an automated setup or if you would rather have perhaps a few less features and perform a few manual setup tasks required to use a proxy server for free. Both choices are outlined below here.

¥ Option One: Use an anonymous proxy server software program or service

Several proxy server services can be found on the Web. Some are Web-based and others require a software download. Most charge a fee, but some offer limited surfing through their proxy servers for free. If you Google ‘anonymous proxy service’ you will find a number of resources. One of the resources that you may want to take a look is are the various programs and services offered by anonymizer.com.

¥ Option Two: Configure your browser to use an anonymous proxy server yourself

It isn’t difficult to configure your browser settings to use a public service server. The ‘big picture’ is that you need to find an anonymous proxy server that will allow you to surf the Web through their server. The availability of this privilege changes from time to time, so you may need to modify which server you use every now and then. Once you have found a ‘friendly’ server, you then simply modify your browser settings to use that proxy server instead of the default proxy server you now use provided by your ISP.

To use an anonymous proxy server, do the following steps (takes about three minutes):

1. Optional: You may want to print these instructions for easier reference

2. Optional: To see the IP address that you presently have assigned to you click here

3. Select a proxy server and port from an updated list of possible servers by simply jotting down one of the IP addresses listed (example: 214.56.11.16:8080).

Note: Sometimes the proxy server address you chose will not work properly (for a variety of reasons). If you have trouble using one, just repeat this step and select another. The most you would likely ever need to try to find one that works for you would be five or so.

4. Next, you need to modify your browser’s proxy configuration by:

a. Opening a new instance of Internet Explorer

b. Going to the menu item ‘Tools’…’Internet Options’

c. Select the ‘Connections’ tab

d. Click the ‘LAN Settings’ button

e. In the ‘Proxy Server’ section, check the box next to ‘Use a proxy server for this connection’

f. In the ‘Address’ box, type the IP address of the proxy server you selected from the list of servers earlier, using only the numbers before the colon (i.e. 34.112.45.211)

g. In the ‘Port’ field, type the portion of the proxy server you chose that comes after the colon (i.e. 8080)

h. Do not make any other changes and click ‘OK’

i. Open Internet Explorer and surf the Web in privacy

j. Optional: You may wish to perform a proxy test or anonymity check once you have completed these steps