Proxy Server
A middleman between you and the internet. Your request goes to the proxy first, and the proxy forwards it — so the website sees the proxy's IP address instead of yours.
Full Definition
A proxy server is an intermediary computer that relays network requests on behalf of a client. When you connect through a proxy, your device sends its request to the proxy server, which then contacts the destination on your behalf and returns the response. The destination server only sees the proxy's IP address — your real IP is hidden. Proxy servers are used for privacy, geo-unblocking, caching, content filtering, load distribution, and — most relevantly for this industry — web scraping and multi-account management. Different proxy protocols (HTTP, HTTPS CONNECT, SOCKS4, SOCKS5) handle traffic differently and support different use cases.
