Web Proxy for Dummies
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore has banned access to two pornographic websites in a “symbolic statement” of the country’s societal values, its media regulator said on Friday.
The two sites, which the regulator declined to identify but local media named as YouPorn and RedTube, work in a similar fashion to popular video-sharing website YouTube. The two Web sites allow users to add and download sex videos.
“It should be noted that the hardcore pornographic videos posted on these sites are very easily accessible by the young as each video will start streaming for free once a user clicks on the related link,” said Jason Hoong, an official from the Media Development Authority (MDA).
The sites, which were banned after the authorities received feedback from the public, are the latest additions to a list of 100 “mass impact objectionable” pornographic websites banned in Singapore.
Singapore, which disallows the possession, distribution and making of pornographic films, defends its action as necessary to protect the young.
Online responses to a local media report on the ban have been unfavorable, with users condemning it as unnecessarily moralistic.
“I will definitely surf the Internet by proxy from now on, to be defiant so as to preserve my rights,” wrote one user.
If you’re wondering what is proxy, read on.
Introduction
Proxy Service or Anonymizer basically allows you to access websites which are blocked by your ISPs, or system administrator. What it does is route your IP address through a series of other servers, eventually landing you at the website which you want to browse. Through these servers, it mask your tracks on the web, and allows you to bypass any restrictions imposed.
Proxies are useful if you need to access sites which may otherwise be blocked at your workplace, such as social networks, and other gaming sites. For the privacy freaks, if you browse through a proxy, you can rest assure that your online activity cannot be tracked easily.
Limitations
Proxy is not without its demerits. Firstly, browsing through a proxy server will definitely slow your browsing speed. This is due to the traffic being redirected through other servers, and during peak period, the effect will be more noticeable.
Many of the free proxy service comes with embedded advertisements, and some may not support JavaScript and other advance features of today’s website.
Resources
If you google “Free Proxy”, you will be presented with many of these web based proxy. Using these services are easy, just key in the URL of the website you’re trying to access into the input box and you will be redirected to the website. Below are a list of sites which I use, and is in no way exhaustive.
Another popular solution is TOR. This requires a installation on your PC and provides native anonymising for all your web browsing. This solution is not recommended for the causal user, however it is good knowledge to be aware of the existence of such a project.
Updates 01/10/08: PrimeProxies.com - Maintains a list of working proxies.
Neowster is short for Noel's & Esther's Own World. This is a personal hobbyist site, maintained mainly for the purpose of honing my knowledge in WordPress, and sharing useful information or knowledge to make someone's life easier. To a smaller extend, I hope to propagate the ideology of Crowdsourcing, as I see it as the best mechanism in regulating our unregulated capitalistic world, overcoming humanity's trait of greed, self interest, and fear, in arriving at the best decision. 
May 12th, 2009 at 6:43 am
Crazy how many people still use and others profit with web proxies.