Introduction
Online privacy is a hot topic, with even world leaders weighing in on the subject. Many of the big-name websites and companies will track your activities to deliver targeted advertising, and can build up an astonishingly detailed profile including your interests, spending habits, age, location and more.
If you would prefer to keep your personal details private, a VPN or proxy tool will help. See our guide to setting up and maintaining a VPN.
As well as preventing third parties building up a profile of you, these privacy tools can open up the web, granting you access to sites blocked in your country, to access region-locked content when you're travelling away from home, and to add a layer of protection when you use a public Wi-Fi network.
Tor
Tor is probably the best-known anonymous browsing tool out there, and it is described as a 'censorship circumvention tool'.
Tor is available for Windows, OS X and Linux, and has a large following in the privacy and security communities. It works by bouncing your communication through numerous encrypted node on the internet, making it impossible to determine your location or other identifying information.
Tor employs complex technology, but the browser itself is refreshingly accessible. It's based on the same code as Firefox, and guides you through the process of getting online.
It uses different connection methods depending on what you're trying to achieve, but there's no need to understand the details because it's all taken care of for you.
However, Tor isn't without its drawbacks - chiefly that it slows down your internet connection, which is worth bearing in mind for downloading large files or streaming media.
Read on to discover four more of the best proxy and VPN tools for anonymous browsing. Have we missed one of your favorites, or do you have any more tips for staying anonymous online? Let us know in the comments below.
Privoxy
Privoxy is a web proxy tool that's available not only for Mac, Windows and Linux, but also Android and iOS. It is a tremendously powerful tool, but you'll need to invest a little time and effort to get it up and running.
Privoxy can be used in conjunction with just about any web browser, which is a big bonus; simply set the browser to run its traffic through the tool.
However, one of Privoxy's key features could also be a drawback for new users: it gives you very granular control over privacy settings, and configuring them is very much a manual process. There's a helpful quick start guide available, but it has the potential to be off-putting.
That said, if you're happy to persevere, you can set up advanced filters that will not only ensure you remain anonymous online, but also protect you against unwanted ads.
Hotspot Shield
Hotspot Shield is available for Windows, Mac, Android, iOS and Windows Phone, meaning you can use it on just about any device you own.
It's a VPN tool that's available in two flavours – a free, ad-supported one, and a paid-for version that offer unlimited bandwidth. Hotspot Shield hides your IP address and provides encrypted traffic tunnelling (ideal for use on public Wi-Fi networks) to improve security and ensure privacy.
You may not want to use Hotspot Shield at all time. For instance, you may only be interested in using it to access certain sites that are blocked in your country. In this case you can create shortcuts to individual sites in the Hotspot Shield window which will enable protection before launching the sites. Protection can also be toggled on an off with a single click.
The paid-for version, Hotspot Elite, only costs a few pounds or dollars a month, but it's worth trying the free edition first before opening your wallet. Its additional features, including ad-free browsing and dedicated customer support, make it a tempting proposition.
TunnelBear
In addition to anonymous browsing, VPN tool TunnelBear can also be used to bypass traffic-shaping and throttling put in place by ISPs.
The free version of TunnelBear gives you up to 500MB of data each month, but if this isn't enough, unlimited data is available for a subscription fee, with prices starting at US$4.16 per month (about £2.86, AU$5.75).
Whether you go premium or stick with the free version, you can share a single account between up to five phones, tablets, Windows PCs or Macs.
Configuration is incredibly simple, and TunnelBear can be used with any browser – this is probably the most accessible VPN tool there is. It's just about impossible not to recommend.
CyberGhost
Another multi-platform VPN tool, CyberGhost is available as a free ad-supported app, as well as a paid-for edition offering better performance and more features.
For day-to-day or occasional use, the free version should be perfectly adequate. Configuration is very simple, with the only potential stumbling block being the installation of a virtual network adaptor.
With a single click, CyberGhost will activate, giving the impression that you're browsing from another country. You can also keep an eye on how much traffic you've transferred through the service using a handy graph.
The downside of using the free version is that there's a limited numbers of spaces on the servers, so you may have to wait to gain access (although you're unlikely to be kept hanging for long).
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