Skip Navigation

What's the difference between a proxy and a VPN

I'm going to need an ELI5 because I have read several explanations online, and I still don't fully understand what makes them different. Why would you want to use one over the other? Don't they both just forward your internet traffic? How do they work, in general?

17

You're viewing a single thread.

17 comments
  • Functionally the same for most people. A VPN is a virtual LAN so you can access other computers on it. Ex. company's internal websites from a remote location

    Proxy just forwards traffic like a gateway. In both cases the source is hidden. LANs have gateways too

You've viewed 17 comments.