People without a strong background of information technology and Internet concepts do not have a clear understanding and appreciation of what a free proxy list is. They may have heard of it but do not know what it is for. The term proxy may sound so technical that its use is not clear to an ordinary computer user. It requires an interest in the field of IT and an exposure to common firewall problems to truly appreciate its purpose.

A free proxy list allows you to access network restricted sites through proxies that will shield your identity as a user and machine. Proxy servers allow you to access sites that have high demand for Internet traffic. Oftentimes, these are the social networking and messenger services sites.

Social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, LinkedIn and messenger services like Skype, MSN and Yahoo Messenger are important for personal and business communications. If a public network restricts access to these sites, this means that you will not be allowed to enter the site, log in and use the services. This is where a free proxy list can enter the picture because it contains a listing of proxies that can be used to access individual sites without actually using the legitimate URL of the site of interest. An alternative URL serves as the proxy to access the services of the site. Also, with the use of the site any information transmitted between your computer and the proxy server is shielded and protected by the proxy server. This reduces your exposure to the web server of the site that you are accessing. This information is not shielded to the proxy though but security can be ascertained if you trust the proxy site that you are using and you got it from a legitimate free proxy list.

By using a proxy, your IP address is not exposed and it is the proxy server's address that is reflected in the web server that you are directly accessing. This way, your proxy server protects you from unnecessary exposure that can jeopardize your computer's security. This is the primary reason why many people are opting to use a free proxy list to obtain proxy information and addresses to their favorite sites.

With a free proxy list, there is a hidden power that allows you to invisibly connect to popular sites. A fresh list provides the best alternative URLs that network administrators are not yet aware of and hence, have not included in their list or restricted sites. For people who always have to be connected to friends and business partners, a free proxy list will prove to be invaluable. Your free proxy list is the key to bypass security measures imposed in public networks and will make you access any popular site without hassle.