Maintaining your privacy while surfing the internet has quite honestly become nearly impossible. With all of the laws and regulations written to regulate the internet, along with the vast growth of social media and networking and the search engine's ability to track our every move, there actually is no way to keep others from knowing exactly what you're doing on the internet. You can take a number of actions, however, to help keep yourself protected online.

Using browser extensions is a popular method to help keep your privacy protected on the internet. Some of these extensions connect to sites via HTTPS while others tell you who is keeping track of your online surfing. Alternative methods of being safe online is by blocking things like advertisements, cookies and applications created to track internet surfing activity.

Proxy servers are likewise excellent ways of protecting you. A proxy disguises you Internet protocol address, preventing your ISP from knowing what websites you are surfing. All your ISP sees, in this case, is that you are connecting to the proxy server, rather than the website you're eventually connecting to. You can find web browser extensions designed to manage proxies or making the configuration of a proxy easier and much more effective. There are advantages of some proxies aside from anonymity, including that they'll help you get to content that's region secured or even assist you to reduce bandwidth costs by using a server that compresses traffic.

Another useful method of increasing online security is with a Virtual Private Network, or VPN. Typically, a VPN not only increases security but is not difficult to use as well. Even though VPN providers are commonly not a free program, they are often very economical. Many people using VPNs enlist one from another country to steer clear of those companies that must adhere to certain national restrictions. A bonus to using a VPN is that most mobile devices work with them. Individuals with very high privacy demands will find there are VPNs made specifically for their delicate information and communication needs.

Even if you do not want to use a proxy server or a VPN, there are some simple things you can do to protect your online privacy. Use sturdy passwords, use encryption whenever you can for sensitive information being directed online, and connect to the web using HTTPS. We also recommend using a reliable firewall and anti-malware software to protect your computer system. Lastly, common sense when surfing the web or downloading content will usually be your best tool when considering protecting your online privacy due to the fact that most breaches in security originate from social engineering rather than from software or equipment problems.