Three Different Tools for Three Different Problems
VPNs, proxies, and dereferencers are all called "privacy tools" but they protect entirely different aspects of your online identity. Using the wrong one for your situation means you are still exposed.
What a VPN Does
A VPN (Virtual Private Network) encrypts all traffic from your device and routes it through a server in another location. The destination website sees the VPN server's IP address instead of yours.
Protects: Your IP address, your ISP from seeing your traffic, your location
Does NOT protect: The HTTP Referer header, browser fingerprint, tracking parameters in URLs
Best for: Hiding your location, bypassing geo-restrictions, using public WiFi securely, preventing ISP logging
Cost: £4–8/month for reputable providers. Free VPNs are typically unsafe.
What a Proxy Does
A proxy server acts as an intermediary between your device and the destination. Your traffic passes through the proxy server, which forwards it and returns the response.
Protects: Your IP address (partially)
Does NOT protect: Traffic contents (no encryption), HTTP Referer, browser fingerprint
Best for: Bypassing basic geo-restrictions, scraping websites, simple IP masking without encryption
Cost: Free to paid. Beware free proxies — many log and sell your traffic.
What a Dereferer Does
A dereferer is a redirect service that strips the HTTP Referer header before passing visitors to the destination. When you share a link through a dereferer, the destination website cannot see which page or site the click came from.
Protects: Your source URL (where the click came from), internal page URLs, forum membership, campaign sources
Does NOT protect: Your IP address, browser fingerprint, traffic encryption
Best for: Sharing links without revealing your source, protecting internal URLs, affiliate marketing, forum sharing
Cost: Free — use our Dereferer tool instantly
Side-by-Side Comparison
| What It Protects | VPN | Proxy | Dereferer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your IP address | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Your traffic (encryption) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ❌ No |
| HTTP Referer header | ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Source page URL | ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Tracking parameters | ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Yes (with UTM stripper) |
| Browser fingerprint | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No |
| Works on all traffic | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ App-specific | ⚠️ Per-link |
| Cost | £4–8/mo | Free–paid | Free |
Which One Do You Need?
Use a VPN when:
- You want to hide your IP from websites you visit
- You are on public WiFi and need encryption
- You want to access content blocked in your country
- You want to prevent your ISP from seeing your browsing
Use a Dereferer when:
- You are sharing a link from a private or internal page
- You do not want the destination to know which forum or community sent the click
- You want to strip tracking parameters (UTM, fbclid, gclid) from links
- You are an affiliate marketer protecting your traffic sources
Use Both when:
- You need maximum privacy — VPN hides your IP while a dereferer hides your source
- You are a journalist or researcher accessing sensitive sources
The Missing Layer: Browser Fingerprinting
None of these tools protect against browser fingerprinting — the technique that identifies you via your GPU, fonts, and screen without using cookies or your IP. For that, you need Brave Browser or Tor Browser. Check your current fingerprint with our Browser Fingerprint Checker.
Privacy Tools on Anonymiz
- Dereferer — Strip referrer from any link, batch mode included
- WebRTC Leak Test — Check if your VPN leaks your real IP
- What Is My IP — See your full IP and VPN detection status
- Browser Fingerprint Checker — Test fingerprint uniqueness
