When researching proxy servers, you might have encountered the term “Virgin Proxies”. If you want to learn more about them, then this article is for you as we’ll be discussing what virgin proxies are, do they exist, if you should use them, and what alternatives there are for them.
What are Virgin Proxies?
Virgin proxies are IP addresses that nobody has used before. They are essentially clean proxies that have not been banned or blocked by any website, as they have no prior history of being used. This makes them great for running tasks involving strongly protected websites.
So, do virgin proxies exist? Technically yes, they do exist, but they may not be as usable as you think. Let me first explain that there are two protocol-based proxy types: IPv4 and IPv6 proxies. All websites support IPv4, but only a few support IPv6. There are practically no IPv4 virgin proxies, but most IPv6 proxies you get are virgin proxies.
If a proxy provider is selling you virgin IPv4 proxies, then those proxies are most likely just premium proxies that have not been banned or have partaken in any illegal activities. In essence, most virgin IPv4 proxies are simply clean IP addresses since actual virgin IPv4 proxies are impossible to get.
Virgin Proxies are basically just IPv6 proxies, and it’s not recommended to use IPv6 proxies. At least, not yet. This is because the entire internet is still using IPv4 proxies, and only a few websites are compatible with IPv6. IPv6 addresses are unusable for most popular websites like Twitter or Amazon, as they only support IPv4.
IPv6 proxies are also cheaper than IPv4 proxies, but IPv6 proxies are very hard to find. If you do find some, then you can only use IPv6 datacenter proxies, as there are no IPv6 residential proxies. Websites also won’t hesitate to ban any IPv6 address as they are incredibly suspicious since most users aren’t using them. When the entire internet has switched to IPv6, then it would become more feasible to use them.
What Alternatives Are There For Virgin Proxies?
We’ve established that virgin IPv4 proxies don’t exist, and virgin IPv6 proxies aren’t usable, so what are the better alternatives to get? Here are three of the best alternatives to virgin proxies that you can get:
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Clean Dedicated Proxies - Dedicated proxies are IP addresses that you don’t share with anyone else, so you’re the only one using them. Make sure that you’re getting clean dedicated IPs, so the IPs aren’t banned on any website. Dedicated proxies come from datacenter proxies, so you get all their advantages like speed and reliability.
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Residential Proxies - Residential IPs come from actual devices so websites will think that you’re a genuine user. Residential proxies most likely have a prior history with the most popular websites, as the user of that device will have visited them in the past. This will deceive websites into thinking that you’re the user of that device and not just someone using a proxy, which will immensely help in preventing you from getting banned.
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Mobile Proxies - Mobile proxies are IP addresses from mobile devices using cellular data. They are the best proxies as they won’t get banned by websites. This is because a single mobile IP address represents not just one user but hundreds or thousands of other users. So, websites will likely never ban them. When datacenter and residential proxies aren’t enough, you use Mobile proxies. Although mobile proxies do cost a lot more money as they are quite difficult to get.
Conclusion
Although virgin proxies sound great on paper, they are essentially just IPv6 proxies with limited usability, and virgin IPv4 proxies don’t exist anymore. It’s much better to utilize the proven alternatives than hope that you’re using a virgin proxy. The alternatives are more realistic and they would do the job just as great.
