A recent investigation into an online service called 911 has revealed that it has been selling access to hundreds of thousands of personal computers running Microsoft Windows which cybercriminals are using to conduct their crimes.

The 911 service tricks its way onto people's devices through dodgy software updates and malware bundled together with other services. A popular method it uses to get onto people's devices is via free proxys.

What is 911?

911 is what is known as a ‘residential proxy service'. It works by allowing users to rent a domestic IP address to use as a relay for their Internet communications.

As a lot of websites that monitor traffic block IP Addresses which have multiple users, known as shared IP Addresses, these services are a great way to get onto those sites without revealing your own IP Address.

There are legitimate uses for services like this, but they can also be misused by cybercriminals.

911 sold their service as being a‘free proxy' service. But they didn't tell users who downloaded their app that they were also agreeing to let others use their internet connection and their IP Address too.

How was 911 harmful?

Canadian researchers have examined 911 and found there were around 120,000 PCs that other users could connect to on the service. The vast majority of these were based in the USA.

Their assessment of the service was damning:

“The 911 network uses at least two free proxy services to lure its users to install a malware-like software that achieves persistence on the user's computer… During the research we identified two free proxy services that [use] a subterfuge to lure users to install software that looks legitimate but makes them part of the network.”

If that wasn't bad enough, they also found that many of the IP addresses on offer through 911 were from US universities, Colleges, critical infrastructure sites, defence establishments, and even government and law enforcement networks. In other words, there were significant security risks.

The message to free proxy users

As Riley Kilmer, co-founder of Spur.us, a security company that monitors anonymity services, told Krebs, “[Services like 911] have two basic methods to get new IPs. Free proxy apps, and… trojanised torrents. They'll re-upload Photoshop… so that it's backdoored with the 911 proxy.”

In other words, when you download a free proxy, it can have software like 911 bundled together with it. Once on your system, it is nearly impossible to get off and it means that your internet connection and your IP Address could be being used by a cybercriminal from anywhere in the world.

This could result in you facing a criminal investigation for activities carried out through your internet connection despite you having no knowledge and no involvement whatsoever.

The message from the 911 story is clear. This is yet another reason why free proxy services are simply not worth the risk.

That's why I recommend you use a professional premium residential proxy, which is actually the exact opposite of a free proxy. They are fast, reliable, transparent and completely secure. Most of the problems listed in free proxies are security related. Premium proxies offer unparalleled protection, and they themselves take care of keeping your data as safe as possible. Data security is both a value-producing attribute and a factor that, if ignored, can cause serious trouble for proxy providers.

If you need a high-quality residential proxy, we recommend PIA Proxy Manager,a military-grade encrypted network that provides you with a true Internet Service Provider (ISP) IP. Residential proxies provide the highest level of anonymity to protect your real identity from detection.

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