Solving a Web Scraping Puzzle: Anonymity vs. Speed

Web scraping has become an indispensable part of the public data collection process for businesses operating in various sectors. This method of gathering data retrieves information from online sources to help companies make well-informed choices.

When it comes to data extraction, there are two major factors to consider: anonymity and speed. Both of these factors mainly depend on the use of proxies, which play a key part in maintaining a balance between them.

In this post, we’ll explore the main types of proxies, including their pros and cons, and determine which proxy works best for achieving high anonymity vs speed.

Main Types of Proxy Servers

Before diving into the specifics, let’s understand how proxies work. A proxy is an intermediary server that passes data between the user and the Internet. Typically, users connect directly to the Internet through their browsers. However, when using a proxy, the connection is routed through the proxy, which communicates with the Internet on their behalf.

Proxies have different approaches to working, but the following are the steps covering how proxy servers actually work:

• When a device makes a request to the Web through a proxy, the proxy reads and interprets the request.
• This request then gets forwarded to the targeted server.
• The server reads the IP of the proxy and sends the requested data to it.
• The proxy receives the data, gathers it, and checks it for viruses.
• If marked safe, the data is forwarded to the requesting device.

Different types of proxies are available that offer great anonymity and speed. The following are three main types of proxy servers:

Residential Proxies

Residential proxy servers assign users residential IP addresses, which are associated with an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and actual residences in different locations. These proxies modify the address of the connection request, enabling users to select a specific location and browse anonymously without getting blocked.

The residential proxy is further divided into two types: static and rotating. Static proxies assign users a single dedicated address that can be used for a long period of time, whereas rotating ones assign users a different IP from the proxy pool for each connection. In comparison to static proxies, rotating proxies are more secure due to their dynamic nature.

Pros

• Higher privacy and anonymity
• Access to geo-blocked content
• Great success rates
• Enhanced security

Cons

• Slow speed
• Less stability

Shared Datacenter Proxies

Shared datacenter proxy, a type of datacenter proxy, assigns an IP address to multiple users simultaneously. It assigns a random address from the shared proxy pool to the target location when a user makes a request to the server in a different region.

Plus, this proxy is less costly than the dedicated datacenter proxy, as multiple users share the same bandwidth to exchange data between devices.

Pros

• Vast IP pool
• Affordable pricing
• Reliable
• Cost-efficient
• A high degree of anonymity

Cons

• Less secure

Dedicated Datacenter Proxies

Private datacenter proxies, or dedicated datacenter proxies, are another type of datacenter proxy server that assigns a specific IP to remain available exclusively to one user at a time. These proxies work by replacing the actual IP address with another one originating from a datacenter.

Unlike shared ones, dedicated datacenter proxies offer stable speed and performance as no user shares the bandwidth with other users while using this proxy server.

Pros

• Better speed and performance
• High privacy and security
• Advanced rotation
• Suitable for large-scale projects
• No bandwidth limitations

Cons

• More expensive than shared proxies
• More prone to bans
• Not many global providers

Anonymity vs Speed

Both anonymity and speed are key factors; however, there are certain scenarios that may require the use of one over the other. Below is a set of cases where anonymity and speed can be exchanged:

• Anonymity over speed – Anonymity can be preferred over speed in case of scraping sensitive or confidential data that demands complete security. Another case where anonymity wins is at the time of scraping data from websites employing strict anti-bot measures.
• Speed over anonymity – On the other hand, speed can be prioritized over anonymity during the process of scraping publicly available data from sources that have no strict restrictions. Performing time-sensitive scraping tasks is another case.

Summary

To conclude, selecting between anonymity and speed can be confusing when it comes to web scraping. But it is not always necessary to go for one of these. Users who plan to scrape data from websites that use advanced bot detection techniques should choose proxy servers with the strongest features.

For easier and more efficient data extraction, many users combine these proxies with reliable tools like a SERP Scraper API to automate and scale their scraping workflows.

Those who buy residential proxy servers get a higher level of anonymity by passing requests via real residential IPs. On the contrary, datacenter proxies (both shared and dedicated) are preferable where websites implement basic bot detection methods.

As such, understanding the strengths and weaknesses of all these proxies allows you to benefit from the data and achieve any of your scraping objectives.