The Internet is home to all kinds of opportunities and exciting progress, but it’s also home to some pretty dark corners as well. This means that for big organizations, the Internet can be a scary place, which is why they need to take extra security measures to protect their network from cyber-attacks.
One way that companies protect their data is through a firewall. Both individuals and organizations use firewalls to protect themselves against hackers and phishers, so that they can maintain control over their database.
However, while firewalls can be effective for companies who are trying to maintain their safety on the Internet, it can be pretty restricting if you are an employee of the company.
If you think that your actions online are being too limited right now, then there is a way to get around them.
Let’s talk about it.
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What is a Firewall?
A firewall is a security system that has been developed to isolate an internal network away from the Internet, for the sole purpose of keeping that network safe from rogue traffic. A firewall monitors and controls all incoming and outgoing traffic based on the rules that have been defined.
These rules decide if specific Internet traffic is allowed to go through and arrive at its destination, or get limited or even blocked. A firewall can either be software, hardware, or sometimes both. When you are using a firewall, an organization is able to protect their internal network from cyber-attacks, and monitor its users.
A firewall can also be used by an individual to secure their computer, and it can be used on a larger scale than even a company, for example the firewall that is used to monitor all web traffic coming into China.
Ways to Get Past Firewalls
If you are trying to connect to a particular site on the Internet, but it has been blocked or censored by a firewall, then you need to make the most of one of the methods we talk about below to bypass it.
Use a VPN Service
A VPN service, otherwise known as a virtual private network, allows for online privacy by developing a private network that you can use to access the Internet in a way that is encrypted and safe.
A VPN develops a secure tunnel for incoming and outgoing traffic. When you use a VPN, you can get past a firewall or another Internet filter so that you can access sites that would otherwise be blocked.
However, before you use a VPN service to help you get past the firewall, it needs to be configured properly, and the remote machine you’re trying to connect to must allow for secure connections. Because the majority of sites allow secure connections, this shouldn’t be an issue.
However, VPNs aren’t as effective as they once were as firewalls are becoming smarter at identifying and consequently blocking them. This is why you need to find an effective VPN provider that offers you stealth VPN options. We recommend Surfshark.
Use a SOCKS Proxy
SOCKS Proxy is a kind of proxy that is designed to get past firewalls, and lots of people use this kind of proxy to unblock websites in general. Companies like High Proxies and Blazing SEO Proxy can help you connect with a really good SOCKS proxy, so that you can get through to all of the websites you want to be on.
Destroy the Firewall Service
One of the most effective ways to bypass a firewall is to simply turn it off. Yes, this does mean that you destroy the firewall service, but it also means that there is no way it will get in the way of you being able to access the sites you’re trying to get through to.
However, this is only going to be effective if the firewall is installed into your system, which means that you have to have access to it.
All you have to do to turn off the firewall software is to launch the task manager and then look at what tasks you have running. If you get lucky, its name will come up. Otherwise, you might just have to try killing other tasks until you have landed on the right one.
This is most effective in a company where the firewall is not high-end technology, or on a centralized server.
Another way to access websites without being detected by a firewall is to use the Google translating tool. However, for you to be able to use this to access those restricted and blocked sites, you will need to know how to read in a different language from the one the site is currently written in.
This means that if the website has been written in English, for you to use the tool you must view the site in another language. Of course, if you only understand English, then you won’t be able to use this method.
Use a Web Proxy
If you don’t have a lot of money to spend, but you still want to get past those firewalls, then you can make the most of a web proxy. Most of the time, we don’t suggest that you invest in a free proxy, as they are not safe enough, but free web proxies are slightly different.
Web proxies are websites that you can use to get through to other websites with proxies that mask your real IP address. The only downside to this method is that you will have to deal with ads, as well as a slow Internet speed.
Remotely Access Your Own Computer
Did you know that you can remotely access your home computer? If you think that your connection is being restricted by a firewall, then you can get past this by accessing your home computer remotely.
For example, if you are at your place of work, and you need to access a restricted site, you can easily access this website by going through your home computer. However, for this approach to work, you will need to keep your home computer running at all times.
Access a Website Through IP Addresses
When most people are trying to access a website, they do this by typing the domain name in the address bar. This isn’t the only way that you can access the website. You can also do so using the IP address of the web page.
The only reason that this isn’t the main way that people access websites these days is that they are not easy to remember. A lot of firewalls out there only have the domain name added to the list of blocked sites, which means that if you use their IP address to try and access it, you will be let in.
Use Your Mobile Data
Occasionally, not even all of the methods that we’ve talked about above are going to work for you. This is usually because the firewall is so robust that there’s no way you will ever get past it. This is when you need to connect your smartphone data to your work computer.
With this approach, instead of trying to get past the firewall, you are on a completely different network. Just remember that using your mobile bandwidth is going to be expensive.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there are many different ways to get past a firewall if you are trying to access a restricted or blocked website. However, firewalls are becoming more and more clever and are identifying more actions that indicate someone is trying to get around them.
This is why you need to be smart about how you get past the firewall, and always remember to encrypt your information, so that it stays safe while you are online. Good luck!
