secure your privacy! (technical response to possible ban)

[MrBrightside]

I think I'm going to get one of these anyway. You can pay for a commercial proxy service. All of your net traffic goes thru here. According to pokerstars FAQ, it looks like they, at least, support proxies.

Anway, here's a directory of pay ones (note: there are free ones, but I wouldn't trust them to stay up. You'd probably have to constantly switch and it would be a pain).

Google directory of proxy services

I'm looking for one that is offshore. Like I said, given our cuurent political climate (wiretapping, et al), I've been thinking of doing this anyway.

[ArtMonkRules]

Im not very technical... but do these proxy severs give me a way to get around any potnetial goverment access blockages?

[MrBrightside]

well, as far as the ISP is concerned you are connected to the proxy server (that's why it should be overseas, ideally). Your connection to that server is encrypted. So the ISP sees encyrpted traffic to the proxy server. They have no idea what the traffic contains or it's destination. The proxy server then connects to netteller, poker sites etc. If that server is outside the U.S., even a court order for U.S. ISP's to not allow connection to gambling sites would matter.

Until recently, I assumed that poker sites would NOT support connection through a proxy server (there are reasons not to. For instance, I could have a second account on a second computer using a proxy server and collude myself). However, according to this link on pokerstars web site they support proxy connections. I'm not sure about other sites (party's site search doesn't work at the moment).

As a poster pointed out, the U.S. could force ISPs to block connections to the proxy server themselves. But this would be a neverending battle. New ones would pop up all the time. And actually, you could use a private proxy server (have a non-u.s. 2+2 poster run one on his home computer with donations -- a decent proxy server software might cost some money).

This is how people inside China access sites the government doesn't want them to see. There are actually a fair number of free services, but they tend to be eratic.

[ArtMonkRules]

Its good that we have the citizens of China to look to for ways around our increasing government restrictions. Oh well.... the only way they'll get me to stop playing poker is to put me in jail.

[SlapPappy]

Simple yes or no. Could a proxy server allow a way around a possible ISP block of gambling sites?

[Leavenfish]

[ QUOTE ]
Its good that we have the citizens of China to look to for ways around our increasing government restrictions. Oh well.... the only way they'll get me to stop playing poker is to put me in jail.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's a bit drastic, isn't it? Why not just move to Nevada?

---Leavenfish

[DrewOnTilt]

[ QUOTE ]
Simple yes or no. Could a proxy server allow a way around a possible ISP block of gambling sites?

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, but this issue goes beyond that. Degenerate skilled players like ourselves will go to these extremes. Degenerate addicts will as well. Joe Fish will not.

[Fishlips_Jones]

Where will Joe Fish go?

[DrewOnTilt]

[ QUOTE ]
Where will Joe Fish go?

[/ QUOTE ]

He will go do something else with his free time besides play poker online. He will pick up whatever the next trendy activity is and do that instead of happily donating his money to me.

[Leader]

[ QUOTE ]
Joe Fish will not.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's not that cut and dry. If the information is made easily available for the average player to access on how to get around certain blocks, at least some will. Definitely not all and probably not most, but certainly a non negligible amount.