Information has always been the driving force for progress and innovation. Nowadays, because data has become much easier to obtain with digital tools and information systems, freely available knowledge has become the key resource for modern business interactions, and marketing strategies, as well as the main driver for key company decisions.
While the data collection was a difficult and manual process in the past, nowadays it's all about effectively managing and utilizing the publicly available information. Even when we focus on very niche data points, the sheer amount of knowledge is too big for manual processing, especially if analyzed data is constantly updated.
To use the widely available information, modern businesses and freelancers use web scraping - a powerful strategy for automated data extraction and analysis. Simple, yet incredibly effective, this technique helps companies reach new heights through constant and strategic acquisition of market intelligence.
Data scraping has revolutionized how companies gather insights to outperform competitors across various industries. In this article, we will discuss the basics of automated data collection and how skilled data analysts manage to gather intelligence and never get blocked. For example, through the calculated use of ISP proxies, one of the best online anonymity tools on the market.
Data Scraping Explained
The basic functionality of web scraping software has two parts – a scraper and a parser. A scraper takes care of the initial steps, automatically extracting chosen pages to collect information with superior efficiency. All it does is download the provided HTML code that is already available and usually displayed on a browser.
After that, a web parser removes all irrelevant markup elements, contact info, and other clutter that has nothing to do with the required data. A good parser has many filtering options, which transform a vibrant page for a comfortable viewing experience, into a clean and understandable data sheet, suitable for both manual analysis and processing of external tools. Especially when dealing with continuously updated information, data scraping lets you monitor changes and actions taken by competitors, partners, and other relevant sources of knowledge.
Importance of Private Browsing Sessions
Before we cover the importance of privacy for data collection procedures, let's highlight the differences between a casual browsing session and an automated web scraping connection. When a user tries to visit a specific web page, a connection request is delivered that discloses your IP address, approximate geolocation, Operating System (OS) information, and the used browser. Based on this information alone, recipients can predict if the connected user is a human or automated software.
Web scrapers have different information in the HTTP request, but it can be modified. However, the key to staying private online stems from the exposure of your public IP address, supplied by the internet service provider. While a bot connection has elements that can be customized, your IP address is the main giveaway of your identity on the internet. Third parties that do not want scraping on their site look for these metrics and block incoming bot addresses and the exposure of your real IP is the key mistake in proactive data collection
Using Proxy Servers for Enhanced Privacy
Proxy servers, especially ISP proxies, are the main privacy tools for data scraping and market intelligence. Stationed between the scraper and the target website, it is used to change the IP address and its approximate location to that of a proxy server This not only enhances anonymity but also allows for bypassing geo-restrictions and previously mentioned access filters that stop scrappers in their tracks.
Proxy Server Types for Web Scraping
While there are clear favorites that fit most use cases, let's cover the main proxy types to find out which one is most suitable for automated data collection:
Residential Proxies: Millions of real IP addresses are assigned by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to homeowners. Perfect for mimicking real user behaviour, residential IPs are perfect for continuous extraction of data from sensitive targets that block bot traffic making them ideal for scraping large-scale data without raising suspicion. The slowest of the main types, they have the most locations for broad location coverage, as well as rotation options to swap between residential addresses at determined time intervals or once a session exceeds a specific number of requests.
Among various proxy types, residential proxies stand out due to their real IP addresses assigned by ISPs, which closely mimic human browsing behavior. This makes them especially useful for sensitive data scraping projects. For businesses looking to engage in extensive web scraping operations without triggering anti-bot mechanisms, opting to buy residential proxy services can enhance privacy and efficiency by rotating IPs from different locations as needed.
Datacenter Proxies: Datacenter proxies run on servers with well-protected, high-quality hardware hosted in data centers. While they may be more affordable, datacenter proxies are often easier to detect by websites due to their non-residential IP origins. Because the address is not linked to an ISP, the recipients will be far less hesitant to block it. Datacenter proxies are a cheap and reliable solution for casual browsing sessions where speed is more important than anonymity, and that is not the case for data scraping.
ISP Proxies: As the best solution for high-volume scraping, ISP proxies run on servers hosted by ISPs, taking the strengths from residential and datacenter proxies into one package. However, while perfect for scalability and efficiency, ISP proxies fall into the middle of the anonymity scale, as they do not utilize IP addresses from real users that reside in disclosed locations.
Other Privacy Tools: VPNs
In addition to proxy servers, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) provide an alternative method for protecting web scraping connections. VPNs change your IP address encrypt internet traffic and route it through remote servers, adding an extra layer of security. While VPNs are effective, no private or sensitive data is transmitted or retrieved during web scraping operations, hence extra safety has no positive effect on the strategy, while the connection becomes a lot slower. VPNs can be used for data scraping, but they have fewer addresses, while the provided blend of benefits does not fit the use case compared to versatile proxy services.
Conclusion
By utilizing web privacy tools and adopting them effectively, businesses can navigate the complexities of public data scraping and never get blocked. The synergy between data scraping and privacy tools ensures that modern companies and individuals get the most out of publicly available knowledge.
Businesses should also take precautions to ensure their customers' online safety. One example is how Seven partners with Adfixus. This partnership between a streaming platform and a privacy-focused identity company highlights the growing emphasis on secure and responsible customer data handling across industries
