What is Shadowsocks? China’s Underground Proxies Explained

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f you are reading this article, I assume you’ve probably heard about a new tool that can access geo-blocked sites….in China! Known as Shadowsocks, this ‘tech’ has been available for quite some time now but only recently managed to make it to the mainstream. Read on to find out what Shadowsocks is, how it works, if you should use it, and why it’s so popular in Mainland China.

Read more: What Is Intra? Here’s Google’s New Android Encryption App

What is Shadowsocks? China’s Underground Proxies Explained

When it comes to explaining what Shadowsocks is all about; I always prefer not to use any technical term and try to be sound as easy as any layman could be. So, Shadowsocks is an open-source proxy-based technology that emerged in 2012 after Xi Jinping took office in China. Its primary function is to avoid censorships and restrictions online. For most of its existence, it was primarily used by Chinese developers to bypass the Great Firewall of China without being caught.

How Does Shadowsocks Work?

Thus, Shadowsocks operates on an open-source internet protocol called SOCKS5.

It utilizes this protocol to selectively re-route some of your internet traffic. Some VPN providers do offer this protocol too, especially for users who want to encrypt and re-route their traffic selectively. However, Shadowsocks isn’t a VPN.

You may consider it as a super-advanced proxy. Usually, proxies connect you to another computer, called a proxy server, and then connect you to the internet. This way, you’ll be able to use the proxy server to access geo-blocked content around the world. However, the Great Firewall of China can detect proxies.

Since Shadowsocks is something that can still jump over the firewall, it must be doing something other than a simple proxy, makes sense?

Subsequently, Shadowsocks uses HTTPS to disguise your traffic. Now, remember, not all of your traffic is going to be re-routed, only what is necessary to access geo-blocked content. By using HTTPS, this tool makes sure that the traffic being re-routed can’t be differentiated from normal internet traffic. This way, the Firewall technology won’t be able to catch you out, nor will any ISP or third-party surveillance system.

Simply stated, Shadowsocks users in Mainland China can easily bypass the Great Firewall without anyone knowing about it.

Is It Worth Using?

Again, Shadowsocks was made to bypass censorships. If you happen to live in a country or region with serious online censorship regulations, it very much might be the right tool for you.

For the citizens of countries like China, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Vietnam, and Tunisia, Shadowsocks might end up being many users’ saving grace for accessing geo-blocked sites. However, if your concern is your digital privacy this isn’t the tool for you.

Conclusion

Before I sum up, I want you to know that this technology is by and for developers, so it is a very technical endeavor to get in to. Having said that, you can find software for commercial use here and there. If you’re about to download free software, make sure that you’re doing it from a trusted source. After all, you don’t want to end up with a malware-infested system, do you? Let us know in the comments if there are any questions you may have about this interesting censorship-bypassing tool.

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