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14 <h1 class="TITLE"><a name="AEN2" id="AEN2">Privoxy Frequently Asked Questions</a></h1>
15 <p class="PUBDATE"><sub><a href="copyright.html">Copyright</a> © 2001-2020 by <a href=
16 "https://www.privoxy.org/" target="_top">Privoxy Developers</a></sub><br></p>
18 <div class="ABSTRACT">
19 <a name="AEN8" id="AEN8"></a>
20 <p>This FAQ gives quick answers to frequently asked questions about <a href="https://www.privoxy.org/"
21 target="_top">Privoxy</a>. It is not a substitute for the <a href="../user-manual/index.html" target=
22 "_top"><i class="CITETITLE">Privoxy User Manual</i></a>.</p>
23 <p>What is Privoxy?</p>
24 <p>Privoxy is a non-caching web proxy with advanced filtering capabilities for enhancing privacy, modifying
25 web page data and HTTP headers, controlling access, and removing ads and other obnoxious Internet junk.
26 Privoxy has a flexible configuration and can be customized to suit individual needs and tastes. It has
27 application for both stand-alone systems and multi-user networks.</p>
28 <p>Privoxy is Free Software and licensed under the GNU GPLv2 or later.</p>
29 <p>Privoxy is an associated project of Software in the Public Interest (SPI).</p>
30 <p>Helping hands and donations are welcome:</p>
33 <p><a href="https://www.privoxy.org/faq/general.html#PARTICIPATE" target=
34 "_top">https://www.privoxy.org/faq/general.html#PARTICIPATE</a></p>
37 <p><a href="https://www.privoxy.org/faq/general.html#DONATE" target=
38 "_top">https://www.privoxy.org/faq/general.html#DONATE</a></p>
41 <p>Please note that this document is a work in progress. This copy represents the state at the release of
42 version 3.0.29. You can find the latest version of the document at <a href="https://www.privoxy.org/faq/"
43 target="_top">https://www.privoxy.org/faq/</a>. Please see the <a href="contact.html">Contact section</a> if
44 you want to contact the developers.</p>
51 <dt><b>Table of Contents</b></dt>
52 <dt>1. <a href="general.html">General Information</a></dt>
55 <dt>1.1. <a href="general.html#WHO-USES">Who should give <span class="APPLICATION">Privoxy</span> a
57 <dt>1.2. <a href="general.html#BESTCHOICE">Is Privoxy the best choice for me?</a></dt>
58 <dt>1.3. <a href="general.html#PROXYMORON">What is a <span class="QUOTE">"proxy"</span>? How does Privoxy
60 <dt>1.4. <a href="general.html#OTHERSTUFF">Does Privoxy do anything more than ad blocking?</a></dt>
61 <dt>1.5. <a href="general.html#NEWJB">What is this new version of <span class=
62 "QUOTE">"Junkbuster"</span>?</a></dt>
63 <dt>1.6. <a href="general.html#WHYPRIVOXY">Why <span class="QUOTE">"Privoxy"</span>? Why change the name
64 from Junkbuster at all?</a></dt>
65 <dt>1.7. <a href="general.html#DIFFERS">How does Privoxy differ from the old Junkbuster?</a></dt>
66 <dt>1.8. <a href="general.html#WHATSANAD">How does Privoxy know what is an ad, and what is not?</a></dt>
67 <dt>1.9. <a href="general.html#MISTAKES">Can Privoxy make mistakes? This does not sound very
69 <dt>1.10. <a href="general.html#CONFIGORNOT">Will I have to configure Privoxy before I can use it?</a></dt>
70 <dt>1.11. <a href="general.html#LAN">Can Privoxy run as a server on a network?</a></dt>
71 <dt>1.12. <a href="general.html#BROWSERS2">My browser does the same things as Privoxy. Why should I use
72 Privoxy at all?</a></dt>
73 <dt>1.13. <a href="general.html#WHYTRUST">Why should I trust Privoxy?</a></dt>
74 <dt>1.14. <a href="general.html#LICENSE">Is there is a license or fee? What about a warranty?
75 Registration?</a></dt>
76 <dt>1.15. <a href="general.html#SPYWARE">Can Privoxy remove spyware? Adware? Viruses?</a></dt>
77 <dt>1.16. <a href="general.html#OTHERADS">Can I use Privoxy with other ad-blocking software?</a></dt>
78 <dt>1.17. <a href="general.html#HELP-THE-DEVELOPERS">I would like to help you, what can I do?</a></dt>
81 <dt>1.17.1. <a href="general.html#PARTICIPATE">Would you like to participate?</a></dt>
82 <dt>1.17.2. <a href="general.html#DONATE">Would you like to donate?</a></dt>
85 <dt>1.18. <a href="general.html#SPONSOR">How can I become a sponsor and get my logo or link on
89 <dt>2. <a href="installation.html">Installation</a></dt>
92 <dt>2.1. <a href="installation.html#WHICHBROWSERS">Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?</a></dt>
93 <dt>2.2. <a href="installation.html#WHICHOS">Which operating systems are supported?</a></dt>
94 <dt>2.3. <a href="installation.html#EMAIL-CLIENT">Can I use Privoxy with my email client?</a></dt>
95 <dt>2.4. <a href="installation.html#FIRSTSTEP">I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything special I have
97 <dt>2.5. <a href="installation.html#LOCALHOST">What is the proxy address of Privoxy?</a></dt>
98 <dt>2.6. <a href="installation.html#NOTHING">I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening. All the
99 ads are there. What's wrong?</a></dt>
100 <dt>2.7. <a href="installation.html#NOTUSED">I get a <span class="QUOTE">"Privoxy is not being used"</span>
101 dummy page although Privoxy is running and being used.</a></dt>
104 <dt>3. <a href="configuration.html">Configuration</a></dt>
107 <dt>3.1. <a href="configuration.html#ACTIONSFILE">What exactly is an <span class="QUOTE">"actions"</span>
109 <dt>3.2. <a href="configuration.html#ACTIONSS">The <span class="QUOTE">"actions"</span> concept confuses
110 me. Please list some of these <span class="QUOTE">"actions"</span>.</a></dt>
111 <dt>3.3. <a href="configuration.html#ACTCONFIG">How are actions files configured? What is the easiest way
113 <dt>3.4. <a href="configuration.html#ACTIONFILE-DIFFERENCES">There are several different <span class=
114 "QUOTE">"actions"</span> files. What are the differences?</a></dt>
115 <dt>3.5. <a href="configuration.html#GETUPDATES">Where can I get updated Actions Files?</a></dt>
116 <dt>3.6. <a href="configuration.html#NEWCONFIG">Can I use my old config files?</a></dt>
117 <dt>3.7. <a href="configuration.html#DIFFICULT">Why is the configuration so complicated?</a></dt>
118 <dt>3.8. <a href="configuration.html#YAHOO">How can I make my Yahoo/Hotmail/Gmail account work?</a></dt>
119 <dt>3.9. <a href="configuration.html#CONFIGFILES">What's the difference between the <span class=
120 "QUOTE">"Cautious"</span>, <span class="QUOTE">"Medium"</span> and <span class="QUOTE">"Advanced"</span>
122 <dt>3.10. <a href="configuration.html#BROWSECONFIG">Why can I change the configuration with a browser? Does
123 that not raise security issues?</a></dt>
124 <dt>3.11. <a href="configuration.html#FILTERFILE">What is the <tt class="FILENAME">default.filter</tt>
125 file? What is a <span class="QUOTE">"filter"</span>?</a></dt>
126 <dt>3.12. <a href="configuration.html#LANCONFIG">How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my
128 <dt>3.13. <a href="configuration.html#NOSEEUM">Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't
129 want to see anything.</a></dt>
130 <dt>3.14. <a href="configuration.html#WHYSEEUM">Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard
132 <dt>3.15. <a href="configuration.html#BLOCKEDBYTEXT">I see some images being replaced with text instead of
133 the checkerboard image. Why and how do I get rid of this?</a></dt>
134 <dt>3.16. <a href="configuration.html#SRVANY">Can Privoxy run as a service on Win2K/NT/XP?</a></dt>
135 <dt>3.17. <a href="configuration.html#OTHERPROXY">How can I make Privoxy work with other proxies?</a></dt>
136 <dt>3.18. <a href="configuration.html#PORT-80">Can I just set Privoxy to use port 80 and thus avoid
137 individual browser configuration?</a></dt>
138 <dt>3.19. <a href="configuration.html#TRANSPARENT">Can Privoxy run as a <span class=
139 "QUOTE">"transparent"</span> proxy?</a></dt>
140 <dt>3.20. <a href="configuration.html#INTERCEPTING">Can Privoxy run as a <span class=
141 "QUOTE">"intercepting"</span> proxy?</a></dt>
142 <dt>3.21. <a href="configuration.html#OUTLOOK">How can I configure Privoxy for use with Outlook?</a></dt>
143 <dt>3.22. <a href="configuration.html#OUTLOOK-MORE">How can I have separate rules just for HTML
145 <dt>3.23. <a href="configuration.html#SNEAKY-COOKIES">I sometimes notice cookies sneaking through.
147 <dt>3.24. <a href="configuration.html#EVIL-COOKIES">Are all cookies bad? Why?</a></dt>
148 <dt>3.25. <a href="configuration.html#ALLOW-COOKIES">How can I allow permanent cookies for my trusted
150 <dt>3.26. <a href="configuration.html#MULTIPLES">Can I have separate configurations for different
152 <dt>3.27. <a href="configuration.html#WHITELISTS">Can I set-up Privoxy as a whitelist of <span class=
153 "QUOTE">"good"</span> sites?</a></dt>
154 <dt>3.28. <a href="configuration.html#NO-ADBLOCK">How can I turn off ad-blocking?</a></dt>
155 <dt>3.29. <a href="configuration.html#TEMPLATES">How can I have custom template pages, like the
156 <span class="emphasis"><i class="EMPHASIS">BLOCKED</i></span> page?</a></dt>
157 <dt>3.30. <a href="configuration.html#BLOCKALL">How can I remove the <span class="QUOTE">"Go There
158 Anyway"</span> link from the <span class="emphasis"><i class="EMPHASIS">BLOCKED</i></span> page?</a></dt>
161 <dt>4. <a href="misc.html">Miscellaneous</a></dt>
164 <dt>4.1. <a href="misc.html#SLOWSME">How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This has to add extra
165 time to browsing.</a></dt>
166 <dt>4.2. <a href="misc.html#LOADINGTIMES">I notice considerable delays in page requests. What's
168 <dt>4.3. <a href="misc.html#CONFIGURL">What are "http://config.privoxy.org/" and "http://p.p/"?</a></dt>
169 <dt>4.4. <a href="misc.html#NEWADS">How can I submit new ads, or report problems?</a></dt>
170 <dt>4.5. <a href="misc.html#NEWADS2">If I do submit missed ads, will they be included in future
172 <dt>4.6. <a href="misc.html#NOONECARES">Why doesn't anyone answer my support request?</a></dt>
173 <dt>4.7. <a href="misc.html#IP">How can I hide my IP address?</a></dt>
174 <dt>4.8. <a href="misc.html#ANONFORSURE">Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?</a></dt>
175 <dt>4.9. <a href="misc.html#PROXYTEST">A test site says I am not using a Proxy.</a></dt>
176 <dt>4.10. <a href="misc.html#TOR">How do I use Privoxy together with Tor?</a></dt>
177 <dt>4.11. <a href="misc.html#SITEBREAK">Might some things break because header information or content is
178 being altered?</a></dt>
179 <dt>4.12. <a href="misc.html#CACHING">Can Privoxy act as a <span class="QUOTE">"caching"</span> proxy to
180 speed up web browsing?</a></dt>
181 <dt>4.13. <a href="misc.html#FIREWALL">What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?</a></dt>
182 <dt>4.14. <a href="misc.html#WASTED">I have large empty spaces / a checkerboard pattern now where ads used
184 <dt>4.15. <a href="misc.html#SSL">How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?</a></dt>
185 <dt>4.16. <a href="misc.html#HTTP2">Does Privoxy support HTTP/2?</a></dt>
186 <dt>4.17. <a href="misc.html#SECURE">Privoxy runs as a <span class="QUOTE">"server"</span>. How secure is
187 it? Do I need to take any special precautions?</a></dt>
188 <dt>4.18. <a href="misc.html#TURNOFF">Can I temporarily disable Privoxy?</a></dt>
189 <dt>4.19. <a href="misc.html#REALLYOFF">When <span class="QUOTE">"disabled"</span> is Privoxy totally out
190 of the picture?</a></dt>
191 <dt>4.20. <a href="misc.html#TURNOFF2">How can I tell Privoxy to totally ignore certain sites?</a></dt>
192 <dt>4.21. <a href="misc.html#CRUNCH">My logs show Privoxy <span class="QUOTE">"crunches"</span> ads, but
193 also its own internal CGI pages. What is a <span class="QUOTE">"crunch"</span>?</a></dt>
194 <dt>4.22. <a href="misc.html#DOWNLOADS">Can Privoxy affect files that I download from a webserver? FTP
196 <dt>4.23. <a href="misc.html#DOWNLOADS2">I just downloaded a Perl script, and Privoxy altered it! Yikes,
197 what is wrong!</a></dt>
198 <dt>4.24. <a href="misc.html#HOSTSFILE">Should I continue to use a <span class="QUOTE">"HOSTS"</span> file
199 for ad-blocking?</a></dt>
200 <dt>4.25. <a href="misc.html#SEEALSO">Where can I find more information about Privoxy and related
202 <dt>4.26. <a href="misc.html#MICROSUCK">I've noticed that Privoxy changes <span class=
203 "QUOTE">"Microsoft"</span> to <span class="QUOTE">"MicroSuck"</span>! Why are you manipulating my
205 <dt>4.27. <a href="misc.html#VALID">Does Privoxy produce <span class="QUOTE">"valid"</span> HTML (or
207 <dt>4.28. <a href="misc.html#SURPRISE-PRIVOXY">How did you manage to get Privoxy on my computer without my
211 <dt>5. <a href="trouble.html">Troubleshooting</a></dt>
214 <dt>5.1. <a href="trouble.html#REFUSED">I cannot connect to any websites. Or, I am getting <span class=
215 "QUOTE">"connection refused"</span> message with every web page. Why?</a></dt>
216 <dt>5.2. <a href="trouble.html#ERROR503">Why am I getting a 503 Error (WSAECONNREFUSED) on every
218 <dt>5.3. <a href="trouble.html#FLUSHIT">I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is still getting
219 through. How?</a></dt>
220 <dt>5.4. <a href="trouble.html#BADSITE">One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy. What can I
222 <dt>5.5. <a href="trouble.html#DUN">After installing Privoxy, I have to log in every time I start IE. What
224 <dt>5.6. <a href="trouble.html#FTP">I cannot connect to any FTP sites. Privoxy is blocking me.</a></dt>
225 <dt>5.7. <a href="trouble.html#MACOSXIE">In Mac OS X, I can't configure Microsoft Internet Explorer to use
226 Privoxy as the HTTP proxy.</a></dt>
227 <dt>5.8. <a href="trouble.html#MACOSXUNINSTALL">In Mac OS X, I dragged the Privoxy folder to the trash in
228 order to uninstall it. Now the finder tells me I don't have sufficient privileges to empty the
230 <dt>5.9. <a href="trouble.html#MACOSXIMAGES">In Mac OS X Panther (10.3), images often fail to load and/or I
231 experience random delays in page loading. I'm using <tt class="LITERAL">localhost</tt> as my browser's
232 proxy setting.</a></dt>
233 <dt>5.10. <a href="trouble.html#MACOSXACCOUNTDELETION">I just upgraded to Mac OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) and now
234 <span class="APPLICATION">Privoxy</span> has stopped working.</a></dt>
235 <dt>5.11. <a href="trouble.html#NOHOSTNAME">My logs show many <span class="QUOTE">"Unable to get my own
236 hostname"</span> lines. Why?</a></dt>
237 <dt>5.12. <a href="trouble.html#INUSE">When I try to launch Privoxy, I get an error message <span class=
238 "QUOTE">"port 8118 is already in use"</span> (or similar wording). Why?</a></dt>
239 <dt>5.13. <a href="trouble.html#DEMORONIZER">Pages with UTF-8 fonts are garbled.</a></dt>
240 <dt>5.14. <a href="trouble.html#DEMORONIZER2">Why are binary files (such as images) corrupted when Privoxy
242 <dt>5.15. <a href="trouble.html#DEMORONIZER3">What is the <span class="QUOTE">"demoronizer"</span> and why
243 is it there?</a></dt>
244 <dt>5.16. <a href="trouble.html#WINDOWOPEN">Why do I keep seeing <span class=
245 "QUOTE">"PrivoxyWindowOpen()"</span> in raw source code?</a></dt>
246 <dt>5.17. <a href="trouble.html#DNSERRORS">I am getting too many DNS errors like <span class="QUOTE">"404
247 No Such Domain"</span>. Why can't Privoxy do this better?</a></dt>
248 <dt>5.18. <a href="trouble.html#ALLCPU">At one site Privoxy just hangs, and starts taking all CPU. Why is
250 <dt>5.19. <a href="trouble.html#SLOWCRAWL">I just installed Privoxy, and all my browsing has slowed to a
251 crawl. What gives?</a></dt>
252 <dt>5.20. <a href="trouble.html#PREVENTCOMP">Why do my filters work on some sites but not on
254 <dt>5.21. <a href="trouble.html#SSL-WARNINGS">On some HTTPS sites my browser warns me about unauthenticated
255 content, the URL bar doesn't get highlighted and the lock symbol appears to be broken. What's going
257 <dt>5.22. <a href="trouble.html#SE-LINUX">I get selinux error messages. How can I fix this?</a></dt>
258 <dt>5.23. <a href="trouble.html#GENTOO-RICERS">I compiled <span class="APPLICATION">Privoxy</span> with
259 Gentoo's portage and it appears to be very slow. Why?</a></dt>
260 <dt>5.24. <a href="trouble.html#TAINTED-SOCKETS">What are tainted sockets and how do I prevent
262 <dt>5.25. <a href="trouble.html#PCRE-STACK-LIMIT">After adding my custom filters, <span class=
263 "APPLICATION">Privoxy</span> crashes when visitting certain websites</a></dt>
264 <dt>5.26. <a href="trouble.html#FILE-PERMISSIONS">What to do if editing the config file of privoxy is
265 access denied?</a></dt>
268 <dt>6. <a href="contact.html">Contacting the developers, Bug Reporting and Feature Requests</a></dt>
271 <dt>6.1. <a href="contact.html#SUFFICIENT-INFORMATION">Please provide sufficient information</a></dt>
272 <dt>6.2. <a href="contact.html#CONTACT-SUPPORT">Get Support</a></dt>
273 <dt>6.3. <a href="contact.html#REPORTING">Reporting Problems</a></dt>
276 <dt>6.3.1. <a href="contact.html#CONTACT-ADS">Reporting Ads or Other Configuration Problems</a></dt>
277 <dt>6.3.2. <a href="contact.html#CONTACT-BUGS">Reporting Bugs</a></dt>
280 <dt>6.4. <a href="contact.html#SECURITY-CONTACT">Reporting security problems</a></dt>
281 <dt>6.5. <a href="contact.html#MAILING-LISTS">Mailing Lists</a></dt>
282 <dt>6.6. <a href="contact.html#SF-TRACKERS">SourceForge support trackers</a></dt>
285 <dt>7. <a href="copyright.html">Privoxy Copyright, License and History</a></dt>
288 <dt>7.1. <a href="copyright.html#PRIVOXY-LICENSE">License</a></dt>
289 <dt>7.2. <a href="copyright.html#HISTORY">History</a></dt>
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