Can someone explain the proxy settings definition in simple terms? or What exactly is the proxy setti

Wow, thanks everyone! This really clears up the proxy settings definition for me. The pizza and mail forwarder examples made it click.

I tried *FoxyProxy* like one of you suggested, and it worked for accessing a site my work blocks (oops).

Quick follow-up: How do I know if a proxy is safe to use? Like, are there red flags to watch for?

(Also, big thanks for the tool recs—bookmarking them now!)