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On top of all that, I tend to check all links with VirusTotal (mind you it will not catch them all), turning that into a habit. I even use Opera to browse many URLs just to hide my real IP (its basically a proxy, not a VPN), despite using a VPN.
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> Will you mind sharing the website you use to get your proxies? Are they completely safe to browse over? Paid or free? <
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To check links and unusual sites I simply use Opera with the (free) VPN function activated (not my usual browser just for testing things). Opera browsers VPN is not a real VPN, but rather much more of a proxy. That is an old habit of mine, despite using a proper (paid) VPN on top of that.