Legal Safety for Proxy Farmers Selling Mobile Proxies with Their Own SIM Cards

Proxy farming — creating mobile proxies for resale — is gaining popularity as a reliable way to earn income. For some, it’s a hobby that provides a nice side income; for others, it’s a full-scale business and their primary source of revenue.

With great money comes great responsibility. Proxy farming, like any lucrative business, comes with its own legal considerations. One critical aspect is the connection between a proxy seller and the SIM card that serves as the source of mobile traffic for mobile proxies. But what happens if an illegal activity is carried out online through a mobile proxy, using the very SIM card and its associated mobile IP address? In such cases, law enforcement will direct their inquiry to the SIM card owner. How should you respond if this happens? This guide will explain how to handle such situations and minimize associated risks.

Thousands of proxy farmers around the world operate for years without ever encountering law enforcement inquiries. However, questions about what to do in such cases often arise in seller communities. To address these concerns, iProxy’s legal expert has prepared this article. Being informed is key to ensuring the peace of mind and safety of proxy sellers :)

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How and Why Law Enforcement May Contact Proxy Sellers

Anyone using the internet through a proxy is operating under the IP address linked to the SIM card of the proxy owner. Therefore, if law enforcement detects illegal activity originating from this IP, they will follow the trail to the mobile provider, who will then contact the SIM card owner.

Here’s how the process typically unfolds:

1. A malicious proxy user (let’s call them “the offender”) engages in illegal activity online while connected to the proxy, masking their actions with the mobile IP associated with the proxy seller’s SIM card.

2. The offender’s activity is logged by the website where the illegal action takes place. While not all websites keep logs, those where fraud is possible often record and store this data. These logs typically include the date, time, visited URLs, and the visitor’s IP address.

3. If an investigation is launched, law enforcement requests access to the website’s logs to retrieve the offender’s IP address.

4. Law enforcement determines the organization that owns the offender’s IP address using well-known tools like ipinfo.io or similar services. This step reveals that the IP is a mobile IP belonging to a particular mobile operator.

5. Law enforcement contacts the mobile operator and requests information about the SIM card associated with the IP address at the specific time of the illegal activity. Mobile operators store logs of the correspondence between IPs and SIM cards, so they can provide data identifying the SIM card owner.

6. Law enforcement then contacts the SIM card owner, who must provide evidence showing that the traffic generated through the SIM card was not their own but rather that of the offender. This evidence includes: records identifying the individual who purchased the proxy access during the relevant time period, correspondence with the buyer, proxy access logs.

7. Law enforcement proceeds to contact the offender.

As you can see, the actions of the proxy seller in this case are almost identical to those of a mobile operator. To protect yourself in such situations, it is essential to understand how proxy services work and what data you can provide to demonstrate your compliance and integrity.

Proxy farming with iProxy.Online is not only a profitable and convenient option for proxy sellers but also a safe one. We go to great lengths to ensure your peace of mind: we store logs of proxy connections, providing reliable evidence in case of inquiries, we offer detailed recommendations on managing the personal data of proxy buyers responsibly, we provide ready-to-use templates for essential documents, such as Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, to streamline your client interactions, and we also provide prompt advice on legal issues related to proxies, ensuring you always have expert support when needed.

Proxy Farming with iProxy.Online: Safe, Profitable, and Secure

Is There a Step-by-Step /guide?

Certainly! If a proxy seller receives a letter, call, or any other inquiry from law enforcement, they can follow these basic steps:

1️⃣ Stay Calm!

While such requests are unpleasant, they are possible. These types of inquiries may occasionally involve not only proxy sellers but also small business owners dealing with SIM card distribution, small-scale data centers, and similar ventures.

2️⃣ Explain Your Status as a Proxy Seller

The first step is for the SIM card owner to clarify that they operate as a proxy seller and that the traffic through the mobile device and the associated SIM card was generated by a third party via a sold proxy connection. After providing this initial verbal clarification and expressing willingness to cooperate, the next step is to gather supporting information.

3️⃣ Contact iProxy support

As soon as possible, the proxy seller should contact iProxy support and inform them that the inquiry is from law enforcement. It will be helpful to share all available details about the request, including the date and time (with the time zone) of the incident, SIM IP, and any saved information about the device or proxy access.

iProxy.Online has the technical capability to store connection logs on behalf of its clients, including data about IP changes on devices and traffic through proxy connections (for further details, refer to our Privacy Policy). iProxy will provide all logsall logs related to the incident in an Excel format. If necessary, iProxy.Online can also issue an official document with signatures from authorized personnel, containing the required information.

4️⃣ Gather and Share Evidence

In such cases, providing connection logs and the details of the user who accessed the proxy is generally enough for law enforcement authorities.

• Client Information: Provide information about the individual who used the proxy during the specified period, including their name, phone number, and email. (Refer to section 2 of this article for our recommendations on collecting such data.)
• Proxy Logs: Proxy logs for the requested period. Proxy sellers can regularly download logs from their iProxy account and, if needed, contact iProxy.Online for additional support (see Step 3).

How Does iProxy Support Its Proxy Sellers?

All clients of iProxy.Online creating mobile proxies for resale can rely on iProxy’s robust support, including:

🗒️ Providing Logs: We supply logs confirming that the traffic through the SIM card during the incident was generated by third parties via proxy connections.

✅ Confirming Proxy Seller Status: We verify the proxy seller’s status based on their interaction history with iProxy, including service usage, payment records, and support correspondence.

✍🏻 Issuing Official Documentation: Upon request, we provide official documentation on behalf of our organization, including responses to direct law enforcement inquiries.

💼 Legal Recommendations: Our in-house legal expert offers general advice for specific incidents. It is essential to note that iProxy provides the above information only to the user concerned and under no circumstances discloses this data to third parties unless they are the user or law enforcement.

We prioritize ethical practices and the security of our clients. Our operations comply with global standards for handling personal data, including EU GDPR, UK GDPR, CalOPPA, and Brazil’s LGPD.

By maintaining these standards, iProxy ensures that it can always help confirm the good standing of its proxy sellers.

Tips for Minimizing Risks

Here are a few straightforward recommendations to ensure peace of mind for proxy farmers:

❌ Control access to proxies

Never share your password, API key, or PIN for your iProxy personal account with anyone. Update your password and API key at least once every 3 months, and regularly update passwords for proxy accesses. Use complex and unique passwords generated on reliable resources (for example, using he bitwarden password generator or your browser's built-in password managers).

🔍 Identify Clients

Always try to identify users to whom you grant access. Request their name, phone number, and email so that you can confirm the client’s identity if necessary. To protect yourself from fraudsters planning to use your proxies for illegal purposes, ask users to reveal their mobile number in Telegram, send a verification email, or make a call. For guidance on how to store personal data correctly, refer to our resources here.

📝 Maintain a Sales Record

Keep a meticulous record of all proxy access sales. This ensures that even months or years later (as law enforcement requests may relate to incidents from over a year ago), you know exactly when and to whom you sold proxy access.

⚠️ Inform Clients About Rules

At the start of your work with new clients, ask about their intended use of the proxies. Inform them that you do not tolerate any illegal activities and that you have the ability to monitor proxy usage logs for visited resources. Use this opportunity to avoid selling proxy access to clients who do not meet your criteria. Additionally, you can inform the client that logs are stored indefinitely and may be provided to law enforcement agencies upon request. This will not deter a legitimate client but can protect you from malicious actors.

(!) Important Note: Logs are high-level records of internet activity. They do not include details about what users specifically did on a website, nor do they contain passwords, private messages, or other sensitive details. Learn more about what is stored in logs and their purpose.

💼 Check Local Laws

Before you begin selling proxy access, ensure that the laws in your country do not prohibit the creation and sale of proxies. If in doubt, you can contact iProxy for assistance.

👮🏻‍♂️ Evaluate Local Law Enforcement

Realistically assess how local law enforcement operates in your area, whether they follow the letter of the law, aim to uncover the truth, and understand internet technology well.

The issue of interacting with law enforcement as a proxy seller can be intimidating, but it’s important to remember that simple steps can minimize risks. Any profitable business, including proxy sales, has its legal nuances, which should not be feared but rather understood and accounted for. iProxy is always here and ready to assist in any situation.

Join iProxy, start earning with your own proxy farm, become one of our many trusted proxy sellers, and achieve new large-scale goals!

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