How to Detect Proxy Traffic Without Blocking Legit Users

Detecting proxy traffic is essential for fraud prevention, account integrity, and accurate analytics. But for many platforms, it's a blunt instrument: either block all proxy/VPN usage or let it all through and risk abuse. The result? Lost conversions, bad data, and unnecessary support tickets.

In this post, we'll show how modern platforms can detect proxy traffic without blocking good users — using network behavior, ASN scoring, and real-time IP intelligence.

The Problem with Binary Proxy Detection

Most IP intelligence APIs today treat proxy detection as a yes/no flag:

• If a user is on a known proxy, they’re flagged or blocked
• If they’re not, they’re assumed safe

This works in theory — but in practice:

• VPN usage is increasingly common among normal users
• IP lists get outdated fast
• Blanket blocking increases churn and frustrates honest customers

A Smarter Way: Risk-Weighted Proxy Scoring

Rather than a binary flag, CandycornDB assigns each IP a from 0–100 based on:

• Subnet behavior (e.g. has this /24 seen recent abuse?)
• ASN history (e.g. how risky is the ISP or cloud provider?)
• Port scanning fingerprints and behavioral signals
• Presence in anonymizer networks (proxy/VPN/Tor overlap)

This lets your platform decide how to treat the request — not based on one flag, but based on meaningful risk context.

Use Case: SaaS Platform with Trial Abuse

A SaaS product offering free trials was seeing the same abuse pattern:

• Dozens of signups from rotating proxies in the same ASN
• False names and duplicate IP patterns
• High support volume for “suspicious activity” lockouts

By integrating CandycornDB, they were able to:

• Identify risky subnets across multiple IPs
• Score proxy connections in real time without blocking everyone
• Cut abuse by 60% — while keeping real users onboard

Benefits for B2B Teams

Whether you're in security, growth, or fraud operations, intelligent proxy detection means:

• ✅ Fewer false positives
• ✅ More accurate user profiling
• ✅ Better segmentation of real users vs bad actors
• ✅ Cleaner attribution data

Start Scoring Proxy Risk Smarter

You don’t have to choose between blocking fraud and hurting conversion rates. CandycornDB makes proxy detection adaptive, contextual, and developer-friendly.

Check our API docs or sign up now to start scoring proxy traffic smarter — without blocking your customers.