A Proxy or VPN or any other "tunnel" is a computer that you send all your internet traffic to before it goes out to the internet. All it does is fake it that your computer is on the same network as the proxy computer, and not reveal your current IP address to people. This is a safer way to browse and check email when you're on public networks such as wifi hotspots where you dont know who's running the internet connection. It can also prevent your current IP from being tracked, but unfortunately the proxy/VPN computer will be tracked. There are no real trustworthy public proxy and vpn servers, as these are usually set up by an institution for their clients (ie: schools and businesses) for secure connections. A public proxy kinda defeats the purpose. Therefore, your usage and IP address will be tracked, regardless of the use of proxies, since they will know the time of connection and the proxy IP, and ultimately there's a log on the proxy computer that you were the account logged in and using that IP at that time...etc, etc, etc...