An HTTP proxy is a proxy that understands HTTP and HTTPS traffic — it can read headers, cache responses, and rewrite requests.
Explanation
HTTP proxies are the workhorse of enterprise networks. They terminate the HTTP connection from the client, inspect the request headers and URL, apply policy (block, cache, log, rewrite), and forward the request to the destination. HTTPS traffic passes through via the CONNECT method — the proxy tunnels the encrypted bytes without decrypting them (unless the enterprise installs a company root certificate to allow MITM inspection). Corporate web filters, Squid, and Cloudflare Gateway all use HTTP proxy patterns. AnyProxy is not a classical HTTP proxy — it is a web proxy, which is a website that acts like an HTTP proxy under the hood specifically for browser use.
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