Ethical Proxy Sourcing: How the Top Vendors Actually Get Their IPs

By Elena Park · 2026-03-10 · 10 min read · Legal

Some proxy vendors source IPs ethically through opt-in SDKs and ISP deals. Others don't. Here's how to tell the difference.

The two legitimate sourcing models

**Opt-in SDK**: A free app (often a free VPN or browser extension) embeds an SDK that, with informed user consent, lets the user's IP be used as an exit node. Bright Data (EarnApp), Decodo and Infatica use variants of this.

**ISP partnership**: The vendor has a direct commercial agreement with an ISP to use specific IP ranges. NetNut leads on this model.

Red flags

No published sourcing policy. No KYC. No SOC 2 / ISO 27001. Cheap residential bandwidth from an unknown vendor is almost always sourced from compromised devices — botnet traffic dressed up as residential proxies.

Why compliance matters to buyers

For Fortune 500 buyers, the proxy vendor is part of the data supply chain. A vendor that sources IPs unethically is a regulatory and reputational landmine.