What term describes an application that can serve as an intermediary for connecting with other computers?

• A. Hex Editor
• B. Decode Editor
• C. Proxy Server
• D. Shadowsocks

Answer: (C)

A proxy server is an application that acts as an intermediary between a client and other computers. It sits between you and the destination, receiving your request, forwarding it to the target computer, and then returning the response back to you. This arrangement lets the proxy perform useful tasks such as hiding your IP address, enforcing access controls, caching content to speed up repeated requests, and filtering or logging traffic. In practical terms, if your browser is configured to use a proxy, all web requests go first to the proxy, which then talks to the web servers on your behalf. That intermediary role is what the term describes.

Hex Editor is a tool for viewing and editing binary data, not for mediating connections. Decode Editor isn’t a standard networking term and doesn’t convey the mediator role. Shadowsocks is a specific proxy implementation, which is a concrete example of the broader concept. The general term that best fits an application serving as an intermediary for connecting with other computers is proxy server.