The basic answer is no. Proxies act as gateways to a specific device or application. However, when a user is granted access to a proxy they’re provided with similar protections to a VPN. This includes anonymous web browsing and IP masking.   Conversely, VPN acts as a secure tunnel. Rather than disguising an IP address, the session is given brand new routing information. Furthermore, VPN has the advantage of encrypting all data transmissions.