Does your school or office have sites blocked? Many block sites like Facebook, AddictingGames, MySpace, and other sites they think are just a big waste of your time.

Around the Internet, in response to this, proxies have become popular. Proxies are sites that allow you to access other sites through them, allowing you to bypass filters. Some are more complicated than others, but I just recently came across my personal favorite. It’s called Ctunnel, and it’s a really useful tool.

Ctunnel’s mode of operation is incredibly simple. Navigate, in any browser, to the Ctunnel site. Once you’re there, you can enter just about any URL into the search box, and Ctunnel loads it for you. The sites will look as they should, except for a small Ctunnel box in the top right corner. You can navigate as you please, quickly and easily. Ctunnel’s home page also provides several IM clients you can use online, which are a great use of the tool.

If you look into the address bar of your browser, you’ll notice that the URL of the site you’re on is always a Ctunnel URL, which means you won’t have trouble getting around any filters.

A couple of caveats here: One, I don’t condone going around filters your school or office sets up. I just have to say that. Second, and much more importantly, there are some major privacy concerns with any proxy, and Ctunnel is no different. Any bandwidth you use through Ctunnel is entrusted to them, which means they have access to your info. Though they promise on their “About” page (here) to guard your information, it’s always best to play it safe. Passwords, etc. should be used carefully.

Even without using any personal information, Ctunnel can give you access to a number of great sites. YouTube, AddictingGames, eBay and the like (all sites blocked by many stringent schools and offices) are all fair game, and can make the day go a whole lot faster.

Ctunnel can be found, and used, from here.

Also, fun fact: the hacker who got into Sarah Palin’s Yahoo account did so through Ctunnel to avoid being caught. Didn’t work so well for him. Don’t do that.