If you are using any service that changes your IP address, such as a proxy or VPN service, you will need to disable it in order to edit Wikipedia. Once you have disabled it, it is possible that you will still see a message stating that you are blocked. You may want to clear your browser's cache and/or cookies and refresh the page, in order to check whether you are still blocked.

If you are still seeing this message even after disabling your proxy or VPN, clearing your cache, and deleting all cookies for this website, then your IP address has been detected as a proxy and it has been blocked directly. Unlike legitimate commercial VPN services, these peer-to-peer proxy services exploit their own users' network connections to proxy traffic for other users. These services are frequently advertised as "residential VPNs" or "IP changers", and they are too numerous for us to list here. You will need to fully remove these tools from your network, and then either request to be unblocked, or wait for the block to expire.

If you have not recently used any proxy, VPN, or IP changing service, it is possible that a previous customer who was assigned your IP address was running one of these services. More rarely, your network equipment or that of your service provider may be misconfigured or compromised by malicious software. For more information, see the WikiProject Open proxies.

You may appeal this block by adding the following text on your talk page: {{unblock|reason=Caught by an open proxy block but this host or IP is not an open proxy. My IP address is _______. Place any further information here. ~~~~}}. Please include the following information:

• You must fill in the blank with your IP address for this block to be investigated. Your IP address can be determined here.
• If you have turned off, closed, or uninstalled some type of proxy or IP changing software, please say so, and specify the exact program or service involved. This may expedite your request by allowing us to verify that the proxy is no longer open.

Alternatively, if you wish to keep your IP address private you can use the unblock ticket request system.

Administrators: The IP block exemption user right should only be applied to allow users to edit using an open or anonymizing proxies in exceptional circumstances, and they should usually be directed to the functionaries team via email. If you intend to give the IPBE user right, a CheckUser needs to take a look at the account. This can be requested most easily at SPI Quick Checkuser Requests. Unblocking an IP or IP range with this template is highly discouraged without at least contacting the blocking administrator. Most proxy check tools and services will give a false negative for this type of proxy, and if you unblock it, the proxy checking bots will not automatically re-block it, even if it is still an open proxy.