We are using group policy to automatically configure windows proxy settings on some computers for legacy application purposes. Because policy configures these settings, I can't view them in control panel or browser settings, even as administrator.
The policy has been in place and working for quite some time, but at some point internet access without the proxy was allowed, so I can't use a simply connectivity test.
A while back our third party web filter (Trustwave) began behaving inconsistently. Someone mentioned that possibly the proxy settings are being ignored, even though the policy is still in place and working.
With our limited staffing during the pandemic, our network team is stretched thin. I was hoping I could figure out how to check this from the workstation side.
Or possibly from the WSUS server or SQL reporting server, or any other server that uses http connections.
I have found that Cisco does offer many ways to ignore, override, or bypass web browser proxy settings. I don't know how to tell if a PAC file or WPAD are being used to configure proxy inadvertently.
Seems like the intercepting of web requests provides a way to do it:
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/security/wsa/wsa11-0/user_guide/b_WSA_UserGuide/b_WSA_UserGuide_chapter_0100.pdf
I don't know if these type of settings can be applied without using the AnyConnect VPN client, but I found this:
"Configure the Client to Ignore Browser Proxy Settings
You can specify a policy in the AnyConnect profile to bypass the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Safari proxy configuration settings on the user’s PC. This prevents the user from establishing a tunnel from outside the corporate network, and prevents AnyConnect from connecting through an undesirable or illegitimate proxy server.
Procedure
| Step 1 | Open the VPN Profile Editor and choose Preferences (Part 2) from the navigation pane. |
| Step 2 | In the Proxy Settings drop-down list, choose IgnoreProxy. Ignore Proxy causes the client to ignore all proxy settings. No action is taken against proxies that are downloaded from the |
"https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/security/vpn_client/anyconnect/anyconnect40/administration/guide/b_AnyConnect_Administrator_Guide_4-0/configure-vpn.html
I apologize for such a lame question, and I hope this is the correct forum. Thanks for any guidance anyone can share.
