SolveYourProblem
Article Series: Internet Privacy
Is My Privacy Vulnerable To Attack?
How
to Hide Your IP Address
Did you know that you had an IP address? Just
like your street address denotes your location within the city
that you live, your IP address denotes your computer’s address. It is unique to your machine alone, and as such it can be used
to identify you when you access certain websites. IP is the
abbreviation for Internet Protocol and if you have ever signed
up for something on the Internet, you may have gotten a confirmation
email that read something like this:
“A request for xyz information was submitted from a computer
with the IP address xyz.”
It is not surprising that some computer users feel uncomfortable
with the ability of certain websites to ascertain their IP
addresses in a medium that thrives on anonymity. Granted, to
the upstanding citizen there is little if any reason to be
hiding their IP address, but if you consider that any kind
of identifiable data may give way to the dreaded reality of
identity theft, you will quickly ascertain why this kind of
security is no longer just for those who might have nefarious
business in mind, but instead is a sensible precaution for
anyone and everyone who surfs the World Wide Web.
For example, did you know that your IP address is the gateway
to your identity? Did you know that skilled phishers will be
able to glean personally identifiable information from your
simply by using your IP – it starts with your location and
only digs deeper from there. Without having to click on any
link on a webpage, a skilled phisher will be able to tell which
kind of search led to his or her website, what operating system
you are running, and what kind of browser you utilize. This
kind of information is a key for anyone who wants to surreptitiously
download spyware or adware to your system. Once you are a blimp
on a malicious hacker’s radar, it is only a small step from
there to also be vulnerable to virus attacks and further phishing
expeditions. An invisible IP address will prevent you from
being visible on the ‘Net.
Here are some helpful hints on hiding your IP address:
Software packages are now available which will provide you
with a fake IP address that will cause hackers to collect incorrect
information about you. This will cause spyware and adware attacks
that are aimed at a computer system with fictitious system
data to not launch an attack on your system. Additionally,
these packages will help you to anonymously surf the World
Wide Web, especially if you visit websites that third parties
may consider objectionable, or to simply hide your online activities
from the prying eyes of a boss or nosy coworkers who are not
above stealing your research.
Hardcore privacy advocates have devoted much time and effort
to set up special routing systems that will protect your identity.
Thus, when you are surfing the web, the router’s IP address
will be displayed, while a personal IP address does not show
up anywhere. This will greatly increase your degree of anonymity.
While it is true that your IP address will be much harder to
trace, it has the downside of slowing down your Internet connection
considerably. On the upside, this service is free and there
is nothing to download.
For those users who want to hide their IP address whenever
they send email, it is important to note that in general this
address cannot be removed from an email program. Instead, you
may have to consider using a re-mailing software package will
ensure absolute anonymity whenever you are sending out email.
In a day and age where SPAM has become the scourge of many
an inbox, it might be worth your time to protect your home
inbox by using such a service. # # # # #
SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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