IP addresses are essential for sending and receiving information online. However, if hackers know your IP address, they can use it to obtain invaluable information such as your whereabouts and digital identity. This information can be used to hack devices, steal personal information, and more.
There is a risk if someone knows your IP address, but this risk is rarely discussed. Hackers and malicious third parties use your IP address to attempt various cyber-attacks and scams against you and others. First, to prevent cyberattacks from hackers, let’s start by checking your IP address. Check out the page where you can do an IP search.
After reading this article, you will know what to protect yourself from and how to hide your IP address.
How do you find your IP address?
An IP address is a unique sequence of numbers assigned by your ISP, much like a shipping address for your online traffic. If you connect to a different Wi-Fi or move house, your IP address will change depending on your location.
Most ISPs use dynamic IP addresses that are not fixed on your device, but you can have a static IP address if you prefer (there are several types of IP addresses).
For example, if you want your computer to always have the same IP address, you can specify that in your device’s settings. This is useful when port forwarding and you want to send certain data directly from your router to your computer’s IP address.
Your IP address contains certain information about you that can be exploited by others. There are many ways a third party can obtain your IP address, some of which are listed below.
file torrent. If you download content from a torrent site, peer members handling the file can see your IP address. You can figure out the IP address just by checking the list of peers.
rent a device Free service on the web can find your IP address in seconds when someone else is renting or using your computer.
e-mail. When you send an email, the person you sent it to can check the headers of that email and it may contain your IP address. Yahoo! and Microsoft Outlook are known to include IP addresses in email headers.
Clicking on a link. When you click on any link, the server on the other end needs your IP address in order to serve the linked content. The person who owns that server can see your IP address.
Although your IP address won’t give away sensitive information like your phone number or the location of your apartment, there are some downsides to having your IP address exposed. And if cybercriminals learn your IP address, they can be devastated. So, what happens when your IP address is exposed?
Third parties can use your IP address to hack your device.
The Internet uses ports, not just IP addresses. Every IP address has thousands of ports, and a hacker who knows your IP can use all those ports to brute force, for example, hijack your phone and steal your information.
If hackers gain access to your device, they can install malware on your device and expose your IP.
Hackers may also be able to find router vulnerabilities by knowing your IP address if your router uses a default password.
Third parties can get your location and violate your privacy in real life.
Your IP address will tell you which city you are in, so if someone with malicious intent finds out, you’re in big trouble. For example, let’s say you posted on social media that you were going on vacation. Hackers can find your home with a little digging and break into your house while you’re away.
It is not possible to identify the address by IP address alone, but if there is a lot of information on SNS, it is easy to use that information to identify it.
A third party can impersonate you and get your IP address
Your ISP may expose your IP address to others. Hackers who learn your name on social media may contact your ISP to impersonate you or use vishing attacks to steal your personal information. Remember, carriers are people with systems that hold large amounts of personally identifiable information.
Employers can track your behavior
Your ISP owns your IP address and assigns it to you. If you’re connected to your work network, your employer can see and track everything you do online, and you have almost no privacy.
Hackers launch DDoS attacks
If hackers know your IP address, they can harm you with a DDoS attack. A DDoS attack is a type of cyberattack that uses multiple devices as stepping stones to attack specific devices all at once.
Cybercriminals can use you for illegal activities
Hackers have been known to use hacked IP addresses to download illegal content that threatens national security, or to download data in such a way that the hackers themselves cannot be tracked. Protecting your IP address means protecting yourself.
