Surfing internet anonymously?
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Thread: Surfing internet anonymously?

  1. #1
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    Surfing internet anonymously?

    Hi, there. I spend some time at a forum where there's been rumors that some can see and possibly use your IP to hack into your computer. That being said, I've searched high and low for hide your ip proxy services, but they've all gotten pretty awful reviews, especially on download.com. Can any of you recommend a reputable paid service that actually does hide your IP and doesn't slow down or mess up your computer?

    Thank you in advance.
    I have two laptops:

    #1 2016 HP 15.6" Premium High Performance Laptop PC, AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 Processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, DVD+/-RW, Webcam, WIFI, HDMI, UbuntuMate 18.04

    #2 2019 HP Premium 15.6" HD Laptop, AMD A6 Dual-Core 2.6 GHz, 4GB|8GB|16GB RAM, 1TB|2TB HDD, 128GB|256GB|512GB|1TB SSD, WiFi Bluetooth HD Webcam 3-in-1 SD Reader HDMI, Windows 10,

  2. #2
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    Best bet is add a router. And make sure your firewall is working.

    Stopped my IP from finding out what all i had running. @HOME has since gone bankrupt.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Train View Post
    Best bet is add a router. And make sure your firewall is working.

    Stopped my IP from finding out what all i had running. @HOME has since gone bankrupt.
    Hi, Train..thank you for your response. Now, the million dollar question; how do I go about using a router? Also, I use the windows firewall...how do I make sure it's working properly? Is the windows firewall enough, or do I need to supplement it with another firewall?

    So sorry for so many questions!! I'm still quite computer illiterate lol
    I have two laptops:

    #1 2016 HP 15.6" Premium High Performance Laptop PC, AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 Processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, DVD+/-RW, Webcam, WIFI, HDMI, UbuntuMate 18.04

    #2 2019 HP Premium 15.6" HD Laptop, AMD A6 Dual-Core 2.6 GHz, 4GB|8GB|16GB RAM, 1TB|2TB HDD, 128GB|256GB|512GB|1TB SSD, WiFi Bluetooth HD Webcam 3-in-1 SD Reader HDMI, Windows 10,

  4. #4
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    It's easy to get concerned about being online but someone would really, really want to target you personally and have pretty good hacking skills to even start to do any damage. Once you are behind a software firewall running in Windows (Windows own firewall works well) and as Train says, a hardware firewall in your router it's not at all easy to get past that and it would take a lot of effort and time to even try.

    Also, if you are on DSL your IP will change periodically anyway so anyone who has your current IP will lose it in as little as a week or two but it depends on the ISP you use. You can reboot your DSL modem and that often changes your IP address immediately.

    Cable IP's tend to last longer but they do change occasionally as well.

    Most people use proxies or more commonly VPN's to hide their IP address not to avoid hackers but to pretend to be from another place or country or to encrypt their communications when using a free wifi hotspot. I use the free version of hotspot shield to get a US IP address so I can view certain US video, movie, sports and TV websites otherwise not accessible here in Canada. I find it to be very reliable and get speeds of around 5Mbps most of the time which is just fine for watching good quality videos without buffering... and that's the slower, banner ad supported free version.

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  5. #5
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    I was typing as you made your last reply.

    Pretty much any new router has a built in firewall and comes with a setup CD to make sure that all is working. There's no need to buy anything expensive.. mid priced routers in the 50 -75 dollar range work well. If you don't need wifi then either get a router without it or turn it off since wifi is overall more of a hacking concern than the IP stuff we're talking about above.

    If your current Windows firewall is on then it would say so and you'd get constant warnings from Windows that it's off if it has been disabled.

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  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by fink View Post
    I was typing as you made your last reply.

    Pretty much any new router has a built in firewall and comes with a setup CD to make sure that all is working. There's no need to buy anything expensive.. mid priced routers in the 50 -75 dollar range work well. If you don't need wifi then either get a router without it or turn it off since wifi is overall more of a hacking concern than the IP stuff we're talking about above.

    If your current Windows firewall is on then it would say so and you'd get constant warnings from Windows that it's off if it has been disabled.
    Thank you, fink! I'm using a cable connection and not wireless, if that helps any. So I should download hotspot shield and try that? I'm completely confused about the router stuff I really want my IP (my cable company uses dynamic IP's) disguised more than anything, as I've also heard that one can find your address with it, and these people seem pretty advanced computer wise - IT jobs, etc.
    I have two laptops:

    #1 2016 HP 15.6" Premium High Performance Laptop PC, AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 Processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, DVD+/-RW, Webcam, WIFI, HDMI, UbuntuMate 18.04

    #2 2019 HP Premium 15.6" HD Laptop, AMD A6 Dual-Core 2.6 GHz, 4GB|8GB|16GB RAM, 1TB|2TB HDD, 128GB|256GB|512GB|1TB SSD, WiFi Bluetooth HD Webcam 3-in-1 SD Reader HDMI, Windows 10,

  7. #7
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    You can pretty easily keep track of your own IP. There are many dozens of sites that tell you what it is.

    www.whatismyip.com
    www.ipchicken.com

    If your IP is truly dynamic and changes regularly that's good.


    Here is one router worth considering.. there are quite a few and others can/should chime in.. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833704130

    Typically all you'd need to do is put it between the computer and the modem and turn it on. I would not be getting too paranoid about all this though because like I said someone would really want to target you specifically for there even to be a chance of any security breach otherwise you are just one of many many millions of addresses that are out there.

    The most info anyone can get from your IP address without a police warrant given to your own ISP is who your ISP is and possibly what city or what part of a city you are in, certainly not your address. There's pretty much nothing anyone can do with that info except maybe scare the uninformed.

    You can try hotspotshield if you like. It's easy to turn off/on. I use it many times/week when I need it. Note that if you do use it while you check your email and you use an email program like Thunderbird or Outlook etc some email providers like Gmail will suddenly see a new IP address and geolocation for you and send you a warning that an unknown person has tried to access your email acc't and access was denied. Happens to me regularly if I forget to turn my email client off before I turn hotspot shield on. I just ignore the message although the first time was a little alarming before I realized what it was.

    If you only use webmail via your browser it wouldn't be a problem.

    Bottom line though is that once you get a router in your setup I would stop worrying about the IP address issue and not use a proxy or VPN unless you have a specific reason like using a public wifi spot or need to change your location for viewing online media like I do.

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  8. #8
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    Where the router goes. The basic configuration we use. Clcik the picture to make it larger.

    Attachment 12381

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by fink View Post
    You can pretty easily keep track of your own IP. There are many dozens of sites that tell you what it is.

    www.whatismyip.com
    www.ipchicken.com

    If your IP is truly dynamic and changes regularly that's good.


    Here is one router worth considering.. there are quite a few and others can/should chime in.. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833704130

    Typically all you'd need to do is put it between the computer and the modem and turn it on. I would not be getting too paranoid about all this though because like I said someone would really want to target you specifically for there even to be a chance of any security breach otherwise you are just one of many many millions of addresses that are out there.

    The most info anyone can get from your IP address without a police warrant given to your own ISP is who your ISP is and possibly what city or what part of a city you are in, certainly not your address. There's pretty much nothing anyone can do with that info except maybe scare the uninformed.

    You can try hotspotshield if you like. It's easy to turn off/on. I use it many times/week when I need it. Note that if you do use it while you check your email and you use an email program like Thunderbird or Outlook etc some email providers like Gmail will suddenly see a new IP address and geolocation for you and send you a warning that an unknown person has tried to access your email acc't and access was denied. Happens to me regularly if I forget to turn my email client off before I turn hotspot shield on. I just ignore the message although the first time was a little alarming before I realized what it was.

    If you only use webmail via your browser it wouldn't be a problem.

    Bottom line though is that once you get a router in your setup I would stop worrying about the IP address issue and not use a proxy or VPN unless you have a specific reason like using a public wifi spot or need to change your location for viewing online media like I do.
    Thank you so much, fink. So, if I do the router thing, it will disguise my IP to another location, like a proxy? That said, in a way I am targeted by one person there, so now I'm a little nervous!
    I have two laptops:

    #1 2016 HP 15.6" Premium High Performance Laptop PC, AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 Processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, DVD+/-RW, Webcam, WIFI, HDMI, UbuntuMate 18.04

    #2 2019 HP Premium 15.6" HD Laptop, AMD A6 Dual-Core 2.6 GHz, 4GB|8GB|16GB RAM, 1TB|2TB HDD, 128GB|256GB|512GB|1TB SSD, WiFi Bluetooth HD Webcam 3-in-1 SD Reader HDMI, Windows 10,

  10. #10
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    The router changes the 192.168.0.1 or what ever private ip number the router gives , to the public one that is seen on the internet.

    Code:
    An IP address is considered private if the IP number falls within one of the IP address ranges reserved for private uses by Internet standards groups. These private IP address ranges exist:
    
        10.0.0.0 through 10.255.255.255
        169.254.0.0 through 169.254.255.255 (APIPA only)
        172.16.0.0 through 172.31.255.255
        192.168.0.0 through 192.168.255.255

  11. #11
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    I suggest you read this page.
    http://compnetworking.about.com/od/w...vateipaddr.htm

    Devices with private IP addresses cannot connect directly to the Internet. Likewise, computers outside the local network cannot connect directly to a device with a private IP. Instead, access to such devices must be brokered by a router or similar device that supports Network Address Translation (NAT). NAT hides the private IP numbers but can selectively transfer messages to these devices, affording a layer of security to the local network.

  12. #12
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    Thank you, Train..very informative and will be attempting it, hopefully with good results. With that said, an update. It turns out this person is an IT person and I was told he did in fact trace my IP to my home address. Now I'm worried. Isn't this illegal, and what can I do about it? I didn't know IT people were able to do this!
    I have two laptops:

    #1 2016 HP 15.6" Premium High Performance Laptop PC, AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 Processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, DVD+/-RW, Webcam, WIFI, HDMI, UbuntuMate 18.04

    #2 2019 HP Premium 15.6" HD Laptop, AMD A6 Dual-Core 2.6 GHz, 4GB|8GB|16GB RAM, 1TB|2TB HDD, 128GB|256GB|512GB|1TB SSD, WiFi Bluetooth HD Webcam 3-in-1 SD Reader HDMI, Windows 10,

  13. #13
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    If this person is harassing you in any way and claiming to know your home address I would strongly suggest you contact law enforcement.
    I am still very skeptical that they know your home address via your IP address but he may have gotten it from other means like online searching,
    phone books, etc.

    I would also recommend you no longer go to the forum in question. The internet is full of jerks and it's best to avoid them as much as possible.


    One added thing re the router.. if and when you get one set it up with a new password to get into it's settings. The default passwords are commonly
    known.

    VirtualDr email notices are not working.
    Check back regularly for responses.

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  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by fink View Post
    If this person is harassing you in any way and claiming to know your home address I would strongly suggest you contact law enforcement.
    I am still very skeptical that they know your home address via your IP address but he may have gotten it from other means like online searching,
    phone books, etc.

    I would also recommend you no longer go to the forum in question. The internet is full of jerks and it's best to avoid them as much as possible.


    One added thing re the router.. if and when you get one set it up with a new password to get into it's settings. The default passwords are commonly
    known.
    But his job is in information technology..aren't they equipped and able to do that? Regardless, like you recommended, I'm going to stay away from this forum now because hearing that really spooked me.
    I have two laptops:

    #1 2016 HP 15.6" Premium High Performance Laptop PC, AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 Processor, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, DVD+/-RW, Webcam, WIFI, HDMI, UbuntuMate 18.04

    #2 2019 HP Premium 15.6" HD Laptop, AMD A6 Dual-Core 2.6 GHz, 4GB|8GB|16GB RAM, 1TB|2TB HDD, 128GB|256GB|512GB|1TB SSD, WiFi Bluetooth HD Webcam 3-in-1 SD Reader HDMI, Windows 10,

  15. #15
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    Lisa - I don't mean to freak you out, but all the staff members on sites like VirtualDr can see your IP address. Pretty much any site and gather your IP address.

    But, you can go to sites like this one: http://ipaddress.com/ip_lookup/
    And enter your address and see the very limited amount of information. As mentioned above - a person would have to go through law enforcement to get a warrant to get any more info.

    PS... If you're concerned about privacy - you might want to remove the city and state information you posted in your user profile.

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