Scary google maps by ip address

stratcatprowlin · Mar 7, 2011

I went to speedtest.net to check my speed and there was an option to click my ip address by google maps.The exact point they gave me as a result was about 5 blocks from my home!With street shots and all.
Wow man this is not good...

tool_462 · Mar 7, 2011

Why does that scare you? I can look up your real address in the phone book or online if I want to...

dropadrop · Mar 7, 2011

stratcatprowlin said:
I went to speedtest.net to check my speed and there was an option to click my ip address by google maps.The exact point they gave me as a result was about 5 blocks from my home!With street shots and all.
Wow man this is not good...

I was wondering about the same thing when using a geo based restaurant recommendation application on an ipod touch some while back. With an iPhone it would use the GPS to locate you and then show restaurants close by. I was just really surprised to notice it had close to the same accuracy when using it over wlan with a device that does not have a GPS...

And yes, you can get somebodies name and phone number from a directory (as long as it's listed), but having that name and number won't tell you everything he did that day.

tool_462 · Mar 7, 2011

dropadrop said:
And yes, you can get somebodies name and phone number from a directory (as long as it's listed), but having that name and number won't tell you everything he did that day.

Neither will tracking someone's IP to find a rough area where they might live, or work, or proxy, or whatever it may be.

tom10167 · Mar 7, 2011

How does someone get another's IP? Is it only through websites and direct connections, or can you guys see my IP, too?

Does blocking all cookies from a site prevent any of this or no?

sandyduff · Mar 7, 2011

tom10167 said:
How does someone get another's IP?

That's easy!! You use Visual Basic!!

Volumetrik · Mar 7, 2011

Buhahaha, thats the best!

Kado · Mar 7, 2011

Yeah, this day in age if you want to really find out where someone is you can do it pretty easily... Kinda creepy

stratcatprowlin · Mar 7, 2011

tool_462 said:
Why does that scare you? I can look up your real address in the phone book or online if I want to...

I'm not listed for a reason but knowing any site I login to could possibly know where I use a particular ip address within 5 blocks or so is creepy to me.A couple of years ago the closest I could get was a very general area like say 15 -20 blocks away.

CompuTamer · Mar 7, 2011

dropadrop said:
I was wondering about the same thing when using a geo based restaurant recommendation application on an ipod touch some while back. With an iPhone it would use the GPS to locate you and then show restaurants close by. I was just really surprised to notice it had close to the same accuracy when using it over wlan with a device that does not have a GPS...

And yes, you can get somebodies name and phone number from a directory (as long as it's listed), but having that name and number won't tell you everything he did that day.

The iPod doesn't just use IP based location tracking.

Google has vans that drive around and map the MAC addresses of Wifi access points. They also use data that's uploaded by users. If you have 3 WiFi hotspots (you don't even have to be connected to any of them) around you, chances are the iPod can figure out where you are within a couple hundred feed. The iPhone uses this and cell towers until it can get a lock onto a GPS signal.

I.M.O.G. · Mar 7, 2011

tom10167 said:
How does someone get another's IP? Is it only through websites and direct connections, or can you guys see my IP, too?

Does blocking all cookies from a site prevent any of this or no?

I can see the IP of everyone who accesses the site - its a built-in feature of vbulletin.

Various ways you can get an IP, direct connection is easiest. Knowing what city someone is in doesn't help much, unless you have their name which you can cross reference with local information from their area, or an email address which you can tie to their online identity elsewhere which is often revealing. With an IP if you want to file police charges you can file a police report and get the police to subpoena the ISP for their info, which provides their real identity and address, and the ability for court injunctions/charges.

Cookies don't do anything to prevent any of this.

Someone having your IP address doesn't matter much. It matters much more what other information you make available about yourself online.

GIXXERGUY6 · Mar 7, 2011

I.M.O.G. said:
Someone having your IP address doesn't matter much. It matters much more what other information you make available about yourself online.

Or what that person can do with your IP, which in most case is nothing.

dropadrop · Mar 8, 2011

GIXXERGUY6 said:
Or what that person can do with your IP, which in most case is nothing.

That depends how deeply they cross correlate between services. Once any service links you to your real identity your information can at least theoretically be linked for just about anything.

Enablingwolf · Mar 8, 2011

Geolocation is pretty moot. Since most of us are on rotating IP's. Then our ISP might buy a huge pool of IPs. Within that pool, it can cover a large geography for your location.

Most of the time, my geolocation is within 10 miles. Sometimes it might get close. I have seen it be off by thousands of miles. When I was using a vpn connection.
Right now, my IP shows I am in another city/county. Since I am on my proper IP, doled out by the ISP.

I do not think it has ever been close to me. I really do not care much anyways. If I did, I would use my VPN.

My cell phone, I surf differently. Since it is easier to triangulate gelocations.

Bijiont · Mar 8, 2011

Something which I didn't see mentioned is that you can easily avoid this with the use of a proxy or other tunneling.

Sure the fact that you can geolocate that close seems creepy but honestly it means very little.

tool_462 · Mar 8, 2011

For what it's worth it thinks I'm in North Carolina right now and I'm in northern Minnesota

Last night it thought I was in Pennsylvania.

dropadrop · Mar 8, 2011

Bijiont said:
Something which I didn't see mentioned is that you can easily avoid this with the use of a proxy or other tunneling.

Nice way to waste my 100mbit internet connection to proxy web traffic through some slow host.

DreamerBrian · Mar 8, 2011

Yea I'm with you, drop. When you have a low bandwidth connection a proxy will seal your browsing fate to the point that it's not even worth it.

Brian

Enablingwolf · Mar 8, 2011

DreamerBrian said:
Yea I'm with you, drop. When you have a low bandwidth connection a proxy will seal your browsing fate to the point that it's not even worth it.

Brian

That is why most high bandwidth users go with a quality VPN service. Some of the average VPN services sort of max out around 26 or so, most much less.. It would really suck for a 100 line. Casual surfing, would not matter much, downloading. It would show itself very much. Then there is a latency overhead for it encrypting the stream, passing it along as you request data up and down.. Mostly defeats the concept of a fast, low latency line.

I have more issues with (public) proxies more so than allowing my IP to show. Since all your traffic is filtered through the proxy. Including sensitive data. i.e.. - Passwords and CC info. I feel it is more dangerous, surfing with it, than surfing without it.

Not including latency issues and other factors with proxies and VPN services.

TorqueRanger · Mar 8, 2011

I.M.O.G. said:
I can see the IP of everyone who accesses the site - its a built-in feature of vbulletin.

Various ways you can get an IP, direct connection is easiest. Knowing what city someone is in doesn't help much, unless you have their name which you can cross reference with local information from their area, or an email address which you can tie to their online identity elsewhere which is often revealing. With an IP if you want to file police charges you can file a police report and get the police to subpoena the ISP for their info, which provides their real identity and address, and the ability for court injunctions/charges.

Cookies don't do anything to prevent any of this.

Someone having your IP address doesn't matter much. It matters much more what other information you make available about yourself online.

Well what would happened if you where to use like an ip hider or bounce your signal off multiple networks and do it that way would you still be able to find my real ip adress????

My ex was talking and e-mailing to her old playmate ,which she helped him cheap on his wife and she knew he was married and his wife never ever knew.. Well i told her i was going to tell his wife or send her the e-mail of them too and she though I was joking.. So I found out his first and last name and from there i got his address ,phone number, and wifes name and what ever else i wanted.. We broke up but she told the guys wife what was going on between lol...

Scary google maps by ip address

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