guest@ipterm:~$ man ip-privacy
What your IP address reveals (and what it doesn’t)
Every website you visit sees your public IP address, because that is where it sends its reply. On its own, the address says less than many people fear, and more than some people assume.
What an IP address does reveal
- Your network. Every public address belongs to an organization: usually your internet provider, but sometimes a mobile carrier, university, company, cloud host or VPN service. Its ASN identifies it.
- An approximate location. Usually a city or region, sometimes only a country. It often points to your provider's regional hub, which can be tens or even hundreds of kilometers from where you are.
- A guess at your time zone, based on that location.
- Whether it's a datacenter or VPN address, to services that keep lists of those.
What it does not reveal
- Your name, email address or phone number.
- Your street address or precise location.
- Your browsing history or which devices are on your network.
Who can connect an IP address to you
Your internet provider knows which customer had which address at a given time. Providers generally disclose that only through a legal process, such as a court order or subpoena, and the rules differ by country. Websites themselves can link visits to you only if you also sign in or share identifying details.
Why your address changes, or is shared
- Dynamic addresses: most home connections get an address that can change from time to time, for example when the router restarts.
- Carrier-grade NAT: many mobile and some home providers put many customers behind one public address, so the address points to the provider more than to you.
Showing websites a different address
A VPN routes your traffic through the VPN provider, so websites see the provider's address instead of yours. Your internet provider then sees only that you're connected to the VPN, while the VPN provider can see where your traffic goes, so choose one you trust. Tor spreads traffic across volunteer relays for stronger anonymity at the cost of speed. Neither changes what you reveal by signing in to accounts.
Try itRun whoami to see exactly what your own address shows.