I frequent a college sports board and the administrator has started listing the ip address of poster's. <br><br>Is this a security risk? If so,how much of one?<br>Is there a valid reason for showing this information?<br><br>I'm not sure, but I don't have a warm & fuzzy feeling about this, and am getting ready to really complain about this.<br><br>Hans <p></p><i></i>

I cant see any reason why someone would post someone else's IP address. <p></p><i></i>

I don't think they should post the IP address but at the same time, I don't think it matters any either. I know your IP and everyone elses for that matter. Mine is 66.25.24.124. So what. Everytime, you go anywhere on line, they know your IP. Nothing has happened yet has it?<br><br><br>Hermskii <p></p><i></i>

Does this help the hackers out there gain access to your computer? Also, can you change IP addresses? <p>The Jargonaut<br></p><i></i>

Sure sure a "college sports board" LMAO!!!<br><br>I told you to quit hacking those pay-premium porno sites, Hans!!! Now look, they actually got a hold of your IP??!! <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :lol --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/laugh.gif ALT=":lol"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

Very funny, Mah!<br>If you must know, it's Hawkeyenation - for University of Iowa sports fans. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! <p></p><i></i>

Jarg,<br> People using dial up modems are assigned a new IP address each time they log onto the internet. People with DSL are usually assigned a specific IP that sticks with them the length of the contract. People with cable modems also usually get a single IP address that doesn't change unless they turn the modem off for a few days at a time. An IP address is to a PC as a home address is to your house. Everyone has a unique IP address. That way information can be directed between one location to a specific other location. Hackers usually don't care about specific IP addresses unless they are specifically trying to get into a certain machine which may be a personal PC or a web-site. Some people like their privacy so no, they don't want their address put on the internet's map to the stars home. They want to stay invisible. Nothing wrong with that. Hackers like thieves, will view an entire segment which is just like them driving down the block you live on looking for the most exposed house. Hackers search a segment of address on the internet looking for ports on your PC they can use to get in . Ports would be like open windows to your house. Your PC can talk through over 64000 ports. A firewall is like burglar bars I guess in that each port the hacker sees has bars on it keeping the hacker out. In PC terms, if you have a firewall set up properly, they won't see the bars , the windows, or even the house itself. You'll be invisible. Short of having a firewall, there isn't much you can do to stop a hacker. If you are using a firewall and invisible but they know your address, they still know exactly where to go to knock on your door though the house is invisible. That's why some folks don't want their IP address advertised or sold to advertisers to advertise because that makes you a potential target no matter how invisible you are. Just because you have a firewall doesn't make you safe either. If they are good enough and want to hack you, there is nothing you can do about it. The end. Luckily, hackers have bigger better targets to focus on than a typical PC gamer or home user. Hackers would rather steal 2,000,000 credit card number or deface playboys website. Don't be afraid yet. Virus's are still the biggest problem out there by far in my opinion. Hope that answers your question a little.<br><br>Hermskii <p></p><i></i>

Good show herm; thats the best analogy I've read in awhile for this topic. I have only one thing to add; it has to do with the next to last sentence in your statement. These "Crackers" (a hacker is a different creature altogether) will compromise a an average users pc or a small web servers pc in order to hide their tracks when attempting to assault a larger target. Example: Say someone wanted to do a little cyber B&E to the U.S. Department of Defense's network, yet wanted to remain untraceable. They would first compromise another pc and then route their IP traffic through the victim in order to obfustcate the origin of the attack. Also, what makes us folks on cable and DSL a good target is the amount of bandwidth that is at our disposal; If a machine on broadband can be exploited, it can be used as a zombie in a DDOS attack or as a place to store "questionable material" ("pr0n", "warez").<br>Just my $0.02 US (~$0.03 CAN). <p>....................../´¯/)<br>....................,/¯../<br>.................../..../<br>............./´¯/'...'/´¯¯`·¸<br>........../'/.../..../......./¨¯\<br>........('(...´...´.... ¯~/'...')<br>.........\.................'...../<br>..........''...\.......... _.·´<br>............\..............(<br>..............\.............\...<br>DeaD_SuN</p><i></i>

Thanks to you both. The reason that I am asking is the the other night, my connection was really active, but I had nothing on. It was sending and receiving information very quickly. I am careful not to have anything automatically download so as not to effect my bandwidth. I just wonder if it was a person trying to gain admitance to my computer. I disconnected, and reconnected, and the same thing happened. I turned on the firewall, and presto, no activity. Just makes me wonder. <p>The Jargonaut<br></p><i></i>

Hey Jarg. That activity was Bill Gates checkin' up on you to make sure you don't have any unlicensed software.<!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :rollin --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/roll.gif ALT=":rollin"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

Best word of the day: "obfuscate" <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :smokin --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/smokin.gif ALT=":smokin"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <br><br>Nice work Dead Sun!!!! The Bush administration will be calling soon.<br><br>snakeinthegrasstorp <p></p><i></i>

Go get a software firewall like the very good and free "ZoneAlarm". It's one of the few that actually will catch every single program that tries to get out of your PC. You'll see what's happening in the background as it catches program after program trying to go to the internet without your permission. A little pop up will appear asking your permission to let the program out. It tells you what the program name is and where it is going too. It's a great defense against hackers too. It won't slow down your connection at all but reboots may take 5 -10 seconds longer. You will be utterly shocked when you see how many times it catches Winamp, Real Player, AIM, MSN, Logitech, and tons of other programs trying to report your your internet behaviors. Get it at www.zoneleabs.com . It's easy to install and remember that there are three versions. The free one is plenty good enough. Just get it. Nothing else. A great way to test it is to go to www.GRC.com . Do some of the test there first, then install zonealarm and retest. This site can teach you so much stuff and it's in easy terms. Click on the shields up icon and test to see how open you are to attacks. Do the Port Probe too. Being behind the router will be plenty of protection but notice that your firewall doesn't stop programs from just going to the internet when they want to like ZA does. I'm not responsible for issues you may have if you screw up your system but I found ZoneALarm to be simple and straight forward.<br><br>Hermskii <p></p><i></i>