Everything You Need to Know About Protecting Your Ip Address

We have certainly adapted to the online version of our lives and to be extremely honest, it is now the only thing that our lives revolve around. However, it has been decades and along with the rise in online screen time, there has been a distinct rise in cybercrimes all over the world too. But, let’s elaborate on how the virtual realm works. Let’s say, for instance, most of us have a residential address in the real world and that is somewhat a part of our identity. Likewise, in the virtual or online world, each of us acquires a distinctive address that becomes a part of our online identity- the IP Address. It is your personal location where you receive all your email conversations, web pages, images, and other important messages. Now, if the question for “where is this IP Address?” as well as “Do I need to hide my IP Address?” pops up in your head, you’ve come to the correct place. Here, in this read, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about protecting your IP addresses to protect yourself from falling victim to the digital age enemy- cybercrime.

Answering “How to get my IP Address?”

This part of the read was to help you for the time when you ask “How do I find my IP address?”, and the answer is universal- you’d find it online or over the Internet. However, there is something you need to know about- your IP address is a unique combination of four numerical groups, presented as “xxx.xxx.xx.x”. It has the authority to identify the device you are using for your online activities and the network you are on for the same. Also, when you look for your “my IP address” these two pieces of information will play a major role in finding out whether you have permission to access it or not and very soon you’d find answers to “Do I need to hide my IP address?”

Understand what can you do with an IP address

Having access to your IP address refers to a very simple thing- an easy route to each and every detail you’ve published online or the details the Internet might have its hands on. And in today’s uncertain and digitally dominated world, this would mean disclosure of all your confidential or personal data to the world. If you’re wondering “what can someone do with your IP”, here’s what might happen- it would make you an easy target for all the cyber crooks in every corner of the world. They can spy on you, upload a virus to your system, threaten you for ransom, etc. So it has been recorded that the answer to “Do I need to hide my IP address?” is, yes.

Answering how to hide IP address

Now that you’re aware of what might happen if your IP address has been compromised, here’s how to hide your IP address- incorporate the use of a virtual private network (VPN) or any other proxy server. However, VPNs are the most appreciated and used protection method that we recommend you to employ because your data will be shielded with the new secure network created through a different server over the Internet.

Let’s say, for instance, you are using this virtual private network from California, and all your data (emails, web pages, images, etc) seems to be coming to you from a different location say, South Africa. This way the actual location of your data is hidden as the traffic seems to be originating from a different location. A VPN works wonders when you are on a public and unprotected Wi-Fi network because anyone on the network might have access to your digital presence.

Privacy protection methods for your IP Address

By now, we know we have explained and provided an elaborate answer to your doubt- “do I need to hide my IP address?” and we stated the best available option of using VPN to answer “how hide my IP address”. But, this section of the read is equipped to offer you other solutions:

• Check and modify all your privacy settings on your devices and your social media accounts.
• Ensure that your location services stay turned off unless it is absolutely important.
• Keep updated with all the latest cyber threats and collect knowledge on how to prevent or resolve them.
• Go on to mcafee.com/activate and look for a suitable software subscription to employ protection for your digital life.
• And of course, always use a VPN when on an unsafe public Wi-Fi network.

Conclusion

The detailed read above has been exclusively designed to help you understand the answer to “Do I need to hide my IP address?” At the beginning of the read, you’d learnt about the ideology of IP addresses along with the information on how you can find the IP address online, the exclusive data on what access to your IP address can lead to (by cybercriminals or hackers) if compromised, the best solution to hiding your IP address for enhanced security and other ways to provide privacy protection to your IP address and further to your entire digital life.