When browsing the Internet, there is a lot of data that we can expose. Our information is of great value online and there are also many methods that third parties can use to collect it. They could include us in spam campaigns, for example. Among all the information that can be filtered when browsing, one of them is the IP address. In this article we are going to show how we could know what the real physical location is through the IP.
What is the IP address
First of all we are going to remember what exactly the IP address is . We can say that it is a set of numbers that serve to identify a device on the network, be it a computer, mobile or any other with a connection. It can be both private and public. The first is used to identify ourselves in the router, so that computers can connect to it. The second is the identifier with which we go to the network.
When we enter a web page, that site will know what our public IP is . In this way, you could offer us a more personalized service. For example, if we enter a page to check the weather, it will appear in our area. Also to enter certain platforms that may be available only for a specific country.
Therefore, with the IP address they could know, at least approximately, where we are. Of course, there are tools that allow you to hide that address. An example is if we browse through a proxy or if we use a VPN. In this way the real address is hidden and we navigate with a different one. We could even show ourselves as if we were in another country.
How to find out the physical location of an IP address
There are methods to find out the physical location of a public IP address. We can see which country it belongs to, which city and even the approximate coordinates. The first thing we have to do is know the IP that interests us. We can try our own. To do this, you simply have to use some type of service where they indicate what my IP is .
Once we have the public IP address that interests us, this is where the MaxMind tool comes into play. There we can put up to 25 IP addresses that we want to know where they belong. Its use is very simple, since we simply have to put them in the box that appears above and then click Submit.
Later it will show us, in the box below, the real physical location that corresponds to each IP address that we have put. It will also indicate the approximate coordinates, the operator, etc. In our case we have tested with the VPN integrated in the Opera browser.
We can try as many as we want. It is a totally free online tool. As we can see, it is very easy to find out the real location of a public IP address that we want. It even shows us the approximate coordinates. Accuracy may vary. We will also see a margin in kilometers.
How to hide the real IP address
We have explained what the IP address is and how they could know where we are physically through this information. Now we are going to explain some simple options to be able to surf the Internet without showing what the real address is.
VPN services
One of the most used tools to hide the real IP address are VPNs . They are available for both desktop computers and mobile devices. There are free and paid ones, although we recommend the latter to achieve a better service and also to maintain our privacy.
What this type of program allows is to hide the real IP address and also connect us to a server that is anywhere in the world.
Proxy
Another similar option is proxy servers. There are also free and paid ones and the mission is basically the same. It allows us to hide our real IP and navigate through an intermediary. It is a type of tool widely used to navigate anonymously and modify the location.
Tor
One last option is to use the Tor browser . In this case it is a totally free service. Our connection goes through multiple nodes and hides the real IP address. It is one more way to navigate anonymously and avoid knowing our physical location.
In short, simply by having the public IP address they could know, at least approximately, where we are. We have seen some methods to hide that real IP and not give that information when browsing the Internet.