In the current world of stalkers, hackers and cyber criminals, as well as government spy applications and commercial sites that gather information about you for marketing functions, is there a method to browse the Web and keep your privacy intact?

Lawfully, an IP address doesn’t represent private information that is identifiable, according to two recent court cases.

Alan adds, “Nevertheless, when joined with other data , including a user name, then yes, the IP address can disclose your identity.”

Scott Crawford, handling research director at Enterprise Management Associates, describes an IP address identifies a host on subnet or a particular network. That subnet may identify a group of logical addresses that can, sometimes, be linked with a real place. For instance, there could be an address range related to ISP subscribers in a particular place.

Crawford stresses that when correlated to particular advice (including address, browsing action, or alternative data gathered) during the course of online transactions; as an example, the IP address may be related to a particular place or with that action. Although ISPs frequently assign addresses through protocols like DHCP, it is common for a single, real place (like a house) to keep the exact same IP address for an extended time. “Once the particular private data is linked to the IP address, the action related to that address may be correlated so,” includes Crawford.