What is up with this????????

Junkman · Jul 26, 2005

While reading a post by GSXR I see this little box pop up under his signature line telling me what my ISP is and the version of Windows that I am running. I also realize that this is information that is only available for me to see, however, if the program that can figure out this information, makes me wonder if it also is sending a cookie that will keep track of this information and other things that I do with my computer!! I don't like invasive programs like this and wonder why they are allowed on TBN??????? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

Muhammad · Jul 26, 2005

They aren't allowed. I removed it.

Gatorboy · Jul 26, 2005

PBMAX uses the same in his signature - Sig Test

gsxr1100 · Jul 26, 2005

it is all removed for you by Muhammad . Your computer is always sending this info out to everywhere you vist. It is in you IMCP type packets I believe.

If you are worried about that, you better not use a pc ever. It is like a ping in puter terms....

Also people or servers (and your email) see this data on every site/email you vist....not local to you unless you use reverse proxy firewall and configure it to NAT legit traffic to your server. And yes they are ways around it.

Junkman · Jul 26, 2005

So what was the intended purpose of your putting this into your signature line???????? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

gsxr1100 · Jul 26, 2005

hmmm, well two reasons: #1 it is free and anyone can use it but only you can see it and computer "nerd" people can see it ; and #2 if you think you are ok, "you are on the grid" now. All the info is out there.

Everysite you vist, every email etc all the info is there.

Your Town (city)
Ip
browser
Population
City ID
Longitude
Latitude
Time zone
Distance to Nearby Cities
Maps
etc

It is all there, just another tool out there. Plus it makes people think here. Computers ha...

arthr31 · Jul 26, 2005

I don't know about all of that list being available, but for sure your login name, computer name, isp, etc. It's not part of an ICMP packet, it's sent along in the HTTP request field- If I remember correctly these are server-side variables which the server gets populated with once a browser makes an HTTP request (for a page).

These have been available on the web for a long time. I wrote programs almost 10 years ago (gee that scary) that followed users thru their travels on the web by tracing click thrus...

Basically, if you doing stuff on the web that could be risky, don't!! but then again, it's so much data being captured, who cares... But, I agree about the privacy issu too...

We all lose a little bit of privacy for this increased communication ability.

hobbyfarm · Jul 27, 2005

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I don't know about all of that list being available, but for sure your login name, computer name, isp, etc. )</font>

Actually, just the tip of the iceberg. A lot more data can be extrapolated from this data.

gsxr1100 · Jul 27, 2005

I agree. The thing I had means nothing and getting worried over zero...

getut · Jul 27, 2005

That thing is also done with client side scripting. Meaning that your own computer runs the program to figure out the information to display in that box. It is nothing to worry about.

Also the IP address is like the phone number for your computer. It goes out with every request to every page you visit. It HAS to.. it is how the server sends the data back to the correct computer.

I'm normally the tin foil hat guy here, but most of this is rubbish. IP addresses can be narrowed down most of the time to a general geographic area.. nothing else. Say a range of IP addresses is registered to a regional ISP that coveres NC, SC, and GA. The ISP itself may have that range of addresses further divided and assigned to more specific geographic regions. That is all they can do. If the ISP has a dialup user travel to Texas, and then dial up the internet using the ISP's phone numbers. A reverse lookup on that IP address is not going to show TX.. its going to show as somewhere in NC, SC, and GA because that is where the IP is registered to.

Heck I can route my traffic through our Japanese division and the site I am visiting couldn't tell the difference.