How to hide my IP when browsing the internet
The IP (Internet Protocol) is a numerical address that completely identifies a device that is connected to the network from Internet. Knowing our IP, anyone could determine our location accurately.
The IP of each computer or mobile phone leaves a trace on the Internet network that expert people can follow to spy on us, try to enter our device or take confidential information from us.
Advertising services also track IP addresses to understand user behavior and thus be able to show them ads that are more in line with their personal tastes.
Hiding or masking the IP prevents us from being tracked and allows us to browse anonymously and safely. This article aims to show different strategies to mask our presence on the Internet and protect our data from possible attackers.
How to hide the IP address to browse anonymously
In this section we are going to discover two excellent ways we can hide our IP address from the computer by making us browse websites anonymously.
Use a VPN to browse safely
To VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a service that allows you to mask your IP address while you browse the Internet. When you request access to a page, your internet provider is responsible for redirecting you to said page.
However, when we use a VPN, the provider redirects to a VPN server and this then connects to the page we want to consult.
This way we are not the ones visiting the website but rather a VPN server so our information is completely protected. It would be like having a barrier between us and the website to visit in such a way that we can see it but it cannot see us.
Hiring a VPN service offers many advantages. Some of them are the following:
- Security in connections on public WIFI networks: Many computer experts use public networks to access the devices of whoever connects. Using a VPN we can browse safely and connect in libraries, train stations or airports safely without having to worry about the integrity of our data.
- Access exclusive content from other countries: On many occasions, the content of certain platforms is different depending on the country. For example, in the United States, Netflix has many more movies and series. A VPN allows us to mask our location and pretend to be a computer located in the US. In this way we can have access to content that we cannot enjoy from our country.
- Hiding our data on the internet: Many online businesses and service pages use the IP addresses of their users to collect information and understand behavior precisely with the sole objective of selling more. Using a VPN will allow you to block all of these trackers and prevent them from collecting your information.
- Play your favorite video games safely: Games that connect to the Internet can also be a source of attacks by hackers and computer hackers. To play safely it is highly recommended to use a VPN service.
Once you know all the advantages of using a VPN, you may be thinking. How do I get a good VPN?
At this point there are several options. You can opt for a free one. However, like everything that is free, it will never protect you in the same way as one that has support from a cybersecurity expert company.
We like to recommend products that we use and that we know work well. So if you want a quality VPN that fully protects your privacy and also has good customer service, we would definitely opt for NordVPN.
See more information about NordVPN.
Hide your IP with the TOR browser
TOR is a free browser that allows anonymous browsing by users who use it. It uses a system called Onion Routing with the aim of changing the conventional way of routing and doing it in a way that ensures user anonymity.
Simply put, TOR uses a system of nodes and asymmetric cryptography to encrypt messages sent over the network.
Its use is simple. It is only necessary to download the application, which works for computers, mobile phones or tablets, and start browsing the internet using TOR.
It is an affordable way to maintain anonymity when browsing the internet. However, it is not as secure as the VPN method that we have explained in the previous section.
Why hide the IP address?
Browsing the Internet anonymously is not easy. Multiple websites, whether stores, services such as Google or content platforms such as Netflix, use user data to make users or clients spend more time in front of the computer, increasing their profits.
There are several points that we must take into account if we want not to leave any trace of our time on the web pages. The first point is the deletion of cookies.
Cookies are files that are stored in our browser and help websites know what actions you have previously performed or know your location and type of browser used. In many cases they can also know your age, your gender and your tastes.
Recurrently deleting cookies allows us to prevent these sites from having extra information about us.
Another point to take into account is the masking of the IP address. This series of numbers determines our location and the computer we are using. All this information can be used by expert hackers to extract information from our computer or introduce malicious software.
For these reasons (among others) it is important to learn a little about cybersecurity and understand what ways we can protect ourselves from possible attacks in a world where the internet and digital technology increasingly predominates.