I have been threat by a group of people constantly who knows the ip
address associated with my computer.They want to blackmail me for
personal issues.
They know my ip address,and know my country as well as that i am using
sify connection to surf.And claim that they can even find my name and
address and can track me down.
Is this really possible that they can find my name and address with
just my ip address?
What steps can i take apart from going to local police to prevent them
from reaching me?Please help me out.
Thanks in advance

---

Clarification of Question by thatscricket-ga on 07 Mar 2006 11:54 PST

Hey
Thanks all of you for your important opinions and comments.
I just want to know one thing now:
If i decide to compromise the system i am using assigned that ip
address through the internet provider,will this ensure that i could
not be tracked.
Or is there any other prevention i could use like disconnecting the
internet conection or any other means that i can ensure my safety.

One of my pet hates is when a question is answered with a comment
before a researcher has had an opportunity to answer and earn their
well deserved fee. However as you seem desperate let me say that there
is no chance of you being traced via your IP address. If no one
answers your question in a few days I will come back and explain why.
In the meantime relax.

some more info
http://www.abika.com/help/IPaddressmap.htm
Trace IP address, email or IM to owner or user

DGP-GA,
I don't know why a questin being answered with a comment would be a
problem. If Google didn't want it that way well then they would just
not allow comments, only researchers would then have the ability to
answer.

I am of the opposit opinion, if we the public know the information the
questioner is asking, and can help somebody then why not? Enough of
the world is driven by money, money money. Why not just help people,
just to be nice? Even understanding that they may turn around and use
the information we provide for free to make money. So what?

dgp-ga that is possible the most shoddy thing I have ever seen on Google answers.

If you are a researcher I am surprised Google allow you to be so with
an attitude like that.

Well it is certainly interesting to see other people?s points of view.
One of life?s lessons is that there is always someone to disagree with
you.

So to Roxrox I say this. Thatscricket has a problem and he is willing
to pay $2.00 for an answer. The 500 or so talented GA researchers are
all freelancers and some of them actually derive part or all of their
income from the services they provide here. My take is that they
should get first bite of the cherry and if no one picks it up in a
reasonable time then let a commentator throw in his opinion. Allow me
to put a different spin on this. Suppose you owned a coffee shop and
you make a living selling lattes at $2.00. One day you discover
someone has set up outside your shop and is giving away coffee. Of
course he is? just helping people to be nice?. Is that still OK?

To murunbuchstansinger. First of all I am not a researcher. You can
tell the difference between a researcher and the general public as
researchers names are in blue. That said I am bemused as to why my
comment was the most shoddy (sic) thing that you have ever seen on
Google. I hope that I set a worried questioners mind at rest and I
offered to come back in a few days and provide proof of my statement.
Now it seems to me that my attitude is pretty good. Still you are
welcome to your opinion and if you care to elaborate I would be
delighted to be enlightened

here's another angle on the 'should non-researchers answer questions?"

The price thatscricket-ga is offering for this question is only $2.00,
which has to be split between Google and a researcher.

Since some researchers need to make a living answering questions
posted on this website and since this question doesn't pay well.... I
doubt the question would get answered anytime soon.

So, commenters (what is the exact term for us? commentators?) are the
only ones -- in a timely manner - who would give any info on this
question.

Thanks for the interesting perspective on who should answer the questions!

Just another spin on this "should questions be answered by
commentators" question. Of course, it may depend on the specific
situation, but in general, it is probably better that commentators not
answer questions. If the person asking the question is willing to pay
a price for their question (which, obviously, they are) they will want
it to be answered by an official researcher. If a commentator answers
the question, it is less likely that a researcher will answer it,
thereby undermining the question-asker's pursuit of an answer.

There is an unofficial Code of Honour (yes, that is the correct
spelling) among Commentators that they only Comment rather than Answer
a Question.

In fact, Comments are rarely as well thought out as a fully researched Answer.

As The Unofficial Arbiter of Good Taste, I have heard the cases
presented in Court today and I hereby rule that:

dgp-ga has not offended the Code of Honour but, conversely, he/she is
now awarded the rare and coveted honour of 'WC' which, as everyone
knows, stands for 'Wickedly Clever' and allows the recipient to flaunt
these letters on letterheads, visiting cards, tombstones, etc., etc.

Congratulations dgp-ga WC!

By Order of His Honour

Lord Chief Justice PB

I don't agree with DGP-GA about it being impossible to trace someone
from their IP address.

If one has an IP provided by ones ISP, then it is just one of a large
block, so anyone can easily find the ISP, but it is a lot more
difficult to identify the person.

Having a floating IP (one that is periodically issued and changes)
makes things even more difficult.

However if one is using a company computer, then there is a strong
possibility that one can track down the location, and if one knows a
little about the person one can make a good guess who they are.

Once on a programming News Group, a guy started 'trolling'
obnoxiously, his IP was easily traced and his employer and work
location was posted. The information was sufficiently close for him to
plead with us not to take the matter further.

I've just taken the IP address from an Email that I got from a friend
who has a smallish company (around 30 employees), looked it up using
http://www.dnsstuff.com/  and got the address of the company and the
technical contact. Also the 'phone number. The regional prefix is,
inexplicably incorrect, but the local number is spot on, so I could
easily get the correct number.  That company has 8 IPs on a Demon ADLS
connection.

It would not be difficult to use that information, plus, say a little
I had gleaned from watching posts to pinpoint the person precisely.

Just to prove the point I've checked back another IP belonging to a
company I know, and I've got their address, in their case they have a
leased line with a range of 128 IPs.

In general, if you are using a large ISP, then it is unlikely that
anyone can trace you, unless they can get access to the ISP's records
which the police etc can, however if your IP is in any way unusual
(like it is on a leased line or a company specific ADSL) then people
can get very close - without much effort.

Probono, welcome back to GA. I hope that you enjoyed your sabbatical.
As a Brit living in her Majesty?s colonies I heartily concur with your
spelling, now if only I can convert 250,000,000 rebels to say
AL-YOU-MIN-EE-UMM , write the date as dd/mm/yy  and spell cheque my
life would be complete. Sadly these days my only source of real news 
is www.bbc.co.uk/news and I have been following the adventures of one
Mr Stephen Gough. (are you starting to feel a little uneasy Probono?).
Now I know that you live in Hove which is about as far south as you
can get and your absence coincided with Mr Gough?s walk to John
O?Groats. I therefore unmask you as the naked rambler. How?s that for
wickedly clever?

As no researcher has picked up this ball and at the risk of pushing my
luck with the Lord Chief Justice here is my answer to thatscricket. Go
to www.internetfrog.com . If you look at the centre panel you will see
all of the information your blackmailer has on you. Click on Map this
location and it will be your internet provider NOT you. You say that
you are surfing via Sify, which looks like a service provider in the
Indian sub continent so I am guessing that you are connecting via dial
up, or some other telephone based system. Now of course if you are
running a drug ring from home or downloading music from the internet
then it is probable that with a search warrant the local police can
force Sify to track you down however I maintain that if someone is
harassing you they have already found as much information as they can.

Just to prove my point here is my IP address 209.199.192.54 now I
challenge anyone to find me. Get to my front door and I will treat you
to the finest bottle of Bollinger you have ever had and even put you
on a Greyhound bus home afterwards.

As a rider and in deference to frde?s points I once worked for a
company with 250 static IP addresses. By searching the IP address it
was possible to see that they were a block leased by Worldcom to this
company. The contact address of the company was shown, as was the name
of the IT manager of the company. However the individual IP address
only pointed to a PC in a building not a person.  I guess that the IT
manager could tell anyone that the IP address was assigned to a
particular person but would they?. If you are dialing in, then you
will have a dynamic IP address which will change every time.  I still
maintain that you are safe albeit if you are being blackmailed or
harassed I strongly urge you to inform the authorities.

Finally this is a comment not an answer. Other people will have other
opinions. You need to weigh up all the advice and act accordingly

Good Luck

dgp

To dgp-ga.  I owe you an apology and you have also answered a question
I was going to look for - how you tell if someone is a researcher or
not!

I erroneously thought you were a researcher and you simply didn't have
time to answer the question.

Incidentally, there was no need to put (sic) after your quote of my
post, as "shoddy" was in the correct context and spelt correctly. I
had, however, made a mistake in saying "possible" rather than
"possibly".

Anyway, sorry again as I couldn't have been more wrong about the
intention of your post.

Incidentally, the spelling of "aluminium" used by the residents of our
largest colony to date is technically the correct one.

"Aluminum" was changed to "aluminium" around the end of the 18th
century by the British to make the ending fit with Latin endings of
other elements - such as helium et al.

dgp-ga

You wrote, "Suppose you owned a coffee shop and
you make a living selling lattes at $2.00. One day you discover
someone has set up outside your shop and is giving away coffee. Of
course he is? just helping people to be nice?. Is that still OK?

My Reply: Yup that would be okay, as long as the person giving away
free coffee had the proper permits, and is acting within the law.
There would be nothing I can do about it, and it is a free country
people can do what they would like, "under the rule of law."

It is within the Google "Law" that anyone can post a comment. If
Google would like to change that, and configure Google Answers such
that only researchers can answer, then that would be the way it is.
Being a Certified Google Researcher does not in and of itself make you
more qualified then others in the general public. Stated antoher way,
look there are a lot of smart people in the world and not everybody is
out to make a buck off of knowledge they have that they are happy to
share. Look at message boards, a lot of peole help each other out with
their experience and background.

I will add that I am very impressed with the results I see from Google
Researchers, as well as others who are comment posters. I don't feel I
need to be constrained jsut so that someone else can make a buck. Heck
Researches can already Lock Questions, they already have the edge if
they choose to do so.

dgp,

It's a fun challenge you set up. After two minutes' work, I have a
question for you: Are you into kayaking? If so, I could find your
house easily. I won't say how I could do it, though, in case you want
to remain anonymous.

dtc    :-)

I agree with Dgp's attitude, although on a $2 or $5 question I think
it is being very, very respectful.  At the moment, it remains to be
seen if his "answer" is correct.
Although I also choose to give time for Researchers to get the first
shot, we commenters* are here to keep them on their toes.  Comments
may not be as well supported by research as answers are, and in many
cases, Researchers will post an answering comment to avoid
(apparently) an effort that the price of the question does not
justify.  Some cheap questions can be adequately answered with a
knowledgeable opinion that satisfies to asker.  (I wish they would say
thanks, instead of just cancelling their question!)

*Commenter:  the correct word IS commentator, but only a German
Researcher uses it regularly (can't remember Probono's having done so
before tonight, but if he has/you have, my apologies.)

Aluminum:  I recall hearing that this spelling started when the first
people retailing Al products accidentally left the I out on their
advertising.  Helium wasn't such a good example for the other reason. 
:-)

NOw let's wait and see if Dgp is a kayaker, or maybe he's come back
while I have been typing.

Regards to all, Myoarin

At last, all is revealed!

dgp-ga is no less a person than the formidable Dorothy Parker!

Connoisseurs have suspected the presence of the Parker Dolly on this
forum and here is proof at last; the initials providing compelling
evidence.

So, Hello Dolly!

It's nice to have you back where you belong ...

DGP-GA

That Frog site looks interesting
- pity it is full of JavaScript
- also on this (my favourite box) it does not work well
- I'll give it a check out on another machine

Your IP details are nicely hidden by Sprint

There is more than just the IP that can give one a clue, watching what
people say over a period can be quite informative.
Once one figures the little joke in my tag, then I'm a cinch to track down.

Some time ago, I figured out the details of a very old and interesting
DEC programmer who was rather rude to me on a programming NG -
understandable as I stumbled onto that NG through cross posting.

Incidentally I also reckon I've got Probo pinned down to his hide, I
got a bit worried when he disappeared, an impressive range of
interests.

Obviously I strongly disapprove of posting personal info on other people.

murunbuchstansinger-ga, It is I who should apologize. Writing (sic)
was the churlish reaction of a curmudgeon and an example of why some
of us will never be ga researchers. So perhaps two apologies cancel
each other out and I end up being educated in the history of the word
aluminium. Thank you.

Dancethecon, sorry I can?t even spell kayak let alone get my lardy old
ass into one. I am however fascinated as to how and why the kayak link
arose.

To everyone else, no more clues, the rules are simple you must turn up
at my front door, sing the third verse of the American national anthem
(this is the verse about the foul stench of English footsteps or
something similar) and then shout ?You are dgp and I claim my bottle
of Bolly?

Of course if you arrive at the wrong house you will have some
explaining to do, but what would life be without a challenge?

Toodle Pip

Oh my, dgp, the look on your face was something to behold when you saw
the crowd that was lining up outside your place to claim that bottle
of Bollinger.

And we'd all come independently, each of us expecting to be the one and only.

That one bottle didn't go very far, did it?

Sorry about the vandals who painted 'dgp lives here' all over your place.

Still it was a great party.

Here's to the next time!

Hey
Thanks all of you for your important opinions and comments.
I just want to know one thing now:
If i decide to compromise the system i am using assigned that ip
address through the internet provider,will this ensure that i could
not be tracked.
Or is there any other prevention i could use like disconnecting the
internet conection or any other means that i can ensure my safety.

@thatscricket-ga 

Don't be a cretin - use an Internet Cafe - cash only

You probably do not know that Stalin worked for the Cheka.
There are 'anonymisers' but with an IQ of 101 who do you reckon runs them ?

@Probono,
I'll probably amble down to Hove, I need to consult a cynic.

@ frde

(I just love that @ thing.)

Or may I call you Jerry?

We'll make you very welcome in Hove.

Bryan

DGP,

Sorry for the delay; it's been one of those weeks.

I got the kayaking info from running your IP addy, which returned an
ISP in Augusta, Maine. Knowing that many people use the same nickname
for all their web use and e-mail use--not a good idea, is it?--I did a
Google search for dgp and Maine. Voila, a kayaker appeared, complete
with phone number, e-mail addy, and home address. What's more, the
kayaker has what appears to be a British name. I won't post the
gentleman's information here, but the search should be reproducible.

As I said, all that took about two minutes, about all the time I was
prepared to spend. Since I'm a 12-hour drive from Maine, it wouldn't
have been worth going there for the Bollinger Champagne, even if it
were a great bottle and you were, indeed, the kayaker.  :-)

Best wishes to you,
dtc

P.S. My IP addy is 216.93.114.19, and this site is the only place I
use the nick "dancethecon-ga" or any variation of that nick. If you're
ever in the neighborhood, drop by and I'll open a bottle of good
Bordeaux.

Hello dancethecon,

I am impressed with your detective work however I regret to say (or
perhaps am pleased to say) that it was not I. Still this little thread
has been fun and I hope that the casual observer will see it in all
the true spirit of Google and the greater internet. To thatscricket I
say my bottle of Bolly is safe (despite what the much revered probono
might have you believe) Think of the thousands of brilliant minds who
saw my challenge and failed.  In my humble opinion you are safe but
nevertheless what you are going through is illegal in probably every
country in the world, you should think about reporting this to the
authorities.

It very much depends on how you access the internet.

Some IP addresses are more traceable than others.

Some Internet Service Provicers /companies are more likely to reveal
who uses what IP address,

Some IPs are relatively fixed often on broadband connections rather
than dynamic often on dial up (not early assigned demon dial-up has
fixed IPs), and one can built up picture of who person is from
multiple use in various places.

One can hide one's IP when browsing using TOR ( http://tor.eff.org/ )
but follow instructions and guidence very carefully.

Most webmail accounts revel IP address accessed from in headers. One
that does not is Cyber-Rights/Hushmail ( http://www.cyber-rights.net
).