I know who you are! You cannot hide behind a keyboard. It’s impossible. You see, over the past several weeks this website (ryanrally.org) exploded with reader comments. Most were proper. Some were misleading. Others were outright lies. All were entertaining! There’s not a single person that I couldn’t identify, if I were so inclined. It’s that way in cyberspace and I wouldn’t be doing anything that is sneaky or underhanded. People just don’t know how it works. Readers of this website know — because I’ve pointed this out several times before and I specifically call it out in the Disclaimer — that no one can be anonymous while using the internet. No one! The internet knows who you are and it’s easy enough for a website administrator to get damming information on a person. Really, a person could get their ass sued for making libel statements. People think they can “mask” their information, but that’s just not entirely so. I bet Anthony Wiener (aka, “Carlos Danger”) wished he knew what you do… or soon will! ryansrally.org Disclaimer excerpt IP Addresses: Every computer has an IP (Internet Protocol) address. IP addresses of computers and mobile devices used to visit this website/blog are logged by an independent third-party. Be aware, your IP address is every bit as identifying as your telephone number or street address. In addition, this website may automatically collect other information; including such data as email addresses, browser types, operating systems, and the URL addresses of sites clicked to and from this site, among other information. Getting the IP address of a user is quite easy, even when they attempt to mask it through a proxy server. How It’s Done The easiest, but most expensive, way to gather reader information is to pay to have this done. With these services all that is needed is the IP address and they’ll have you (virtually) sitting in that person’s backyard. Remember, your IP address is always being captured by any site you visit. Hell, just turn on you computer and connect to the internet for this to happen. The best way to explain this, and you should try it yourself, is through example. Now, I’m not going to name the services I use but can easily prove this with lesser ones. It will get you close enough to prove this is entirely legitimate. I’m not going to do anything special either. Well, other than tell you what websites, internet service providers (e.g., AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, etc.), and hosting companies can gather about a person, if they want. Okay, here we go! Let’s use a comment I made the last week. Just by making this comment (or accessing the domain ryansrally.org) I have voluntarily provided tons of information. For the purpose here, I’ll keep it simple and use just one way I begin the process to identify a person. Namely, that’s what is logged into my website, Google Analytics, and the host provider (Go Daddy) in its most basic form. Keep in mind, I have filtered out much, just to show that it doesn’t take… well… much. I copied and pasted this information that is one mouse click away: Ryan’s Rally LLC ryansrally.org x ken.diviney@ryansrally.org 71.62.91.154 Submitted on 2013/07/19 at 12:48 PM | In reply to Carla Liberty. He paid $50 about 6 months ago. Austin Vantrease Restitution, $42 Toward $100,000 68View Post I easily could have provided a fake user name and fake email, but that make’s ZERO difference. I could use different ones every time and that means NOTHING. I have the IP address (71.62.91.154) and that’s all I need (but other information is automatically captured that is equally identifying). My IP address, like yours, is always being captured automatically. It’s the Caller ID of the internet. You can’t “block” your number or make it “private” unless you work with the agencies like the CIA or FBI. Even they can be found out, but it takes some legal action. As for me, I use a more sophisticated IP Tracer (also called IP Locator) service to perform a track-back. But, for the sake of simplicity, let’s use a “middle-of-the-road” one, called IP-address.com . I simply key in the IP address, 71.62.91.154, and here is what it tells me: 71.62.91.154 IP address location & more: My IP address: 71.62.91.154 My IP country code: US My IP address country: United States My IP address state: Virginia My IP address city: Ashburn My IP postcode: 20147 My IP address latitude: 39.0335 My IP address longitude: -77.4838 My ISP: Comcast Cable My Proxy: None / Highly Anonymous Organization: Comcast Cable Host of my IP: c-71-62-91-154.hsd1.va.comcast.net Local time in United States: 2013-07-24 09:49 It also reports on the operating system you use, the browser, and if you are on a computer or mobile device, among other things. Remember, I use a more powerful service that not only gives more information, but more detailed information; like the latitude and longitude is taken to the 6th decimal place. So, with my service it returns the geolocation coordinates of 39.032236 latitude and -77.483734 longitude. With these coordinates, it takes just a matter of a few seconds to get the address. I’ll show you by using Google Maps. Presto! I virtually welcome you to my home. This aerial shot is accompanied with the street address handily provided. It’s deadly accurate. Fair Warning! People, I’m warning you, this information is a snap to get. Please, don’t do anything online that you would be embarrassed by (or liable for) in public. Not only could you be answering to local/state authorities, but you are under federal jurisdiction/prosecution because the internet crosses state lines (just like when you mail a letter)! Oh, be certain that I’m not giving legal advice here because I’m not a lawyer, but my opinion is be damned careful! Seriously! If you email/text your boss or spouse that you’re at work then you’d be best advised to be where you say. Don’t violate company policy if they tell you to stay off certain websites [...]