Pat MacAvoy wrote:
> From: "Richard Holden" <rholden@mail.scs.k12.tn.us>
>> It is my understanding that every site you access logs your IP
>> address and service provider. They just don't warn you that it is
>> being done.
>
> This is just a wee bit nuts! First off, most ISPs use DHCP with
> assigns you an address when you connect. Odds are you will get a
> different IP address each time you connect. If a site logs your
> address, all they can tell is that SOMEBODY from your local ISP
> called.
This is off-topic, but I'm responding in an effort to stem the rising
tide of off-topic posts. Speaking authoritatively here:
Richard is right -- most web sites log the date, time, and IP address
for every page visited. They do this primarily to track what's being
viewed, and to a smaller extent, who's viewing it (probably only
looking at the top-level domain, e.g. "com", "edu", "gov", "mil", "org",
"net", etc.) They generate summary reports showing how popular the
site is, mostly for marketing and sizing purposes.
Paul Foster expressed discomfort that sites were storing your IP
address -- this is more difficult for them to do, and most don't,
unless you actually give it to them.
Pat is correct about DHCP and dynamic addressing, but your ISP also
keeps a log of what user is connected to what IP address, so if the
ISP and web provider worked together, they could certainly determine
who was looking at what, and when.
Still, it's really not worth worrying about. The only time such effort
would be expended is if there is a break-in of some kind, or the FBI
subpoenaed the records, or something like that. In practice, providers
don't have the time or motive to bother with this kind of detail.
Mark
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