In a time when everyone wants their privacy, the internet is doing very little to help you with that. As long as you have a computer or smartphone, there’s probably a ton of information about you online, thanks to your IP address. So, if you want some privacy online, your first step should be finding a way to hide this address. Luckily, there are a few ways to do this. Here are three:
Methods to Hide Your Real IP (2022)
Using a VPN
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is one of the most popular ways to hide your IP address. The VPN does this by tunneling all your data traffic through their private servers. They also encrypt the traffic, ensuring that your ISP can’t monitor it. The VPN then masks your IP address with the address of the server you’re connected to. This way, if you’re in the US, but you connect to a server in Spain, your IP address will read that you’re in Spain. Good VPN providers have many servers in different locations, giving you multiple options to choose from. This is great not only for hiding your identity, but also bypassing geo-restrictions and unblocking streaming services such as Netflix. However, not every VPN works perfectly. Some VPN providers in the market, especially free VPNs, tend to leak your IP address from time to time, making them unreliable. You need to find top quality VPNs if you want to keep your IP protected. Compare the top-rated US VPNs and choose one with good privacy logging policies, a good encryption system, and support for both mobile devices and desktop computers.
Use TOR browser
Now, you’ve probably heard some scary things about Tor browser, but honestly, most of them are false. In fact, using Tor browser is the cheapest and easiest way to hide your IP address online! Tor browser uses a volunteer client-based system where your data traffic runs through multiple encrypted servers worldwide before reaching the wider internet. On the final server, the encryption is removed, and the traffic reaches your target website. As your data traffic bounces from one server to another, your IP address gets lost, making it impossible for anyone to track you. However, with such good security, using this browser doesn’t come without its flaws. For one, using the browser drastically slows down your speeds. This is because your data traffic goes through numerous servers, which impact your speeds. Secondly, in as much as you get to browse anonymously, you won’t have control over the final location of your IP address. You might, therefore, find it harder to bypass geo-restrictions in some countries. Lastly, using Tor may also make you a person of interest for authorities looking for Dark web criminals.
Use Proxy servers
If you’re not comfortable with a VPN and Tor Browser, proxy servers are also a great way to hide your IP address online. Proxy servers are simply interceptors or middlemen between your computer and the servers you want to connect to. Assuming you want Livestream a soccer match in London, but you’re in the US, your data traffic first goes through a proxy server. A request is sent to your target website with a UK IP address in the server, and once the content is available, the proxy sends it back to you. Essentially, the proxy server is searching the content for you and shows you a copy of it. However, like Tor Browser, there are also several problems you may encounter using proxies to hide your IP address. The most common one is speeds. Proxies are not really the fastest solution because of the many servers that the data goes through. There are also times when the server may be overcrowded, and that affects its speed. Additionally, proxy servers don’t encrypt your connections, and so, third parties can easily intercept and spy on your online activities. It’s also not great for torrenting as it doesn’t hide any of your private information.
Final Thoughts
There are numerous other ways to hide your IP address, but these are by far the most common and effective ways. Nevertheless, if you want good security, privacy, and geo-unblocking capabilities, go for a good VPN.
