Your IP address is:
The primary purpose of IP addresses (IPs for short) is to ensure that data sent and received over the internet arrives at its intended destination. Every single device on the World Wide Web has an IP address, which, in many ways, is not too dissimilar to a postal address.
For example, when you enter a domain name into your browser's address bar, your computer sends a request to the IP address of the server hosting the website you want to visit. The server processes it and dispatches the requested data to your IP address.
Without the IPs, your computer wouldn't know where the requests should be sent, and the server wouldn't know who is expecting a response.
In addition to routing every single packet of data on the internet, IP addresses also serve as identifiers. Website owners and analytics programs use them to monitor traffic patterns, and security systems can use IPs to establish and block the source of a potential attack.
IP Address FAQs
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What is an IP address?
IP addresses are strings of numbers that act as identifiers for devices connected to a computer network. Every single device has an IP, so when another participant on the network wants to communicate with it, they know where they need to send the data.
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What's the difference between IPv4 and IPv6?
IPv4 is the fourth version of the Internet Protocol, first deployed in the early 1980s. IPv4 addresses consist of four numbers separated by dots. Every number (except the first one) can range between 0 and 255, giving us around 4.3 billion unique addresses. By the 1990s, we were beginning to exhaust this pool, mandating another revision of the Internet Protocol.
IPv6 is the latest version. First introduced in 1995, its main purpose is to help us deal with the depletion of unused IPv4 addresses. IPv6 addresses consist of eight groups of four hexadecimal digits, resulting in a potentially inexhaustible number of unique addresses.
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What's the difference between a public and a private IP address?
A typical home or office network has a single public IP address. It's provided by the internet service provider (ISP), and the network router/modem uses it to communicate with other devices connected to the internet.
A private IP address allows for a secure connection between devices but only within a closed, private network.
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Can an IP address pinpoint my location?
Your device's IP address can't give away your precise location. However, it contains data related to the city you're currently in and the ISP, so you can get a rough idea of where a person is located just from the IP.
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Can I hide my IP address?
It is fully possible to hide your IP address and appear as though you are using a device in another location. The two most common options to do that are through a proxy server or by utilizing a virtual private network (VPN).