Urgent Question about IP addresses

Hi all

I need to ask a question, in the hope that the techie's amongst you will have an answer for me asap.

A friend of mine received a really awful hate email. She thinks she knows who sent it.

The hatemail, and 3 *normal* emails from said suspect have 3 IP addresses in each email header if right-click on mail in Outlook list - options.

1 set is the same except for the last 2 digits of the last section which is different in all 4, 1 set is completely different in each one, and 1 set of numbers is identical in all 4 emails.

Hatemail was sent from madeup yahoo address, 3 others are from hotmail.

What's the probability of all 4 emails coming from the same PC?

Thanks in advance
Gemi

Well, if you could post those IP addresses, we could check the ranges for those IP addresses to see if they're from the same ISP...

In which case if it were, there would be a high probability it's from the same computer and user.

Gemini,

If you wanna drop me a PM with the email headers, with the received from info, i have a friend that thinks he can work it out for you

She's just emailed me, and said she pasted on the wrong line grrr so they aren't all identical, however the IP addresses are as follows if it's any help, each line is one email.

(edited)

This is the UK btw..

Thanks

I always wanted an address at hatemail.com

Hmm... those IP addresses look like a partial traceroute. The thing about the hotmail ones, though, is that they probably are just pointing to the hotmail servers.

Well, both of my traceroutes ended up being blocked... but I managed to trace the first one to this location before I lost it:

(edited)

Perhaps that will ring a bell.

(edited)


What kind of hate mail anyway?

Are you sure you should all be posting this stuff, even here ? The purpose could be anything, and the explanation a total fabrication. Not saying it is, just that we have no proof otherwise.

WHOIS records are pieces of legal public information, posting such information is just repeating it. I honestly don't see the harm in posting what companies own which IP ranges or addresses.

Are there privacy issues? These companies/individuals are the ones that provided that specific information to the whois information, Whatever they have provided is information they feel they don't have a problem providing to the general public.

However, I agree on your point about the original post, it could be a complete total fabrication.

No no, the thing that worries me is posting an IP number publicly stated to be that of a possible hate emailer. The deductions can be made by anyone who knows how, I agree. But what of the original accusation ?

Shall we all start posting the IP numbers of any we claim to be hateful, criminal, or mentally ill ? How do we know who is listening ?

Excuse me, but I was asked to post the IPs so that someone could help me.

Geez you can't even ask for help around here now without being called a liar ! Thanks ! Anyone that knows me would KNOW that I wouldn't make this stuff up.

A close friend of mine has been targeted by someone who seems to have a grudge against her. We all have the same hobby that sometimes involves a lot of money and relies on a good reputation. This person sent an email to 25 other people which was full of lies concerning things she is supposed to have said. Of course the recipients don't know it was all lies, so there goes my friend's reputation and credibility.

So there you are. It's a sad world when all you get when you try and help someone is an accusation of lying.

I don't understand what the problem is. It's only a IP address. Most people have dynamic IP addresses anyway, and get changed next time their router connects to the internet or when their computer connects to the internet.

You make it sound like knowing someone's IP address is like knowing their national security number.

"Oh look! I have this person's IP address, let's go purchase things pretending to be him"

No.. That doesn't quite work.

"Oh, I have your IP address, I will now l337 hax0rz you!"

No... Most people have firewalls or NATs in the way, it's unlikely you'll be able to get into a system that has one.

However, it is possible to flood someone with so much information because you know their IP address, that they can't browse the internet. However, when you do that, you're leaving a virtual paper trail. You can find out which IPs assaulted you, and even if they're not from the original 'attacker' there are ways to find out if you're really serious about it (Most commonly found DDOS attack tools these days are IRC trojan bots, makes it quite possible to find the person doing it).

And even so... You can simply escape the evil flood with your dynamic IP address by.. Reconnecting to the internet. You'll have a different IP address. and the attacker won't know where you are.

Also, revealing someone's IP address, I haven't seen any laws against that, even privacy related ones. Have you seen such laws?

There was absolutely no need to publish an IP number in open forum. It could, and should have been sent by PM or IM to those who offered help, if help you privately needed. That way you would know also who might act upon it. This way anybody could.

What "most" IP numbers may reveal is irrelevant. far fewer people are on dynamic IP's now, at least in Europe. What firewalls "most" people may have is also irrelevant. This is not "most" people. It is one person.

We do not know how significant this IP number is, what it might reveal, or make possible to the highly skilled.

Please drop this defensive manouevring, and admit that there were ready alternatives to openly posting it. The availability of PM and IM renders your action indefensible. Please edit the IP numbers out of your post. Otherwise I predict the moderator may do it for you.

You just made a natural mistake. How much of the trouble in the world grows from people who cannot admit to a mistake, who then get defensive and start compounding the error ?

It is an infringement of privacy. A just possible unintentional invitation/incitement to spamming/hacking. It wasn't even necessary to achieve your purpose.

And please recognise that I accuse no-one of lying. If we accept here the principle that what you did was ok, then it could in future be abused by others who are indeed lying. Try to distinguish points of principle from single examples of that principle, and matters of generality from matters of personality.

I completely disagree with the above post.

It's an IP address. That's nothing to get excited about. I highly doubt that anyone would want to crack into someone's generic home computer that doesn't have any decent information on it.

Woah! Ellie you sound just like Prok did on this issue.

No one did anything wrong posting IP addresses in this thread.

Gemini, sorry to hear about your friend. That is a sucky thing to have happen. I hope you can track down the right person!

Goodjob this isn't a open forum. Seeing only Secondlife residents can access this forum.



Oh? Please provide some evidence.. I couldn't find anything relevent on Google. By the way, I live in Europe, and disagree with your point, unfortunately I couldn't find much of any statistics of evidence of this my self.



Would you like the Department of Defense IP ranges? They're public knowledge, and a IP address revealing something? Can you give a example of this please, at least to the extent you're trying to imply.




Again, there is nothing wrong with posting IP addresses, here is mine:
83.22.238.44


What error?


Please provide court resolutions that decided upon revealing a IP address is infact a invasion of privacy, untill then I am not going to accept these 'facts' of yours.

Oh dear. Its the conjunction of an IP address with an accusation.
Moderator ?

This thread is not appropriate for the SL forums, as such it is being closed and personal information is being removed.