The short answer
Someone who knows your IP address can see roughly where you are and which internet provider you use. They can block or ban that address, try to overwhelm your connection, or probe your router for weaknesses. They can't learn your name, your home address, your passwords or what you do online from the IP alone.
Every website, game server and email service you use already sees your IP. Look at yours on the My IP page to see exactly what it reveals.
What someone can learn from your IP
- Your approximate location: usually the country and region, often the nearest city. It's frequently off by tens of kilometers, because providers register addresses at their regional hubs.
- Your internet provider: the company that gave you the address, and its network (ASN).
- Your connection type: whether it's a home, mobile, business or datacenter network.
- Sometimes a hostname: a reverse DNS name such as
cpe-203-0-113-42.example-isp.net, which can hint at your provider and region.
You can run the same lookup on any address with the IP lookup.
What someone can do with it
| Action | How likely | How serious |
|---|---|---|
| See your city or region | Very likely | Low: it's approximate |
| Ban your IP from a game, forum or site | Common | Low to medium: a router restart often fixes it |
| Flood your connection (DDoS) | Rare, mostly in online gaming | Medium: your internet goes down for a while |
| Scan your router for open ports | Happens to every IP constantly | Depends on your router's security |
| Find your exact home address | Only via your provider, with a court order | Not possible for strangers |
| Hack your device directly | Very rare if your devices are updated | High, but needs another weakness |
Can someone hack you with your IP address?
Not by itself. Bots scan every IP address on the internet all day, looking for routers and devices with open ports, default passwords or old firmware. Knowing your IP doesn't give an attacker anything those bots don't already have. What matters is whether there's a weakness to find.
Keep your router's firmware up to date, change its default admin password, turn off remote administration and UPnP if you don't need them, and keep your computer and phone updated.
Can someone find where you live from your IP?
No. IP location points to an area, not a house. Only your internet provider can link an IP address to a customer account at a specific time, and it normally shares that only with police or a court. That's why scams that threaten "we have your IP and know where you live" are bluffs.
How to protect your IP address
- Use a VPN when you don't want websites, games or other people in a chat to see your real address. Then check that your VPN really works.
- Restart your router to get a new address if someone is targeting your current one. See how to change your IP address.
- Don't click unknown links in chats or emails. IP-logging links are a common way to capture someone's address.
- Turn off WebRTC leaks in your browser if you use a VPN or proxy: how to disable WebRTC.
For a full overview of the options, read how to hide your IP address.
FAQ
Is it safe to share my IP address?
Sharing it with a website, a game server or tech support is normal. Avoid posting it publicly, for example in a forum or stream, because that invites bans and flooding.
Can the police find me from my IP address?
Yes, with legal authority. Police can ask your internet provider which customer used an address at a given time. A VPN moves that question to the VPN provider.
What should I do if someone is DDoSing my IP?
Restart your router, or ask your provider for a new address. If it keeps happening in online games, use a VPN or the game's own server relay so other players never see your real IP.
Does my IP address change if I move house?
Yes. A new connection, even with the same provider, gets a different address, and the location shown will move with it.