question on anonymity on forums and ip-numbers

[sandra]

Hello everyone,

I'd like to know how anonymous forumers are on internet forums and/or how easily (by a few mouse clics? or only by legal action?) their identity can be traced by the admin via ip-number or online provider...

I'm a regular on a german forum on foreign language learning and some time ago I opened a 2nd account on that forum, simply because someone, another regular, was sort of rude and i wanted to call him over it...and it was fun arguing with this guy as a newby, without risking my "reputation". It was still civil though - after all I'm no forum hooligan  .

I've been wondering if the admin of that forum can trace the identity of my 2nd account that, of course, i'd opened using another email of mine.

Is there an easy answer to this question or are forums much too different from each other by way of technical structure and admin capacities?

I only know that my ip changes everytime I access the internet, but I've heard that there are other ips such as network ips.

[BC_Programmer]

The admin of almost any forum (and in some cases, Moderators) can see the IP that any post was made from, as well as what IP you registered from. If the admin was suspicious of your "newbie" persona they could easily search through their database for other users posting from that IP and would have come up with your original account.

[kpac]

Is there an easy answer to this question or are forums much too different from each other by way of technical structure and admin capacities?

This does apply, but most different forum software has the capability of IP tracking so that, in the case of abuse, the user can be banned.

If the admin was suspicious of your "newbie" persona they could easily search through their database for other users posting from that IP and would have come up with your original account.

Saying that, some forums don't have anything against multiple accounts.

[BC_Programmer]

but it would be embarassing to be discovered 

[sandra]

but it would be embarassing to be discovered 

Yes,

 
But my ip changes everytime I log on the internet. 

[kpac]

how easily (by a few mouse clics? or only by legal action?) their identity can be traced by the admin via ip-number or online provider...

The admin of a forum can find your ISP. A simple PHP script can do this.

Although, I don't know about German laws - the laws that govern the forum depend on what country the forum is based in, so if the forum is based in Germany, German laws apply.

Usually, forum admins need to contact law enforcement agencies, give them your ISP/IP, who in turn contact the ISP and they take it from there.

But my ip changes everytime I log on the internet.

Your hostname can be found.

[BC_Programmer]

hmm, well you'd have the same hostname, I'd imagine. Why does your IP change everytime? Only one I can think of, that does that, is Dial-up (maybe DSL/ADSL, but I don't think so).

Again, I doubt admins go through looking for this type of stuff, unless one of the accounts is a troublemaker. As you said you were only having a "civil" discussion so you should be fine.

[sandra]

Thanks folks.

I don't have anything to fear, legally, really. I was just curious, and this thing has been on my mind for quite some time. And it's one of those questions that you can't just google up you know.

Never heard of ISP- going to look that up later, however the general drift is clear: it is relatively easy for an admin or moderator to find out that you're not that new.

[BC_Programmer]

ISP= Internet Service Provider