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Sunday, July 01, 2007

Infosys, Capgemini merger

News reports in a section of the Press about Infosys' planned bid for the Paris based tech consultancy firm, Capgemini, which boasted of sales exceeding $10.5 billion recently, set the market on fire last week, but both the companies have denied any such move.
As Infosys Technologies dismissed the issue with the argument that the company did not comment on speculative reports, similar comments were reported from the European tech giant as well.
Yet the report about the possible bid by Infosys last week saw the shares of the two companies showing a sharp upward movement, with the scrip of the Bangalore based giant in particular, going up by almost 2.5 per cent at the start of trading. In Paris, Capgemini shares shot up 1.5 per cent at 54.60 euros.
This was, however, also the time for the analysts to plunge in with most highlighting the mismatch between the two giants.
According to one, Capgemini was too huge a fish for Infosys to swallow especially as it had only a cash chest of Rs 6,000 crore or so. Against this, Capgemini could easily cost the IT giant several times that amount, should it agree to Infosys' bid.
At the same time, they acknowledged that the company would indeed be keen to look for acquisition of a sizeable nature to sharpen its competitive edge.

Thursday, June 28, 2007

`Unlocked` iPhone could be in India soon

Apple Inc will launch its latest offering, the iPhone in the US tomorrow. Apart from functioning as a phone, the device can function as a media player and also as a wireless web surfing device.
 
Officially, it will not be available in India for at least another year.
 
But for those who really want it, the wait might be as short as a fortnight or, at the most, a month. This is not just because of efficiently smuggled shipments but a technical 'feat' as well.
 
In the US, Apple has tied up with AT&T in an exclusive contract. This means that the iPhone will only work on an AT&T SIM card for which buyers have to sign up for an $59 to $100 a month plan for a minimum two-year subscription.
 
But in India, grey market operators say they can "unlock" the phone for just Rs 1,000 or Rs 1,500 so that it can be used on any network in India. "Unlocking the iPhone isn't tough," said a dealer in central Delhi.
 
In the US, the phone is priced between $500 (Rs 22,000) for the 4 GB version and $600 (Rs 25,500) for the 8 GB model. There are further variations depending upon the memory. Out in the grey markets of Palika Bazar or Sarojini Nagar, an entry-level iPhone will be available for Rs 30,000.
 
Unlocked Apple iPhone units are expected to be auctioned off at a premium, especially in Asian markets.
 
For those looking to buy the iPhone though the legal channels, however, the wait will be much longer. Apple executives refuse to talk about an Indian launch.
 
Tript Singh, a premium Apple reseller in New Delhi says, "It is highly unlikely that the iPhone will reach India before the year-end. Even early 2008 seems a long-shot."
 
Yet the interest is high. Singh's shop in south Delhi's Ansal Plaza recorded a whopping 50,000 enquiries when Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, announced the launch of the iPhone. "We receive 10 to 20 enquiries everyday," says Singh.
 
Meanwhile, other mobile vendors are taking the Apple challenge pretty seriously.
 
High Tech Computers (HTC), a leading provider of Microsoft Windows mobile-based smart phones, has launched an iPhone lookalike, the HTC Touch.
 
Peter Chou, CEO, HTC insists that his company has not made "an iPhone killer but a phone that is far more innovative and efficient". Available at Rs 19,900, it will be available exclusively for Airtel subscribers.
 
Globally too, Samsung has announced the launch of Ultra Smart F700 (to be launched in India this year). It will have a full touch-screen interface with a QWERTY keypad.
 
Says Asim Warsi, marketing head, Samsung India, "The music and phone features of the iPhone cannot be called cutting edge."
 
Nokia has also upgraded its N-series with N76 and plans to add to its communicator line with the launch of its E90 communicator phones.
 
One of the closest competitors to the Apple's iPhone is the LG Prada (which costs around Rs 42,000 outside India) and is available in touch-screen format.

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

What is a feed?

 
If you want to buy some magazine, you have two options.  Either you go to shop and buy, or you could subscribe to the magazine so that it could be sent to your home itself.  Second option is convenient na... If some site offers its latest content as feed, it is like they are providing us with an option to subscribe to the site. 
 
Normally we visit a site, and check if any new content is there.  It is like we are going to shop and buy. If that site offers content as a feed, we can subscribe to the site using a feed reader.  So, each time we use our feed reader, it will check the site if any new content is there and will retrieve the content.  So, every day we dont need to go to the site.  We can read all our favourite sites from one place (feed reader).
 
Some of the online feedreaders are:
 
 
 
Feed definition on Wiki
 

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

A few facts about Computer Virus

In 1983, Fred Cohen coined the term "computer virus", postulating a virus was "a program that can 'infect' other programs by modifying them to include a possibly evolved copy of itself." Mr. Cohen expanded his definition a year later in his 1984 paper, "A Computer Virus", noting that "a virus can spread throughout a computer system or network using the authorizations of every user using it to infect their programs. Every program that gets infected may also act as a virus and thus the infection grows."

Using that explanation, we can see that viruses infect program files. However, viruses can also infect certain types of data files, specifically those types of data files that support executable content, for example, files created in Microsoft Office programs that rely on macros. Compounding the definition difficulty, viruses also exist that demonstrate a similar ability to infect data files that don't typically support executable content - for example, Adobe PDF files, widely used for document sharing, and .JPG image files. However, in both cases, the respective virus has a dependency on an outside executable and thus neither virus can be considered more than a simple 'proof of concept'. In other cases, the data files themselves may not be infectable, but can allow for the introduction of viral code. Specifically, vulnerabilities in certain products can allow data files to be manipulated in such a way that it will cause the host program to become unstable, after which malicious code can be introduced to the system. These examples are given simply to note that viruses no longer relegate themselves to simply infecting program files, as was the case when Mr. Cohen first defined the term. Thus, to simplify and modernize, it can be safely stated that a virus infects other files, whether program or data.

In contrast to viruses, computer worms are malicious programs that copy themselves from system to system, rather than infiltrating legitimate files. For example, a mass-mailing email worm is a worm that sends copies of itself via email. A network worm makes copies of itself throughout a network, an Internet worm sends copies of itself via vulnerable computers on the Internet, and so on.

Trojans, another form of malware, are generally agreed upon as doing something other than the user expected, with that "something" defined as malicious. Most often, Trojans are associated with remote access programs that perform illicit operations such as password-stealing or which allow compromised machines to be used for targeted denial of service attacks. One of the more basic forms of a denial of service (DoS) attack involves flooding a target system with so much data, traffic, or commands that it can no longer perform its core functions. When multiple machines are gathered together to launch such an attack, it is known as a distributed denial of service attack, or DDoS.

While purists draw a firm distinction between viruses, worms, and Trojans, others argue that it is merely a matter of semantics and give the virus moniker to all viruses, worms, and Trojans. The term malware, a.k.a. malicious software, can most easily be used to describe viruses, worms and Trojans while satisfying both arguments.

Malware is an even more appropriate term when one considers spyware, adware , and and browser hijacking techniques that may not fit in any of the aforementioned virus, worm, or Trojan classifications. Thus, malware can be defined as any program, file, or code that performs malicious actions on the target system without the user's express consent. This is in contrast to Sneakyware, which can best be described as any program, file, or code that the user agrees to run or install without realizing the full implications of that choice. One of the best examples of Sneakyware was Friendly Greetings, a greeting-card trick that exploited users' willingness to say Yes without reading the licensing agreement. By doing so, they were blindly agreeing to allow the same email to be sent to all contacts listed in their address book.

To recap:

  • Viruses infect other files;
  • Worms make copies of themselves;
  • Trojans perform malicious actions but do not spread;
  • Malware is an all-encompassing term that describes any malicious software program or file operating without the users explicit consent.

Thursday, May 31, 2007

What is a computer virus?

Computer viruses are small software programs that are designed to spread from one computer to another and to interfere with computer operation.

A virus might corrupt or delete data on your computer, use your e-mail program to spread itself to other computers, or even erase everything on your hard disk.

Viruses are most easily spread by attachments in e-mail messages or instant messaging messages. That is why it is essential that you never open e-mail attachments unless you know who it's from and you are expecting it.

Viruses can be disguised as attachments of funny images, greeting cards, or audio and video files.

Viruses also spread through downloads on the Internet. They can be hidden in illicit software or other files or programs you might download.

To help avoid viruses, it's essential that you keep your computer current with the latest updates and antivirus tools, stay informed about recent threats, and that you follow a few basic rules when you surf the Internet, download files, and open attachments.

Once a virus is on your computer, its type or the method it used to get there is not as important as removing it and preventing further infection.

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Google Acquiring Feedburner ?

We’ve seen some ridiculously false rumors over the past few weeks, so we’re not buying into this one until we see a press release. But it does make logical sense: Vecosys hears from a “VERY trusted source” that Google is buying the RSS management and advertising service Feedburner, and that the deal would have been announced sooner if it wasn’t for that itsy bitsy DoubleClick purchase.

For us, it passes the smell test: Feedburner has been a prime acquisition target for over a year, and Google needs to get into the RSS ad market. They could even merge Feedburner’s stat tracking with Google Analytics, providing all your stats in one place. The question is: why wouldn’t Google buy Feedburner?

Source: http://mashable.com/2007/05/18/google-feedburner/

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Firewall Proxy Server

Most modern firewalls distinguish between packet filtering and proxy server services. A firewall proxy server is an application that acts as an intermediary between tow end systems. Firewall proxy servers operate at the application layer of the firewall, where both ends of a connection are forced to conduct the session through the proxy. They do this by creating and running a process on the firewall that mirrors a service as if it were running on the end host.

A firewall proxy server essentially turns a two-party session into a four-party session, with the middle process emulating the two real hosts. Because they operate at the application layer, proxy servers are also referred to as application layer firewalls. A proxy service must be run for each type of Internet application the firewall will support -- a Simple Mail Transport Protocol (SMTP) proxy for e-mail, an HTTP proxy for Web services and so on. Proxy servers are almost always one-way arrangements running from the internal network to the outside network. In other words, if an internal user wants to access a Web site on the Internet, the packets making up that request are processed through the HTTP server before being forwarded to the Web site. Packets returned from the Web site in turn are processed through the HTTP server before being forwarded back to the internal user host.

Because firewall proxy servers centralize all activity for an application into a single server, they present the ideal opportunity to perform a variety of useful functions. Having the application running right on the firewall presents the opportunity to inspect packets for much more than just source / destination addresses and port numbers. This is why nearly all modern firewalls incorporate some form of proxy-server architecture. For example, inbound packets headed to a server set up strictly to disburse information (say, an FTP server) can be inspected to see if they contain any write commands (such as the PUT command). In this way, the proxy server could allow only connections containing read commands.

Friday, March 02, 2007

Becarefull with Credit Cards

Use Credit Cards CAREFULLY
Always keep your CREDIT CARD in sight, when you give it for
swiping......



The accused (left) used a card-reader (right) to transfer the data
on to a PC for making a duplicate credit card

They Would Make Duplicates Of Credit Cards Used By Customers At A Juhu
Hotel
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Mumbai: The next time you decide to use your credit card on a shopping
trip, think again. The Mumbai police have busted a hitech credit card
fraud which they believe is the crime of the future.

Four gadget-savvy youngsters from Andheri, two of them software
engineers, got together to earn a quick buck and ended up ripping off
over Rs 3 lakh of citizens' money. The foursome were arrested by the
Juhu police on Tuesday. Interestingly, one of the boys was all set to
leave for the United State s for a job in a wellplaced computer firm.
According to the police, the mastermind of the gang is 19-year-old Leo
Paul. A second-year engineering student at a Bandra college, Paul had
read about a magnetic card-reading device which could store data once
you swipe a card through it. Data from at least 12 such cards could be
stored at a time. Paul realised that if credit cards were swiped though
the machine, the personal data of a customer stored on it could be
accessed. He then teamed with Akash Kamble, a 19-year-old Lokhandwala
resident, and ordered the card-reader from USA , using the internet,
since it's not available in India .

"The boys befriended a waiter at Kings International hotel at Juhu to
take their plan ahead. Every time someone ate a meal in the hotel and
paid by credit card, the waiter would discreetly swipe it through the
magnetic card-reader, which is no more than 6-inches long and can be
stored in the pocket,'' said investigating officer
Ramesh Nangare.

Once the waiter was done, he would hand over the device to Paul who
would download the data from the cards on to Kamble's personal
computer. The duo would then feed the data into blank cards, available
in the grey market. The cards were now ready to be used in
shopping malls and theatres, or to withdraw money from an ATM.

Senior inspector Pradeep Shinde said that the boys forged information
from more than 22 cards in this manner. The fraud came to light after
officials from HSBC bank complained to the police. The cops quizzed
customers whose cards had been duplicated and discovered they had all
visited Hotel Kings International and paid by credit card.
Investigators
then caught the waiter who led them to the four youngsters. Paul,
Kamble
and the two other collegians identified as Manoj Chauhan (24) and
Mahesh Valani (20), have been remanded to police custody.

NEW-AGE CRIME

A portable magnetic cardreader can store data from around a dozen cards
tha t have been swiped through it; made in China, the device was bought
on the net for Rs 18,000.

The card-reader is connected to a computer and the entire data is
transferred there.

The data is then stored in blank cards available in the grey market.

These duplicate cards can now be used to buy a fortune and also
withdraw
money from ATMs.

Sunday, February 25, 2007

All about Proxy Servers

A proxy server is a computer that offers a computer network service to
allow clients to make indirect network connections to other network
services. A client connects to the proxy server, then requests a
connection, file, or other resource available on a different server. The proxy
provides the resource either by connecting to the specified server or by
serving it from a cache. In some cases, the proxy may alter the
client's request or the server's response for various purposes.

Web proxies

A common proxy application is a caching Web proxy. This provides a
nearby cache of Web pages and files available on remote Web servers,
allowing local network clients to access them more quickly or reliably.

When it receives a request for a Web resource (specified by a URL), a
caching proxy looks for the resulting URL in its local cache. If found,
it returns the document immediately. Otherwise it fetches it from the
remote server, returns it to the requester and saves a copy in the
cache. The cache usually uses an expiry algorithm to remove documents from
the cache, according to their age, size, and access history. Two simple
cache algorithms are Least Recently Used (LRU) and Least Frequently
Used (LFU). LRU removes the least-recently used documents, and LFU removes
the least-frequently used documents.

Web proxies can also filter the content of Web pages served. Some
censorware applications — which attempt to block offensive Web content — are
implemented as Web proxies. Other web proxies reformat web pages for a
specific purpose or audience; for example, Skweezer reformats web pages
for cell phones and PDAs. Network operators can also deploy proxies to
intercept computer viruses and other hostile content served from remote
Web pages.

A special case of web proxies are "CGI proxies." These are web sites
which allow a user to access a site through them. They generally use PHP
or CGI to implement the proxying functionality. CGI proxies are
frequently used to gain access to web sites blocked by corporate or school
proxies. Since they also hide the user's own IP address from the web sites
they access through the proxy, they are sometimes also used to gain a
degree of anonymity.


Open Proxies, abuse, and detection

An open proxy is a proxy server which will accept client connections
from any IP address and make connections to any Internet resource. Abuse
of open proxies is currently implicated in a significant portion of
e-mail spam delivery. Spammers frequently install open proxies on
unwitting end users' Microsoft Windows computers by means of computer viruses
designed for this purpose. Internet Relay Chat (IRC) abusers also
frequently use open proxies to cloak their identities.

Because proxies could be implicated in abuse, system administrators
have developed a number of ways to refuse service to open proxies. IRC
networks such as the Blitzed network automatically test client systems for
known types of open proxy. Likewise, an email server may be configured
to automatically test e-mail senders for open proxies, using software
such as Michael Tokarev's proxycheck.

Groups of IRC and electronic mail operators run DNSBLs publishing lists
of the IP addresses of known open proxies, such as Blitzed OPM and CBL.

The ethics of automatically testing clients for open proxies are
controversial. Some experts, such as Vernon Schryver, consider such testing
to be equivalent to an attacker portscanning the client host. Others
consider the client to have solicited the scan by connecting to a server
whose terms of service include testing.


Anonymous proxy risks

In using a proxy server (for example, anonymizing HTTP proxy), all data
sent to the service being used (for example, HTTP server in a website)
must pass through the proxy server before being sent to the service,
mostly in unencrypted form. It is therefore possible, and has been
demonstrated, for a malicious proxy server to record everything sent to the
proxy: including unencrypted logins and passwords.

By chaining proxies which do not reveal data about the original
requestor, it is possible to obfuscate activities from the eyes of the user's
destination. However, more traces will be left on the intermediate
hops, which could be used or offered up to trace the user's activities. If
the policies and administrators of these other proxies are unknown, the
user may fall victim to a false sense of security just because those
details are out of sight and mind.

The bottom line of this is to be wary when using proxy servers, and
only use proxy servers of known integrity (e.g., the owner is known and
trusted, has a clear privacy policy, etc.), and never use proxy servers
of unknown integrity. If there is no choice but to use unknown proxy
servers, do not pass any private information (unless it is properly
encrypted) through the proxy.

Internet Anonymity


When communicating with others over the Internet, it is frequently
preferred to not use any sort of identifiable handle (such as a "user name"
or other arbitrary way of identifying who is speaking). The most
popular worldwide example of this is within the Japanese forum 2channel. The
forum prides itself on the total anonymity of those who post to the
channel. The administrators of 2channel see the anonymous posting as a
real benefit to those who post to the forum, because it is the argument,
not the credibility of the author, that is being debated. This is in
stark contrast to other Internet forums, such as Slashdot. In
Slashdot-style forums, the ability to post anonymously is available, but other
users of the forum tend to hold the content of the post in a lower regard
than they would if the same post was sent by a user with a registered
username. The Slashdot forum encourages this tendency by attributing
posts like this to "Anonymous Coward," implying that the poster lacks the
courage to stand by his or her statement.

When sending messages over the Internet, many people enjoy a sense of
anonymity (or at least pseudonymity). Many popular systems, such as
Usenet, e-mail, instant messaging, and web forums, and P2P systems, foster
this perception because there is often no obvious way for a casual user
to connect other users with a "real world" identity.

On a technical level, all computers on the Internet use the Internet
Protocol to speak to each other. Two-way communication at the protocol
level requires that both parties know the IP address of the other. If
communications are logged (for example, by the owner of a web-based
bulletin board) or intercepted, the IP address of otherwise anonymous
recipients may be discovered. Sometimes IP addresses are exposed directly as a
feature of the communication system (often the case on Internet Relay
Chat networks.) Casual users often do not feel that knowledge of their
IP address is enough for other participants to connect their online
activities to their "real world" identities. Depending on their technical,
physical, and legal access, a determined party (such a government
prosecutor, or plaintiff in a lawsuit, or a determined stalker) may be able
to do so, especially if they are assisted by the records of the
Internet Service Provider which has assigned the IP address. Some IP addresses
represent a specific computer. Others, due to proxies and Network
Address Translation may represent any number of computers or users. It is
usually easy to identify which ISP assigned the address, and this may
reveal some identifying information about a person, such as geographic
location or with the use of geo software the affiliation with a certain
organization.

To achieve strong anonymity, intermediate services may be employed to
thwart attempts at identification, even by governments. These attempt to
use cryptography, passage through multiple legal jurisdictions, and
various methods to thwart traffic analysis to achieve this. Examples
include anonymous remailers, Anonymous P2P systems, and services of the
Anonymizer company, among others. There are a wide variety of software
packages available that allow you to hide/conceal your IP address by using
proxy servers. These packages include: Anonymizer, Anonymous Surfing,
Proxify, NetConceal, Privacy Pro, Ghost Surf, Hide IP, Stealth Surf, and

A proxy server is a computer that offers a computer network service to
allow clients to make indirect network connections to other network
services. A client connects to the proxy server, then requests a
connection, file, or other resource available on a different server. The proxy
provides the resource either by connecting to the specified server or by
serving it from a cache. In some cases, the proxy may alter the
client's request or the server's response for various purposes.

Web proxies

A common proxy application is a caching Web proxy. This provides a
nearby cache of Web pages and files available on remote Web servers,
allowing local network clients to access them more quickly or reliably.

When it receives a request for a Web resource (specified by a URL), a
caching proxy looks for the resulting URL in its local cache. If found,
it returns the document immediately. Otherwise it fetches it from the
remote server, returns it to the requester and saves a copy in the
cache. The cache usually uses an expiry algorithm to remove documents from
the cache, according to their age, size, and access history. Two simple
cache algorithms are Least Recently Used (LRU) and Least Frequently
Used (LFU). LRU removes the least-recently used documents, and LFU removes
the least-frequently used documents.

Web proxies can also filter the content of Web pages served. Some
censorware applications — which attempt to block offensive Web content — are
implemented as Web proxies. Other web proxies reformat web pages for a
specific purpose or audience; for example, Skweezer reformats web pages
for cell phones and PDAs. Network operators can also deploy proxies to
intercept computer viruses and other hostile content served from remote
Web pages.

A special case of web proxies are "CGI proxies." These are web sites
which allow a user to access a site through them. They generally use PHP
or CGI to implement the proxying functionality. CGI proxies are
frequently used to gain access to web sites blocked by corporate or school
proxies. Since they also hide the user's own IP address from the web sites
they access through the proxy, they are sometimes also used to gain a
degree of anonymity.


Open Proxies, abuse, and detection

An open proxy is a proxy server which will accept client connections
from any IP address and make connections to any Internet resource. Abuse
of open proxies is currently implicated in a significant portion of
e-mail spam delivery. Spammers frequently install open proxies on
unwitting end users' Microsoft Windows computers by means of computer viruses
designed for this purpose. Internet Relay Chat (IRC) abusers also
frequently use open proxies to cloak their identities.

Because proxies could be implicated in abuse, system administrators
have developed a number of ways to refuse service to open proxies. IRC
networks such as the Blitzed network automatically test client systems for
known types of open proxy. Likewise, an email server may be configured
to automatically test e-mail senders for open proxies, using software
such as Michael Tokarev's proxycheck.

Groups of IRC and electronic mail operators run DNSBLs publishing lists
of the IP addresses of known open proxies, such as Blitzed OPM and CBL.

The ethics of automatically testing clients for open proxies are
controversial. Some experts, such as Vernon Schryver, consider such testing
to be equivalent to an attacker portscanning the client host. Others
consider the client to have solicited the scan by connecting to a server
whose terms of service include testing.


Anonymous proxy risks

In using a proxy server (for example, anonymizing HTTP proxy), all data
sent to the service being used (for example, HTTP server in a website)
must pass through the proxy server before being sent to the service,
mostly in unencrypted form. It is therefore possible, and has been
demonstrated, for a malicious proxy server to record everything sent to the
proxy: including unencrypted logins and passwords.

By chaining proxies which do not reveal data about the original
requestor, it is possible to obfuscate activities from the eyes of the user's
destination. However, more traces will be left on the intermediate
hops, which could be used or offered up to trace the user's activities. If
the policies and administrators of these other proxies are unknown, the
user may fall victim to a false sense of security just because those
details are out of sight and mind.

The bottom line of this is to be wary when using proxy servers, and
only use proxy servers of known integrity (e.g., the owner is known and
trusted, has a clear privacy policy, etc.), and never use proxy servers
of unknown integrity. If there is no choice but to use unknown proxy
servers, do not pass any private information (unless it is properly
encrypted) through the proxy.

Internet Anonymity


When communicating with others over the Internet, it is frequently
preferred to not use any sort of identifiable handle (such as a "user name"
or other arbitrary way of identifying who is speaking). The most
popular worldwide example of this is within the Japanese forum 2channel. The
forum prides itself on the total anonymity of those who post to the
channel. The administrators of 2channel see the anonymous posting as a
real benefit to those who post to the forum, because it is the argument,
not the credibility of the author, that is being debated. This is in
stark contrast to other Internet forums, such as Slashdot. In
Slashdot-style forums, the ability to post anonymously is available, but other
users of the forum tend to hold the content of the post in a lower regard
than they would if the same post was sent by a user with a registered
username. The Slashdot forum encourages this tendency by attributing
posts like this to "Anonymous Coward," implying that the poster lacks the
courage to stand by his or her statement.

When sending messages over the Internet, many people enjoy a sense of
anonymity (or at least pseudonymity). Many popular systems, such as
Usenet, e-mail, instant messaging, and web forums, and P2P systems, foster
this perception because there is often no obvious way for a casual user
to connect other users with a "real world" identity.

On a technical level, all computers on the Internet use the Internet
Protocol to speak to each other. Two-way communication at the protocol
level requires that both parties know the IP address of the other. If
communications are logged (for example, by the owner of a web-based
bulletin board) or intercepted, the IP address of otherwise anonymous
recipients may be discovered. Sometimes IP addresses are exposed directly as a
feature of the communication system (often the case on Internet Relay
Chat networks.) Casual users often do not feel that knowledge of their
IP address is enough for other participants to connect their online
activities to their "real world" identities. Depending on their technical,
physical, and legal access, a determined party (such a government
prosecutor, or plaintiff in a lawsuit, or a determined stalker) may be able
to do so, especially if they are assisted by the records of the
Internet Service Provider which has assigned the IP address. Some IP addresses
represent a specific computer. Others, due to proxies and Network
Address Translation may represent any number of computers or users. It is
usually easy to identify which ISP assigned the address, and this may
reveal some identifying information about a person, such as geographic
location or with the use of geo software the affiliation with a certain
organization.

To achieve strong anonymity, intermediate services may be employed to
thwart attempts at identification, even by governments. These attempt to
use cryptography, passage through multiple legal jurisdictions, and
various methods to thwart traffic analysis to achieve this. Examples
include anonymous remailers, Anonymous P2P systems, and services of the
Anonymizer company, among others. There are a wide variety of software
packages available that allow you to hide/conceal your IP address by using
proxy servers. These packages include: Anonymizer, Anonymous Surfing,
Proxify, NetConceal, Privacy Pro, Ghost Surf, Hide IP, Stealth Surf, and
many more.
many more.